Though I haven’t called it home in decades, I spent most of my youth in Burley, Idaho, USA. One of the (few?) things that makes Burley a special place is its abundance of intelligent and beautiful young women. Not that that did me any good, for at the time I was far too closed-minded to appreciate genuine intelligence and beauty.

As a young Mormon boy, I was programmed from birth to serve a mission. My parents and church leaders carefully arranged everything in my life toward that end, meticulously steering me away from all potential distractions, chief among which were young women. In family home evening lessons, Sunday school classes, priesthood meetings, and scout activities, one idea was presumptively and incessantly drilled into my head: even something as superficially benign as the shy smile of that cute girl next door could turn me into an “enemy to God.” And that, I was warned, had to be avoided at all costs, even if it meant sacrificing my life.

So, to all those girls in Burley I sanctimoniously judged, looked down upon, or just plain ignored, I want to offer my deepest apologies. I am overwhelmed with regret now when I think about the conversations we could have had, the friendships we could have enjoyed, the kisses we could have shared, the memories we could have created. At the time, I was proud to be an outstanding example of what Mormon mothers hope their sons will be. Now, I am humiliated to realize that I was nothing but an insufferable, pompous ass. Please forgive me.

Maybe there's one there for "southern idaho inactive."

I am from Pocatello but I remember Burley. My mother was born there. I worked there one summer at age 19 at the local pool as a life guard. While working there that summer I dated one of the life guards named Judy Clawson and we had a very good time. Yes I remember Burley way back in the summer of 1963.

The next summer I started my mission (a horrible experience for me) as the oldest son of my Stake President father to set the example for my three younger brothers.

Thanks for nothing.

Hey NLTG, did you know a guy from Burley named Ron Wahlstrom? I went to Ricks with him...saw him last in 1972...can't find him. would like to.

Ron Burr

I once lived in Idaho Falls and wish I hadn't.

When I was going to USU I spent Christmas in Pocatello with my boring brother and his boring family. (Gee, wow, nephew, a hand-made holster for your ping-pong paddle!) I was so bored and felt so strangled in their super-wholesome Mormon-ness that I fled back to deserted Logan, in a blizzard, just to get away. It was the equivalent of chewing off my leg to get out of a trap.

I once married someone from Burley, and wish I hadn't.

My hairstylist moved to Burley, and I wish she hadn't.

Are you sure you're not just trying to get out of a paternity suit or something?

J/k

I always thought of Burley as this semi big dump of a town. Loved me some Twin Falls though!

Side note to piggyback: I Served my mission in burley at some point in 2003-2005. sorry for trying to activate anyone in the pocatello mission as well.

You have my condolences. I didn't know there were any non mo's in Burley. Plenty of jackmos.

Hey, did you leave on your mission in 84 after a freshman year at BYU? I had 2 FHE brothers from Burley, great guys who helped us deal with the other 2 brothers when they turned out to be creeps and made cruel prank calls to my roommate until she almost had a breakdown. After that, loved them so much we went to Burley for a mission farewell and found that the infamous Burley Boys were ALL pretty cool. It's great to know some of you made it out - I am hoping at least one of those bros did too!

Someone I knew from the tiny branch where I converted to Mormonism (way out here in the Midwestern part of the mission field) found her a worthy Mormon male. Temple wedding and all! He has risen to the pinnacle of bishop in Burley, ID. Her successful landing of a righteous mate in the heartland of Mormonism is lauded by my easily impressed sister. And bishop's wife ain't too edumacated or got much smarts. But hey, she's held-up as a real TBM success story here abouts folks. From my standpoint it was out of the pot into the fire. But then again her family was so pathetic that almost anything would be a life enhancing achievement. His real achievement, in my book, is that he owns a trucking company. Now that's got some merit.

I'm from the Mini-Cassia area and I probably know some of those 84 Burley Boys which were spoken of by vh65.

The Dairy Queen there was the hangout place, ala 1950s type of hangout place and cruising Overland was a pasttime during my growing up days in the area.

I married me one of those Burley girls. Got me a good one and we escaped the church together. Haven't been back for close to a decade cause there just isn't much for her to go back to. The last HS reunion she went to was very depressing to see how few escaped from the area.

Burley, Idaho?

I spent a week there, one day.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/18/2014 12:02PM by baura.

Perhaps we're acquainted. Feel free to email me at w35grays@yahoo.com.

Thus spake Mujun.

Seems to be quite a few of us from that area! I was born there and left when I was 14 in 1976. Still have lots of family in Burley but I hardly ever make it back to visit. None of them are mo, thank goodness.

Most of my extended family on my father's side came from Minidoka county. My grandparents, great aunts and uncles, great grandparents, etc. have long since passed away and pretty much everyone from my parent's generation onward has scattered all over the country.

I have a number of family members that are buried in the Paul cemetery. Paul is just across I-84 from Burley. Dad will almost certainly be buried there as well when his time comes.

About once a decade or so I pass through there and pay my respects. I usually grab lunch in Burley right after.

Burley: The TRUE windy city. (Chicago's got nothin' on this town)

We'd give 'em a run for their money here in Lethbridge!

Ron Burr

I've never been to Idaho in my life. But I was confused/shunned/put-off by boys like you. So, on behalf of all those girls, I say:

No, I'M sorry. I just thought you could loosen up every now and then and have fun. I wasn't trying to tease you the way you thought I was teasing you. I didn't want the kind of fun that makes you wonder if you are worthy to take part in the sacrament. Just good clean fun, laughs, friendship, someone who could look me in the eye while dancing together at the stake dance, and have a good belly laugh together over nothing. It seemed natural to have friends of both gender, regardless of what my parents and leaders told me.

It DID cross my mind that, regardless of how I viewed you at the time (prick), you might still someday be The One (after your mission is fulfilled of course). I had heard many stories about how people got engaged just weeks after they hated each other. Oh how I hoped that someday, regardless of how I felt about you at the time, that someday we (meaning you, or your best friend, or your cousin) might be able to deliver talks in Youth Conference together, telling the funny and inspiring story of our courtship.

I took for granted that you had some higher calling than I could ever understand, you being a priesthood holder and man. You could receive stronger promptings than I. I doubted myself a lot. I'm sorry that I ever believed that if you were The One, my entire salvation, and our future children's, was pretty much all on your shoulders, based on YOUR worthiness, YOUR leadership. I was but a homemaker in training. Believe me, I wasn't trying to lead you on. I didn't ask for these double D's. I wanted you to have fun, and to BE fun, and I didn't mean to tempt you or make you feel evil. It was MY job to make you feel great about yourself, even if you were a prick. I truly believed that you had a ton of potential. Maybe you would even be a Stake President someday! You were so dedicated that if YOU didn't mind being a prick, neither did I.

You needed one of those little blue book of mormons shoved up your mailbox.

What finally did it take to bring you around to reality?
Would a pissed of mom in your face have helped?