3-December-2023-Sunday
We had another great day at the Rutland Branch. The Fast and Testimony meeting was excellent. The majority of speakers provided testimonies without travel logs, and this brings the spirit. The Branch Presidency is emphasizing reverence before the meeting. It was interesting to play the prelude and have it so quiet. I hope they do not lose their friendliness in their attempt to be reverent, but it sets a beautiful tone for the meeting. During the Sacrament Hymn, I totally blew it. I came to two accidentals, forgot I was playing two sharps, and switched to two flats. Wow, did it sound bad! I'm sure glad the branch is patient with me. As always, the primary was just fun. We sang Christmas songs, and I could not think of a better way to spend singing time.
It was raining as we left the church, and at Killington, it was snowing. The temperature dropped 5 degrees from Rutland to Killington. I hope Killington and Pico get many inches of snow. It would be an excellent base for the remainder of the year if it remains. It rained the rest of the way home. We did not go to the site until 2 pm. We left the apartment in the rain; it was snowing at the site. Luckily, it was not sticking. People did not leave their cars in the cold, and few drove around the area. Worry it will be slow for the Hoopes tonight. Because of the snow, they canceled cookies and cider at the church. We are having more snow this year, which would be great. I need the exercise that comes from shoveling.
We had just one couple today. They were members but did not know the Church's history. The woman was surprised to find out Joseph was born in Vermont but came when she saw the highway sign. It was a great tour.
Dede is cooking a superb meal so we can break our fast. I am so grateful for her kindness and hard work. Tonight is the First Presidency Christmas Devotional. I am looking forward to that. Shout out to my grandkids. Hailey and Lyndee both swam yesterday and did well. Lyndee had her Winter Viola recital, and it sounded great. Emma bore an amazing testimony. We are so blessed.
4-December-2023-Monday
Woke to an inch of snow but had four inches at the site. Wet heavy stuff as it was barely freezing. It made for a gorgeous day but did not encourage visitors who would not leave their cars and enter. Regardless, we had 8 people, which was better than last Friday. I also wrote on my document. The visitors were all nonmembers willing to listen for 10 minutes about Joseph Smith. One group of four had many questions. That was fun.
We started the day with training from Aaron and Gary, who set up a Zoom meeting from SLC. It was 6:30 am for them, and I appreciate the sacrifice. They wanted to review the handbook generally, and Dede and I kept asking site-specific questions. We surprised them, but they provided good thoughts for us. We appreciate their input, especially since it comes only 1-3 times yearly. I would guess the leaders get more questions resolved, but most do not get passed down to our level.
5-December-2023-Tuesday
The morning shift was quiet. We had a man come in who had lost a brother. I think he merely wanted to feel the Spirit of the site. He was interested in talking to the missionaries and doing Family History. He has done both in the past. I contacted the missionaries and hoped they could help him. Another couple from New Jersey walked up to the monument but did not come in. They thought Vermont would be covered in snow. It reminded me of the show White Christmas. They are heading to Killington tomorrow to ski. It was colder last night, so hopefully, some of the snow from Sunday and Monday stayed on the mountain, and they added to it with the snow-making equipment. Tonight, they may come back and see the lights.
Dede invited the Roberts to come to dinner. They have been here a few months, and we have not asked them to eat. Looking forward to a lovely evening. Tomorrow, Dede has tickets bought for the Boston Pops concert. We will hit the temple and the giving machine in Boston, check into our hotel, and then hit the show. We can sleep in and leave about 8:55 instead of 7 am as we will attend the 12 pm session.
6-December-2023-Wednesday. PDAY
Another glorious day was planned by the mistress of travel, Dede. We slept and did not leave for the temple until 9 am for the 12 pm session. We made it in 2:07 hours. I'm not used to missing the morning rush of traffic. We were early enough to have done initiatory, but we had not signed up for it, and they lacked the staff to do it on the men's side. Still, it was a great session. Thinking about the temple endowment compared to the Book of Revelation was fun. Both can be seen as ascension stories, where the hero, at the temple it is us, is introduced into the heavenly counsel to know the end from the beginning and understand his or her role in the affair. As far as I know, the hero only has the experience once in the scriptural ascension stories. We are so blessed to be able to return so often to experience it again and again and to learn more details.
Boston has a giving machine this year at Cambridgeside, and we made that our next stop. It is fun to think of the opportunities given to people through this network of devices. We hear only the best results but cannot give without receiving blessings. Shaunee, a volunteer at the giving machine, told us the Church does not want its name mentioned. Most people would notice the Church's name, but the Church does not want to use it for "bragging rights." It is probably sad that it takes the holiday season and a machine to prompt me to give, but it accomplished its purpose for me.
After checking into our hotel, which was a very nice but older hotel, Copley Square Hotel, we had time to walk. First, we found a restaurant and ate. We then walked to the Boston Common. Dede wanted to see the Nova Scotia Tree again. Each year, a tree is sent to Boston by Nova Scotia in gratitude for the service rendered in 1917 after a horrific explosion killed many people. It is decorated and put in the common, a reminder of service. We watched ice skating and looked at other decorations in the commons but were deeply touched by the Nova Scotia Tree. Boston did not know what was happening on that fateful night, but they responded regardless of the lack of information.
