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Garett Bolles: Light in Dark Moments

Wed Oct 06 10:00:45 EDT 2021
Episode 149

What could’ve been the darkest moment of his life turned into the moment that changed Garett Bolles’ life. It is a story that has been widely referred to as “Utah’s Blind Side” but Garett’s story was far from over when Greg and Emily Freeman took him in as a high school student. On this week’s episode, we talk to Garett about how God brought light into his life right when it seemed darkness was closing in and why he is now determined to bring that same light into the lives of others, including his son, Kingston, who was recently diagnosed with apraxia of speech.

There's always that chance where you can do a 180 and go back to where the light is.
Garett Bolles

EPISODE REFERENCES:
All In TV special:

Garett Bolle’s story referred to as “Utah’s Blind Side”:

Good Morning America special on Garett Bolles:

Garett Bolle’s talking about his son’s speech disorder and his motivation:

SHOW NOTES:
1:29- A Lost Kid
4:42- The Freeman Home and a Change of Heart
7:14- A Corner Master
8:52- Getting a Shot in the NFL
11:59- Playing Angry
16:40- Hard Work Pays Off
17:53- Learning Disabilities
20:19- A God of Second Chances
23:35- Cleats
26:31- What Does It Mean To Be All In the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

Transcript

Morgan Jones 0:00
If you watched the All In special on KSL we think you'll love the extended cut of our interview with Garett Bolles today. If you missed the special, you can still watch on the KSL TV app. And over the next month we'll be airing the interviews, the extended cuts, from the special, every other week. So be sure to stay tuned for the interviews with Davis and Asialene Smith and Sister Michelle Amos.

We will also have bonus episodes we'll release of the supplementary interviews from the special, so be sure to subscribe so you don't miss those when they come out.

You could say that Garett Bolles life hinges on three words a woman heard as she knelt in prayer and then relayed to her husband on the phone–"Bring him home." This is the story behind that call and how it changed everything in one young man's life.

Garett Bolles is an offensive tackle for the NFL's Denver Broncos. He was drafted into the NFL after an impressive college career playing for the University of Utah. He and his wife Natalie are the parents of two children.

This is All In, an LDS Living podcast where we ask the question, what does it really mean to be all in the Gospel of Jesus Christ? I'm Morgan Jones, and I am so honored to be with Garett Bolles today. Garett, welcome.

Garett Bolles 1:19
Thank you so much for having me.

Morgan Jones 1:20
This is such a treat for me. I have been a big fan and have followed your career and your story. And I want to start–we are actually at Westlake high school where you played high school football. But it's hard to believe that you were actually expelled from five schools, you were arrested, did jail time, you were involved with things like alcohol and drugs, gang violence, and now you are in the NFL. When you think about that boy that played high school football here, what do you think of?

Garett Bolles 1:55
A lost kid. Angry, sad, just trying to figure out life, I didn't have any light at all. I just felt dark, weary. Just imagine if you were in a place where you can't see anything in front of you, that's how I felt. Just from everybody that doubted me, me doubting myself, everyone just telling me that I can't do things, that I won't be successful, that I won't be the person that I knew I could always be, a person that was always in trouble with the law, somebody that just–when I walked down the halls or high school, they turned away and ran the other way. And that's just the type of kid that I was when I played football here.

Morgan Jones 2:29
So take me back to the night that your dad kicked you out of the house. And, and it was because you were making some poor decisions. And Greg Freeman pulled up in his car–tell me about what happened that night.

Garett Bolles 2:45
First of all that night changed my whole life to be honest. I'll try not to get emotional, but that night I was super sad. I was crying when my father told me that, "We're not going to take you–you're done. You're not going to be here." And just basically just said, "We're moving and you got to find out where you're going to go."

And so I had all my stuff on the side of the road, a lot of my stuff was taken because they were moving. And so if you know me one thing, you don't touch my clothes, my shoes, or anything that belongs to me just because I take such prized possession of the stuff I have, because I know I work so hard to get the things that I do.

