The Phoenix that is Russell

Tonight, while we were at BYU, I realized something about my brother Russell.

When you meet Russell, what you see is what you get. He acts the same with his close friends as he does with strangers. He doesn't try to make anyone like him or dislike him--he's just Russell all the time.

At first, I realized that it made me uncomfortable. When he was checking into his apartment, Russell acted very "not-business-like." He was making jokes and talking like he was among friends.

Then I saw him interact with a roommate that he had never met.

Lastly, as we were moving stuff out of my car, I commented that we would go much faster if someone was helping us. Russell, whose hands were full of stuff, walked up to a guy who was reading scriptures and said, "My brother and I have a bet. What scripture says 'if you do it unto the least of these my brethren you do it unto me?'" Instead of getting the hint, the guy gave us the reference but did not offer to help. While it was funny, I was almost embarrassed by it.

All those experiences opened my eyes to who Russell truly is. He doesn't care what others think and I love that about him; I really wish I had the same quality. I'm not uncomfortable anymore because it's who he is.

I told Russell that he's like a phoenix in the midst of all these stuck-up BYU people, and it's really true when you watch him.