It was a brisk 35-minute walk to the symphony hall to experience the Boston Pops Christmas program. It was Wednesday, and a few seats were remaining. It is sold out for the rest of the week, both evening and matinee performances each day. It was a fun concert. We sat up on the balcony and had a fantastic view. People on the floor sat at tables and ate during the show. I was glad to just enjoy it. Both the orchestra and the choir were excellent. The hall is gorgeous and well-decorated. It was just professionally done. The walk to the hotel was cold! We were walking into the wind, so we were glad it was a mere 15 minutes away.
7-December-2023-Thursday
Happy Pearl Harbor Day. It was indeed a day that changed the world. I have learned to detest war. Nevertheless, listening to a Podcast called From Battlefields to Temples, I realized that the Micronesian Islands would not have received the gospel if LDS soldiers had not been fighting on the islands. What started as small military twigs turned into branches, then stakes, and now there are two temples. Among the various nations in Micronesia, three are in the top ten concerning the percentage of church members. This has all been accomplished in about 80 years or less. God is impressive with His ability to turn tragedy into a blessing.
Leaving downtown Boston in the morning is much easier than in the afternoon. It was an uneventful trip home, with a stop for gas and groceries in Lebanon. We had an hour before our shift to work on the document.
We had a slow night at the site. It was not surprising as it was about 18 degrees, and the few cars that came out seemed content to keep their passengers inside the warmth without venturing out. We talked to a few people, allowing me to progress with the document. I was adding captions to pictures when I realized I needed to be able to number them by chapter, but the paper lacked a table of contents, and Word did not recognize my chapter breaks. I spent considerable time figuring out how to add a table of contents and get the captions to work, but it was well spent. I have also learned to anchor my pictures in Word, so they do not move around and disorganize my text. Two things are apparent: I do not write enough to write a formal document efficiently, and Word has many functions I have never learned to use.
8-December-2023-Friday
We started the day with a missionary breakfast. We would typically have dinner on the 2nd Friday; however, with the shift lasting until 8 pm, it was moved to become a breakfast. Knutesons were in charge, and we ate their famous biscuits and gravy along with fruit, juices, milk, etc. Delicious and superb company. All had an enjoyable time.
It was a typical slow December morning. Helped President Buswell bring up a new Mac. His old Mac died, but he could retrieve the information from the old disk drive, and we loaded it onto the new Mac. Things were going well until we lost the internet. Hopefully, he can finish tonight, or we can start again on Saturday.
One member couple came in for a tour. Do not think they were married, as they live in different states. He is a historian, and that was fun. I used the remaining time to work on the document.
After our shift, we drove to Silloway Maple to enjoy one of their Creamees. Theirs is extra rich with butterfat. I had a brownie Sunday with hot fudge. Dede had cinnamon flavoring. It's hard to beat this Vermont specialty. We bought one for the Knutesons as she was getting flu and COVID shots tonight and could not go to Spillways. They are only open on certain weekends.
We came home, got our warm clothes, and visited VINS to see their light display. They do an excellent job. The collection is very spread out, so the many lights are somewhat lost. They do only the trunks of trees up to about 12 feet, but they do many trees and use various colors. They also have five central attractions, which they decorate. It was fun, and I have pictures to show you below. They use a short light bulb, which I like. It would not get tangled as quickly and is not bidirectional like some stubby lights.
9-December-2023-Saturday
Another glorious day in paradise for the Hegsted's on their mission at the JSBM. I spent the morning working on my document. I know it sounds boring, and it is, but I am slowly fixing items that need fixing. On the other hand, Dede made candy and other treats to hand out for Christmas. What a busy person as she made fudge, Chex mix, a sweet Chex mix, and toffee. My blood sugar was soaring just from smelling it all, let alone when I did my husbandly duty to sample it before allowing it to go out to an unsuspecting world.
We watched a video of Danielle, Hailey, and Lyndee performing their Christmas number for Sunday. Danielle and Hailey are on the piano, and Lyndee is on the viola. Being proud grandparents of such wonderful children and grandchildren is so easy.
We had a fantastic shift at the site. When we arrived, we took over a family of 3 from Albany. They attended a small track meet at Dartmouth for their son and then visited the site. Wonderful family with a returned missionary son. We then had Shaunee, the CES leader from Boston, come in. I met her last year, and she is a gem. When she walked in, I could feel her testimony and presence. The young people are blessed to have her serving in New England. Since she had been here before, we discussed the monument and how it was brought to the site. She was so gracious to us. I was so impressed as she discussed getting seminary to the Spanish and Portuguese Branches around Boston.
It was getting dark when she left, and people arrived to see the lights. It was warm, without wind, so people were walking around. We counted 287 people who entered the visitors' center during our shift. Many listened for 5 to 15 minutes. Some were just looking for treats or bathrooms, but the majority learned something about Joseph or the site. Dede nearly lost her voice; she was speaking so much. This is why we stay open until 8 pm when the lights are out. We had a few people who came in on Thursday, but we made up for it tonight. I fear that we will be very slow on Sunday, with the forecasted rain. President Buswell counsels us: We are like the volunteer fire department; we must be on duty to be ready for the Saturdays when needed.
Came home and ate delicious Clam Chowder and a bowl of Cheerios. Then, spent a moment unwinding before going to bed.
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