The End is Coming...by Elder Birt

Well, after wondering if we should apply for a mission to Nauvoo, and after submitting an application, and filling out the paperwork, and after waiting to hear for several weeks, then waiting another five months until left on our mission, and now after serving for six months, the last week is here.  We have 'one' of everything left, for we will be leaving Nauvoo next Saturday!  That leaves us sad to think of the people we will leave that are amazing and spiritual giants, and so kind to us.  But it also has us longing for our good family, friends, and neighbors that we will be returning to. Indeed, it is mixed emotions.  We're happy and sad at the same time.

Last Sunday evening, all temple workers were invited to attend a Nauvoo Temple devotional in the assembly hall in the temple.  We actually sat on the stand in the assembly hall!  What a sacred, special place. We had music, and singing that sounded better than if it was at the big music halls of the country.  We listened to each of the Temple presidency give talks.  Each one was different from the others, and each showed the personality of the speaker.  We loved every one of them.  And the spirit there was amazing.  The Assembly Hall is only used twice a year.  When the missionaries come to Nauvoo, and when they leave Nauvoo.  It's hard for an old farmer to find words to describe how we felt. Suffice it to say, it was a chance of a life time.

On Wednesday, at our monthly missionary meeting, Susan Easton Black Durrant and her husband, George, were the speakers.  Both of them are retired from BYU religion department.  She is one of the foremost authorities on early church history. She spoke about the events that brought the Smith family to be in the right place at the right time for Joseph to received the plates.  Again, it was a treat to hear her and learn of the moves made by the Smith family to get to upstate, western New York at the time they needed to be there. The Lord can easily arrange our lives to have us where we need to be, when we need to be there.

On Monday evening, at our Family Home Evening Group, we ate chili and then listened to Elder Spencer who is here as a site missionary.  He and Sister Spencer are from Eden.  He recites cowboy poetry.  We laughed until my sides ached. He was good!

A couple of weeks ago, we had a weenie roast down by the Mississippi on another Family Home Evening.  Brother and Sister Hansen, serving from Ohio, talked to us about the Amish in their area and the conversion of a few of them to the LDS church.  It was very interesting and enlightening to hear of their community.  When they choose to leave the Amish, they are shunned by their community and their family.  They lose their business and their workers. They lose all contact with the people they live among. Yet they chose to become Saints with the simple statement, " It's true isn't it". That's a hard situation to imagine for me.

We feel very blessed and supported by friends and family.  All of our children visited us during our mission in Nauvoo. It was a real treat to have our family with us during this special time of our lives in this special place.  It felt wonderful to tour the sites and visit the  history of this important area of church history.  It was especially great to be at the temple with them.  The temple is the number one favorite experience here for us.  The second top favorite experience is the visit to Carthage Jail.  We went there on several occasions, and every time we felt the spirit of the place and the events that happened there.  Number three on our favorite list is the ancient burial grounds, where my Great, Great Grandparent's two first born children, and four others of their family, are buried. The spirit there is powerful.  We realized what trials they had to travel with the church in the early days.  Fourth on the top five list of places to visit in Nauvoo, was the Red Brick store.  There were so many important events that took place there, that it has to be a top place to experience.  The Relief Society was organized there and the first  endowment took place there, as well as many other important decisions and meetings.  Even though it is owned by the Community of Christ Church now, it is still very significant.  In the fifth favorite spot could be one of many places that and sites that we visited.  We chose to name site of the Mississippi River crossing as number five.  Simply because of the view of what was behind the Saints in those early days, and the vision of what was ahead. There are many, many other interesting places in the area of Nauvoo. We visited Quincy, Illinois, several times and went down by the river and saw the plaque there commemorating the place the Mormons crossed from Missouri to Illinois.  The story of how 1200 citizens of Quincy took in 5500 starving, freezing Mormons and made a home for them for the Winter.  We visited Montrose where the miracle of the quail took place.  You can still see Nauvoo across the river, and the people were starving, when a flock of quail flew into the camp and they were able to catch them with their hands and ate until they were full, then were instructed to let the rest of the birds fly off. We've been told that quail are not common to this area. We shopped in Keokuk, where my gggrandfather lived and married my gggrandmother.  We have driven the 34 miles, that he walked to Fort Madison, the day before his wedding, to get his marriage license.  We have had the blessing of living hundreds of experiences in these few short months.  Of course, as many of you know, our work at the temple five days a week, was the best experience of all.  Many of the things that took place there, we cannot talk about.  Many of them involved the wonderful workers that we rubbed shoulders with on a daily basis.  We are blessed!