VIEWS OF THE SACRED GROVE

When we first arrived in Palmyra we wondered if we would ever see Spring!  This is how the trees in Palmyra looked when we arrived in April.  This is in the valley below The Hill Cumorah.

The Palmyra New York Temple is the only temple that has a clear window to look out of.  It is built so we can see the Sacred Grove from the lobby of the temple.  Today when I stood at the window looking out the trees no longer looked like winter sticks but like the picture below.  I said to those standing by, "Oh, look The Sacred Grove Trees are finally getting leaves"!  A Brother Brown said, "It's looks like the 'Re Leaf Society' has  finally been working".  It took me a minute to catch what he said, but I have been giggling every time I looked out the window today.   What a good Society we belong to!  See the great service we may be assigned on the other side of the veil!  Hurrah for the "Re lief" Society Sisters!

Not only are the trees in the Sacred Grove leafing, but the apple trees are in bloom!  The hill country is loaded with apple tree blossoms, and of course Elder Bushman had to drive to see them between shifts at the temple.  No rest for the weary.  The orchards were full of beautiful trees and worth the drive.  Johnny Appleseed was busy in upper New York! (John Chapman, the tin pot hat man, was a nurseryman and a missionary)  Also good job "re lief" society, the apple trees are also loaded with leafs!

Sister Adair served with us in the OKC Temple.  When we were called to this mission she gave me a copy of this book.  It is the story of Willard and Rebecca Bean and their mission call in 1915 to Palmyra...which ended up lasting 25 years!  They were newlyweds at the time.  The book is awesome...a must read for any member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  They resided on the Joseph Smith Sr. farm and helped the church obtain the Hill Cumorah and many of the historical places here .  I was so excited when we arrived here and I could look up the many historical 

sites in this book.

 

 Then to my delight I learned that "Palmyra" Bean's, (Palmyra was the oldest child of Willard and Rebecca born in Palmyra) daughter and her husband are serving a summer 6 month mission with us.  Her name is Pam Smith & her husband is Emery.  I think she thinks I am a wierdo because I get so excited when I see her.  Below is a picture of Elder & Sister Smith.  I doubt many of the missionaries even know who she is, she is so low key and unassuming.  I had her sign my book and have bombarded her with questions about her grandparents.  She only remembers them as old, old people.  However, my enthusiasm has had its rewards.  She signed my copy of the book.  She just brought me a poem and a letter, about living on the Joseph Smith farm, that her mother wrote about living here in Palmyra.   They are in her original handwriting when she was a teenager.  I am one lucky person!

Lake Ontario: Sodus Bay Lighthouses:

We were going to Stake Conference in Syracuse New York so decided to take in some more sights on our way down to our evening meeting.  This Bay on Lake Onterio had these lovely lighthouses and tons of Yachts...The area was so beautiful.

We also went to Sauder's Mennonite Country Store in Seneca Falls, New York

Several of the missionaries had been there and raved about the food.  This day they were giving free hot dogs, soda's, ice cream, etc.  They had ballon's and hay rides.  We purchased a New York Atlas, some graham cracker pretzels, cheese curds, chocolate peanuts, chocolate sunflower seeds and some chips....yum was the word!  The women clerks wore the Mennonite clothing and covered their heads with little white bonnets.  They looked beautiful.  I read that the bonnets are because of a quote in 1 Corinthians 11: 26.  I guess with my hair cut short I wouldn't need to wear a bonnet...if I were a Mennonite that is.  I'm sure we will stop there again during our travels.  

STAKE CONFERENCE IN SYRACUSE NEW YORK
We enjoyed attending the Saturday evening session and the Sunday morning session.  We are beginning to know the members from the Cortland Ward and are feeling a bond with them.
The Cortland Ward did the music.  Saturday night they had a group of string players. Most played the violin.  They were fantastic.  Today they had a choir and sang two songs.  The audience & the women in the choir joined in the last two verses of the closing song "The Spirit of God" while the men sang the first two verses.  It was a very spiritual song to end the meeting with.  The Stake Presidency was changed and a new Patriarch was announced.  I loved this quote given last evening by Sister Moss especially after associating with the Mennonite group yesterday:
 “If it has been demonstrated that I have been willing, before Heaven, to die for a Mormon.  I am bold to declare before Heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist or a good man of any other denomination.  For the same principle which would trample on the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample on the rights of the Roman Catholics or any other denomination who would be unpopular or too weak to defend themselves.”  Joseph Smith, 1846

I pray we will not have to defend ourselves from our government again in the future.  I pray we can continue to have Freedom of Religion in America.  I am looking forward to a Zion society once again as promised in The New Jerusalem, beautiful Zion.  I sure wish this pain I have been suffering in this tabernacle of clay could be the travail that could help bring down The City of Enoch again.  One thing I know for sure is The Pageant will be held on The Hill Cumorah in July and it will spectacular....and just perhaps soon we can recognize Mount Zion, as written about in The Book of Mormon.  There was a very sacred event that happened in The Sacred Grove in the Spring of 1820.  Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to God & The Lamb!

