Welcome to Follow Him Favorites.

This is where John and I share a single story to go with each week's lesson.

John, we're in the Ten Commandments this week.

I read, honor thy father and thy mother, and I have a story for you.

This is Elder Patrick Kieran 16 years ago in General Conference.

He said he was seven years old. He lives in the Arabian Peninsula. I don't know why he's seven and lives there, but he says, I was consistently

told by my parents to always wear shoes. He has a way better accent than me. He said, I knew that

the shoes would protect my feet against the many threats of the desert,

snakes, scorpions, thorns. I like he put those in order. Snake, scorpions, even worse,

thorns. Thorns. Yeah. One morning after a night's camping in the desert, I wanted to go exploring,

but I didn't want to bother putting on my shoes. I rationalized that I was only going for a little

wander and I would stay close by the camp. So instead of shoes, I wore my flip-flops. I told myself,

flip-flops are shoes, sort of. What could possibly happen? As I walked along the cool sand

in my flip-flops, I felt something like a thorn going into the arch of my foot. I looked

down and saw not a thorn, a scorpion. As my mind registered the scorpion, and I realized what

had just happened, the pain of the sting began to rise from my foot and up my leg. I grabbed the top

of my leg and tried to stop the pain from moving farther.

I cried out for help and my parents came running from the camp. My father battered the scorpion

with a shovel. An adult who was camping with us heroically tried to suck the venom from my foot.

Thanks. That, friend.

That's awkward.

Yeah.

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