Nauvoo Tidbits and Treasures: July 2022

July 27th, 2022
Lots of Visitors!
We got back from Utah and hit the ground running and had a great week. We had quite a few people we love come to Nauvoo and we connected with some and missed a few others. Like I said in last weeks post, the Montgomerys, (no picture) and grandchildren McKinney and Brenner came. We got to see them a couple times, which was very fun! My cousin Ron Barlow from Utah came out to support his sweetheart Julie who is in the pageant. We had a family who has ties to the Welches (my brother Robert's wife's family), and a district temple worker couple....shoot, I can't think of their name right now, but we love them...then two families we love from our Bountiful ward came, the Cowleys and Scheisses whom we didn't see but they left us notes. It's been a fun week for visitors!
We seem to be always tired when we aren't in the temple...grateful we aren't tired there but we seem to have lots of energy and good spirits. This is the last week for the Pageant and it will be interesting to see what happens to Nauvoo next week. Already our appointments for baptisms have dropped way down, going from 25 patrons per hour every hour to zero. Hopefully, they will get filled up.
We are one week past our half way point on our mission. It has been wonderful to be here and participate in this great work. We're so grateful we get to see all the season's of Nauvoo and associate with some pretty amazing people.
We attended " The King Follett Discourse" today with two performers representing John Taylor and Joseph Smith. It was in a grove of trees not far from where it happened originally. When the actor playing Joseph Smith walked out and started speaking, we were taken back in time. It was very soul stirring. The most valuable thing I have received from this mission is a rock solid testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. To be here where he walked, taught, worked, played, danced, worshipped, received revelation, was killed and buried is truly a heart changing experience. I can feel his influence in the city he envisioned and motivated a people to work to clear and drain the swamp, on the roads that he organized in perfect blocks, in the temple that he visualized but never got to see, in the stories of the people that loved and supported him as a Prophet and a man. In regards to the Book of Mormon, there is a line in the pageant that says" No evil man could write a book like this and no good man would want to, unless he was inspired by God" If I got nothing else out of the 13 months here in Nauvoo, that would be plenty but, of course there has been much more received than we could ever have anticipated.
This winter was frigid, this spring couldn't make up it's mind if it wanted to be here or not, this summer has had moments of smothering heat and humidity and we are looking forward to experiencing autumn, but mostly it has been a daily wonder and pleasure to be here in this beautiful sacred place.

Brenner and McKinney Lawson. Two of our darling grandchildren, here with a group of 400 from Parker Colorado. Thank you youth leaders for this amazing experience for them!

We found Brenner and friend just before going to the temple.

We found McKinney getting her lunch after she went to the temple.

Brenner pulling the handcart at the Country Fair before the pageant

Cousin on my mom's side, Ron Barlow

Ron and his sweetheart Julie after the pageant

This young mother is Wanee Welch's granddaughter and her husband's parents are district workers with us in the temple....

I can't remember their name... so sorry....

I am almost 5 feet tall so how tall is this corn?

As high as an elephants eye!

Cute pig for my friend Sandy. She collects them.

This is what you see at the pageant

but they really don't bother you much.

Sunset picture that Dave shared with our temple group

Painting of above picture by one of our temple group

The lilies are all along the river bank. It's beautiful

July 20th 2022

Fun Times, Road Trip, Good Hugs!

Another two week gone just like that! We had just gotten settled into our new schedule when we got word that Doug Davis, our son in "love's" father had passed away. He had been having mini strokes for 10 months and his body was dying in bits and pieces. We were so heartbroken with this news. We got permission to go to the funeral so we took off last Wednesday and drove to Bountiful Utah. It's a 20 hour drive with fuel stops and we made it there by late Thursday night. We tried to see our kids when they were available and the funeral was so sad but so powerful, tender and full of love. It was an honor to be there. This man was truly the heart of his family and he will be sorely missed. I felt sadder at the loss of this man than I remember feeling for either of my parents and as I pondered on it, I think it's because I was not mourning for myself but I was mourning for Alex for the loss of his dad, Meghan for her loss but also feeling her mourning for Alex and her children for the loss of an amazing Grandpa, I was mourning for Susan his wife and Jeff his other son. I know he is in a wonderful, lovely place but he will be missed something awful!