And so it's just sort of just my thing. I have really bad OCD, so when all my stuff was in a box, and all in duffel bags, I lost it. And then all of a sudden, Greg drove by, saw me, he sort of knew what was going to happen–a little bit–just from the Spirit that He carries.

And so when he saw me I was depressed and crying and just totally lost it is when he stopped and said, "Okay, what's happening?" I tried to, you know, collect myself a little bit and I told him what was going on. And then he just put all my stuff in his truck. And he says, "Let me call the person that I always call," which is Emily, which is my mom.

And if you know my mom, the first thing she always does is prays to the Lord. That's what she's always taught us as children is always pray because the Lord will always find and tell you what you need to do and always find the person that you need to touch.

And so she did, and then the first thing she said is, "Bring my son home." And so I'll never forget that moment, is when we were driving, probably no less than a mile away. I was just like, all these emotions were going through my mind and I remember she called back in and she says, "Hey, leave all your stuff in the car because we're going to have to make some rules." And if you know me, I had no rules growing up. So when we got in there, she said, "You're going to have to go to Church. You're going to have to get rid of all your friends. You have to turn your phone in at night," and right then, it was just like this feeling that I felt like, "Okay, I can do this."

Morgan Jones 4:42
How well did you know Emily and Greg prior to that night? I know he was your lacrosse coach, did you know them super well?

Garett Bolles 4:49
Yeah. So I lived with them off and on through my childhood years. Our ward got together and then when our family was struggling, and they sort of were in charge of me. And so whenever I needed something they were always there. I would just text, "911." And they would show up. It either was Greg or if it was Emily or one of the children, they would always just show up and come get me because they knew something happened at my home. And so I would just text them, and they would show up immediately.

Morgan Jones 5:14
Okay, so another question that I had as I was prepping for this is–when would you say, Garett, that you first started to develop a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ for yourself?

Garett Bolles 5:27
That's a good question. I'd have to say when I moved into the Freeman family, I started figuring out that they were going to be my parents. You know, they all sort of already watched me prior to that, but I knew like–I knew they were special. And so I always kept coming back when we moved from that, from that neighborhood, like you said, when I got evicted, and things like that. I knew they were a safe home for me.

So I already felt like that love. But when I moved in and she told me that she was going to be my mom, and never let me–never like let a moment go by without her being there, that's really important, like the NFL or, you know, my children are getting married, is when I knew that, that I can count on them.

And then when she started teaching me about the gospel and I started going to Church for probably the first time in my life, like we went to Church, but not like, how I go to Church now or how I devote myself to the Lord.

And so when I started going, I started feeling like this warm feeling inside. And I remember when Greg, when he worked in the young single adult state when he was the second counselor in that stake presidency, when I attended the singles ward, it was a man called Bishop Whitney, and I met with him for like, two hours one night. And my mom thought I stole the car. But really, I was down there, just talking about gospel, telling him everything I needed. And I remember in that moment is when he told me I was going to serve a mission. And I remember looking up to my left, and there was the garden. Jesus Christ in the garden of Gethsemane, where he felt every suffering and every pain that we feel when we commit a sin, is when I knew that moment–I was going to serve a mission.

And when I started reading the Book of Mormon, and you know, when he told me what I couldn't understand, I was reading it out loud and praying out loud, as I knew that this gospel was true because of how I felt. It was–I mean, it was like a lightning bolt that struck me. And I've never looked back ever since that moment.

Morgan Jones 7:14
So you served your mission in Colorado, kind of funny, because now you play for Denver. And then you went to Snow College, you met your wife, Natalie, got married in the temple. And so when you think about how different your life is now than it could have been, had you continued along the path that you were on, how does that make you feel?

Garett Bolles 7:38
I feel good, but I couldn't have done it without somebody that always in my corner, that's the Lord. You know, one of my favorite athletes is Muhammad Ali. And one day, there was a story of him losing a fight. And he ended and then he went back to the corner when the bell rang, and he came back out on one of the rounds, and he ended up winning the fight.

