Carma And Sherrie Nelson

Sherrie Nelson

Sherrie was a good friend.  She moved with her family to Hyrum when I was in high school.  I took her out on a few dates, and she wrote to me while I was on my mission.  She was a year or two younger than me.  I ‘m not sure is she graduated from Sky View, because her family moved back to Brigham City.

Sherrie was pretty much the assistant editor of the Hyrum Crusader with me.  I would ask her to write stories for me, and she would put something together for me.  She also helped me put together the book of poetry and art from young people in Hyrum. 

I can’t remember any particular dates, other than one that the priests put together.  We had spaghetti dinner at the church.  I was slow in getting my date, but all the priests were supposed to have dates.  David Keeley had a regular girlfriend at the time, Joyce Ballard, from Lewiston.  Others of us in this group were Mark Applegarth, James Salvesen, Ronald Salvesen, Kent Nate, Brad Thomas, Neil Frank, Randy Allen, Mike Albrectsen, Randy Wood and Russel Egbert.  I am not sure who they brought.  I don’t think we had our entire group of priests, but we did come close so we had a large group. 

We had the dinner catered by the teachers.  In addition to the spaghetti dinner there was dancing.  It was really a formal affair, and would be akin to the “Mormon Prom” of today but was only our ward.  We didn’t wear tuxes, but we wore our Sunday best.  We did some decorating. 

Anyway, back to Sherrie; she wrote me while I was on my mission, but we never made contact after I returned home.

The story has another paragraph.  My son ran into Sherrie and she now works at the library in Logan.  I was in Logan and stopped by to say “hi” but she was busy working so it didn’t work very well.

Her younger sister Is Carma, who married James Salvesen a high school friend .  However they are no longer together.  They do have children together.  Carma had a poem published in the New Era this past month.  She gave me permission to put it here:

Carma Salvesen, “If,” NewEra, Nov 2010, 49

If I could go to Galilee
And walk where Jesus walked
And sit in tender grasses
On the hillside where He taught.

If I could sit and ponder
On a rock that knew His hand,
Or walk along the seashore
Where His feet had touched the sand.

My spirit yearns within me,
But it doesn’t seem my fate.
I’ll never walk where Jesus walked.
I’ll never see … but wait.

I worship in His temple
Where I know He’s walked before.
Have His feet been down this hallway?
Have His fingers touched this door?

Has He stood here in this very room
And looked at what I see?
In the beauty of His temple
I can feel His love for me.

I close my eyes and picture Him,
My worries melt away.
I don’t need to go to Galilee
Or travel far away.

For my tender heart is filled
With what He wants me to be taught
And my testimony burns within—
I’ve walked where Jesus walked!

Pretty cool, and I knew her when.