March 24, 2015 - Tuesday

We are having a wonderful experience working in Carthage.  The hardest part is trying to add information with another missionary conducting the tour.  That definitely does not work well unless that missionary asks specifically for comments.  It is a learning curve but I think we are getting better each day. Mom and I are both getting comfortable with giving the tours.  Tomorrow in our missionary training meeting, we will be sustained as the assistant site leaders.  

We have been getting several pre-conference visitors from all over the world.  We had a family from Argentina today along with a family from Norway and Finland.  They were wonderful to talk with and most were coming to Carthage for the first time and we got to give them tours!  

The family from Finland was especially fun to talk to.  His name is Ismo Hiltunen and I immediately texted and then called our daughter, Josie, to tell her we were about to give a Finnish member a tour.  She got to talk to him and he knew some people that Josie knew when she served her mission in Finland in 2001!  She found out that one of the members she knew in Kuopio was his relative, Virpi Matilainen.  What a small world!  Also, last week I gave a tour to a family from South Korea.  I had to take a picture today of our guests from Finland;

Brother and Sister Hiltunen from Finland

This has been a real special treat to work in Carthage.  Mom and I will pack up the apartment tomorrow in Nauvoo, after our weekly missionary training meeting, and will settle into our new place in Carthage.  It will be a quick and smooth move. Then we were given Thursday to get settled in and our assignment will then begin officially for four to six months.

I took a family of four on the tour of Carthage this afternoon.  They had two sons with them.  One was 12 years old and the other one was 9.  We typically show the movie in the theater prior to taking the tour of the jail.  It is about the life of the Prophet Joseph Smith and lasts for 18 minutes. This is the only location in the church where this movie is shown. The father was visibly moved by the movie and I like to ask the question to the mothers and fathers, "what would you think if your 14 year old son came to you with this story?"  I don't usually expect a response, but I like to ask that question. 

They thought about it for a minute and then I invited them to follow me on the tour of the jail.  When we got to the Martyrdom room I gave some information and then started a 4 minute recording of the final day of the Prophet and his brother.  Both parents were moved by the experience and I felt to ask the father to bear his testimony to his sons, and he did.  What a wonderful testimony of Joseph Smith!  That was a sweet experience for me and I think for them. 

We appeared in our Tuesday Rendezvous tonight and we are feeling more comfortable each time.  For the month of March we go on stage Tuesday's and Friday's.  Next week it will change to Wednesday's and Saturday's.  The stage show will never be the same....