And they asked him at the very, at the very end of the fight, they said, "How did you end up winning?" and he says, "Everybody needs a corner master in your life." And I'll never forget that moment when I read that story and heard about that, because that's the Lord to me. As he's like my–he's my corner master. He's somebody that I can always rely on.

And without him my life wouldn't be where it's at today. And I love my mom, I love my family, but they all know they came into my life because of the Lord. And, and the Lord knew that that's what I needed at the time. And that's what I needed for the rest of my life, is somebody that I can count on and be there for me day in and day out. And the Lord also blessed me with my beautiful wife, Natalie, and my two children, like without the Lord, none of this would be happening. And that's one of the things I love telling people is that's what it is. When you devote yourself and you truly grasp that, you know, the meaning of the gospel is when your life can change and you can go from point A to point B and even to point C because of how the Lord's going to direct you.

Morgan Jones 8:52
So at Snow College, you start to be recruited by division one schools. You're recruited by 18 different schools. And then you end up going to the University of Utah, you get drafted 20th pick overall, in the NFL Draft, and at that point, you and your wife, Natalie had your son, Kingston. And you were able to share that moment with him, which I think that shot of you holding him up is so good. What was that like to be able to share that moment with your son, and what do you hope he carries with him as he grows up and knows that he was that important to his dad that he was there that night?

Garett Bolles 9:30
Oh . . . It's always been my dream to play football. Because it's something that where I can just be myself and all the troubles that I've had, it just leaves my body and I can just be somebody on that football field that I can just be free from all the struggles, from my learning disabilities, everything like that.

So when I got drafted, my name was called is when I knew I made it, because only 1% of college athletes ever go professional. And less than that when you have a learning disability and things that are against you on a regular basis.

So when I walked across that stage when my name was called, I've always wanted, I told my mom and my wife, Natalie all the time that I wanted to hold my son. And they kept saying, "No, we're going to wait for this," and I said, "No, I'm going to do it."

And I remember my name was called, when I saw the 720 area code–which is Denver area–called me–I lost it. And I just started pounding the table. I was just so thankful for the moment, because just know that I've always wanted to play football, I always knew I could play football, when I used to tell people all the time, “I'm going play football,” and everyone thought I was crazy. And but at the same time, I knew in the bottom of my heart that I was going to do it because it's something that I love. And it's something that I can share my message and help so many people.

But when I walked across that stage with my son, and I held him in the air, it was just like, it was just like a dream come true. And I remember the most important thing about that whole night is I didn't get there because of my athletic ability or anything like that. And yeah, I know that all plays in football, but I got to because my story can bless so many kids lives and that's what I love doing. And so when I walked across that stage, a person asked me, first he said, "Oh, how's daddy?" Like, he's like, "How is holding your son?" And I was like, "This is so cool. I get to share this special mom with Kingston."

And I know every time when we watch that, he goes, "That's me, daddy. That's me." So hopefully one day he walks across the stage, and so he'll get to walk across the stage twice, so he's pretty lucky.

But the whole point about that is when somebody asked me a question, "What got you here?" I said, "By the grace of God, I am who I am. Because that's who got me here." And so I'm just super thankful for the Denver Broncos, first to take a chance on me because all the other teams passed me up. And for them, just giving me opportunity to live my dream.

Morgan Jones 11:59
So you make it to the NFL, you've fulfilled that dream, you end up with the Denver Broncos, you go through three seasons that were a little bit rough, get a lot of holding calls, people give you a hard time, they start calling for your head, the Denver Broncos decline their fifth year option, everything is on the line going into that fourth season. Tell me a little bit about what you were feeling going into that season and how much pressure was on you and what you did to prepare to come in?

