Nauvoo Tidbits and Treasures

October 18th 2022

Last Road Trip of the Mission

Both Dave and I have been sick since last Sunday. We had a week long road trip planned which we started but then cut short because of not feeling well. We saw quite a few cool and interesting things which were mostly off the beaten path.

The temple windows are behind schedule as they are finding out that they were installed 20 years ago with the idea that they would last forever.

We are receiving 7 new temple couples this Friday and the hope is the temple will be up and running but it isn't looking great....we may have more delays ahead of us.

We are working on having a positive attitude amid sickness, delays and colder temperatures, which fosters restlessness and boredom. Only 3 months left for this mission. We will soldier on! It will be wonderful! Now for picture overload!

On October 7th we took a dinner cruise down the Mississippi on the Mark Twain paddle boat that left from Hannibal Missouri.

We went with our friends the Coffmans. It was a lovely evening shared.

Here we are with our primary class. We're teaching about being the "potter's clay" from Jeremiah. Conner is top right, then Mack and Andrea who only speaks Spanish.

Nauvoo in the Fall

First stop on trip was Pella. It's a dutch town and they have a wonderful tulip festival in the spring

This was a working windmill. It used to grind wheat.

Next stop. Matchstick Marvels. This man builds all of these amazing things out of matchsticks. They even have moving parts.

Even the statues are made of matchsticks.

Dave found a cool B&B for our first night sleeping.

It had a 100 year old organ he was able to play

and a beautiful grand staircase

Next stop, Reiman Gardens

They have a wonderful butterfly observatory.

The outside of a butterfly.....

and the inside!

So many different kinds of beauty

Next stop. Trestle bridge. This was an old Union Pacific railroad bridge that was restored to a bike trail.

We didn't make it all the way across cause it too cold!

and we were feeling not well....

Next stop: Grotto of the Redemption. A man devoted his entire life to stock piling all kinds of rocks and stones and created this monument. You just walk around with your jaw dropped.

close up example of how he cemented every stone. He had geodes, crystals, shells, petrified rock...I don't even know....

Next stop. Bily Clock Museum. Two brothers spent their lives carving this collection of musical clocks. They used their mother's sewing machine as a scroll saw.

You have to wind them up to get them to move

Some of the lovely scenery on the drive

Next stop. Fenelon Elevator. A man invented this elevator so he wouldn't have to walk up and down the hill to go to work.

It goes straight up

View from the top. Dubuque, Iowa

Fun murals in the city of Dubuque.

Last stop. Galena, Illinois. We were hoping the leaves would have been more spectacular but it was still lovely.

October 2nd 2022

First Week of Second Closure

We just finished up with the first week of the second temple closure during our mission. This one is only 4 weeks instead of 2 months so that is nice. Dave has been serving in the temple all week doing various maintenance jobs that can't be done while patrons are there. Running wire, sheet rock patching, realigning doors, painting the baptismal font etc. The windows are getting replaced slowly and the crew manager has promised it will be done in the allotted time.

I have been mostly recharging from being quite worn down from constant temple activity. It's been nice not to wake up to an alarm and have the time to put things in order in the apartment since I never had energy to do it before. I have helped organize a bit of the mission DI because Sister Coffman, who has the assignment is also the mail sorter as well as a grounds worker. There has been a lot to organize since we've had several missionaries clean out there apartments as they leave the mission. It's a fun thing to do and it's instant gratification as you can see the results immediately.

We got to see parts of Nauvoo that are off the beaten path, possible site of Joseph Smith's tomb, ancient Indian burial ground and city and the movie set of a new Nauvoo movie the Church is filming.

The highlight of the week was General conference. I just want to soak up every word and hope it penetrates my heart so it stays forever. This has been an amazing conference with one more session to listen to. I always love to hear our Prophet the very most though and I was buoyed up by his message. I have on occasion just wanted to stay in my PJ's, curl up in bed and not get up with all that goes on out in the world with it seeping close to home with ones I love. I am so grateful for his direction so we know where we can get the power we need to continue to move forward and know we can find peace and rest as we do our best. It all comes from the covenants we make and keep with our Savior and Heavenly Father. I believe this with all of my heart!

It's beginning Fall here in Nauvoo and it's beautiful. We are very grateful to be able to serve here, whatever that looks like from week to week.

This property has been surveyed by ground-penetrating radar so they can see what's underneath the ground. Large pillars have shown up so they replicated them above ground which indicated posts which indicate walls and look out towers and gates in the city.

Pretty fascinating.

Sign put up by the state of Illinois for this area

diagram of location of mounds. They of course are all covered by trees by you can definitely see where the mounds are.

Indian burial mound where many bones of bodies were found

and DNA tested.

