Wednesday, November 6th: Ari (my nephew) and Steve and Sue Page (Sue is my Mom's cousin and Steve is Sue's husband) and I drove 6 1/2 hours north to visit the Helena, Montana Temple. Steve and Sue share my love of traveling to various temples. So, we decided to do this trip together, and Ari joined us on our little adventure.
We arrived in Helena where I promptly made a small snowman to send a video back to the kids. I used chocolate chips from a granola bar to form the eyes and smile.
Ari and I went over to the nearby Helena Temple to take some pictures before our appointments this evening. Ari brought his nice camera to use for some of the pictures, including the snowman photos above.
This evening the four of us met in the lobby of the hotel to drive over to the temple.
with Sue and Steve Page
with Ari
We didn't stay outside taking pictures long. It's cold here! But the sunset was beautiful.
Ari and I were scheduled to do baptisms for the dead at 7:00pm. Steve and Sue scheduled sealings at 6:00pm. We asked the temple workers if we could join the 6:00pm group for baptisms for the dead in order to finish at the same time as Steve and Sue. We were told a group of 16 people were coming from Dillon, Montana (two hours away) for the 6:00pm time. However, the group never showed up and the temple workers couldn't reach them to confirm whether or not they were still coming. So, Ari and I had the whole hour to ourselves. It was wonderful. I baptized Ari five times and he baptized me five times, and we completed dozens of confirmations.
Prior to performing the baptisms, President Heap, the temple president, came to greet us and express some uplifting words to us. He told us one day in the future, in the Celestial Kingdom, we might feel a tap on the shoulder as we walk down the street. We might turn around to see one of the individuals for whom we performed the baptisms this evening, and they would thank us. He said we might not remember their names, but they will never forget us for helping them receive one of the saving ordinances.
Following our appointment at the baptismal font, we waited for Steve and Sue inside the entrance to the temple. They came out and told us that they, too, had the sealing session to themselves. They were able to complete all the names they had brought with them.
President Heap came out to greet Steve and Sue before we left, and we experienced one of those "It's a small world" moments. Sue spent part of her early life in Montana. She told President Heap that, many years ago, she had a branch president in Whitehall, Montana, named Clarence Heap, to which President Heap responded that Clarence Heap was his grandfather, who died at the pulpit while giving a talk in church. Sue acknowledged it was the same man.
Thursday, November 7th: Based on Steve's recommendation, we visited the Montana State Capitol building and the Cathedral of Saint Helena on our way out of Helena this morning. I'm glad Steve recommended these two locations. Really neat buildings!
with Ari in front of the Montana State Capitol building
Cathedral of Saint Helena
The stained glass inside this cathedral was made in Germany. Pastor O'Neill told us the artist put a little humor in this particular stained glass piece: he created Adam with a belly button.
with Steve and Sue inside the cathedral
Beautiful drive in Montana on the way to Moses Lake, Washington.
We stopped at a cool travel center in Montana where we stretched our legs, refueled the van, and shared a huckleberry milkshake.
Thanks for the fun photos, Ari!
Shiny egg poking up above the bush. 🥚
The four of us came to the Moses Lake Temple this evening to participate in baptisms for the dead and sealings, respectively. Earlier today, I told Steve, Sue, and Ari that the earliest date of birth on a temple card I've completed was in the 1400s, but tonight I baptized Ari on behalf of a man named "King of Sweden" (I can't remember the last name), who was born in the year 220. Once again, Ari and I were the only ones at the 6pm appointment.
Friday, November 8th: 10-hour drive back to Utah.
What a wonderful trip! I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Steve, Sue, and Ari doing good things in beautiful places.
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