My Brad Pitt Moment

Recently, a trip to Wal-Mart took me down memory lane. It all started a little over six years ago when I got assigned to serve my church mission in North Sydney, Australia. After spending three weeks outside Salt Lake City, UT in the mission training center (MTC), i received my flight itinerary. I was traveling with some other "greenies" to Australia and we were to fly into Los Angeles in the evening, have a couple hours layover, than board our fourteen hour flight to Sydney. When we got to LAX, we hung out for awhile and then decided we would takea stroll around the terminal.

We were a little anxious about our journey...anyways, we are strolling along...me (Sister Philippi), another young lady (Sister Roberts), and a young man (Elder Gann). *In case you've never met one, a missionary from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints aka 'Mormon Church' is known as "Sister" or "Elder" along with their last name.*

ANyHoo... This guy passed us and we all kinda' took a minute to register who it was but it was Elder Gann who stated the unbelievable first. "That was Brad Pitt." Yea! It was the GUY in the group who noticed first! Sister Roberts and I said, "yea it sure looked like Brad Pitt" or somethin' along those lines. SisterRoberts may actually have this recorded in more detail than me.

Brad Pitt had walked by to grab a smoke in the outdoor smoking area. We followed him and tried to non-chalantly confirm it was him by glancing sideways out the window into the designated smoke area. Brad had on a colorful knit cap, was completely unshaven, and shorter and slighter in build than he appears on TV. But it was him. We turned around and walked by again. Elder Gann said we should talk to him. After all we are missionaries. This is our job now. To talk to people. My palms started to sweat, my heart was racing and felt like it was going to pound out of my chest. My ears started to ring and my head was swimming.

I guess Brad had finished his cigarette because he passed us on his way to wherever. This time we weren't the only ones who noticed. Some flight attendants walking towards us (and Brad) said "That was Brad Pitt".

This was our chance. We could walk a little faster and catch up to him and introduce ourselves. We could shake his hand...actually touch Brad Pitt...look in his eyes...my stomach is turning flip-flops still today just thinking about it...but we didn't. We didn't walk faster, we didn't introduce ourselves, we didn't shake his hand. The first person we could have talked to as new missionaries could have been Brad Pitt but we let the moment go. We let the opportunity pass. We chickened out.

And the other night, when i was at Wal-Mart, when i glanced behind me and saw Pioneer Woman, THE Pioneer Woman, Ree, all those queasy stomach, head swimming emotions rushed back at me like a tidal wave. To Be Continued...