There is No Joy in Old Nauvoo......
....Rendezvous was Just Struck Out!!
Monday was an unusual time for a training meeting but with President Hall being out of town for the rest of the week it was a necessary change. It all started out with the frivolity of President Hughes being presented his "Presidential Tie" by outgoing President McCoy. President Hall moved slowly to the podium and what happened next was a bombshell that would leave a crater the size of Texas. He started out explaining that he had just received two letters from the missionary department. A hush and uneasy quietness fell. Lately, anything from the missionary department is not good news. "One is somewhat of a hopeful nature and the other is bad news". Forgetting "somewhat hopeful" we immediately braced for the worst...the horses would be gone and Nauvoo would never be the same. "The hopeful message is that they are still reviewing the horses". My mind jumped ahead and fully expected the bad news to be he had been notified of his successor to the presidency in January and his time was coming to an end.
The news was far more stunning than anything we had expected...Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo would be discontinued and the final performance would be November 30th. Audible gasps and groans filled the room and stun silence followed by a mumbling that started to roar....until he spoke again.
While there were no audible threats of lynching the missionary department (just a whimsical pun)
it has become the topic of conversation in every venue every day. The speculation is rampant. Truth is that since we have been here there have been so many rumors about Rendezvous and it being re-written. It has been a part of Nauvoo for over thirty years. But the harsh truth is that it really is time to move on. What that means we really don't know. When Elder Zwick was here he made a unique and significant comment that was hammered home to the missionaries. "The performances are not the most important part here. We have far greater callings for us to perform. The Lord is in charge and whatever callings we are asked we will do."
Crazily we move on as our beloved director has still kept putting us in new roles, doing new parts, and frustrating us further. Onward we go....Willingly because we have to. So Thursday we stood on the stage and performed the circle dance with the McLoed's with a very....very...brief review by them. Adding to the mayhem, Sister Finlinson, our new cast manager wants to re-do all the cast pictures for the organizational board that we no longer use anyway. Onward....ever onward!!
He was a Plumber....He is Now a Carpenter....
...and He Has Always Been My Cousin!!
Last week we received another FM couple who, after the usual FM dog and pony show, were ready to be assigned. The Archibald's, who come from Idaho are a wonderful addition to our FM group and Sister Archibald was assigned to work with the grounds. Elder Archibald who had been a life long plumber and recently retired from BYU-Idaho expected to be assigned to our FM plumber, Darrell. Instead he was assigned to work with me in carpentry even though he really doesn't have a lot of experience. While I am sure he is a little disappointed his attitude didn't reflect it. He has jumped right in and is willing to do anything...he has such a happy positive attitude.
He soon began asking the standard questions and our conversations took the usual course.....until he asked if I had any relatives who were here in Nauvoo. I told him of Joseph Stallings, my 2nd Great Grandfather...and then it got interesting. His great grandmother Archibald had married a Stallings. Probably not any relation......my line went through Eden. Then I remembered Elizabeth Alice Barnes who was Joseph Stallings fourth wife. Circumstances dictated that she live away from the rest of the family in North Ogden. After several years, and a couple of children later, she took the older children and traveled to Lewisville, Id where she lived and died.
So when I asked him if the family lived near Lewisville he lit up with a smile and he said that was where his grandmother was from. The only name I could readily remember was Don Carlos Stallings. That was his Great Grandfather and so I found a cousin from the Stallings line. I gave him my book to read and it filled in a lot of information he did not know. I'm sure we will swap some stories over the next few months.
Vicenzo Di Francesco........
His Handwritten Testimony.....
.....Hidden in My Mission Memories
It all started in 1966 but soon became tucked away in my mission photo journal. Fast forward to 2014 when I received a phone call from Elder Semadini of the Church History Department. He and his wife had been called to search out any information they could find prior the formation of the Italian Mission in 1967. They were interviewing the missionaries they could find who had served in Italy as a part of the Swiss Mission. (In May of 1965, the Bavarian Mission where I was originally called, was dissolved. Those missionaries serving there were divided and sent to German speaking missions in Europe. I was called to Switzerland and soon thereafter, I accepted a call to learn Italian and serve in the Italian Zone of the Swiss Mission.
