July 31, 2016 - Sunday in Nauvoo

We had a nice and relaxing Sabbath Day, today.  Our meetings began at 7:50am and we arrived at the Stake Center by 7:00am after walking from our little cottage.  The morning air was cooler at around 65 degrees and the forecast for noon today was only mid 70's.  It was a near perfect day to walk to Church except the humidity was a small factor!  

The Sacrament theme was; "Joy in Fasting", and that phrase caught my attention.  Is there really "joy" in fasting?  The argument for the joy was clearly made when one of the speakers made this comment; "Fasting is voluntary weakness".  Now that was worth contemplating!  Combining fasting without food or drink with fasting with a purpose really does help us to submit to a weakness that can only be strengthened by that Spirit that accompanies that level of submission!

Then in Sunday School, I had an "ah ha" moment.  Elder Ramsey was leading the discussion on the lesson and gave an example of how the world sees things, and how members of the Church can have a greater insight to the same things.  His example was Johnathan Browning.  The world sees him as a great gunsmith and developer of  rifles and guns.  On the other hand, the members of the Church, with study and prayer, can see him for his faith in living Prophets, his testimony of the Temple blessings, and his obedience in living the commandments, and knowing that he can be with his loved ones for time and all eternity.  

This is just one example of what we have, as members of the Church, available to us!  Reading and studying and living the Doctrines of Christ will open doors that no man developed education can provide.  We have been given all these marvelous principles of the Gospel, and all we have to do is understand them, embrace them, and magnify them in our daily lives.  When we do, it is life changing! 

Now, isn't that knowledge worth sharing?  Perhaps that is why the Prophets have all told us that every member is a missionary!  We can all spread the truth by opening our mouths, and not fearing what man can do with us, if we are willing to share.  What we do fear is not spreading the truth that we have been blessed with!  The Standard of Truth as quoted by Joseph Smith said;

"The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mob may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.”   This is our sweet opportunity to be involved with during our mortal years!

I conducted the District Meeting again this month.  Our District Leader is wrapping up the Pageant and was shuttling the participants to the airport all day.  So mom and I took care of that meeting, and it was completed it in 30 minutes, and that included enjoying the refreshments!

Then Jackie and Devyn and Devyn's friend Lizzy arrived here in Nauvoo, this evening, to begin EFY tomorrow.  Jackie will spend the week with us and the EFY week begins tomorrow morning for the girls.  We are excited to have them with us this week!

Devyn and her friend Lizzy heading to EFY Nauvoo tomorrow!

 And then our current updates from home, specifically on the development of Levi;

Are you lookin at me?  Better have some formula or be drawing my bath water...

Senior Missionary at the weekly training?  Or a stop at the local High Priest Quorum?

July 30, 2016 - Saturday in Nauvoo

Our Saturday got off to a great start this morning.  We had our morning devotional and prayers, and then started off on our walk around Nauvoo, at just a little before 5:00am.  It was a cool and very humid walk around our pathway, and we elected to cut the walk about a mile short to get to the Handcart Station by 7:15am.  That was the starting time of our first of five trek groups this morning.  And we had some pretty special experiences with each of the families!  I had to take two family pictures and one picture of the beautiful clouds;

I caught this picture from the fields at the start of the trek path

The Hester Family - What a wonderful spirit they had!

Jakob and his "discoveries" along the trail! (Animal bone and thorny Locust branch)

I always enjoy asking families what their favorite part of the trek is when they return back to the Handcart Station.  Well, we had Jakob tell me about the things he found on the trail.  He and his family went the 3 mile trek.  He is 6 years old and he was with his mom and two sisters.  I was so worried about this family when they first arrived at the Handcart Station, and they told us that they wanted to take the two mile trek.  That 2 mile trek is the hardest of the three trek trails!

After they had been out for two hours, which is the maximum time I have allowed on that trail, I went out looking for them.  I back tracked over half the 2 mile trail before I got a text message that they had decided to take the 3 mile trek!!  I was very impressed and could not wait to hear their story.  When they got back into the Handcart Station, the mom informed me that they learned a lot about the pioneer Saints, but they learned more about themselves as a family. 