Garett Bolles 12:30
I mean, those three seasons are probably some of the hardest times of my life. You know, being in the NFL, you're always in the public eye and especially being drafted high you have high expectations. And if you know anything about Denver, our fans are crazy. And they're, you know, they've been spoiled with all the you know, success that we've had with the organization over the years.

So when it's football, it's football time for them. And like the whole city closes down on Sunday, just to watch us so I understand what they were saying and what they were doing. You know, I was trying my best. It wasn't that I wasn't like I was doing it on purpose or anything like that. Like I literally just fell back on to what I knew what was right.

But during those times, it hurt because everyone was just dogging me and everyone was just telling me–again, I'm right back into same old high school Garett was, "Oh, you're never gonna make it," you know, "You're never gonna do this, you're never going to do that." And if you know me, I'm the type of person that if I might fall in the hole 100 times, but I'm going to get up 101 times and continue to fight the good fight. That's just who I am. I'm never going to let little things distract me from the purpose of what I want to accomplish.

And so when all that hate came in, and there's multiple nights of me, you know, talk late, can't sleep, have anxiety, I took it upon myself to get better. And the one person I relied on was the Lord again. I just felt like, you know what? I've been here before, I know how to get myself out of this and I know where I need to go, what I need to do to get to where I want to be.

And I remember just doing everything possible I can by the way I worked out, the way I ate, the way I slept, the way I devoted myself to the Lord, the way I did everything I can just to keep my mind and my spirit all in one and then the rest took care of itself.

My mom always told me if–you know, if you rely on the Lord, and you put him first then everything else is going to fall like a puzzle. And that's exactly what I did. And so when they didn't pick up my 50 option was I hurt? Of course, I was. Was I angry? Yes. But that's how I play–I play angry. I play . . . I've always been doubting my whole life, I've always been an underdog and so it just all it does is just lights a fire in my mind that just continues to keep me moving forward. And so the more people that hate me, yeah, it does hurt, but I also know that's just how my life is and to be an underdog to overcome everything and all the obstacles of life is because the Lord always is going to be there for me, and I know I can rely on him.

Morgan Jones 14:45
It's incredible. I understand that you and Natalie did some drills in your kitchen. Is that true?

Garett Bolles 14:51
Yeah, my wife is a sweetheart. I love her dearly. Without her I'd–I don't know where I would be. She grounds me and then puts me in place when I need to. So I get a double whammy. If I get it from my mom, or I get it from my wife, it's a double whammy, it's what I always say, but they're so a lot of like, and I'm so thankful that they have a strong relationship. And it just makes me proud of that.

But yeah, we did a lot of drills. She drilled me. She would rush me all the time, and I'd put my hands on her softly, of course, and just, she would just, you know, do different moves, I say, hey, "Hit me with the spin move," "Hit me with the long arm," "Come at me and do a little shake and bake." And so it just got my timing down.

But we spent a lot of time just being with each other, I think that was one of the most important things, you know, during the, you know, the pandemic last year, when so many people couldn't hit the gym, and so many people, you know, made excuses to not get better, I took it upon myself to get better, and I used my resources.

And I think that's really important for when you change your life around or when you find yourself, you know, in a corner is you have resources to use, you have people, especially in our Church that you can rely on, good people that can give you, you know, good insight and give you things you know, for your mind to think about.

And that's what I did is, I just surrounded myself with certain people that I knew that would help me be successful. And I blocked out all the other people that were negative and didn't believe in me. And so when I did that, that quality time that I spent with my family for you know, six months in California, to just being with them every day was just so awesome. Because not only did we spend good quality family time that helped me, you know, relax from everything else, but just . . . they were there for me and I knew we were doing it together. Previous years, it was just me training. But with my family being there with me it was all of us trained together, helping me become the best left tackle in the game. And without them, I wouldn't be where I'm at.

Morgan Jones 16:39
So you did, you became the best left tackle in the NFL. And you signed a $68 million-dollar four year contract. Is that right?

Garett Bolles 16:48
Yeah.

