By Jens Dana
Lee Braithwaite, professor of integrative biology, shared personal experiences at Tuesday?s Devotional to encourage students and faculty to develop friendships while at BYU.
?I have made many friends while being here,? Braithwaite said. ?I am going to focus on being a good friend, and I ask that all of you might reflect on what kind of a friend are you. We all function much better when we are all friends and are united.?
Braithwaite said his grandfather was one of his best friends because he always encouraged him to practice until he succeeded. Over the years, his grandfather?s counsel helped Braithwaite whenever he faced challenges, especially when he was struggling with a difficult class in college.
?I was very frightened,? he said. ?I didn?t think I could pass it, let along get a good grade. I remembered my granddaddy?s story, and I studied up to, believe it or not, six hours each school day.?
He encouraged students to practice and study hard, especially in subjects they might otherwise avoid.
Although many of his comments were directed to students, Braithwaite emphasized his comments were intended for BYU faculty as well.
?I, as a professor, believe it is very important to be friends with students,? he said.
When he began teaching at BYU in 1964, Braithwaite said one of the senior faculty advised him not to get too close to students because it would lessen the student?s drive to work.
?I liked that professor and tried it,? he said. ?But I found he was wrong, very wrong. If I become a friend to my students, they work harder, not less.?
Braithwaite also shared an experience he had with Elder Mark E. Peterson of the Quorum of the Twelve. The brief encounter with the apostle taught him an important lesson about doing and trying, he said.
?There is a difference between liking to accomplish something and doing it,? he said. ?There is a big difference. It can make the difference between trying to make the Celestial Kingdom and qualifying. It can mean graduating from BYU ? not just trying, but doing it.?
To pull these ideas together, Braithwaite drew attention to examples of great friendship.
?Good friends are so important to each of us,? he said. ?May we be true friends and lift as many up as we can, and may we do this with the spirit President Hinckley so beautifully extends to us. May we follow our Father in Heaven as perfectly as possible. May we follow our Savior as very best we can, and may we be very good friends ? true friends ? to them.?