And Jakob gave me the best reason of all why mom and I are so grateful to see these families unite like this when he said; "the best part of the trek was that I was able to go two hours without electronics"... it was the best day ever!"  Keep in mind that this is a 6 year old discovering joy without electronics!

An audience member who made my day!

The two men in this picture with me are a father and son from Indiana.  The father sought me out after our first show and wanted to know who I represented, as the Editor, from the 1840's.  I told him about Don Carlos Smith, the Prophet Joseph's brother, who was one of the first editors of the Nauvoo Neighbor.  He died of pneumonia at the age of 25 having worked in the first Times and Seasons office that was located in a building basement along Water Street  The basement had water seeping into the printing room that eventually caused the illness to overtake him.  Then John Taylor, third President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was the Editor when they moved the office to Main Street. 

He told me how much he enjoyed my performance and the story that was told.  He was very complimentary and made me feel really good for the effort.  Isn't it interesting how a kind word given with a sincere heart can make you stand a little taller and want to be a little better?

Then, here is our fix of Levi from pictures we received today.  I just hope he is as excited to see us as we are excited to see him and all of our precious family members!

Here is a happy boy after a good nap!

There is nothing quite like "bath" time!

 

July 29, 2016 - Friday in Nauvoo

Our morning got off to a great start with our early devotional, prayers and our sweet Nauvoo walk!  The temperature was cool enough to wear a sweatshirt and also feel the invigoration that low humidity brings.  And, in addition, we were able to enjoy a brisk walk with almost no traffic.  What a great way to start the day!

Mom had the assignment to be the second shift narrator and I worked at the Blacksmith's shop on the late shift.  I was especially grateful to work in the cooler temperatures at the Blacksmith shop.  With the forge going at high heat, the shop can get really hot.  But the temperatures today prevented that from happening.  And we had almost 500 visitors come into the shop today.  It was non-stop tours and I didn't get to rest until we got to the Sunset play tonight!

And the Sunset audience was the largest one we have seen so far this year.  Mom and I counted 860 in attendance.  They were a loud and fun audience and the show went so smooth!  The Young Performing Missionaries and the Nauvoo Brass Band have such high energy!  We are down to the last two weeks of the Sunset shows and the season ends on Saturday August 13th.  We will then be down to two Rendezvous shows each week after August 13th..  Then, it looks like our last Rendezvous show will be Thursday August 25th.

I had some great families come into the Blacksmith shop today.  It was so fun to make the horse shoes for them.  We are running low on the horse shoes we made this winter, so they are asking us to only give one shoe to the entire group.......  Well how can you do that with eight or nine children wanting a shoe?  Here is how I did it.  I put myself in the rotation to follow one of the longest winded senior missionaries who can make a 20 minute tour into a 35 minute tour.  That gave me time to do my 15 minute tour and an additional 20 minutes to make 10 extra shoes while they watched.  I did this at least a dozen times today and got lots of applause for the effort to make sure every precious Primary aged child got a souvenir!

July 28, 2016 - Thursday in Nauvoo

Happy 10th anniversary Ali and Jared!  Mom and I had just settled in Rigby and hosted their reception in our new home.  It seems like only yesterday!  Jared, do you remember the interview we had on the front porch of our new home when you asked for my daughters hand in marriage?   Ahhh classic interview..... Congratulations to both of you as you begin the next 10 years... and beyond!

The Handcart Station was very busy today.  And it started off with our first group at 7:30am, so mom and I were down there by 7:00am getting ready for the crowds.  We ended up having 195 trekkers come through the station by 12 noon.  Each family and group came well prepared for the adventure, and we sure enjoyed the morning with each one of them.

After our morning devotional and prayers, and while I was waiting for mom to finish in the bathroom, I went out in the yard and cut down some additional overgrowth.  The morning temperature was a cool 70 degrees, but the humidity was close to 90%.  It was so wet that the lawn looked like it had been watered!  But I did catch a fascinating picture of the sky;

Here is a thunder cloud developing this morning

The Nauvoo Pageant building was dedicated this evening at 5:30pm

After our last group came in from their trek, we cleaned up the Handcart Station and headed home.  We showered and then went to the temple and caught the 1:00pm temple session.  I was surprised that there were only about eight men and 12 or so women in the session.  This was our 89th visit to the Nauvoo Temple during our mission here.  

