Humor was a hallmark of former and dearly loved president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Gordon B. Hinckley. He loved to share humor in his talks, and the story shared below is one from a talk he gave years ago at a large meeting of the youth of the Church. He was unable not to laugh several times himself as he told the group the following — a story we laugh about, too, as we visualize the scene each time we read it or hear it told.

President Hinckley said:

“As I consider some of the problems people cause themselves by failing to look ahead, I think of a letter I clipped a long time ago from a newspaper. It was first published in England. I hope you will pardon a bit of humor. I use it this evening to set the stage for what I wish to say.

“It appears that an English company owned a property in the West Indies. A violent storm damaged one of the buildings, and a man was sent to make repairs. Of his experience, he wrote the manager as follows:

‘Respected Sir,

‘When I got to the building, I found that the hurricane had knocked some bricks off the top. So I rigged up a beam with a pulley at the top of the building and hoisted up a couple of barrels full of bricks. When I had fixed the building, there was a lot of bricks left over.

‘I hoisted the barrel back up again and secured the line at the bottom, and then went up and filled the barrel with the extra bricks. Then I went to the bottom and cast off the line.

‘Unfortunately, the barrel of bricks was heavier than I was, and before I knew what was happening the barrel started down, jerking me off the ground. I decided to hang on, and halfway up I met the barrel coming down and received a severe blow on the shoulder.

‘I then continued to the top, banging my head against the beam and getting my finger jammed in the pulley. When the barrel hit the ground, it bursted its bottom, allowing all the bricks to spill out.

‘I was now heavier than the barrel and so started down again at high speed. Halfway down, I met the barrel coming up and received severe injuries to my shins. When I hit the ground, I landed on the bricks, getting several painful cuts from the sharp edges.

‘At this point I must have lost my presence of mind, because I let go of the line. The barrel then came down, giving me another heavy blow on the head and putting me in the hospital.

‘I respectfully request sick leave.’”

President Hinckley then continued:

“After hearing that story, you may wonder how anyone could be so thoughtless and shortsighted. And yet every day we see people whose lives become entangled and who are bumped and bruised because they fail to plan, to think, to consult with others, to follow the teachings of the Gospel. I appreciate what has been said tonight to the Young Men of the Church. And since they constitute a very substantial part of this vast congregation, boys whose lives are largely ahead of them, I should like to speak to them, to help save them from some of the bumps and bruises of life.

“I should like to offer what I have chosen to call “Four Bs for Boys. “They are: 1. Be Smart, 2. Be Fair, 3. Be Clean, and 4. Be True (all of which he elaborated upon).

“These, of course, are lessons for all of us to learn and apply every day of our lives.” And he continued with his talk.

Dean & Nancy Hoch are part of the Communication Council of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They may be reached at dean.nancy@gmail.com.