Right after the funeral we drove the 20 hours back to Nauvoo. Dave did a beautiful job of getting us there and back safely. It was so good to get out of the car and get back to our mission. Two of our grandchildren, McKinney and Brenner Lawson are here with their stake from Parker Colorado. It's such a treat to see people we love while we are here in Nauvoo.

Now we get to get back to work! We only have a few more opportunities to be in the pageant finale which has been such a fun, uplifting thing to do.

Two weeks worth of pictures....The first grouping is of the Country Fair that is in Nauvoo every night before the pageants. It is so fun!

Dave is pulling Emmie and me in a handcart. Emmie is a darling 20 year old service missionary that works with me in the temple office on Mondays and Saturdays. We are the best of friends!

Me and Emmie doing the ring toss game.

Dave joining a tug of war

You can help with quilts at the fair

Dave and I trying the stick pull.....

Me winning!

This was staged by some other missionaries that lifted

Dave up and then took the picture...

Emmie and I learning the Highland Swing dance

This is Mike Shurtleff who is the temple engineer

that Dave works with

Dave doing pretty well on the walking sticks

Me not doing pretty well....look at how high off the ground I'm not!

The Nauvoo Pageant

The Nauvoo Pageant as they raise the temple

Back home for the funeral. This is Nicki and Karl,

Dave's brother and wife who are living in our home.

Beautiful sunset out our back door in Bountiful

Got a surprise chance meeting with grandkids,

Brightynn and Beckham

Got to go to a soccer game of granddaughter Jordyn and

son Nate is the assistant coach

Dave and Aurora enjoying a snow cone at the

Handcart festivities in Bountiful

Aurora and Me at the park.

We had her two brothers with us but didn't get a picture.

Dave with some distant Weeks relatives that he saw at the temple.

Huge moth Dave saw on the temple grounds.

Wednesday, July 6th 2022

Nauvoo Has Come Alive!

It's been a busy two weeks. Our schedule was changed so that we could help in the baptistry on Tuesday nights. It's much more demanding physically than the other temple assignments so we come home pretty tired, but it's a wonderful place to serve. We are anticipating two of our Colorado grandchildren coming with their youth groups in a couple weeks and we hope we'll be able to see them as we serve.

So now our schedule for the summer is:

Mon. Office/Engineer 7 to 2pm

Tues. Baptistry 12 to 8pm

Weds. P-day

Thurs. Ordinances 12 to 8pm

Fri. Initiatory Coordinators 7 to 2pm

Sat. Office/Engineer 7 to 2pm

The weeks just zip by! We have the wonderful opportunity to be in the finale of the British Pageant that runs every Weds. and Fri. nights. We get to walk up to the side of the stage with all the other missionaries singing Called to Serve. We had a dress rehearsal Mon. and I know I will be weeping every single time. It's a very powerful moment after a fabulous program to be surrounded by like minded people who love the Lord and are striving to serve Him. We are so grateful to be here and get to experience all the times and seasons of Nauvoo!

Dave has been busy with his engineering opportunities. The Lord's laundry stream press has been broken since we got here and Dave was able to determine the problem and make a gasket and repair it so it is now working. He was nervous because he didn't have the appropriate solvents to insure a clean surface for the adhesive to bond but he used what he had and it worked well! The laundry workers are so happy!

Elizabeth and Mark Pierce worked with us in the Bountiful temple. They are in the Nauvoo Pageant and we got to have a nice visit with them. Such delightful people!

We got to sit by our friends Diane and Perry at one of the shows here in Nauvoo. Such delightful people!

"This is Our Story" cast. those are not stars in the sky....they are bugs! These actors did an amazing job of totally ignoring them. It was a great show.