We also received word from the mission president of our release date being adjusted to August 31st.  After our temple session on Monday, we felt strongly about requesting the release date to correspond to serving 18 months, and in going to Virginia to see PopPop.  The impression was that it was time to go and spend the month of September with him even though he seems healthy and active.  It has been almost 20 months since our last visit, and he will be celebrating his 93 birthday in September.  It will be a great opportunity to spend the time with him and be there to help celebrate that special birthday.

Then we came back home and had our lunch together.  We then got ready to go to the Nauvoo Temple Pageant building dedication.  When we came here last February, the facilities management group, along with the pageant folks in Salt Lake City, were in the process of buying this building and remodeling it to suit the needs of the Pageant.  

Mom and I got to go over to the facility, last March 2015, and help wrap up the racks of clothing for the pageant participants.  After over a year of remodeling, Elder Mervyn B. Arnold of the First Quorum of the Seventy came to Nauvoo to officiate in the dedication.  It was fun, and historic, to be a part of this day of dedication!  The picture I took above is the core cast of both the British and the Nauvoo Pageant.  There are some very talented individuals in this group!  We have had a full day!

July 27, 2016 - Wednesday in Nauvoo

Mom and I had different assignments today.  She was covering the morning shift at the Riser Boot Shop and I had the Handcart Station with Elder Heslop.  After our morning devotional and prayers, we were off to the Training meeting for mom, and I went straight to the Handcart Station after I dropped her off.  Our first group came right at 7:30am, and was part of one of our senior missionary's family.  I caught these two pictures right outside our garage this morning;

What an interesting cloud covering the sun!

I liked the way the rays of the sun were shooting skyward

With ten scheduled handcart treks, we had a busy day at the Handcart Station.  All the families were fun to work with, but one family stuck out from the crowd.  I took some pictures for them because they had left their camera back at the car parked at the Visitors Center.  It was easy to catch them working together, and I think that is what separated them the most.

They had four children and three adults, so we decided one handcart would be the best.  I was a little concerned that this would be a difficult one mile trek so I gave them the option of cutting a half mile off the route if things were not going well.  They had prayer at the station and the youngest boy gave the prayer, very willingly, with the help of his dad.  Then they were off!

Best day ever!  The traditional Nauvoo Handcart shout!

"Holding to the rod" - By staying on the trail, and singing!

We went out to make sure they didn't miss the shortcut.... but

Welcome back to the Salt Lake Valley - (Handcart Station in Nauvoo)

It was when I caught up with the family, near the trail-head where they could have taken the short cut, they were singing and working so well together and helping each other out.  The two older boys were in the front of the cart and the dad was pushing and having a great time with his kids.  There was no way they wanted to take the short-cut!  They were going the distance together, and, when they came back to the Handcart Station, they were so happy and excited!! 

As I gave them their medals of completion of the trek, they all thanked me and were so respectful and smiling about their time together.  Families this well prepared are what make our days at the Handcart Station so rewarding!  Can you imagine what condition our world would be in if we had more families like this one teaching and living the Gospel everywhere they go?  As for me and my house, we will continue to build our eternal family relationships every single day!

When I got home, after my shift ended, I had some weeding to do in the garden.  At the Handcart Station, I must have lost ten pounds of water from sweating.  But working in the flower-beds around the house, I must have lost another ten pounds because my clothes were soaking wet.  I wish I had taken a "before" and "after" picture now that I think about it of how many weeds I was able to eliminate!

Finally at Rendezvous tonight we said good bye to Sister Goodman.  She is leaving the mission early to go home to her 93 year old father whose health is failing.  He took a turn for the worst this past week and she felt she needed to be there for him and for her mom.  We have really enjoyed our time with her, and getting to know about her life, and the influence she and her family have had in their travels... we will miss her.  I always enjoyed her playing the piano for me as I did the Editors part, and mom and I both loved serving with her in the Visitors Center when she worked as the Assistant Site Leader with us.  Here are some pictures from tonight;

Playing the warm-up song in the "Green Room"

Eternal friendships!

