This is the Forrest Daniel Roberts that I fell in love with 4 years ago. Forrest likes this picture because his neck looks really thick (apparently guys aim for this physical trait?) and I must admit, he is a very very attractive man inside and out. I met Forrest his first year at BYU because he lived in my apartment complex and he was in my ward at church. That September, everyone thought that he was at least 21 years old, when in fact, he had not even reached the ripe old, mission-serving age of 19 yet. Admittedly, he looked older and acted older than he was (perhaps thanks to the examples of his three older brothers?) and I think he enjoyed when people (especially ladies) mistook him for a missionary returned.
I took my first look at Forrest on the first Sunday of the school year during church. He was sitting next to fellow Wyomingian and current roommate, Jory Woodis, and I admit, my first reaction was similar to that of our peers: 1. I thought he was a handsome man 2. He looked like an RM
Soon after that church meeting, I pointed him out to a friend and asked who he was. From that conversation I learned his age, and well, that put an end to any thoughts of dating Forrest Roberts....that is, for about 4 months. That was my initial response to Forrest.
Ironically, I spent quite a bit of time with Forrest during the semester, but it was always at the invitation of one of his roommates. The second time I spent a prolonged period of time with Forrest was when Jory asked if I wanted to go see Spiderman at the dollar theater and Forrest tagged along (or maybe I was tagging along...I am still not sure). At this point in time, half of Forrest's face was frozen and he couldn't move his left eye or left side of his mouth. (see picture below) Jory kept making mean jokes about his handicapped face, so I thought that Forrest's condition was permanent and that his face was just stuck that way. Anything that ends in "palsy" sounds permanent to me. This was my second impression of Forrest.
I saw him and spent time with him sporadically through the rest of the semester. His brothers Ben and Logan came down to Provo and I went to Divine Comedy with Jory and all of them and Ben put his hand on my leg thinking it was Forrest's. Who would have thought that Ben and Logan were going to be my brothers?! Then, Christmas came and went.....before long..January came. And then Forrest showed up at my apartment and asked me if I wanted to go ice skating in 5 minutes. Apparently, his roommates had planned a group date and he wanted me to go last minute. I actually had friends at my apartment that I had invited over for the evening, but I said yes to Forrest, put on my coat and gloves and went ice skating. That is pretty much how I have felt about Forrest ever since (although, hopefully I would never be so rude as to just leave a roomful of friends again.)
It seems that I found everything I could have ever wanted in Forrest and I am so lucky to have him and his wonderful family. He lets me sleep extra in the morning and he makes me breakfast before work and he packs my lunch every day. He gets up at 6 a.m. to read his scriptures and he studies for hours every night so that he will excel in school. He reads in his spare time because he likes learning. He is dedicated and works at and fulfills everything he commits to. He knows and loves the gospel. He loves everything related to football and he can put up a pretty good fight in just about every sport (except maybe baseball and hockey?) He is witty (smart-funny) and he laughs at my unwitty jokes. He has an uncanny ability to counsel and advise and comfort (a trait inherited from his father, no doubt) and he is a better friend than any a girl could ask for.
My sister Laurel thinks I'm ridiculous but every time she and I would watch a movie together, I would think that the guy in the movie had the same facial expressions or looked or acted exactly like Forrest. Here are some examples:
Why the tribute? Because its his 23rd Birthday on Saturday! Happy Birthday Forrest Roberts! I love you.