I labored there the remainder of my mission. The story begins in Milano where I had just been called to serve as the Zone Leader. The work was just starting to take hold and there were very few Italian members. I was exuberant in my call and wanting to do something special for the members I had this idea that it would be great to publish a periodical, similar to the Ensign, or at very least a newsletter that would bring the gospel to the members. I had heard the story (legend) of Vincenzo Di Francesco, who as a Protestant Minister had found a copy of the Book of Mormon in a garbage can and read it, testified to his leaders that the true gospel was contained in the book. They strictly told him to burn it. Eventually he was defrocked and exiled from their faith. It intrigued me to the point that I soon found his address and wrote him a letter asking him to share his testimony for the publication. Sometime, thereafter, I received his response in a used enveloped that had been reversed. It was in a beautiful calligraphy and it was somewhat difficult to read. I communicated my desires to my mission president to proceed with the publication. As you can imagine that idea didn't really fly really well and I was counseled to let it wait until Salt Lake was ready to do some sort of publication when it was more practical. I saved the letter as it was a remarkable story (at least as much as I could understand and read) and put it in the pages of my book because of the unique story and calligraphy. I didn't realize what I had.
So it sat there until 2014 when I met with the Simadeni's. I took my writings and photo book, not knowing exactly what they were looking for. We had a great visit and I recall it was interesting and informative to them as I related may interesting things about my mission experiences. It was during this interview that I showed them the letter from Brother De Francesco and thought that it might be of some value to the church. They showed some interest and I introduced me to someone in charge of the department who had me sign forms of relinquishment to the rights....I didn't think much more about it but I was glad that for whatever value it might have the church would be the one to benefit the most from it.
Last week I received a phone message and an e-mail from the Semadini's. They were still at their posts and they wanted to again thank me for the letter and let me know that it was on display in the Church History Library on the 1st Floor. But wait....there's more...
In 1989 the church had made a video for world distribution. It is called "How Rare a Possession" and highlights the impact of the Book of Mormon on the lives of Parley P. Pratt........and Vincenzo Di Francesco. If I was aware of it, saw it, or even knew of the impact of it I can't recall. His story had been documented in this video although much of it was through verbal remembrance rather than written word. The letter I had filled in and added other parts of the testimony that had previously not been documented.
Brother Di Francesco died in 1966. It is probable that this was one of the last times he was able to write his testimony for those generations who followed.....in a letter that I had tucked away but never forgotten......How Rare a Possession!!
It was Bootiful Nauvoo......
......and it Was Cold
Every year at Halloween the community of Nauvoo puts on a big celebration and so naturally the mission gets involved to support it. Several weeks earlier Sister Gibson and I had been asked to work on Bootiful Nauvoo, the towns big celebration for Halloween. We had done a myriad of tasks in preparation for the big parade that would take place on Saturday night. Being involved in FM we can help by finding the pieces of the puzzle that would be required. Sister Gibson arranged with grounds for some seventy five corn stalks to decorate the carriage wagon that we would use to carry the "crazy band" who would be followed by the "crazy dancers" and finally the dragon which hid a dozen a so missionaries hiding underneath it as it paraded in a zig zag fashion down Mulholland. Sisters Murch and Muldanado were in charge. Someone inadvertently called Sister Murch the "dragon lady" so she had a new title.
Meanwhile our FM buildings were turned into "Pumpkin Alley" as 500 of the orange blobs were dumped into the building to be followed by "artists" that drew all sorts of drawings on them to be carved out at the end of week. Some of these were very intricate but as for me and Sister Gibson we confined our choices to the simple and mundane. I did venture into a more difficult design only to find the artist had made a slight drawing error and half of the face fell off......thank heavens for toothpicks. The following day we spent the afternoon in an other FM building helping with the popping and bagging of kettle corn. Last year we passed out 2500 bags at the parade but ran out before the event ended. Someone got the idea that we ought to do more.....so they purchased enough sacks for 8,000 and the sisters in charge took it as a sign they should do that many. The following day they kept production up but in the end it was limited to around 3,000. Bless those Elders who slaved over the kettle.