On stage behind the scene at her piano - a very talented lady!

Well, that's our view of old Nauvoo for today.  We have had a great day and we are settling in tonight for a good nights rest... but I have to share some family shots before I close!

Levi counting the rotations of the ceiling fan!  Such a smart boy!

Callie taking such good care of her little brother!

We are so thankful for the privilege and opportunity to serve our mission here in Nauvoo.  And we are so blessed to have the love and support and prayers from our precious family and friends!  Thank you for checking in with us tonight!  We love you!

July 26, 2016 - Tuesday in Nauvoo

We had another cooler morning temperature as we were up and going this morning.  After beginning our day with our morning prayers and devotional, we took to the walking trail for our morning constitutional.  It was a little challenging to get up at 4:45am this morning after getting to bed, later than usual, at 11:15pm, but it was worth attending the British Pageant dress rehearsal last night.  I was able to catch some great morning sunrise pictures!

The day dawn is breaking

This deer was waiting for two fawns behind us!

We were both serving close together at the sites on Main Street.  Mom was at the Printing Office and I was at the Browning Gun shop.  There were hundreds of guests at the Browning Gun shop today. I had the split shift, and mom had the early morning shift.  The air conditioning was not working in the gun shop when I opened this morning so I made a call to the FM for repairs.  They finally got the problem resolved just after lunch so it was working by the time I returned to close.

Our Sunset show went on as scheduled at 7:00pm tonight.  We have five more shows before the summer season comes to a close and the Young Performing Missionaries head home.  August 13th is our last performance!  Also, we are saying goodbye to our friend Sister Goodman on Friday.  She is heading home to help her ailing father who is living in an assisted living complex with his wife.  It has been a sweet experience getting to know her this last 16 months and we wish her well.

Tomorrow will be a busy day at the Handcarts.  We have nine groups scheduled and the earliest one is at 7:30am.  Again, the trekkers are being scheduled during the weekly training meeting so this will be the fifth time I will miss that meeting.  However, mom takes really good notes!

July 25, 2016 - Monday in Nauvoo

Mom and I had a busy preparation day today.  We were up at the normal early hour for our devotional and prayers.  The temperatures were tempered, so our walk was much cooler than it has been in a few weeks.  And we were able to make the 8:00am temple session where we served as the witness couple.  It was a great start to our day!  I got some wonderful morning pictures on our walk;

The casual sunrise turns into a brightly lit morning sky!

The orange coloring of the morning sunrise

Looking East on Water Street passing the Mansion House

On our drive to Keokuk we were able to connect with some of our family members, back home, for updates.  Only one missed our call, and we weren't able to connect back later to see how they were doing.  We are spending much less on grocery items now that the time is getting shorter and closer for our release date.  And after we are released here, we are going East to visit PopPop as we begin our journey back to Rigby!  We have started our 18 month here in the Illinois, Nauvoo Mission.

I took a picture of this tree right off the main road into Nauvoo, Durphy Street.  It is also the state highway #96 and this picture is where Parley and 96 meet.  Take a look at this magnificent tree;

This looks like the family of the Oak Trees

The things I have learned about trees like this have given me some insights to "nourishment".  All these trees growing here in Nauvoo look so strong and mighty.  Trees that are seem perfect for a "Bobby" tree fort that he used to build with John Hinkle!  Well, here is what I have learned;  These trees are all given as much water as they desire.  You see the water table here is so high that the trees soak up water in such huge amounts that they grow up faster than normal trees that have to struggle for water.  And because they grow so fast, they are hollow on the inside.  They are not very strong and the high winds and heavy rains generally knock down their branches, and in many cases the entire tree.  They don't soak in the nutrients of the soil in equal amounts as they do the plentiful water.