Morgan Jones 16:48
How did that feel for you?

Garett Bolles 16:50
It was awesome. You know, I don't–I didn't play football because the money, I play football because I love the game of football. And I love what it does for me. And I love what I can do to share with people. The money to me is just–all it does is just helps my family. I'm a big giving person. I love serving, I love giving back to the communities, especially to the people that love and cared for me during my hard times. And so knowing that I have that financial burden off of my back, I know I can just bless so many children's lives through my foundation, to just helping people that look up, that need help.

I've talked to so many kids in so many different things around the country that are struggling with similar things that I've struggled with growing up and I couldn't be more happy to either help them, you know, either get on a mission, you know, buy them a suit, or help them with school, or help them you know, with their team. Those are the things I love and so that's why I'm very grateful that the Broncos, you know gave me that, because I know I can just bless children's life and serve and at the same time knowing that my wife and my children are taken care of for the rest of their life.

Morgan Jones 17:53
Garett, you mentioned that you have had the chance to help some children and one thing that you're a big advocate of is helping children with learning disabilities, and your son, Kingston, was just recently diagnosed with apraxia–is that how you say it? Tell me a little bit about what that is, and then I'd like to know how you feel like you–having dealt with learning disabilities yourself–how you feel like those have prepared you to be Kingston's dad?

Garett Bolles 18:23
Yeah, so apraxia of speech, it's just a oral dysfunction, motor dysfunction. So basically the brain and the mouth they don't work together, the muscles in his face. And so when the brain tries to signal to help him speak, it's hard for him, they don't work, and so apraxia speech kids they have to learn by muscle memory and so everything that they do, they have to drill it and drill it and drill it and drill it so that it becomes muscle memory for them, so in their mind it just, it stores memory so when they want to speak they know these words. Like how we learn–we learn by just hearing and then our mouths will be able to say it.

With them they have to practice and practice and practice and so same thing as a learning disability, I mean it's a learning disability. But what I did is–I struggled, I have ADHD, attention issues and so you know just trying to focus on something that sometimes I feel like is a big task, but really it's just a little task, but in my mind it's so big and it causes me anxiety and all these things and so knowing that I've gone through very similar things that he's going through it's awesome that I get to be there for him.

He's head-to-head with me. I mean he wants dad every single day. And I'm so thankful for that because I get to just be there with him and talk with them and play ball and love him and tell him he can do it. And I know when he's, when I'm not around, he's always asking where dad's at. And so–but we get to share a cool bond. We both love football, we watch football all the time.

He'll sit next to me and watch film as I break down my film. And so the more I can be with him and help him understand is you know, I know it's going help him. But I think, he knows that I've struggled. I truly believe that. You know at a young age I think kids are so miraculous that–because they know how we feel. They know when we're sad, they're sad. You know, when we're hurting, they are hurting too. And so I know when we go through those things, or a hard time or when he's struggling or I'm struggling he knows that, you know, "I need dad," or that he needs me. And so we share that really amazing son and father bonding that I think every son deserves to have a father like that.

Morgan Jones 20:19
Garett, you were given a second chance. And I know Emily in talking about you has said before that she believes in a God of second chances. And so when you think about the way that God gave you a second chance, and gave you this ability to have a very different life than you maybe would have had otherwise, what do you feel in your heart, what kind of gratitude do you feel? And how do you feel like you now are able to take that and channel that into moving forward and continuing to make the best of that second chance?

Garett Bolles 20:55
I think–like I said, I'm a big believer in that too, second chances. But I think what my mom means by that is, I think the Lord will always give you a second chance when you're ready. And I think that's what my mom–that's what I feel is what my mom was saying is, she believes in second chances. But the Lord can always give us multiple chances, but it's always going to be that big second chance that we have the agency to choose to take it or leave it.

And I think that's one of the greatest gifts that God ever gave us is agency. To choose to either be good or choose to continue to fall down, go down the path that you're going down. And so when you go down a path, or either if it's rocky, or if it starts out good, and then ends up rocky, there's always that chance where you can do a 180 and go back to where the light is.

