Robison Sundell

A very close friend of mine passed away today from a serious longboarding accident. Last night, I drove up to Salt Lake last night to see him at the hospital. When I first found out that he was hurt, all we knew was that it was bad, really bad. They told me to just to stay at home because I wouldn't be able to do much up there either. I felt terrible sitting at home and all I could do was cry...then I got the call saying that he didn't have much of a chance of pulling through and I drove right up to the hospital. I was a few minutes away when the call came saying that we had to go in and say goodbye a few at a time.

Robi's parents were sitting with him and when I walked in, I lost it. I kept hugging his parents and then I just started telling them all about Robi and what he did for me...I was most impressed by how much they cared about me. When their son was lying there on the hospital bed, they asked us who we were, how we were doing, if we had any questions. They are amazing.


I just sent this email to his brother who had asked friends to send some memories and pictures his way. I was going to write a blog about Robi but thought that just sharing this email would be enough.

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Every story I have about Mr. Robison is a great one but if I told you them all now...this could easily be the longest email of my life. I have many pictures and I'll send some of my favs, but if you want more, I would love to send them your way.

My story with Robi Sundell started my sophomore year at BYU. The Lib Square brought us together. This lone man from Vegas was thrown into a bunch of rowdy guys from Burley and they were perfect for each other. I was instantly drawn to his outgoing personality and loved the way that he was just Robi, whether you liked it or not. He volunteered to let me question him about relationships. He even did mini-dates with me where we sat down for 10 minutes just so I could get points for my marriage prep class - let me tell you, those were some of the greatest mini-dates of my life. He always came up with the most amazing, silly, goofy comments. Before long, Robi would show up in a robe only to then strip of it and make us scream as he danced/chased us in his speedo. Liberty Square did a Halloween dance and of course Robi shows up in his long, white trash, blonde wig, a pink robe, and rollerblades. Pretty soon he was just sporting that lovely speedo again. My apartment does General Conference breakfasts and even when Robi and I didn't live by each other - he would show up and save us. He would take over the kitchen and make the eggs, pancakes, bacon, and french toast better than 1 girl manning each station could. Then no matter how hard we fought it, he would clean up after. My best friend and I are big into BYU Basketball and decided to campout at the Marriott so that we could get good tickets for the BYU vs. UofU game. Robi let us take his tent and the warmest sleeping bags he had. We were determined that we could put that tent up ourselves but when dark rolled around and the snow started falling and we were failing miserably - Robi showed up anyway and made sure we were going to be alright.

Then there was the JEWEL. I am not a crazy daredevil type but Robi pushed me into that monster of a car and drove me right up mountains. I have never said "What are we doing?! What are we doing!?" in a higher, more terrified scream in my life. I have a few videos from that night and in one of them you can hear him say, "Apparently, you get in big trouble if they catch ya." Of course, we were doing it anyway. Oh - and one of my favorite things I learned about Robi that year was that he grew a mustache whenever he was mad at a girl. haha so Robi.

I am so glad the our friendship didn't end after Liberty Square. We both moved and lived about 8 blocks from each other. Robi would show up at least weekly to my place with his longboard. We talked about everything. I can still close my eyes and hear his voice and see him lick his bottom lip the way he did when he was telling a good story. Most of the time we argued over motorcycles and guns - 2 things I dislike so much, 2 things he loved, the 2 things that we joked would ever keep us from being together forever. This summer he called me to see if I was home. I told him I was sitting on my lawn reading and he was going to come over. 2 minutes later I hear a motorcycle stop by my house. There was Robi who had rode up onto the sidewalk with the most gigantic motorcycle I have ever seen. I got on it with him and I still can't believe I did it, but I knew Robi would take care of me. He wouldn't go faster than I wanted and I think he is the only man that will ever get me on a bike. The last thing I said to Robi was how much I loved him even if he loved the two things I would never allow...

Robi blessed my life so much. He made me smile more than anyone I have ever met. He cared about our friendship and made an effort to see me. He made me feel special, loved, unique, and proud to be Tati.

1, 2, 3, 4

1. This morning as we were singing the National Anthem, one of my students grabbed my hands and started swaying (this is how he dances) with me as he sang. I couldn't stop laughing. The same student later grabbed me during Signing Time as Rachel Coleman was singing "Outside" and ran me around in circles. haha It was unreal.

