Week 2

Welcome to Week 2 of our blog:

31-July-2022 (Sunday)

By 7:30 am we made our tearful goodbyes to the Larsen family in Colorado Springs and headed north for Arvada (suburb of Denver) to visit Sara's family. They had driven from Bear Lake most of Saturday, where they had a reunio, in order to say goodbye to us.  We had a wonderful visit and were fed Shanghai soup noodles for an early lunch before attending church with them at 11 am.  We stayed only for Sacrament Meeting and then with more tears we said goodbye and started our drive East making it to Lincoln, Nebraska about 7 hours from Sara's house.  Oh what mixed feelings as we were excited to be heading for our mission, but so sad to have the miles build up between us and our children and grandchildren in Colorado and Idaho.  A

1-August-2022 (Monday)

We woke up in a small and dingy hotel, but a great room in Lincoln Nebraska, to celebrate our 42nd wedding anniversary.  We did so by packing up and heading east (and somewhat north) again.  We would make our first historic site stop in Nauvoo.  We came in from a different direction than we had done in the past.  We came in next to the temple and drove around it before going to the Sarah Granger Kimball home, which Dede wanted to visit and which I like because of its location near the river and its view of the temple.  We had a very nice tour of the home and looked at the temple from that site.  We drove back up to the temple for pictures and then stopped at the visitors' center to use the facilities before again piling in the car and making our way to our hotel outside Joliet IL.  

2-August-2022 (Tuesday)

On the road again with our sights set on the John Johnson farm outside of Kirkland, at Hiram Ohio; one our favorite places.  Eric's first missionary, sent out while he was bishop, was called to the Kirkland, Ohio visitors' sites and then to Columbus, Ohio mission and she told Danielle she would be at the farm on Tuesday so we made it a point to visit there.  I love this place and contemplating the revelations received here as well as the persecution of Joseph and Emma.  It was harder to leave here than Nauvoo, but we needed to stay on schedule planning to stay the night in Erie PA.

This is Amish country.  We ate a a diner called the Dutch Inn where we saw an Amish couple pull up in their horse drawn carriage and go to the hitching rack that would hold two carriages.

3-August-2022:

On the docket for this day was a visit to the Sacred Grove, the Palmyra Temple, a drive by the Hill Cumorah (which they are letting grow back to its natural state and thus looked very funny to us), the Peter Whitmer farm, and the Priesthood Restoration Site; with a hotel night in Binghamton NY.  It was wonderful to spend time in the Grove and feel the Spirit there.  We took the tour at the farm and enjoyed the spirit there with single sisters.  It is hard to beat the Priesthood Restoration Site where we took the tour and then spent time in the Sugar Bush where John the Baptist restored the Aaronic Priesthood.  We ended the day eating at a restaurant Anna had introduced us to on a previous trip to the Site.  We were within 6 hours of reaching the site.  Note, Sugar Bush is not a unique name to the site.  We have passed signs of maple producers who call their areas the sugar bush.

5-August-2022 Friday

Yesterday we arrived at the Joseph Smith Birthplace, our assigned field of labor.  After driving across the entire country; it was so good to be here.  We met President and Sister Ewer, the mission president and companion, at the site as well as the Buswells who are the other couple serving as hosting missionaries here.  Note there are two couples that serve as FM (facilities maintenance) missionaries as well, but it sounds like we might not see them as often.  They are the the Bergers and the Wilcox's and with a little effort we see them every day.

The Ewer's were so kind to us.  They brought us to our apartment and helped unload our stuff before we told them that we would handle the rest.  They are at least10 years older than us and so we wanted to be considerate of them.  Bringing everything in, was not bad; however when I started packing everything up the stairs I thought I might die.    There is an exercise bike in the apartment and I will try and take advantage of it.

Ewer's fed us dinner last night and toured us around the site and provided us with a limited set of rules and suggestions including temple attendance, companionship study etc.  We toured the visitors center and walked out to the monument.  The Ewer's had the spirit so strong and thus it was delightful to visit with them.  We enjoyed the sites visited on the trip across the country.  However, even with our study, it was not clear how to explain site history and bear testimony of the Savior and his prophet Joseph Smith.  They explained how to bear brief and sincere testimonies without saying I want to bear my testimony of....   That was so helpful.  I am sure we will become more confident with time but it comforted my heart to better understand the expectation,

When we arrived at the site, I could hear the music playing.  They have put speakers in the trees near the parking lot and up to the flagpole and often play tabernacle choir music or something inspirational.  When I walked up, the theme music from the church movie Mountain of the Lord was playing.  I love that movie and have often told my children it is the only true movie in the world, which should be watched annually.  They justly taunt me for my poor artistic comprehension.  Although they are correct, I still love it and it was a tender mercy to me to hear that music as we arrived at this our mission.  If I had any lingering doubts about God calling me to this place, they have been resolved.