NIGHT ON THE TOWN!! VERLINDA, GET ME MY PENCIL!!

We had a night off last week and so people in our cast thought we would go out for a night on the town!!! That is a misnomer here.  Someone had heard of a little restaurant that was in the top of an old building in Keokuk.  They serve dinner on Wednesdays and Fridays.  Wednesdays happened to be all you can eat fried chicken for five dollars.  Who messes up fried chicken, right?  Well, maybe the elevator should have been my first clue.

This young man probably made $100 a night and just took us to the next floor with nary a smile.

We were excited to be able to enjoy one another’s company, but I could just hear my Granddaddy hollering at me, “Verlinda, get me my pencil!” That meant he wanted to check this place off.  Needless to say, we will not be going there again, but the company was nice. Rolaids please…………………………………………………………..

It used to be a fancy place, but dirty silverware and plates should have tipped me off.  Now I need Prevacid!!!

HONEST ABE AND THE REAL WORLD!

As Zone Leaders, Richard and I greet the new missionaries, orient them and answer any questions they might have.  We also happen to give them a handout that Jill had given me of sites to see in the surrounding areas.  One of those sites is the Lincoln Museum and Home in Springfield, Illinois.  So we decided to practice what we preach and actually “see” some of these attractions.  Yesterday was our preparation day and so we started out for an adventure.  We took the back roads to Springfield, and it was beautiful.  The corn is as high as an elephants eye, all around this beautiful state.  Springfield has about 117,00 people, roughly the size of Overland Park.  As usual we parked far away from the entrance to the museum, it is our normal MO. It was an absolutely fascinating experience.  So beautiful, informative, and just plain impressive, the museum was exceptional.  They had everything from his early life and a replica of the original homestead………………………………….

to the White House…………………………………………………………

with life size replicas of the Lincoln family, Robert, Willie, Mary,  Abe, and Tad, and me thrown in for flavoring!

These wax figures were so real looking that it was a little eeeeerrryyyy!   So I had been through a lot of the displays and came back out in front of the White House.  In my mind I didn’t remember “The President,” standing in this particular spot. I was looking at him and he smiled at me, which made me nearly wet my pants!!!! “So Mame, do you own any slaves?”

Need I say more?

Will the “real” Mr. Lincoln please stand up?????

There was everything here from his childhood, to his lawyer career, to the civil war, which by the way, I didn’t realize that they lost almost 600,000 men on each side, North and South.  That was a very costly battle. They had a display that was covered by “modern” newscasters and it was quite interesting to put this situation in our day.  Many people disliked Abe strongly.  So many negative political cartoons, criticism.  It must have been a very difficult decision to keep the country united.  But I am sure he was picked by our Father in Heaven for this specific task and time. They had life sized rooms of the White House, his law office, and even the room in the capital where he laid in state after his death.  They took his body on the train from DC to Springfield, 1500 miles and two weeks, having services along the way.  More people saw him in death than had seen him in life.  We then went to visit the home that his family lived in in Springfield.  They have restored several blocks around this house, making a whole neighborhood into a National Park.

A lot of the furnishings in the house belonged to the family. 

Their formal furniture made out of horsehair. This is the parlor where he was convinced to run for the presidency.

What Not shelf that I love.  My Mother has my Grandmother’s What Not Shelf……

Dining Room where they ate.  Mrs. Lincoln always had “live-in” help.  They said however that she did the evening cooking herself.

Formal sitting room where they entertained guests.

Her mirror and sewing kit.

President Lincoln’s actual bedroom and furniture.  They wall paper was brought from France.

His wardrobe…..

Writing Desk……

His shaving station…

Kitchen…..

Architectural design…..I love it.

Then on our way home!!!!! Lo and behold the real world is still out there. RICHARD PULL OVER!!!!!!!!!!

