Eternal Marriage

On Valentines Day Terry and I went out to dinner and I reflected on how much our love has increased throughout the many years together. At one time I felt we had a perfect marriage and it can't get any better, but working in the Temple helped me to realize it can get better.

Then I reflect on my childhood, growing up in a home where my Mom and Dad have been sealed in the Temple, and having that blessing and feeling those eternal blessings in the home. As a child I didn't recognize it, but as an adult I remember those feelings so many years ago. On January 25, Mom & Dad celebrated their 65th anniversary. I'm sure when they got married they didn't realize how many people that act of being married in the House of the Lord for eternity would influence. Not only does it influence the 10 children, but grandchildren and great grandchildren. I figured that in 6 generations from now that Mom and Dad will have about 2,799,360 posterity. Its up to us as part of that posterity to carry on the legacy that our parents have blessed us with. I honor Mom and Dad. Thanks.

In the Temple I have the blessing of witnessing many marriages and then signing as a witness. As I do this I wonder how this union will be 30 or 40 years from now, and how many people will be influenced by being married in the Holy Temple. I heard a statement by a general authority, that the more we know our Heavenly Father the more we know ourselves, and the more we know ourselves the more we love others. May I add that others also means our spouses. I guess what I'm saying is that through working in the Temple I feel I'm really increasing my love for my sweet wife. That's a blessing from just being in the Temple every day. As I go through this experience I feel better about myself and the direction that I'm taking in trying to be a better person. I guess that's all the Savior is asking us to do.

Snow Days!

In the last two weeks we have been sent home early from the temple twice & the temple was closed one day two weeks ago & today because of snow storms. We are feeling more at home with the weather. It is so refreshing & not so stifling. It is a different kind of snow. When it comes it dumps & I saw the biggest snow flakes I have ever seen. They were as big as cotton balls. It was really pretty & very cozy to be inside looking out. I don't think the people who live here love it as much as we do but we don't have to be in the traffic, etc. as much as they do. There are some snowfall records being set & a lot more winter left but we are loving it.

We have been traveling a lot the last couple of months. We figured out that in the last 7 weeks we have been in 7 different wards in 7 different states. How fun!!! We went to New Hampshire; Rhode Island; Rochester, New York, with Amy & Brad for Christmas; Charlottesville, Virginia, with Dad; Connecticut; Ellsworth, Maine, & Massachusetts.

We spoke in Maine & Pres. Wood said he would like us to speak in small Branches around the Temple District since the Presidency can't go to all of the Wards & Branches. We are excited for this opportunity to meet new members throughout the area. It makes it more special when we see them at the Temple. Of course they have to remind us of their names & where they are from but they are patient with us.

We are going to have a new missionary couple next week so we are excited to meet them.

We love our mission because we love what we are doing & we send our love to everyone.

Memories

In these two pictures, same house, but the second one is more modern, this brings back memories. I lived in this house in the basement the last five months of my mission. Its interesting how you have a different perspective of the area and the home, from a 20 year old and a 58 year old. The Church still owns this as the Mission home, what a surprise. Things are so much smaller today. I remember serving in Schenectady, New York, and we tracked out an 83 year old sister, and baptized her. I always wondered if she stayed active or not. We visited the ward, and a good sister told me that she remained active through the rest of her life. That is a special blessing for me to receive that news. I served in the Cumorah Mission from Jan. 1972 to Jan. 1974.
. This past two weeks the temple has been closed. We went to Charlottesville, Virginia, to see my mom and dad, and brother and sisters families. As my mom is in the nursing home, I think I grew closer to her this time than ever before. I felt that she loved me and I was able to let her know how much I loved her. Even though she can't recognize me by sight, I felt her heart, and I know she felt mine. What a blessing that the Gospel brings knowledge to our minds through our hearts. It was special to be with dad and have that relationship that only a father and son can have. This week we have been working in the Temple. I recaulked all the pillars in the Celestial Room and all the needed areas. We changed the scriptures in the Chapel and in the Baptismal font area. We also had to take care of some administration. This next week I'm going to be trained as assistant recorder, and learn a little bit more of the workings of the temple.
This Sunday we are going to Ellsworth, Maine, to visit a Branch and speak and share our testimonies of the Temple and the Gospel. We look forward to meeting new people. It's been a real blessing to be in the mission field. I thought that we would serve these good people in the Boston Temple District, but they have been serving and blessing our lives. Need I say more? I love this work!!!!

Rod's Mission Home

Mission Home then.

Mission Home Now.

It's A Wonderful Life

The last time we wrote on our blog it was Thanksgiving. Wow! Now it's already Christmas. I guess time flies when you're having fun & busy.

On one of our days off we went to the movie, "It's A Wonderful Life". That is one of my favorite movies. I cry every time. Well, it was advertised as a $2 movie with free popcorn & drinks. It was the middle of the day on Monday so we thought we would be pretty safe with no crowds. Wrong. It was packed. A couple of buses from Senior Centers were there & I was afraid we wouldn't get a seat. Anyway, we had a great time along with everyone else & enjoyed a great movie that gave us a lot to think about as we started into the Christmas season.