We just returned from a Missionary Fireside on the many versions of "The First Vision".  We sang this amazing song:

Elder Jon G. Neeley wrote the above song as he drove through Oklahoma on his way to their Palmyra Mission from California last year.  He had just listened to Elder Bruce D. Porter's talk in May of 2013 General Conference.  Elder Porter inspired Elder Neeley to rewrite these words to this tune.  It is to the tune of "Oh, What A Beautiful Morning".  I hope all of our Oklahoma family and friends enjoy reading these words and singing this version of Oklahoma. 

There's a grove by the side of Palmyra....Oh, what a beautiful morning!

HURRAH FOR ISRAEL

We began the week by driving to Victor, New York to a movie theater.  We saw "Heaven is Real".  It followed the book pretty good.  The young boy that played the main character had mesmerizing blue eyes.  Of course the movie totally lifted my spirit....I look forward to the day when this grandma looks like the prime of her life again...and those that know me know I would prefer to twinkle even though I am not a star!

This morning at 6 AM I got brave and drove to the Palmyra Macedon High School and began my early morning swims again!!!  It has 6 lap lanes and I got a half of one to myself and it was totally awesome.  The school is about 5 minutes away.  They have early morning swim 4 days a week and charge $1.00 admittance...Tomorrow I am to serve from 8 am till 5 pm...should I swim?  Such a difficult decision...can I be ready in time....Oh My...swimming is so profound compared to the stationary bike I've been riding in the mornings.  Too bad I was born with such a negative attitude about exercising....but still loving the chocolate bars....Mitch Park Y in Edmond opened at 5 AM.  Too bad this one doesn't do the same..but I do so enjoy sleeping later.  Of course Elder Bushman can't understand all this wishy washy stuff...he just gets up and runs his 3 miles and then eats his hershey kisses all day.  What's the problem?  The battle of the metabolisms continues.  I still wear the fins and goggles like I did when I was swimming with this awesome group last summer!

The Palmyra Macedon High School Pool: 

Of course now the hair was driving me buggy as some days I need to be at the temple by 8:00 AM so I found out who all the ladies at the temple use to cut hair and talked her into an appointment at 7 PM before I started cutting it myself.  I'm so blessed to have natural curl.  I told her to cut it so I could run my fingers through wet hair and go.  Elder Bushman is jealous of my hair!  Ha!

Our travels today took us to another finger lake where we visited Watkins Glen State Park.  It was too long of a walk for me to go see all the waterfalls on the mountain...so Art took pictures at the top.  We drove forever to get there too...but Art enjoyed the driving and I napped.  I have a daughter-in-law Allyson who's maiden name is Watkins and so I thought of her all day! 

We have served in the Temple for two weeks and have about got the way they do things in New York down pat.  It is such a lovely temple and the people are so friendly.  Sometimes I feel like I am in Paradise just waiting to go to heaven to be with my departed family.  Other times, usually when I have served a shift in the office, I wonder if I can survive a year with this schedule!  All of you know the feeling, I am sure.  Then when I was warn down one day,  I saw a 96 year old man come to do sealing's and he was so cheerful and alert and I remembered that I can be an angel just for him for today...as he has been my angel for just being there.  We are The Lord's Hands.

I watched a sister enter the temple with a walker.  For every 4 steps she took she progressed one step.   A couple of people quickly went around her and moved on. I could tell it would take her forever to get to where she was going.  I was about to leave my post and ask if I could help her when a young girl came into the temple and stepped in front of her.  She looked back at her and said, "Sister you remind me of my dad and his walker, how about letting me give you a ride"?  The other sister said, "I have MS and can't seem to get this body to move this morning, I would appreciate a ride".  Then she began to turn her body and sit on the chair in her walker.  It took her a good minute to sit down.  The sister that offered to help her said, "Good job".  Then she twirled her around and leaned into her face, told her to lift her feet a bit, and off they went down the hall, the both of them giggling and talking.  I stood erect and wept for the tender sight The Lord had allowed me to witness. 