Thursday night the committee gathered to light up the wagon and decorate it. The following Saturday we decorated the tractor complete with jaws that opened and closed. Missing and leaving an irreplaceable gloom were the horses who had been such a spectacular part of last years parade. Sooner or later there will be a final decision but as time passes the gloom persists and in some way hope is fading.
Saturday night was the coldest night of the year....somewhere around thirty six degrees and the twenty mile and hour wind added to the chill. That didn't deter the visitors and they lined the streets dressed in warm costumes in preparation for the big parade. I went with two extra layers while Sister Gibson imitated the Pillsbury Dough boy with her five layers....but she was warm. The parade lasted some thirty minutes....we were near the end and then headed back home to take the chill off as we bundled up on our favorite (and only) recliners.
The Weather is Turning Cold (brrrrrr)......
.....It Must be Time to Work Outside
....It's The Nauvoo Way
It has been nearly two months since Elder Van Horn departed. There are times I miss the added help but for the most part I was pretty content with my situation. So in most respects I was glad to have a companion. Elder Archibalds willingness and cheerful attitude overshadow any lack of carpentry skills. That's the good news. The bad news comes as the weather is turning colder now and we are starting a project that will keep us working out of doors for probably the next six weeks. Sure...there will be days of storminess that will dictate we work indoors but the muck and mire following the storm is no joy either. Then again the good news is we actually have a set of plans.....but things change daily and they really aren't that helpful. It's build as we design.
As soon as Elder Archibald arrived we moved from our indoor job at the Economou house to the exterior of the Maxwell House where we tore the exterior siding and insulation off in preparation for putting up new Hardiboard (paintable cement composite that cuts like wood), redoing the soffit and facia, and installing new windows and exterior doors. Each day brings a new additional task but in the end will bring the really good house into a really great house. Fortunately the roof was replaced three years earlier....so it has a chance of remaining. We also took the Masonite from the interior of the garage and we will be preparing the garage for bigger, better, and more windows. Since the refrigerator that was purchased for the home doesn't fit it looks like we will be replacing the cabinets also. That probably will be a better option in the sense that it will allow for the addition of a dishwasher. And so the adventure continues.........
Odds.....at the End
Monday I received a phone message from our old friend Boyd Deans. I tried several times to call him as my worst fears intensified. I fully expected him to bear some bad news about Margaret Taylor, whom I have such a special place in my heart for. Finally we were connected and to my relief I found out they were here in Nauvoo. I rushed to the Visitors Center and soon Sister Gibson joined us. Boyd and Joanne had served here in 2006 and we had talked to them before we came. During the next two days we renewed our association and listened to them reminisce as well as tell them about our adventure here. It was a welcome visit as we shared our time together.
One final update and Elder Wayment. He is up and running. The collar is gone and he is pretty much good to go. He and his wife were there helping us with the decorations of the crazy wagon and he joined the crazy people to boot. That wasn't enough so he showed up to help with tractor decorations.
Part of the community effort to prepare for Bootiful Nauvoo has the few merchants than line Mulholland Drive (the main drag through town) with some decorations. They started a new tradition this year with each business putting out a stuffed character representing their particular business. The bank put up a masked man the Nauvoo Clinic a doctor looking character. Not to be outdone our FM group put up their rendition of an FM Super Guy. He stood their proudly with his puffed out chest and macho look. A rain and wind storm required some emergency procedures and in the end he looked more in character.... like a seventy year old missionary.
We are now in the last gasps of fall. The calendar may say it runs until December but here in Nauvoo the leaves have been changing for a few weeks and soon they will be gone leaving barren branches to take their place. Temperatures are now below freezing for lows on a regular basis and the highs are hovering in the forties. After suffering through the cold and wind of Bootiful Nauvoo you would think we would have had enough fun. I guess we still need a little more fun and so the starkly yellow leaves that fell like rain from the tree (or maybe were thrown) provided one more adventure that we just couldn't pass up.