Here is the lesson.  When we take too much of a good thing into our bodies, minds, or our hearts, (like the excessive water), we miss out on the other good things that we need to keep our lives in balance.  As we go through our lives, precious grandchildren, make sure we each hold tight to the "Doctrines of Christ".  That is that we develop our faith, that we always work on repenting from our sins and shortcomings, that we take on the covenants of baptism and renew those covenants every week at the Sacrament meeting, and always work on the ability to feel and follow the Holy Ghost in all aspects of our lives, and then to endure our mortal lives well as we prepare to return to our Heavenly home.  

That is my lesson from these trees, and it explains why Joseph Smith called missionaries to Wisconsin, and the Pineries, to bring the stronger hard and solid woods down to Nauvoo to build the houses, and the temple, and the wagons that carried the Saints west!  It is a significant lesson to learn to keep our physical, mental, emotional and Spiritual lives in balance!

Then mom and I put on our "stay up late" attitude and went to the British Pageant dress rehearsal tonight from 8:30pm until 10:15pm.  We met up with the full time missionaries running the details of the Pageant and they made sure we had some excellent seats!  Yes, we discovered there really are those late hours on our clocks!  Here are some pictures from the Pageant;

Lot's of action on the slanted stage

Near the closing of the program

Note the temple was lighted for the finale

It has been a wonderful preparation day.  Now we get to begin our week of site service and wrapping up this final week of Pageant month here in Nauvoo. 

July 24, 2016 - Sunday in Nauvoo

How about this historical fact;  I was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 45 years ago today.  The date of July 24th was not familiar to me at the time, and it took several years of active Church involvement for me to finally understand the significance of the date.  Now, here are the facts surrounding my baptism;  I was taught the Gospel in a very limited manner.  I did not know that I should attend Church Sunday meetings every Sunday.  I was not taught about the Priesthood for the first 4 years of my Church membership.  And I was not aware of ward leadership roles or ward callings during the first few years of my membership.

I am not sure how I survived, (except Divine Intervention).  For me, there was so much more going on in my life with my school activities and outside goals and aspirations, that Church did not hold any significant interest in my commitment to be involved in a formal religion.  Therefore, the interests that were already established in my college years were the driving force in my life until I neared graduation.  But the date of the baptism is still pretty impressive, isn't it!

Mom and I were both up pretty early this morning.  We had our morning devotional and prayers completed by 6:00am.  Our morning goal was to be ready to leave for Church by 6:50am and help with setting up chairs for the last week of the busy Pageant program.  The congregations for the 7:50am Sacrament Meeting and the 9:30am Sacrament Meeting generally triple in attendance during the month of July.  

The Sacrament Meeting had just under 500 in attendance and the speakers were well prepared.  Mom and I headed down to the Visitors Center after Sacrament and enjoyed Sunday School and Priesthood and Relief Society meetings.  We had the assignment to serve today at the Family Living Center from 12:15pm until 5:00pm.  We had just under 200 visitors today, at the Family Living Center, and that was a nice group to serve.  The day went by quickly.  We were very happy about that because we do not like working on Sundays...

My responsibilities at the Family Living Center focused on the rope making.  I love giving this demonstration to family members because I really like to have them all participate.  When I get them all working together and helping each other make "the best rope ever", the children rarely show any desire for contention, fighting or arguing with each other.  And mom and dad have a ball taking pictures of everyone being happy in this process, and it allows some discussion, down the road, about the joyful experience they had in Nauvoo, every-time they look at their rope!

Today I had several families that I could reinforce the principle of "working together".  One family group included brothers and sisters and cousins.  For me, this was especially rewarding, because sometimes cousins like to try and "out brag" the other cousins.  This group had some mean comments to other extended family members that challenged me to bring the focus back on working together.

Now, here is my point to my family, (and I hope this might be the subject of a Family Home Evening as soon as possible), that we need to be especially kind to each other both cousins and brothers and sisters.  You see, who could the pioneers and the Saints  really count on when things got really hard?  They were forced out of Ohio, they were forced out of Missouri, and they were forced out of Nauvoo.  In order to make the terrible and challenging situations bearable, they counted on each other.  

Kind words spoken to brothers and sister and cousins are especially important.  Try to think about what you are about to say to your brother or sister or cousin, and how you would like it being said to you. Would you say you would not share something, and then expect a brother or sister or cousin to share with you?  How about how you would feel if a brother or sister or cousin told you about a really neat story, about your family or their family, that you really want them to feel jealous or sad about, because they didn't get to do it?

