Beginning the temple missionary experience:

Beginning the temple missionary experience:

While it is fresh on my mind I want to relate our experience on our first visit to the Palmyra Temple last evening.  We drove to the parking lot as it was raining and the wind was cold.  It is quite a distance from the parking lot to the main east entrance, almost the same distance as our Yukon home to the OKC Temple!  There are several steps to climb before walking to the entrance...that will take some getting used to.  There were three people at the entrance taking pictures, in the rain.  They had traveled here from London.     

President and Sister Brighton were there to greet us.  He is tall and slim and she is small and slim.  They had lived in this area for over 25 years some time ago.  They told us we would grow to love this area.  President gave Art and I wonderful blessings.  With all these prayers we have been given, The Lord has his work put out to answering such marvelous blessings as have been given us.  

We met several missionaries who are finishing this week and were weepy as their tasks are over.  There was one other new couple there from Safford, Arizona last name Morris.  They are serving for 6 months.

My first glimpse of the temple were the beautiful doors that have the glass etchings of The Sacred Grove.  It is a lovely temple inside and out. Art and I are going to be very comfortable serving there.

The coordinator put me right to work and gave me a shift, on the schedule, of a Sister that could not be there last night. I caught myself saying, "That isn't how we did it in the OKC Temple".  Hopefully the sisters did not hear me.  They are all such awesome women.  I met one sister who had lost her husband just a couple of months ago.  He went upstairs to lay down and that was when he passed away, quietly, but shockingly for his wife.  There are several couples who live around here and they told us where to shop etc.  We learned of children, grandchildren and homes that are the center of these wonderful peoples lives.

This Sunday there is going to be a Fireside in the evening.  Elder Walker who is head of the temple department in SLC is speaking.  We just met him at our training in Utah.  I will write what he teaches us then.    

Oh no, We left our garden home...this is the lettuce we were growing in our Oklahoma home...guess Ryan & Sarah get to reap the benefits of our green thumb.

We drove to Lake Ontario today....burr it was very cold water. 

 We also drove by Brantling Ski Hill, it was very interesting to us because we love to ski.

Taken from the bottom of the hill

                                                        taken from the top of the hill

                                                                       Brantling lodge

We also did our laundry today.  I felt like I was back in college....1.50 for washing and .75 for drying.  Such fun!

That's it for this missionary moment.  Good night.