President Hinckley will be missed

I have seen several blog tributes to our beloved President Hinckley since his passing on Sunday and I just wanted to write a little one of my own. President Hinckley has been the prophet since I was twelve years old and I have always felt a special love for him. He is so optimistic and positive, which for me has been so comforting in this scary world. I tend to be a worrier, but every time I heard him speak my worries were lessened and I was left feeling hopeful. I am so grateful for his lifetime of service and hard work. He truly gave his life to the service of the Lord and I will miss seeing his smiling face at our conferences.

When I lived in Chicago growing up, President Hinckley came and spoke at the United Center to all the members in the area. I remember when he walked in we all sang we thank thee oh God for a prophet and he smiled and waved at all of us. I felt the spirit so strongly testify that he was the mouthpiece of God on the earth. Later I was able to sit very close to the front of the conference center and see him as he walked by and I felt that same spirit again.

His smile was so infectious, and I will always picture President Hinckley with his cute wife Marjory. I will never forget his sweet tribute to his wife and to all women in the conference address after she passed away. My overall feeling when I heard that President Hinckley had died was of happiness for him. I am so happy to know that he gets to be with his cute wife again, and so many other family members that he loves. I think the tribute from the quorum of the twelve apostles honors him perfectly:

“Members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles express our heartfelt love and admiration for President Gordon B. Hinckley and the singular life of service he lived. He was our prophet, our leader, our brother and our friend. We feel a deep, personal loss at his passing. He unfailingly demonstrated his devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ, whose witness he was at home and abroad.

“We will miss his wit and his wisdom, his leadership and his love. However, we cannot but rejoice in his reunion with his beloved Marjorie, with his parents and other family members who have gone before, and with the prophets of God, both ancient and modern, among whose eternal ranks he now stands. As the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles we echo the voice of the Master, ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant. … Enter into the joy of thy Lord.’ ”