Families who want to be together forever will look for ways to make every other family member happy.  I have seen families leave the rope making presentation wanting to be kinder to their family, and I have seen others fighting over who gets to hold the rope that they just made together!  

As a family, let's make a deal to always try to be kind and loving toward each other and look for ways to make someone happy.  In the coming days and weeks and months and years, we will need each other.  We will want to be ready to help everyone that we can in the future by helping everyone in our families and extended families be happy now!  Remember, "there is beauty all around, when there is love in all of our  homes", and we share that love with our cousins and aunts and uncles!!

Now, some precious photos from the family;

Multi-tasking brothers!

Dad, I think that bird is about to......

Try that pat a little to the ..... ahhhh right there!

Granny and Grandpa are so proud of every precious family member!  We can't wait to see how you are trying to be the best family member as a brother or a sister or a cousin.  Tell us your stories!  We love hearing from you!!!

July 23, 2016 - Saturday in Nauvoo

Our day started very early this morning with our assignment at the Handcart Station.  It was a very warm and humid morning, and our first group was scheduled at 7:00am.  The heat index was already heading up to the extreme setting, and we were concerned about some of those visitors taking on the trek.  We had three groups taking the one mile trek and one group taking the three mile trek.  

My concern was mostly with the three mile trekkers because they did not start the trek until about 9:30am.  Normally the three mile route takes up to three hours, and the heat index was rising steadily all morning.  They got back at about 12 noon and they were pretty hot and tired.  I made sure they had lots of water and got them heading to the Visitors Center to cool off as soon as we could.  

Some of the cloud covering at 80% humidity and 90 degree temperatures

Just plain hot and muggy day!

I kept an eye on the three milers today

This is all farm land the Saints worked in the 1840's

The little girl in pink looked back at me and said; "Best day ever!"

Mom and I got home at 12:20pm and quickly took showers.  We then headed to the temple to catch the 1:00pm temple session.  However, when we got there, the parking spots were full.  We decided to wait until Monday when most of the Pageant crowd will be heading home.  The afternoon was spent in our cool and quiet little cottage and retreat from the craziness of Nauvoo on the last week of Pageant.

Our Rendezvous play was lightly attended.  Both shows had about 75 in attendance.  However the air conditioning felt so good and was so much better being inside the theater than outside in the humidity.  We both felt good about the shows tonight!

July 22, 2016 - Friday in Nauvoo

Mom and I both woke up to loud thunder and flashing lightening this morning.  The subsequent rain lasted over four hours and caused us to miss our morning walk!  But it was so nice and relaxing to listen to the pouring rain this morning.  I just laid there in bed for over an hour enjoying that wonderful sound!  I finally got up at around 5:45am and got my day going.

We had two different schedules today.  Mom had to be at the wagon depot at 7:45am and I had the late shift at the Blacksmith shop.  I took mom down to her assignment and then relaxed around the house until my shift time.  The Blacksmith shop has no air conditioning so the prospects of sweating off a 100 pounds was looking pretty promising.  By the time I was off at 6:00pm, I was soaking wet!  And then we headed off to the Sunset stage so I could sweat some more...

There were over 500 in the audience at the Sunset outdoor stage.  The show went well and we were actually on the shady side of the stage.  That helped out a little as my clothes were so wet.  But we did get a nice breeze and that helped to cool things off tonight.  The temperatures were in the high 80's whereas yesterday they were close to 100.  The lower temperatures and the breezes helped to make the hour play bearable for me!  This afternoon we got our final summer schedule for the last week of Pageant.  Can you believe the main part of the summer schedule has just one week left?

I had some pictures sent to me from the kids yesterday but the downloads on my phone are taking forever.  This is the first time a download has gone overnight and I am not sure how to fix that problem.  If you have any ideas let me know!  Thank you for checking in with us tonight!  We are "drained" and ready for bed!  In fact mom has already beaten me by an hour!!