While there were no audible threats of lynching the missionary department (just a whimsical pun)
it has become the topic of conversation in every venue every day. The speculation is rampant. Truth is that since we have been here there have been so many rumors about Rendezvous and it being re-written. It has been a part of Nauvoo for over thirty years. But the harsh truth is that it really is time to move on. What that means we really don't know. When Elder Zwick was here he made a unique and significant comment that was hammered home to the missionaries. "The performances are not the most important part here. We have far greater callings for us to perform. The Lord is in charge and whatever callings we are asked we will do."
Crazily we move on as our beloved director has still kept putting us in new roles, doing new parts, and frustrating us further. Onward we go....Willingly because we have to. So Thursday we stood on the stage and performed the circle dance with the McLoed's with a very....very...brief review by them. Adding to the mayhem, Sister Finlinson, our new cast manager wants to re-do all the cast pictures for the organizational board that we no longer use anyway. Onward....ever onward!!
He was a Plumber....He is Now a Carpenter....
...and He Has Always Been My Cousin!!
He soon began asking the standard questions and our conversations took the usual course.....until he asked if I had any relatives who were here in Nauvoo. I told him of Joseph Stallings, my 2nd Great Grandfather...and then it got interesting. His great grandmother Archibald had married a Stallings. Probably not any relation......my line went through Eden. Then I remembered Elizabeth Alice Barnes who was Joseph Stallings fourth wife. Circumstances dictated that she live away from the rest of the family in North Ogden. After several years, and a couple of children later, she took the older children and traveled to Lewisville, Id where she lived and died.
So when I asked him if the family lived near Lewisville he lit up with a smile and he said that was where his grandmother was from. The only name I could readily remember was Don Carlos Stallings. That was his Great Grandfather and so I found a cousin from the Stallings line. I gave him my book to read and it filled in a lot of information he did not know. I'm sure we will swap some stories over the next few months.
Vicenzo Di Francesco........
His Handwritten Testimony.....
.....Hidden in My Mission Memories
I labored there the remainder of my mission. The story begins in Milano where I had just been called to serve as the Zone Leader. The work was just starting to take hold and there were very few Italian members. I was exuberant in my call and wanting to do something special for the members I had this idea that it would be great to publish a periodical, similar to the Ensign, or at very least a newsletter that would bring the gospel to the members. I had heard the story (legend) of Vincenzo Di Francesco, who as a Protestant Minister had found a copy of the Book of Mormon in a garbage can and read it, testified to his leaders that the true gospel was contained in the book. They strictly told him to burn it. Eventually he was defrocked and exiled from their faith. It intrigued me to the point that I soon found his address and wrote him a letter asking him to share his testimony for the publication. Sometime, thereafter, I received his response in a used enveloped that had been reversed. It was in a beautiful calligraphy and it was somewhat difficult to read. I communicated my desires to my mission president to proceed with the publication. As you can imagine that idea didn't really fly really well and I was counseled to let it wait until Salt Lake was ready to do some sort of publication when it was more practical. I saved the letter as it was a remarkable story (at least as much as I could understand and read) and put it in the pages of my book because of the unique story and calligraphy. I didn't realize what I had.
So it sat there until 2014 when I met with the Simadeni's. I took my writings and photo book, not knowing exactly what they were looking for. We had a great visit and I recall it was interesting and informative to them as I related may interesting things about my mission experiences. It was during this interview that I showed them the letter from Brother De Francesco and thought that it might be of some value to the church. They showed some interest and I introduced me to someone in charge of the department who had me sign forms of relinquishment to the rights....I didn't think much more about it but I was glad that for whatever value it might have the church would be the one to benefit the most from it.
Last week I received a phone message and an e-mail from the Semadini's. They were still at their posts and they wanted to again thank me for the letter and let me know that it was on display in the Church History Library on the 1st Floor. But wait....there's more...
In 1989 the church had made a video for world distribution. It is called "How Rare a Possession" and highlights the impact of the Book of Mormon on the lives of Parley P. Pratt........and Vincenzo Di Francesco. If I was aware of it, saw it, or even knew of the impact of it I can't recall. His story had been documented in this video although much of it was through verbal remembrance rather than written word. The letter I had filled in and added other parts of the testimony that had previously not been documented.