Today we are going with other couples to a Lilac Festival in Rochester NY.

 As you can see everyone loves the Lilac Festival....huge crowd!

Church in Cortland Ward was awesome today...other than the fact we had to drive 1 1/2 hours both ways.  The Primary children sang and gave us paper flowers they made.  Then the Bishopric passed out carnations and chocolate after Sacrament.  A Brother Ayres gave us a loaf of home made wheat bread.  He makes the bread for Sacrament each week.  I got messages & a card & phone calls from my son's & daughter & their families.  It was a good mothers day.   Our New Zealand missionary is being transferred Wednesday and Elder Moore is from Woodruff, AZ. about 20 miles from where Elder Bushman grew up.  We also have two sisters in our Cortland Ward.  

After church we went to the Carman farm in Marathon, NY.  Gus and his wife Jean and their daughter Marie & son Walt live there.  Jean is homebound and needs someone with her always.  Today Marie stayed home with her.  We took the Sacrament to them.  They had another daughter and grandson visiting with them.  Elder Bushman and the Grandson administered the Sacrament.  We then had Chicken Pie  & homemade applesauce with them.  After dinner Brother Carman took us on a tour of his Dairy farm.  He just sold the remainder of his cattle in April and it has been really hard on Gus. He is 80 years old.  His father purchased the farm in 1900.  The home and barn are now over 150 years old.  The Glaves (we served with them in the OKC Temple) were their neighbors for years...it is a small world in the church.

Gus has a 1954 Chevy truck like the GMC Elder Bushman's dad drove.  Art was very impressed.

The bottom of the barn was where they milked the cows and the top is where they stored the hay.  This is Gus by the hay bailer in the top of the barn.

Gus told us to look at the back of the barn and he has his own set of stars to look at all day long.  The barn has holes that the sun shines through!  The whole top of this barn is usually full of hay bales and the ladder was to climb to the top of the bale stack...pretty scarry.

Well, this was a full and interesting week.  We have met some wonderful people and have had some wonderful experiences.  I fell at the first of the week and hurt my arm so am trying to recover from that.  I have bruises & torn muscles to show how frail I am.  It has made me ponder the sacrifice The Savior made for us, "bruised, broken and torn for us On Calvary's Hill"...I have some bruised, and torn muscles by Cumorah Hill...I feel sorry for any pain I caused The Savior and hope I can heal and help others heal as we serve in this sacred place.  "Thy name we Bless!" Hurrah for Israel!

PINEAPPLE PIE!

Elder Bushman is so excited.  We went into Breen's Market in Palmyra and there was a pie section right by the door.  He found a Pineapple Pie!  So excited for him.  Who would have thought...the heavens are close again.  This is the pie Art's mom made him for his birthday every year...and Karen Hutto, our dear friend and excellent cook made him for the last few years.  Mary Newman made him some years ago before she went to work full time.  It's a good thing he is being watched over...I'm protected this birthday as we have no oven, and no close friends close by ;)!  Hurrah for Elder Bushman.

Today we had fresh peach cobbler.  It was way better than the store bought pineapple pie.  The peaches were grown on our new bishop's tree in his back yard!  Bishop John Scanlon and his lovely wife LeAnn invited us to their beautiful home for dinner...and since it was Fast Sunday we accepted as fast as we could.  They have four children Sydney who is 9, Colby who is 7 (he likes to make big slurping sounds with his straw & smiled as he said he is not sure he likes his school teacher), Gwyneth who is 5 ( she threw up after eating cookies in Primary and had to wear a baptismal suit home!) and Boden who is 3 (his sister Sydney had to interpret the meal prayer he said as it sounded alien to us).   Sister Scanlon home schools her children!  She is multi-tallented.

CORTLAND WARD

is our assigned meeting meeting place.  We drove the back roads to get there and cut 20 miles off the distance.  It took us 1 1/2 hours to drive there and was a distance of 80 miles.  The meetings begin at 10:00 AM.  We arrived at 9:00 A M and attended the correlation meeting.  We got to meet all the Presidencies and the Bishopric.  They have about 150 active members and about 300 members.  They have 4 full time missionaries assigned to their ward.  We arrived back in Palmyra about 7 PM after a pleasant & full day.  Having been fed by Bishops family I slept peacefully on the way back while Elder Bushman tried another suggested route on the back roads!