ANGELS

I have gotten extremely close to some of the Young Single Sisters.  What respect and admiration I have for them.  I look at them and know that I was no where near where they are at their age.  They know the Gospel, they strive to be so obedient and give up the things of the world.  They teach by the Spirit and bring so much light to this mission.  I know that our Heavenly Father is so pleased with them and what joy they have brought to me.  I will be forever grateful for the opportunity to be taught and uplifted by them.  They give you a sense of hope for the rising generation.  I have watched them teach a room full of senior missionaries, 240 of us to be exact and not even flinch! So saying good bye to some of them this last week was really hard. 

This is Sister Heather Ripplinger from Driggs, Idaho.  What a powerhouse of a spirit she has.  She has been the assistant to the president and done a masterful job.  But she is as sweet as she is amazing.  We have spent a lot of time together, serving in sites, working in the mission leadership, and just plain being friends.  I want her to marry someone amazing, I just don’t know who.  If I had another son, that would have been ideal.

Little Sister Petricek!  What a sweetheart.  She has made me laugh through this whole mission.  She loves Richard as well, and is always going to him, looking in his treat drawer.  She was adopted from India and it was so funny, when her parents came she whispered in my ear, “My parents are WHITE!”  I will miss her and she had made me cry before this picture.  I am only putting it in to have a record of her.  Fly high little Sarah!!!


So I even hate to stand next to this amazing woman but I love her so.  Her name is Ruth Wortley, and she happens to be a famous opera singer from SLC.  She is singing in Prague next summer and is doing “La Traviata,” at the Capitol Theatre in January that she wants me to come and see. She will take me back stage!!!! She and her husband have been the “Ma and Pa,” to all of the Young Performing Missionaries.  They come out for three months during the summer and basically take care of all their needs.  Her birthday and mine are one day apart.  We are kindred spirits.  She said the minute she saw me with my “blingy,” earrings, she knew we were meant to be friends.  What a treat for me.  We even went to Gypsi’s together and what a ball we had.  Some people you are just immediately drawn to, Ruth is one of those for me.  I miss her already……….


Went to Bentonsport, Bonaparte, Cantril, and Burlington, Iowa with two friends of mine on my last preparation day.  What a blast we had.  But talk about exhausting, I am no shopper compared to these two.  Sister Allen and Sister Taylor from the pageant office.  We had a great time and I love being able to have people that I feel as though we have been friends forever.  Richard won’t let me out of the house with these two anymore. 

THE RAWLINS FAMILY

The Rawlins family from Lehi, Utah were very special people who served with us here in Nauvoo.  I had the opportunity to take their children through the Brigham Young Home when I was the site leader there.  In the Council Room I bore my testimony of how grateful I was for the pioneers who remained steadfast and did not quit when things were very hard.  I have a great amount of respect and admiration for those people as I have stated before.  I also talked about my family and our conversion and how the “world,” needs good LDS people everywhere.  I was telling them a little bit about my grandparents conversion in Gore, Oklahoma.  Well come to find out, Perry Taylor, who is mentioned in the article below, the Rawlins, son-in-law, had been struggling with whether to move his family from Utah to Oklahoma.  No one really wants to leave the “safety,” of Utah.  He told his in-laws that as he was standing there, he received an answer to his prayers, that they were to move to Oklahoma.!!!! He is quite wealthy and has something to do with oil companies.  Not too long after they had been in Oklahoma, the big tornadoes came.  I just cut this article out of the Church News and oh my gosh.  The Lord sure did need him there at this particular time.  Just see the Lord’s hand in our every day decisions.  How grateful I am to be able to see some small fruits of the labor here.

GIFTS FROM THE PAST……………………………………

Another Nauvoo Tender Mercy!!! This is Jill, Diane Marquette Shumway and I at the temple.  Diane grew up with us in Kansas City and we have not seen her in almost 38 years.  She was on drill team with me in high school, and also my college roommate at BYU.  I really did love her, and still do.  She happened to know that Jill and I were here and so she and John came up from Georgia to see us.  They went by way of Kansas City.  What a blessing and what a treat.  We met at the temple and all went through a session together.  It was just like we had never been apart!  What a sweet blessing to be able to be in the temple all together.  She is a math teacher and  teaches honor students in high school.  I don’t even like to spell math!  They came and watched us as George and Agatha and we thoroughly enjoyed ever minute together.  Thank you Diane and John !  What a tender mercy…….