And sometimes you may not see it at the beginning, and sometimes you may deny it, and then all of a sudden, some big event happens in your life. And you're like, "Okay, this is the Lord speaking to me." And that's what I feel like–it's that second chance. And so I'm very grateful for that second chance, The Lord is one of my best friends. I feel him. He's with me dearly, especially being in the NFL where, you know, being a member of the Church or just being a Christian in general is not accepted because of the adversary of the world. And what the NFL or professional athlete world, what it brings to you–you name it, it brings it to you–and you have to choose, do I want to live this or not?

And I always reflect back on the decision that I made a long, long time ago, is I'm going to choose the right. And I'm not saying I'm perfect. I'm not saying, you know, I do make mistakes, but I always strive to be good. And I always know the Lord is always going to give me a reminder, even if I do make a mistake, he's always going to tell me, "Hey, that's probably not the smartest decision," or "Hey, I wouldn't say that."

And I know that's the Lord always teaching me to become a better man. And I always reflect on the Atonement, because that's another one of the greatest things he gave us too is the Atonement of Jesus Christ to strengthen us to do things we can never do on our own. And so–and I truly believe that. That's a power that we get to have in our lives when we dedicate our lives to the Lord, is He died for us, and feeling everything that we've suffered in this world.

And you know, we will never . . . I mean, we may suffer, but we're never going to feel what he felt that day in the Garden of Gethsemane. And I always reflect back on that picture too in my Bishop's office, is knowing that he's there for us when we want Him.

And if we do everything we can possible to live with him again, is when he's going to give us those reminders. And those things for us to live with him again. So I'm very grateful that I get to have that chance and continue to just live my life on that second chance, if that makes sense.

Morgan Jones 23:34
Makes complete sense. Garett, your cleats have gotten a lot of attention. You write things on your cleats to remind you, and a lot of those things are spiritual things. Tell me a little bit about those.

Garett Bolles 23:47
Oh, so I always like reminders. I'm a big reminder–if it's my bracelets, if it's my necklace, if it's something that I hang up in my locker, I always like reminders. I'm a big reminder person.

I think, you know, the Lord always reminds us but sometimes we always forget what he's trying to tell us or what he's trying to teach us. And so when you have quotes, or if you have things hanging up in your house, it's something that I have in our house is–or in my locker, or in my car on me because it's just something that I can always look down and be like, "Okay, that's who I am."

And so, when I was at Snow College, I wrote on my cleats. I decked them out with, you know, quotes. My wife would write them or write a little message on both of my cleats, or I would say, “Charity, love, hope,” I'd write scriptures, Moroni 7, or, you know, Alma 32 talks about faith, I would just try all different things on my cleats because every time I wanted to look down, and remember, you know, if it's a play or you know, if I'm having a bad game or have a bad play, I always look down at my cleats and always remember who I am. And so I love those cleats. I cherish those cleats.

You know in the NFL I can't deck out my cleats all the all the way because I'll get fined, which is . . . not the best thing and I don't want to get fined because then my mom and my wife will get mad at me. But I write at the very bottom of my cleats where like, where it's black. And so I write Sharpie, I used to write on them straight, or I write in the lip of my cleats, or underneath my shoe laces, so I always find little ways to still do it. When it's just like I said, a big reminder for me, and remembrance of who I am and who I'm turning into.

Morgan Jones 25:17
So what's the latest thing on your cleats?

Garett Bolles 25:20
My latest things . . . oh, Kingston will probably be the latest thing on my cleats now. Just because, you know, this season's dedicated to him, just from, you know, the apraxia speech that he was diagnosed with. And I just want him to know, like, dad's working hard, and so can you. Dad's providing for the family and you can do everything you can to learn to speak and to find the words and, and to be the kid that we know you all can be. So that's something that we're going to share throughout the year of just dedicating our lives to becoming the best in what we need to become at that time. And so he'll be definitely big on my cleats for sure.