If any of you want to surprise us for Mother's Day, the Cortland County Airport is only a couple miles from the Cortland Ward Building....just kidding...this little airport reminds me of The Sundance Airport by the OKC Temple.

Cortland New York is down in a beautiful valley.  There are three ski hill located around the area.  

This is a picture of President & Sister Brighton our Temple President and Matron.

This is a picture of President & Sister Broadbent the first counselor and assistant matron.

The other counselor is  President Cahoon and his wife is the assistant matron.  They were not in attendance at our home evening tonight where the other photo's of the Presidency were taken.  This evening President Brighton gave Elder Bushman a letter from President Monson telling him that "authorization is hereby given for Arthur Vern Bushman to exercise the sealing power in the Palmyra New York Temple.  Since Brother Bushman was given the sealing power on June 23, 2006, for use in the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple, it will be unnecessary to confer it on him again".  So beginning this Wednesday Elder Bushman will become a Sealer in the Palmyra New York Temple.  We will serve on 6 shifts during the week, two days of which we will be serving in the office.  We will have most Saturdays & Mondays off. 

President Broadbent is giving a history of the Smith family in our home evenings.  Tonight his wife told us of President Broadbent's Great.....Great Grandfather Joseph S. Murdock.  He had been a sickly lad since he was around 10.  He met the missionaries and asked if they could heal him.  They told him they could bless him and if he had sufficient faith he could be healed.  He went to bed after his blessing and awoke the next day totally healed.  He was well for many years.  In his later years he became sick again, so had his family take him by wagon to Kirtland, Ohio where he had the Prophet Joseph give him a blessing again.  He was healed once again.  He wrote a poem to his family back in New York encouraging them to become members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  Many of his family joined the church and came to Ohio to be with Br. Murdock and his family.  The poem was so powerful that music was put with it and we now sing it as one of our hymns:  "Come, Listen to a Prophet's Voice"  page 21 in our Hymnal.  I hope each of you can take the time to read the words of this hymn now that you know "the rest of the story".  President and Sister Broadbent are living proof of the faith of Joseph S. Murdock for his family and their descendants.  

May each of you be blessed with peace & love in your hearts for your families and for all God's children.  "Another prophet now is sent this knowledge to restore".  Blessings to you and your's.

Elder & Sister Bushman  

  

April Showers bring May flowers

                                We hope all the showers this week bring flowers in May!

The most awesome experience happened when we went to the Palmyra Ward on Sunday April 27th.  The first person to introduce themselves to us, in the chapel, was my cousin Bruce Nickell.  I had not seen him since he was about 6 years old. His Mother, Idonna, is my fathers sister.  Below is a picture of me (the youngest in the picture) with Bruce's mother Idonna and her sister Renae.  Idona is the older sister.  I felt the heaven's very close on Sunday as I visited with Bruce.  It is a small world in the church.  Families are forever!

We had a delightful Fireside with Elder William Walker on Sunday evening.  He told the story of when his first child was born.  He had a best friend who had their first child on the same day.  They were discussing this miraculous event and his friend commented that he was so moved at this sweet babies birth, but the hospital staff acted like it was a routine event and that it happened every day, no big deal!  Elder Walker requested, from us, that when we do the ordinances for people, don't act like that is what we do everyday...be excited that we are helping that person do their work for their first time.  We are to remember how we felt when we were doing our own work.  Then he gave several stories about how President Monson always focuses on "The One".  I'm writing this down to help me remember how important the work is that we are doing here in Palmyra...Help me lest I forget!

Monday evening we went to our first Home Evening with all the Temple Missionaries.  President & Sister Brighton and all the Presidency along with several missionaries fed us dinner and then we met our Mission President ARTHUR Francis and his wife Sherry.  They preside over the Rochester New York Mission which we are part of.  He and his wife are in their early 50's and are parents of 7 sons and 1 daughter.  They have two granddaughters.  They are from California. Four of their sons are here with them and another is returning from his mission this Thursday.  They have another son serving in the Pocatello, Idaho mission!   They are a delightful "young" couple and we feel fortunate to be under their tutorship.

The couple with them in this picture are Elder Ted and Sister Phyllis Bardo.  They are our next door neighbors in the Inn.  They are converts from Houston and are here serving for 6 months. They are the parents of five children also.  They informed us that we do not have to pay to do our laundry...we just get a key from the front desk.  Also we can have housekeeping  clean once a week.  Now they are good neighbors..I did not know this information...are we being blessed, or what?  We love our neighbors! 