At the end of the movie, Clarence the Angel wrote a note to George (James Stewart), & said, "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends". I don't know what we would do without our friends. Our friends at home & in our previous life (before mission), have helped us through many difficult times & have always been there for us. We are also making eternal friendships here in New England. People are amazing, especially when there is a bond in the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we visit different wards, we think we don't know anyone & then it seems like we are always meeting people that either work in the Temple or are patrons & they are familiar.

That same day we were listening to the radio when a song came on & I loved the words. It said, "Life's not the breaths you take but the moments that take your breath away". That meant so much to me. Our Heavenly Father sent us to earth to gain a body & have experiences so that we can prove to Him that we want to live with Him for eternity. It doesn't matter how long we live but are we enjoying life to the fullest. We feel like we are doing what we have always wanted to do.

The important thing is that we do all we can to keep the commandments of Jesus Christ so that we can be with our families & live with Him again.

I love Christmas! I love the shopping, gift giving, decorations, trees, ornaments, songs, lights, nativities, baking, everything. I thought it would kill me not to decorate or have a tree. As my family knows, I probably go overboard, but I just love it! Well, I even loved the Christmas season without everything this year. We love being on a mission, serving in the Temple everyday, & we are especially thankful for our family & the birth of our Savior. We're thankful for this wonderful time of year that allows us to feel in our hearts a deep & abiding love & gratitude for Him who came & showed us how to love.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

We Send Our Love.

Thanksgiving

I don't have much time before we go to the Temple but our hearts are full today & I wanted to mention a few things. I thought I wanted to talk about how great it is to be in the birthplace of our nation, especially during this Thanksgiving season, but over the past week my thoughts keep changing.

Our hearts are tender today as our thoughts & prayers go to our sweet daughter (in-law) & her family as they are burying her father today. He passed away too soon at the age of 53. He was a wonderful man. It has reminded me of when we had to bury Nathan. We haven't forgotten how hard it was but it has reminded me of the many sweet experiences we were blessed with.

During this week of Thanksgiving we are especially grateful to our Father in Heaven for the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, who made it possible for us to be with our loved ones again. Since Nathan passed away the Atonement has meant so much more to me in my life.

We are grateful to be able to serve the Lord as missionaries in the Boston Temple full time. The blessings & the Spirit that we feel there are beyond description.

I hesitate to mention all of the blessings we are grateful for because I don't want to leave anyone or anything out & I don't want it to be in any particular order, but I would be ungrateful if I didn't mention a few.

We are thankful for goodly parents who gave us life & taught us the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are thankful for our children & that includes their spouses who are ours now whether they like it or not. We are grateful for our 24 grandchildren & the love they bring into our lives. We are thankful for extended family & friends & the gift of love & friendship we feel.

We are thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ & all of the many blessings we have because of it, especially the opportunity we had to be sealed for time & all eternity to each other & our families.

I was told in my patriarchal blessing to be forever grateful for ingratitude is a grievous sin. President Monson said that we should develop an attitude of gratitude. I will always be forever grateful to my Heavenly Father for all of my many blessings.

We send our love.

Home Teaching

I suppose it's my turn to write in the blog. There are so many blessings & experiences that we are having lately. Sometimes I feel unworthy of it. I was assigned by one of the wards to train a new member of one week how to Hometeach. I know that sometimes I probably have not been the best home teacher, but so be it. I asked him to make the appointment & I would give a short lesson. We got in the car together, and I told him that we generally have a prayer prior to going, so we asked Heavenly Father to help us to be receptive to the Spirit as we visit this sister & her non-member husband. I found out beforehand that normally he disappears during visits from church members. We went & he came in, we got acqainted & it felt good. I started the lesson not knowing for sure what to say. We talked about leaving home when we were young & how we missed our families & were excited to return & then we compared this to the Plan of Salvation. They had both had that experience with their families. We talked about how it was important to be the best we can be here on earth so we can return to be with our Heavenly Father. Then we started talking about the Temple & he said he visited it during the Open House. He asked me what the oxen represented & I said they represented the 10 Tribes of Israel. Then he asked, "why oxen?" I told him that in the Temple & in life we are taught in symbols & Christ also taught in symbols. I said, "What does the heart represent", & he said love. As we get older we think of the heart differently. Some symbols teach us in different degrees & it depends on us & how we feel at the time. I asked him what he thought the oxen represented, and He said that he thought that the oxen lifted our burdens from us as we are baptized. I was so surprised that he said that, & he taught me something that night. He asked my companion to give the closing prayer, what a sweet prayer. Then I told him that he was a member of just two weeks. He asked us to come back and we thanked him and went on our way. On are way home the new member said that our prayers had been answered and that he was going to get them an anniversary card & send it to them after we both sign it. I feel blessed to have that kind of training from both a new member & a non-member.

This week we have three members of our Temple Preparation class coming to the Temple on Friday. We are so excited to have that experience with them.

A few days ago I recorded 2 cards that had been done & when I looked at the dates I was really surprised. Their birth dates were 1783 B.C. & 1483 B.C. We have been told that the Chinese keep excellent records especially for the men. I made copies of those cards because I wasn't sure anyone would believe me.

Last week we got to go down & touch the oxen. It was a special experience.

We are truly blessed to be in the mission field & to be a part of this work. We send our love.