July 21, 2016 - Thursday in Nauvoo

This was a sweltering warm day at the Handcart Station.  The temperatures were in the 80's by the time we arrived at 7:45am.  Our first groups were scheduled at 9:00am and 9:30am and 10:00am.  The humidity was very close to 100%!  I was almost soaking wet by the time I got the 13 handcarts ready for our trekkers!

8:30am waiting for our first group of trekkers!

Mom and I were both working hard as we got the carts ready for the adventure!  Then our first group arrived at a little past 9:00am.  I am never surprised when groups come later than their scheduled times.  But it does warmly surprise me when they come early!  

Now here is where I have two examples that I would like to directly relate and communicate to all the grandchildren who can understand.  Mom's and dad's, would you please make these points to these precious grandchildren from our experiences today?

The first handcart group I want to tell you about was a mother, a father, an aunt and two children.  The young man was going to be 18 in November and his sister was probably 12.  The brother just got done trekking Martin's Cove and his sister wasn't old enough to go this time around.  That was the purpose of this trek so that the sister could have the experience.  As is our custom, we gave the orientation about "holding to the rod", (staying on the path to be safe), and then having prayer.  The brother was so excited to do this with his sister.  

She was in the front of the handcart and he was the pushing force from behind.  When they came back into the Handcart Station, the sister was tired and not particularly happy with the experience.  They came in pushing and pulling the cart by themselves.  The mother later explained when the kids were over in the car that the sister wanted to quit after less than a quarter of a mile.  The brother was the one to encourage them on together.  The mother and father offered to participate in pulling and pushing, but the brother wanted to savor the experience alone with his sister.  

It was interesting to note that the brother was well acquainted with the Willy and Martin Handcart Companies.  He had just completed his trek and could relate the experiences of Francis Webster and Levi Savage and others who struggled with the 1856 experience.  His sister was crying and they stopped on the trail and he told her stories about how hard it must have been for the early pioneers.  They had an additional prayer together on the trail and they kept going!  Those experiences he had at Martin's Cove helped to carry his sister here in Nauvoo.  And he showed mom and I a great deal of respect by offering to help us clean off the carts after almost single-handedly pushing that handcart for his sister...

Our message to our grandchildren is one that cannot be missed here with this sweet experience today.  There is nothing in this world that will carry us through the hard times more valuable than the relationship we have with our brothers and sisters, as well as with our moms and dads.  I was so impressed with how he was totally focused on his little sister's needs at this moment in her life.  What kind of relationship do you think they will have for the rest of their lives??

The other group I want to mention was a family reunion group of about 55 moms, dads, aunts, uncles and lots of cousins.  They had so many things planned together on this trip to Nauvoo.  The trek experience was just one of them but here is what we saw today....  many of the older cousins teamed up for their own cart.  The younger cousins went with parents and aunts and uncles.  They seemed happy when they started off on their trek from the picture we took of "best day ever!"

But there was something different about this family group that I think was missing.  That was courtesy and kindness to younger and older cousins and to the trek coordinators.  When they started arriving back at the Handcart Station we asked how the trek went.  The older cousins just looked at us and parked the handcart. When we handed out the handmade trek medals of completion, there were very few thank yous...  They did not acknowledge the efforts we made for them in making sure they had handcarts, medals and enthusiasm...

So our point tonight is to take the best of our first group and practice being the best brother or sister you can.  Make sure to always, and we mean ALWAYS, use the magic words of "please" and "thank you".  And if an adult shows you courtesy and kindness, show it back to them!  Making society a better place for us begins with one person and one family at a time!

We got finished at the Handcart Station right at 12 noon.  I was soaked to the bone so a shower was in my immediate future.  Then mom and I made the 1:00pm temple session.  There were only about 20 in that session and we were so happy to end our day there!  Because tonight is our night off!  And we are enjoying a cool evening in our comfortable safe cottage! 

Now, here are some fun pictures I got after blogging last night.  Levi is going to be one of the best brothers ever, after you see how Grandpa interprets these pictures!!!  Take a look;

The first record smile that says: thank you for taking care of me!

See that right fist:  "Best day ever!"

Not just the best day ever; but hurrah for Israel! (future missionary!)

