When I first started chatting online in 1996, there wasn’t an LDS.org website. I was also a bit naive, not realizing most people I encountered online had no idea who Mormons were. When the question of where I was from was asked, there would always be one person in the room who would say, “Utah eh? Are you a Mormon?” When I responded “Yes,” the conversation in the room would always turn into a Q&A session about Mormons. It didn’t take me long to realize that most people just wanted to find out more about what I believed. They didn’t want to talk to the Missionaries, at least not at first. One person in that I was talking with in 1997 did contact the missionaries and was baptized. But, there are many others that only wanted a few curiosities resolved. It was then that I learned the most important thing I could do is set a good example for my religion, because I may be the only Mormon these people would ever talk to. I would be the one who would determine their perspective of all Mormons.
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