The One That Got Lost in Translation

Casey turns 20 years old this month. I will never see Casey as a 20-year-old! He is a missionary in the Texas Dallas Mission. He teaches Spanish-speaking people there the basic principles of our religion. If you don't know Casey, you are missing out. Casey definitely inherited the McD family sarcasm, wit, and tendency to get into trouble. Third child out of seven, tall and way too skinny, he could have just turned out to be a nerd. But not Casey. He has always managed to make everything he does look effortless and cool.

In one of his recent letters home, he described how his ward in Mt. Pleasant meets in a funeral home. The clerk's office is the enbalming room. A lady who had been recently baptized attended church on Sunday, and Casey accompanied her to the women's meeting the third hour of church, so that he could translate for her. He translated the lesson, but not exactly... he found that the lesson was lacking in essential doctrine, and so he "may have mistranslated just a little bit in order to teach some basic principles... whoops!" Okay, we may be a little glib at times, but McDs know how to get the job done. Casey likes to quote a line from his missionary handbook, that says, "How great is your calling!"

That's our Casey. And so to celebrate his birthday, here is a little song I wrote called "He Hears Me." It is sung by Rachel Ricchio, and talks about the principle of prayer. Happy Birthday, Elder McD!




He Hears Me

When it’s time to rest at the end of the day
I go to my room and I kneel down to pray
But when I close my eyes and I open up my heart,
Is my Heavenly Father listening?

In a quiet grove a young boy knelt one day.
Though he didn’t know how, he was determined to pray.
And when he closed his eyes and he opened up his heart,
Was his Heavenly Father listening?

Joseph felt the power of darkness and he started to despair
But a beautiful bright light appeared in answer to his prayer
In the light above his head he saw the Father and the Son.
He knew his Heavenly Father was listening.

Does He love me? Does He know by name?
Yes, He knows me like Joseph and He loves me the same.
So when I close my eyes and I open up my heart,
Then my room becomes my own Sacred Grove…
Because he knows me
And he loves me.
When I close my eyes in humble prayer
I know my Heavenly Father hears me.