Morgan Jones 25:55
When you were talking about what that–what apraxia means and saying that you have to drill things, I couldn't help but think, man, he's lucky. He's got a dad that knows a thing or two about drills. So that works out nicely.

Garett Bolles 26:08
No, we do drills all the time, just playing ball running around or hitting a bag or whatever. It's always something, every single day. You know, if it's him watching TV and we're watching tennis, or you know, cornhole or something, he's always doing things and always practicing. So it's pretty cool to watch him develop. And I'm looking forward to all the many memories I'm going to share with him throughout the years.

Morgan Jones 26:30
Garett, I just have one last question for you. And that is, what does it mean to you, to be all in the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

Garett Bolles 26:38
That's a good question. I was just talking about this the other day, I think being all in, I think it means two things. One, I think it's how you live your life, and especially in, you know, the workforce, or the school or the job that you're doing. It's how you dress, it's how you talk, it's how you hold yourself.

Us members of the Church, we always look different from others. And they always ask us why. And I think it's because the light that we carry, and we're always happy because we know the truth. And we're always smiling, because we are happy, not saying we're not, you know, we're not making mistakes, but we are always happy. And I think the next one is, is what you do in the darkest moments of your life. You can say one thing, and but in the moments where nobody's watching is where I think this counts.

My mom always taught me in those moments, what do you want people to remember you as? And when you're in your darkest moments, that's who you really are. Those are the–those are the moments where you either are going to continue to live the gospel of Jesus Christ when no one's watching, or you're going to continue to, you know, slip up here and there. And when you keep slipping up here and there during those darkest moments, then that's going to reflect on your life when everyone's watching you.

And so I think that is so important to be all in Jesus Christ, is what you're doing in those darkest moments. Are you praying? Are you reading? Are you talking about the gospel? You know, those thoughts that come in your mind all the time, are you blocking the negative thoughts and only thinking about the positive thoughts? And so, you know, we, as children, in the youth of the church, there's so many adversaries of the world trying to distract you. But you got to stand up for what you believe in and not let anyone tear you down.

And me being in the workforce where, you know, it's okay to drink alcohol, it's okay to do drugs, it's okay to cheat on your wife, because she's never going to know, because you're going to go back to her, it's okay to, you know, make these little mistakes, because, "Oh, it's alright, you're a professional athlete," "Oh, you make a lot of money," or, you know, "They're going to think highly of you." But really, people catch on to those things.

And people start to realize, "Oh, this isn't who I want my kids to look at," or "This isn't somebody that I know, is saying the right things," or you know, that he's saying one thing and doing another and so, I always try to be a person where somebody can always look up to.

And I think it starts in those dark moments of where–of how you're going to shine as a light, you know, when you sit in a room and it's dark, and the lights are off, your soul and your mind can still be that light bulb for you to see, if you choose it.

And so that's what I think it is, is be all in. Don't, don't just have one foot in and one foot out. And it starts in those moments of where you're by yourself, and how you reflect and how you're going to see yourself and just do it.

I know, I know that sounds . . . I know that sounds harder than what it is, but it's easier if you just put your mind to it. And, and not let anyone tear you down. And so I always try just to be the person that I know I can always become by just thinking about the Lord day in and day out. And knowing this is where he got me. And this is where he's going to continue to keep me going, as long as I have those small and simple thoughts on the right track of choosing the right.

Morgan Jones 29:44
Thank you so much Garett.

Garett Bolles 29:46
You're welcome.

Morgan Jones 29:46
A huge thank you to Garett Bowles for joining us on today's episode. Be sure to subscribe so that you don't miss bonus episodes with Emily Belle Freeman and Natalie Bolles later this week. Thanks to KSL television for their help in capturing these interviews and a big thanks to Derek Campbell of Mix at Six studios for his help with the audio. We are–as always so grateful to you for listening

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