Life was....September 9, 2001

No I did not get my dates mixed up, yes you did read that right.  September 9, 2001.  Really without the events of September 11, 2001, the two days before would not have been as special of a day.

I was a new high school graduate attending my first ever CES (Church Education System) Fireside.  I was excited.  The world was wide open to me and I could do anything, even though that thought scared me to death.  Little did we know that the world as we knew it would change.  It was the big start of the year fireside which is usually done by someone in the First Presidency or the Quorum of the Twelve.  This particular fireside was given by President Gordon B. Hinckley.  The title of this talk is "Be Not Afraid, Only Believe".  Very  appropriate considering what was to come.  During the last year sometime, I was looking through some scripture journals and fireside journals and notes.  I didn't realize this at the time of 9-11, but having seen the notes I wrote.....WOW!!! Talk about listen to a prophets voice!!  The notes said "There will be hard times in the coming days, but it is not over!  It is not the end of the world.  As we hold close to the church and the gospel, we will not falter!!!"  And yes, my notes probably had A LOT more exclamation points and plenty of bold underlining.  Now, knowing what happened two days after this talk was given, reading through the words President Hinckley said, it is absolutely amazing and comforting knowing that the prophet knew something was coming and warned us about it.  Did we listen?

Some things I want to share from his talk.  He talks about learning and truth, that truth can come from any language, people or religion, and that we accept this truth, wherever it comes from, if it is truth.  He then goes on to talk about how negative the world is and makes a plea that we "stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight....that we look a little deeper for the good."  How we would need this in those next few days, and without knowing it, as a nation we did.  Were we angry and upset about those that had harmed us?  You bet!  But as a nation and a people, we looked to our neighbors for help and support.  We saw the better in people, because who knew when we would see them again.

My favorite part of this talk.  "There may be some lean days ahead for some of you.  There may be troubles.  None of us can avoid them all.  Do not despair.  Do not give up.  Look for the sunlight through the clouds."  I think this is where I wrote my note referenced above.  Such a powerful message by the one person who gets the inspiration to lead the world!  I don't know if President Hinckley knew exactly what was going to happen, but I have NO DOUBT that he knew something big was coming that would rock our world, and that it was coming soon!  The Prophet of the Lord was guiding us, warning us, giving us comfort before we ever even needed it! What a marvelous work!

Since my discovery this last year about the significance and timing of this talk, I have tried to more closely follow the counsels of the Prophets and truly listen to their words.  I know that they are being guided by our Father in Heaven who knows all, before it happens.  I love this gospel! I live this gospel and I love to live it! THE CHURCH IS TRUE!!!!

Here is the link to President Hinckley's talk.  A great read!
http://www.lds.org/broadcast/ces090901/transcript/0,11006,566,00.html

Life is...Vegas! Well....in a manner of speaking

So last weekend, I went to Vegas with a few friends.  Now when I say we went to Vegas, yes, we did spend some time on the strip...in the car...in traffic.  It was probably the worst hour of the trip.  No, when I go to Vegas, I go to the temple.  There are several things that I have learned from this temple specifically and it has become one of my favorites.  It also has a special place with my family as my great uncle (I think, my grandmothers' sisters' husband?) was the contractor for the temple, finished it, turned over the keys and passed away a few days later.  Kinda cool.

Now for the lessons.  Many moons ago, my family was on a vacation in St. George and decided to venture to Vegas. We went to the strip, not sure what we were thinking.  We went with another family, had 8 teenagers total.  Being Utah County sheltered, we were pretty freaked out.  After that, we decided to find the temple.  We got lost, naturally.  We stopped at Arby's to eat, and got directions.  I will never get lost going to the temple now. Find Bonanza Road, and you will find the temple.  It leads straight to it.  The beautiful part, is that as you stand  on the temple grounds, Bonanza Road is the only road that is outlined by lights, all the other lights are scattered.  Hence, you have the Iron Rod and the mists of darkness.  In the distance, you can see the buildings from the strip, the great and spacious building.  And lo and behold, in Vegas, you have Lehi's vision. Who'd'a thunk?!

Next lesson.  I realized this one as I did a Vegas trip by myself several months ago.  As I was leaving the temple, the lights and glitz and glam of the strip at night is quite a site to see. But in the light of day, driving along the freeway from a distance, it is all quite ugly and boring.  Most the buildings are the same brown/tan color.  Light bulb!  In the light of day, our habits or sins that seem so popular and glamorous at night are really not attractive.  Sometimes when we are in the heat of something, we need to step back and take a deep(better) look at what's really happening.

Light.  A lot of lessons are about light.  At night, if you know where to look, you can find the temple, but it isn't bright like a lot of the other temples you see.  There's enough bright lights in Vegas.  It's a different kind of light, one you have to be looking for.  It won't jump out at you, but it is more powerful than the "other lights" of Vegas, to those who know it's power.  A different kind of light, a different kind of beauty.  One from within. 

And then there's the trees.  I love the trees at the Las Vegas temple.  They talk back to you.  There are 3 different spots around the grounds, where there is a circle of bricks on the ground, and a semi-circle of trees with a cement bench in front of them.  As you stand in the very center of the bricks, and talk to the trees, they echo back to you.  Everyone I've taken and shown the trees doesn't believe me until they try it for themselves and they are always blown away.  The lesson on this one....? Well, there isn't one.  It's just one of those things that makes me love the Las Vegas temple.  Each time I go there, I get a "Christmas Eve" type feeling of excitement in seeing my "friends" the trees.

So, yes, I love going to Vegas, but for very different reasons that what Vegas is known for.  I know most of the world doesn't share the same opinion I do, but that's ok.  It's what makes me....well, me!