2. I went home this last weekend. BEAUTIFUL. The weather changed just in time for me to come and enjoy it. I couldn't have asked for a better weekend at home. I got to see my Cougars play at Qualcom. I got to go to the beach twice. I got to eat Mr. Taco. I got to see all my favorite people. AND I got to spend lots of time with my family...although we didn't play any charades this time. Guess Christmas will provide plenty of opportunity for charades :)

3. Someone started singing "You are my sunshine" in class today. One of the first girls I ever worked in up here in Utah used to sing that to me as I would take her to the bathroom. She was the happiest girl who just would light up with music. This song and working with students with disabilities reminds me of a talk once shared in my first semester in the special ed program. It's called "Jesus Hears Me." If you have a few minutes to spare - read it. I cry, even now, as I read it. I forget how close they bring me to the Savior everyday. I have a sweet girl, much like Heather, and her blue eyes, sweet giggles, and few words of "tickle tickle" as she tickles at your back, have an innocence unlike any other. She smiles as she gets off the bus. She smiles as she gets back on to go home. She smiles as she is stretched and made to stand in her stander for 20 minutes. She knows she is special. She knows she is loved and she shares that with all that know her.

4. "To infinity and beyond!" - Toy Story is a favorite in my classroom. We have been slowly watching it and I am surprised at what my students can quote. My dancing boy from earlier is the one who quotes Buzz Lightyear all the time. I will start with "To infinity..." and he will always finish it. My favorite part though is when the toys all gang up on Sid. He is holding Woody in his hand and Woody spins his head creepily around and says something like "We are watching you...So PLAY NICE!" and seriously, at least 3 of my kids said "play nice" with Woody. Kinda cute.

I have a lot to say

As you know, I work with the most adorable kids ever. I don't know how I got so lucky. My heart has just been overwhelmed and is as full as I think a heart can get.Every look they give me fills me with love. I know they love me. On top of them, Conference last week just left me feeling that love is a crucial aspect that many of us are overlooking or avoiding. I am so lucky because everyday I feel my Heavenly Father's love for both me and my students. Everyday I am filled with a Christlike love for them. And everyday they love me back. I loved Elder Uchtdorf's talk. It was all about love and the love of God. He at one point said, "Heaven may seem distant at times". I thought about it and realized that with love, I see a glimpse of Heaven everyday. Everyday it seems so close because my students have a relationship to Heavenly Father that we don't yet understand. We had a sub last week who asked me why, if Heavenly Father loved them, would he give them these struggles? She said she had heard the "silly" answers like it is for us to learn to love...I believe that a lot of it is for us to learn that love. Yes, I know there is so much more behind it. I know that their lives are difficult but I believe that they knew their disabilities, physically and mentally, would be their challenge here on earth. Many who can communicate have said that if there was a cure for their disabilitiy they wouldn't want it. I know that they are strong and while I cannot even imagine what that would be like, they are doing it.

This week I just felt my class come together. They have started sharing and giggling together. One of my kids has started saying more words than he has ever said before. He said his colors, good morning, and hello! The behavior issues with another student have begun to decrease. We have really become a class. My techs/aides are also amazing. They are so much fun to talk to and they know that I love these kids.

More on my life - Dad came up for an interview this week. We got dinner together on Thursday. I haven't had one on one time with my dad for so long. It was one of the greatest weekends I have had. We went to Guru's for dinner and we were there for 2 hours just talking. He is such a strong man. He is so close to Heavenly Father and any other family in our situation would be worried about their future, but dad has continued to do the best things and I know that whether my family moves to Logan, Draper, or stays in San Diego, it will be the right thing. Friday night I then drove with my dad and his buddy Jared down to St. George. More time with dad :) Him and Jared reminisced much of the drive and sang their old music and I loved it. They were just having fun. Saturday morning Dad and I visisted Tim. I love the Cummings family. I am so impressed at their strength. When Tim woke up and saw Dad...I will never forget the smile on Tim's face. He was so happy to see dad. We talked for an hour and a half, an hour and a half I won't forget. After that we went back to get Jared and we began the drive back to Provo...but we drove through Snow Canyon and Zion National Park. BEAUTIFUL. We walked a bit at Snow Canyon and I just felt like the little girl again. The little girl my dad and his buddies would take out fishing, hiking, climbing. A good trip.

And then to end this wonderful week - the COUGARS WON :)