Brother Di Francesco died in 1966. It is probable that this was one of the last times he was able to write his testimony for those generations who followed.....in a letter that I had tucked away but never forgotten......How Rare a Possession!!
It was Bootiful Nauvoo......
Every year at Halloween the community of Nauvoo puts on a big celebration and so naturally the mission gets involved to support it. Several weeks earlier Sister Gibson and I had been asked to work on Bootiful Nauvoo, the towns big celebration for Halloween. We had done a myriad of tasks in preparation for the big parade that would take place on Saturday night. Being involved in FM we can help by finding the pieces of the puzzle that would be required. Sister Gibson arranged with grounds for some seventy five corn stalks to decorate the carriage wagon that we would use to carry the "crazy band" who would be followed by the "crazy dancers" and finally the dragon which hid a dozen a so missionaries hiding underneath it as it paraded in a zig zag fashion down Mulholland. Sisters Murch and Muldanado were in charge. Someone inadvertently called Sister Murch the "dragon lady" so she had a new title.
Meanwhile our FM buildings were turned into "Pumpkin Alley" as 500 of the orange blobs were dumped into the building to be followed by "artists" that drew all sorts of drawings on them to be carved out at the end of week. Some of these were very intricate but as for me and Sister Gibson we confined our choices to the simple and mundane. I did venture into a more difficult design only to find the artist had made a slight drawing error and half of the face fell off......thank heavens for toothpicks. The following day we spent the afternoon in an other FM building helping with the popping and bagging of kettle corn. Last year we passed out 2500 bags at the parade but ran out before the event ended. Someone got the idea that we ought to do more.....so they purchased enough sacks for 8,000 and the sisters in charge took it as a sign they should do that many. The following day they kept production up but in the end it was limited to around 3,000. Bless those Elders who slaved over the kettle.
Thursday night the committee gathered to light up the wagon and decorate it. The following Saturday we decorated the tractor complete with jaws that opened and closed. Missing and leaving an irreplaceable gloom were the horses who had been such a spectacular part of last years parade. Sooner or later there will be a final decision but as time passes the gloom persists and in some way hope is fading.
The Weather is Turning Cold (brrrrrr)......
.....It Must be Time to Work Outside
....It's The Nauvoo Way
As soon as Elder Archibald arrived we moved from our indoor job at the Economou house to the exterior of the Maxwell House where we tore the exterior siding and insulation off in preparation for putting up new Hardiboard (paintable cement composite that cuts like wood), redoing the soffit and facia, and installing new windows and exterior doors. Each day brings a new additional task but in the end will bring the really good house into a really great house. Fortunately the roof was replaced three years earlier....so it has a chance of remaining. We also took the Masonite from the interior of the garage and we will be preparing the garage for bigger, better, and more windows. Since the refrigerator that was purchased for the home doesn't fit it looks like we will be replacing the cabinets also. That probably will be a better option in the sense that it will allow for the addition of a dishwasher. And so the adventure continues.........
Odds.....at the End
One final update and Elder Wayment. He is up and running. The collar is gone and he is pretty much good to go. He and his wife were there helping us with the decorations of the crazy wagon and he joined the crazy people to boot. That wasn't enough so he showed up to help with tractor decorations.
Part of the community effort to prepare for Bootiful Nauvoo has the few merchants than line Mulholland Drive (the main drag through town) with some decorations. They started a new tradition this year with each business putting out a stuffed character representing their particular business. The bank put up a masked man the Nauvoo Clinic a doctor looking character. Not to be outdone our FM group put up their rendition of an FM Super Guy. He stood their proudly with his puffed out chest and macho look. A rain and wind storm required some emergency procedures and in the end he looked more in character.... like a seventy year old missionary.
We are now in the last gasps of fall. The calendar may say it runs until December but here in Nauvoo the leaves have been changing for a few weeks and soon they will be gone leaving barren branches to take their place. Temperatures are now below freezing for lows on a regular basis and the highs are hovering in the forties. After suffering through the cold and wind of Bootiful Nauvoo you would think we would have had enough fun. I guess we still need a little more fun and so the starkly yellow leaves that fell like rain from the tree (or maybe were thrown) provided one more adventure that we just couldn't pass up.
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