President Thomas and Linda Brighton are the President and Matron of this Palmyra New York Temple.  He was a Mission President in Ireland, and they served together in Bejing China and now are the Temple President and Matron for here.  Sister Brighton is a twin and has wanted to live by her twin sister since they both got married.  The Brighton's lived in this area for over 25 years and finally bought a home in Utah next door to her twin sister.  They have owned that home for 14 years now and still have not been neighbors as both couples keep serving missions.  They hope when they get released from the temple presidency it will happen as they feel old now...ha...do you think they will stay put?

We send greetings to our family and friends...I think this blog should be published for this week.  Tomorrow we get our schedule and the schedule of the ward we will be serving in.  I hope we don't shed tears over what they give us!  If we do perhaps a rose rock will form from our tears as we travel here.  The rose rock (barite) is the legend of Oklahoma and their State Rock.  There are several Indian tribes in New York...one is the Oneida Indians.  Perhaps our tears won't form rose rocks but eating utensils...just trying to make a joke!  The wine-red garnet is the New York gem....very appropriate for this mission. 

LOCAL SITES VISITED:

This morning was cool and cloudy again so we decided to venture out and see The Sacred Grove, The Hill Cumorah Visitors Center and find Alvin's grave.

Alvin's grave is on a hill in Palmyra where the first school was built for the village.  We had to climb stairs to the top of the hill that looked like the pyramid steps in Egypt.

                                              The stairs were mossy on the way up,

                                                            a steep slope on the way down

The front of Alvins headstone.  It is right at the edge of the tall hill.

The back of the headstone...a later version.

The Hill Cumorah Visitors center is located at the base of the hill.  We went inside and saw the Christus Statue and the new film about Jesus's Crucifixion and Resurrection.  The narration for the new film was by the Apostle John.  It was well done.

Jesus gives us hope!

The Joseph Smith Home has several sites on it.  There is the main visitor center which was getting a new roof this morning.  The log cabin where Moroni appeared to Joseph is just next to it and then farther down the road is the home Alvin had started to build for his parents before he died.

This is one of several wells they dug on the property.

The tree in the background is the "Alvin" tree Lucy had them plant when Alvin passed away.

After seeing my daughter pick out so many fun sinks for her new home I was fascinated with the stone sink Lucy had...it only let water out...the water to be put in had to be carried into the sink.

The cellar in this home looked like the Wade home in Tetonia where I always slept when visiting my Grandparents.  The whole cellar was made with river rocks.

 There is a awesome creek that runs in front of the Sacred Grove.

Last when we got back to the Inn we had mail....see the plastic slots behind Grandpa Art.  Those are the missionaries mail boxes.  Grandpa said to tell you, hint hint!  You'de think his birthday is coming sometime soon...Ha!

To have walked where the Smith's walked was totally inspiring today.  To ponder the visit that Joseph received in the first vision is humbling.  Grandpa and I pondered how many places Our Heavenly Father and The Savior have visited on the earth.  I am sure there are many.  Perhaps They will visit where you live today.  I hope so.  We know They have walked the halls of the temples.  May we be blessed to feel Their Spirits and love always.  Hug's to each of you.   Don't be concerned with all the blogging done this week...next week I will be serving and there will be way less blogging...but while I had your attention I had to acquaint you with our lives at the present !

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.

We arrived at Palmyra Inn on the 22nd of April.  We were assigned room 232.  They were still cleaning up from the former tenants the evening before.   No new paint for us!  This is the pictures of the room along with a picture of The Hill at Cumorah.  It was raining as we drove up so decided to choose another day to walk up to the monument.   I couldn't figure how to put the picture last.  It is not in the middle of this motel room!

We both got up and exercised at 6:30 am.  I rode a stationary bike.  I really miss the pool at the Mitch Park Y, but will be faithful and continue the exercise.

Tonight is our first shift at the Palmyra Temple.  We are meeting with President Brighton at 4:15 pm today to get set apart and then we will serve during the 5:00pm shift.

I hope the Sacred Grove see's spring soon....it looks pretty dark and dreary now...however there are some buds forming on the branches.

Please tell our grandson Cannon that his duckling and egg are hanging in our new abode!

Hug's to each of you.  We are following Him in Faith and hope you are too.