Terry Curtis is one of those people that could easily disappear
into the crowd. Looking at him he is completely
average and unassuming. You could be on
a bus with him and not even notice that he was there. But when you talk to him and sit down and get
to know him you will realize that he is a man of great depth and character.
I got to know Terry in England where I was serving as a
missionary and he was a local member of the church. He was actually responsible for the
missionary work in his ward and so we got to spend a lot of time together. Terry was an absolute delight. He loved music and poetry and loved the work
that we were doing.
Terry taught me a lot about being happy and what is really
important. He taught me about how
enriching diverse cultures can be. He
was certainly an example of selfless service and love.
Upon leaving that city Terry and his dear wife Rosy gave me
a set of three books. One was a great
photo journal about the city of Leicester.
The others were the Dalai Lama’s Freedom
from Exile and the autobiography of Mahatma Gandhi called, The Story of my Experiments with Truth. The latter has had a great impact on
me. It is important to note that I have
always loved the study of world religions and have sought to find understanding
with people from around the globe. One
of my favorite things about serving a mission in England was the opportunity to
meet and get to know people from over 90 countries. I sat in the homes of all kinds of
Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Atheists and even a few Taoists. One of my favorite experiences was a meeting with
a devout Druid. I loved these interactions, I loved learning of their culture
and finding their truths. So when I was
had returned home and had the chance to read Gandhi’s book I was deeply
impacted.
I read the book with a pen in hand and took down notes,
highlighted important points, added cross-references to scripture and other
important writings. I learned some wonderful lessons about how to
treat people that are very different from me.
I learned that Gandhi’s greatest power came from his desire to learn and
understand what is true. He was not
always a great leader, he was not always a great man, but in the end he had an
insatiable desire to understand truth.
This book impacted the way that I eat, or perhaps more
accurately the way that I ate. After
reading the book I was fascinated with Gandhi’s interest in nutrition. It was his favorite subject in many ways and
he made it his life mission to learn to eat well. It reminded me of some of the thoughts that
Benjamin Franklin shared about his diet while a young man. It made me decide that I needed to be more
aware of what and how I ate. In fact it
lead to a period of my life where I went a couple of years without ever buying
red meat, I ate fish and some chicken but I was very careful about what I put
into my body. Chocolate Milk and M&M’s
being the glaring exception. I kept up
that diet for a long time, it was not extreme and if I was at a family dinner
with meat I ate it happily, but where I could control my own food purchases I
did. I have somewhat gone away from that
in the past few years, although I still don’t eat red meat very often and I am
still trying to eat healthy foods
between my M&M’s and animal cookies.
I would not have had these experiences and learned these
lessons. My life would not have been
shaped the way that it had if Terry had never been in my life. In a very real way he impacted my diet for several
years. He impacted the way that I listen
to people and think about their problems.
Reflecting now I wish that I were still as impacted today as I was when
first reading the book. Regardless, Terry
passed the test as one who impacted my life through his simple acts. I have had very little interaction with Terry
since leaving England. I have often
wondered how he is doing and what he is doing.
He is a man that I will always have a great love for. So Terry, wherever you are and whatever you
are doing. Thank you for changing my
life.
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