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| The cornfields have certainly grown!
This coming week is the last week that the pageants are performed. Most days we had seven or eight tour buses of people, both adult tours and youth. It has been a crazy busy few weeks but I think we'll miss it when it's all over. Things will certainly quiet down, but we'll still have lots of youth groups until the end of August when school starts. Actually, this week I believe we have one group of 350 youth coming from Texas. That definitely should liven things up!
In
the early evening we went for a Sunday drive to the north and east of
Nauvoo. We drove along the River Road
until it turned east onto a gravel road through farms of corn and
soybeans. I googled to see what soybeans
are used for: food products like soy oil and proteins (tofu), soy milk, as well
as non-food stuff like the oil for crayons, astro turf, paintballs, candles,
wood stain, ink etc. I had no idea! At one point we were on the gravel road and
came to a stop sign. We stopped at the
crossroads and it was an interesting view; high cornfields on all four corners
and not a car to be seen in any direction.
The only thing we heard were crickets chirping and birds singing. What a different life here in Nauvoo.
Most
of the time I really enjoy working at Pioneer Pastimes. We get to be outside in the fresh air and
things are never the same. I love
teaching people how to walk on stilts, play the game Graces, as well as a game
kind of like Chinese Checkers called Fox and Geese. It’s fun to watch people learn new games and
become so good at them that they want to teach the other people who come. They can play the pioneer games for hours
with their families and not once pick up a cell phone. They dress up in pioneer clothes and take
family pictures. It’s great to watch
family interactions :0) I do have those
days, and Friday was one of them, when I want to give a few people, mostly
parents, a swift kick in the pants. Almost
all morning I spent picking up games and putting them back where they
belonged. People would just use the
stilts or whatever, and when they were done just drop them on the ground
wherever they were and move on to a new activity. In particular was a group that was there for
a family reunion. Parents, as well as
the kids, were oblivious to the fact that the games should go back where they
belonged so others could play with them.
Stilts were all over the field and there were about seven of the Graces
hoops that people had just thrown up in the trees. I was putting stilts up against the log cabin
and a dad (the main offender) walked by me, stepping over all of the stilts on
the ground, and said, “I bet that’s a never ending job!” I said, “You bet it is. Especially when people don’t know how to put
their toys away!” He just kept on
walking. That’s when I had to remember
whose tag I wear on my chest and bite my tongue!
In contrast, this
week I served at the Brigham Young home and it had been quite a long time since
I was last there. I had to do some
reviewing of Brigham Young’s story. The
most interesting thing happened though.
Every…single…time…I began the tour and testified that Brigham Young
knew, without any doubt, that Joseph Smith was just who he said he was, a
prophet of God, and that he knew that the Book of Mormon really was translated
by the gift and power of God, the spirit filled the little bedroom we were
standing in and the guests could feel it.
It’s hard to put into words but, when I said that Brigham Young
testified his entire life about Joseph’s prophetic calling, my own testimony of
that principle became more firm. I also
shared how I felt when President Nelson visited our mission and that I knew,
just like Brigham Young knew, that we have a prophet of God on the earth. It’s a blessing to be able to serve in the
homes of the prophets.
Wednesday
night we went to the British Pageant and were able to go on stage at the end
with all of the missionaries and sing the closing medley of songs with the
cast. It’s a unique opportunity that all
of the missionaries have twice a week when the British Pageant is
performed. It tells the story of the
early growth of the church in Great Britain and the mission of the Twelve
Apostles. It's a highlight of the week.
Friday
night we went with our "Sunset by the Mississippi" cast out to Bonaparte, Iowa to
an Amish dinner. The place was called Sunrise Bakery and it’s run by an Amish
family. They bake delicious pies and
pastries as well as put on a home cooked dinner. The food was good, just down home stuff like
mashed potatoes and gravy, meatloaf, a casserole with chicken and homemade
noodles, green beans, fresh cabbage salad from their garden, fresh bread and
hot cherry pie for dessert. Definitely
loaded with carbs, but not loaded with preservatives :0) It was fun to visit with the
family. We sang Amazing Grace with them
when we were done eating, those that wanted to could go on a buggy
ride. It was a fun night to spend with
friends from our cast.
Here are a few pictures from the week...
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| At the Amish home where we had dinner. |
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| With the Cooks, Williams and Pettits. |
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| The sunset, push lawnmower and wash hanging on the line. Typical Amish life. |
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| The view from the backyard. |
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| Scott with the "Courting Buggy". |
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| The Sarah Granger Kimball home. She and a friend had an idea to sew shirts for the men working on the Nauvoo Temple...and because of that, the Relief Society organization was born. |
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| Breakfast with the Pinettes who are in the Nauvoo Mission with us and the Roberts who are serving in the Indiana Indianapolis Mission. We were all in the MTC together. |
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| At one of the only places in NAuvoo to get breakfast, Grandpa John's Cafe. |
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| Scott marching in the Nauvoo Brass Band parade with the kids :0) |