IT’S TIME TO CATCHUP!!! I KNOW JONATHAN!!!

Honestly, this summer has been a blur!! I was dreading it because last summer was so flippin hot.  But this summer has been entirely different! Whomever the Lord is blessing, thank you very much.  I really think that I have only been hot one day and that was including all of the time that we were doing Sunset. My least favorite number was “Grandmother’s Apron,” toooooo slow.  I however got to giggling a lot during this number depending upon who I was standing by. 

Sister Harrop, from Colorado, and I doing “Grandmother’s Apron!” Not my favorite number in the show, besides, I would never pick a BLUE apron!

(Note to self, yes Mother I know, it looks like my “living bra” has died, but in my defense, I have on 10 1/2 yards of fabric in a most unflattering pattern! If I had been a pioneer, I would have been a spinster!!! No makeup, no hair product and this outfit!!!!!)

We get to dance each night before the performance, usually to “In The Mood.”  What fun.

The only mosquitos that are my favorite!

Never stand by Sister Allen, she will get you in trouble.  Note to self…………remember the “which chin,” remark at church and the “seventeen months ago I came as a young YPM!”

The Audition……………My favorite part of Sunset!

One of my favorite numbers for the seniors, “The Clarinet Polka.”  Did I mention that I feel kind of young here.  Anyway, I am going to miss Sunset.  I bet that I will never again do any thing even close to what I have done here.  The Young Performing Missionaries are outstandingly talented, wonderful, fun and so full of life.  It is amazing to see what they accomplish while they are here.  They work from sunup to sundown and we have gotten quite close to them.  I was so touched the Sunday before they all left.  They actually made me an honorary Young Performing Missionary!!!! Imagine that.  What a huge honor.  Of course, I cried and cried. I received a special medallion that each one of them got.  What a treasure. 

It’s like sending my children out into the world.  May it always be kind to them.  The Lord is surely raising up an amazing generation.

Elder Thunell , related to Jonathan Browning the gunsmith in Nauvoo.  So  Nauvoo is quite now.  All the young YPM’S are gone.  The crowds have slowed down until the fall when the bus tours start coming back again to see the colors.

A VERY SPECIAL SURPRISE!!!!!!!

All of our children have visited us here in Nauvoo, as well as my parents. How grateful I am for that sweet blessing.  It has helped me immensely to not be so terribly homesick.  I however never expected the Upchurch’s to come and was so touched that they would even consider it.  I was so proud to show them off and to let them see just a very little of what I have been doing for the last fifteen months.  I was so grateful they came.  I will never forget it.  They seemed to enjoy themselves and were certainly good sports about being in this “Mormon,” community.  They even went to the Pageant.  When they came, I was so grateful to be with them.  It has been hard for me to keep in touch with all of the family, my days are honestly filled to the brim.  But I hope they had a good time.  Tara has such wonderful boys and they seemed to take it all in.

Uncle Gary standing up being recognized for serving in the Army!!!!

Being recognized for serving in the Navy!!!! I have always been so proud of him, even crying when I was 12 years old as he carried the flag in the Liberal parade.  How I have always loved this man!!!!

Gage would have made a great pioneer, being willing to carry his brother in a handcart!


Brody enjoying the ride immensely!!!

Playing pioneer games.  They were naturals.


Riding the covered wagon through town.  They were actually a little cold here. Well, a lot during the pageant!


Petting Jerry, yes that is a big horse!

On to the Family Living Center where they got to help make their own ropes…


Brody and Gage were always willing participants!!! Thanks boys for being such good sports.

On to the Blacksmith where Brody immediately volunteered to help make the wheels.

I’ve been working for fifteen months and these are some of the most well behaved children to be here.  I think they really enjoyed it.  Tara is an amazing mother!
So thank you Tara, Aunt Faye and Uncle Gary, Gage and Brody for adding to my bank of beautiful memories here in Nauvoo.  I am richly blessed to be able to call you “FAMILY!” (And don’t you forget it!)