Every single day we pray for our family and friends and we are so looking forward to a safe and happy reunion.  Grandpa is so anxious to rough some grand-kids up, and Granny is so anxious to cuddle each one of you!  Get ready!  Get set!  We are so very thankful to be your parents, and grandparents, and your friends!

And finally, on this day, I would like to pay a special tribute to my sister, Jackie Sue.  She celebrates her birthday, today.  Happy Birthday, Jackie!  I wrote her a birthday letter that I feel I need to share so that my family and friends will know how I became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Some parts of the story might be familiar, but perhaps the intimate involvement that my sister had on me will be more apparent.

Back in college, I was making some terrible choices.  It was my sister that saw more potential in me than I could see in myself.  For this special reason, I will share my appreciation and love for her with this addition to my blog tonight;

Happy Birthday Jackie!

July 21, 2016

Hello Birthday sister!  I thought that I would sit down between assignments here in Nauvoo and write a birthday note to you.  I have been thinking about this special day of yours for a few weeks, now, and Helen and I wish you the best, and hope you have a wonderful day!

I am not sure how much you may realize this, Jackie, but your influence on me and my life has been significant.  Back in college, I was not going down the best path, as you well know.   We were doing what everyone seemed to find acceptable until we met up with Ellen.  You and mom caught the vision of the Gospel much, much better than I did.

It was about six months after you and mom accepted the Gospel that Doug and I were baptized.  That was July 24, 1971.  (That date took years to have any meaning to me)  And after the baptism, it took another four years to really catch my attention as to what that baptism could mean in my struggling life. 

I distinctly remember you and Bob Kenny coming to me and asking me to be the Young Single Adult Recreation Leader.  That was about February 1975.  I had no idea about callings, Church responsibilities, or even what the Priesthood was, but you seemed to have faith in me to organize this Thursday recreation night.  How did you know it would end up being something that would be the catalyst to my activity?

Looking back on that experience over the next five months, I marvel at how much I enjoyed that responsibility.  That led to an interview with Bishop Draper for me to receive the Aaronic Priesthood, right before Longs sent me to El Centro.  Imagine that timing!  I had no idea…

In El Centro, I was a fish out of water being away from my family, but that five months that you were instrumental in providing me the opportunity to lead those Young Single Adults on Thursday nights, was just what I needed.  That gave me the courage to stand on my own, so far away from home.  It was there in El Centro that my second calling, I was ever given, was to teach the Course 17.  I had no idea what the Sunday school was all about, but Heavenly Father provided a tutorial for me in teaching that class for MY learning.

Then you came to El Centro and helped me move to Shell Beach!  What a tender mercy that was to leave El Centro after only 11 months, 12 days, 7 hours and 13 minutes of missing my Fresno family!  And it was in Shell Beach I got my third calling as the Ward Magazine rep.  I had no idea the Church published magazines so I had to subscribe and start reading.

Then you gave me a call at the condo in Shell Beach, at 118 Vista Del Mar, and invited me to San Antonio to come and meet my future wife.  How in the world did you know that?  It is one of my most cherished stories to tell people about meeting Helen for the first time!

The bottom line is that you were brave enough and strong enough to help me from the baptism stage in my life, to the active stage in my Gospel learning and growth.  I will always love you, Jackie, with all the experiences we have been through together.  But this one significant effort on your part to invite me to actively participate in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to be a contributing member of the Church, is why I have come this far in my Church service.

I am eternally grateful for you and your prominent place in my life.  Because of you I have been fortunate to serve in a variety of leadership callings that have affected thousands of ward and stake members.  Your influence in my young Church life positioned me to be where the Lord needed me to be.  It changed my life.  And in so many ways, it has saved my life.

On your special day, I hope you have a marvelous celebration with family and friends.  You have been a choice big sister to me, and I will be indebted to you throughout the eternities.  Every birthday you celebrate in your lifetime, is a marvelous reminder to me of how your love and your influence has taken me from the terrible path I was on, to the glorious path back home to a loving Heavenly Father that I am trying hard to follow now.

We love you, precious sister!  Happy, Happy Birthday!

                 

Bob and Helen