The Werretts, Cunninghams and me...

Dave is of course taking the picture.

me holding on to one of the posts that indicate where a pillar was originally, you can see them all down the line.

The fence put up by the Church surrounding the

"possible" site of Joseph's tomb

Whether this is actually a tomb of Joseph is not important other than it's an interested historical finding.

This area is hidden and is not widely known. Other sites have been suggested by other people but this is the only one the Church has chosen to protect with a fence. Again, not important as to critical truth etc. just an interesting find.

This is taken from the Mormon trail on the way to Winter Quarters. The last time the temple can be viewed heading west.

Replacing windows one at a time...

Location of the new Nauvoo film. This is all made of Styrofoam.

Another view

Looking forward to seeing this film some day.

Our temple recorder, Brother Macotel and his wife have been "extras" in the movie. He was there on the set when we visited.

I hardly recognized him! He looks pretty scruffy!

September 21st 2022

These last few weeks have been busy and full of joyful tears. All but 7 temple couple missionaries will be leaving this Saturday when the temple closes for 4 weeks. Some have been here for 2 years because they started then stopped because of covid. others have been here just for the summer to help with the busy time in Nauvoo. All of them we love dearly and will miss them.

We had a very fun gathering last week with all missionaries in Nauvoo. Site, FM, temple, and Performing missionaries. It was a great time.

I woke up one morning with all of them on my mind and decided to leave a note for them, so I wrote this and put it in their cubbies.

To ALL you dear temple workers, September 15^th 2022

We have experienced a taste of heaven with you here! Even if we haven’t had

an opportunity to know each of you better, we are not strangers. Just seeing

you here, we know you. We know your heart and desire to be a true follower

of Jesus Christ and to work tirelessly for His cause.

The temple is unique above all other places in that everyone who enters has

made the same covenants and promises we both have made. That connects us

immediately for eternity!

Each one of you has strengths, beauty, talents, and gifts that when those are

combined creates a most powerful force for goodness and love. There is

nothing we could not accomplish together!

We will experience what the early Nauvoo saints experienced with seeing

loved ones leave or stay and long to be associated with them forever. We have

been promised that will happen!

We love each of you deeply and thank you so very much for this heavenly

experience!

David and April Weeks

"Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof." Eccles. 7:8

Often as we drive up to the temple both Dave and I sit in awe that we are here. It truly is such a special place and when you are here, you feel it.

My musings today have to do with the "Come Follow Me" program. I am so grateful for that divine instruction by our Prophets. I am 64 years old and have never read the Old Testament with any success but with this program and the podcasts that are available I have been able to really enjoy and actually "thrill" with the things that are being revealed to me! Psalms, Proverbs, even Isaiah! My awareness of my loving, mighty, powerful Father in Heaven and of my beautiful, faithful, merciful Savior has grown so much! I feel to PRAISE and love them with my whole heart!

Emotionally and physically I am weary but feel it a great pleasure and honor to continue to give it my all! The minute I walk through those temple doors I am infused with energy and a deep love for every face I see. It is pretty amazing. Then after our 7 hour shift we get home and I can hardly move for the fatigue. Then we get up and do it all over again the next day. I do not doubt we are being sustained by heavenly power.

"Even to your old age I AM he: and I will carry you: I have made, and I will bear: even I will carry, and will deliver you." Isaiah 46:4

I work with a delightful young woman named Emmie in the office on Mondays and Saturdays. We have become very tender friends. She has one of the purest hearts I have ever known. We laugh a lot together and share sweet things. She has all kinds of animals that she cares for and loves deeply. She sent me this story that I wanted to keep as a memory of her.

So yesterday my mom, little brother and I came home to one of our quail missing we found it across the road by the river. And I waited for it and tried to catch it for two hours. And I had no luck. And what made me tear up is when our other quail started calling for the missing quail. The Quail knew that one of their buddies were missing and they kept calling for the missing quail to come back. And that night I prayed that the quail that escaped will be safe and will find her way back to our house to her friends. And this morning at 6:00am my mom and I heard some happy quail noises and so my mom went outside and the quail was in front of our house and then I went out and we caught the quail and put it back with the other quail. And I cried even more when I saw them surrounding the one that was missing. Quail have a sweet personality. And Jesus Christ is the God of Miracles!❤️

Being on a mission gives you unlimited opportunities to stretch and grow, feel strong emotions and serve with all your heart. It is a powerful tool for our Heavenly Father to help us become more like Him and our Savior. Plus, work for the cause of Jesus! That is really the only thing that matters because it encompasses everything and everyone.

This is the cause of Jesus to make known:

"I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins. Put me in remembrance:" Isaiah 43: 25

Now for pictures: