It's a Sad Day.......
       ........But We Go On

     Here in Nauvoo we have become believers that many of our daily occurrences we commonly have here are taken has coincidence but  are really something more than that.  Monday we took a trip to Burlington and got  double barged.  That means we were stuck on the Ft. Madison Bridge while waiting for two barges to pass through the opened gates.  Normally we obey the signs and stay in the car. So in spite of all the printed warnings I stepped outside.  "What are you doing out of your car" came the call from an all to familiar voice.  Turning to the sound I saw Elder Jones approaching me.  He was the car behind us.

     He was a looking a little down but the smile was still there.  It had been five days since his heart attack and remarkable story.  As we talked it couldn't keep it to himself any longer.  He and his wife had met with President Hall and they all agreed that his mission and service were remarkable but it was time for them to go home.  Sister Gibson gave him one of her big hugs.  The following day he and Sister Jones came to our prayer meeting where he was presented his FM flag of service and appreciation.  His testimony was strong and powerful.....yet humble and sincere.  They left Wednesday....sadly without the Sarah Granger cast being able to sing Farewell Nauvoo with him for one last time.  Sister Hipple, our director,  was too busy to forward my e-mail to her telling her of Elder and Sister Jones hastened departure and my wish to her to forward it to all cast members so they could attend the ceremony and sing to him.  She was, however,  able to send it the following day after they Jones' had left.....I have no idea what she was thinking when she did it.  They were gone...it was distressing to many they had missed it.

     The week passed....it felt like a cloudy, bleak day.  We knew the Jones' were still with us.....We just couldn't see them or feel the warmth of their sunshine.

                                 Farewell Jones'......We Love You and will Miss You!!

               I will leave you to ponder a while on the  graphic.....no I have not taking to drinking....but it certainly felt like a  possibility....though I have never had a drink.....but there were many who knew what I meant as I uttered it in mild frustration.  So let's get on with it......

      The Drama Ends........
        .....as Rendezvous Finally Fades
                                        .........to a Memory!!

     It has been several weeks now since it was announced that Rendezvous had been cancelled after some thirty five years.  I have been honored to play a role in this as  the editor....the narrator who weaves the background stories together for the vignettes. As I performed I developed a passion to tell the story in such a way that the audience would feel the spirit of the Saints who lived here.  I felt the story and hoped I could portray it to others in such a way that they too would feel it.   The sky was clear and a brilliant blue.  When clouds came they were white and billowy.  They were beautiful and impressive.

     Sometime ago I began to feel more clouds in the sky.  The sun was often obscured and the temperatures cooled.  I still had love for the Sarah Granger cast but my feelings about Rendezvous were darkening.  I was confused and mystified at the way Sister Hipple, our director functioned. I found her eighth grade school teacher behavior to be a thing of my past that I never wanted to revisit again.  Willingly........I had to.

      So when the "end" announcement came I did not find myself feeling a loss....but rather a gain.  I suddenly started to feel that there was more of a purpose to the mission than Rendezvous or the grand social structure that it had created.  There was something better for us as missionaries and it was coming our way.  Whether we embrace it....that is the question that will have to be answered by each of us as individuals.

     As we marched closer to the ending it seemed like many of the women were in hysteria as the show would be ending.  Parties sprung up with tables full of food for seemingly no reason.  Birthday celebrations were held for some who weren't born until mid-December.  Pep talks by Sister Hipple and Sister Finlinson were better, and far less inspiring, than any I had ever given to a bunch of nine year old Gremlin football players.  They talked of a new show......really?  Didn't hear that from anyone.  Sister Hipple, who had long and laboriously drilled into us the need to "stay to the script" because it was an inspired church document, gave the hostess' new lines to learn for the final show.  That was enough for me.  I hit "reply all" (the Sarah Granger cast) to that: "Once again Sister Hipple, we are in our debt.  Thank you for your remarkable suggestions for new lines for the hostess'.  I think we all have things we want to say.  Unfortunately they are not in keeping with the "spirit of exactness" you have drilled into our hearts and minds over the months you have led us.  What the heck.  I have some other great ideas that I would love to do also....and I am sure there are others  who feel the same way....let's go find them?" (This is probably not funny to the reader...it contains many of the Rendezvous lines)

      To that she responded:  "Stick to the script with exactness and Honor"  So we did.

We attended every performance last week to support our fellow cast members.  I would guess there were only ten non-missionaries in the audience for the final performances

     And so with a wkimper and a whine we say "Farewell Rendezvous"  Bring on what's next.......

as long as it isn't another party!!

    Christmas Caroling in Carthage.........

          .....We Answer the Call of the Pole

    

     Thursday night after the final performance of Rendezvous we loaded up with Elder Hughes. (Since Sister Hughes was singing in the Messiah and the Catholic Church and it was dress rehearsal night),  and went to do the annual caroling around the square.  Been there.....done that again but it was fun to find the light pole we took a memorable picture at.

     Carthage is fun.....the Picture is the BEST!!!

We Finally Sing the Song and ....
        .....Light Up the Tree.....

     When we were called to Chair the Nauvoo Community Christmas Tree Lighting and Walk we felt overwhelmed....we had far more questions than direction but with the help of last years compilation of activities and the Nielsen1's who were in charge of all the Visitor Center activities and the Wadsworth's who over saw site activities things soon took shape and rolled forward. It soon became clear we have amazing people here.   They were knowledgeable yet humble.  They were willing to do their assignments willingly and while wanting to do them well there was not those who felt it was about them but rather about the community and the mission.

     We started this activity with a group meeting and gave them our all important preface statement:

 Organize, Execute, and Evaluate the 2017 Christmas Walk that involves all missionaries in the Nauvoo Mission in a way that every activity is in harmony with proclaiming the Savior's birth so all will feel of the Spirt of God's love for us as we come together as a community to celebrate.

     Friday was "Showtime" and with the  of Rendezvous  closing performances during the week, Carthage Caroling, and the dress rehearsal for the community Messiah all on the night before we awoke Friday morning with "wonderment"....I wonder how this is going to go and what, if anything we missed.  There were a couple of "minor" details that had to be worked out....and quickly.

     The FM employee in charge of the seating was new(yet experienced), and even though we explained his role in providing the 400 chairs from the Pageant Building as well as taking them down after the ceremony it seemed to have passed over his head.  Secondly, the upright piano in the theater had been remove and replace with a grand one.  It was impractical to move so an electronic keyboard was brought it.  Once we hammered out a solution for power to it, since all the lights would be off and we didn't know if that meant power to the keyboard and light during the tree lighting song.  FM scrambled to get them up....not a problem....we scramble well here...it's like a Chinese fire drill.

     President Hall welcomed the almost filled to capacity Visitors Center and Elder Gordon stepped in and gave an opening prayer since the Catholic Father was stuck in a traffic jam (I didn't know that even happened here) in Quincy.  The Warsaw High School Jazz Band and Chorus were great. Rick McGregor, our FM friend and Pastor of the Community of Christ Parish gave a great talk about community and the season......barely mentioned Christ, his birth, or his message, however.

    It was now time for the tree lighting ceremony....the lights darkened.....the anticipation mounted (really?)  The song began and by the mid-point we were all over the place with lights flashing and the song being mumbled.....fortunately we all came together for the last line...."Light up the Tree"....it was lit and we were done!!!

    The rest of the evening was spent with Elder Hall and our six service missionaries picking up the 400 chairs, stacking them, carting them, putting them on two trailers (because our "Twinkie Truck Van" had been used earlier and locked up).  The Elder with the key didn't respond to numerous phone calls until we were on our way back after we had unloaded them and put them back in the Pageant Building.

     Such was the event....at least when we got back to the Family Living Center there were still treats and glowing reports of how smooth everything went and the success of the event.  We did it right....we had great people and they did what they were asked. Hopefully we met the expectations of our preface statement.

Big Jobs....Big Toys.....Big Boys

                                ......and Big Noise

   

     Work at the Maxwell house is just that.......it's work.  As the week went on we continued with the siding and soffit only to be interrupted by a need to frame in the bathroom so the plumber, Darrell, and our HVAC guy Jason could see what needed to go where and begin to plan for the assault on the house.  We finally got word that Keokuk Contractors would be here Monday to start cutting the foundation for the egress windows in the basement.  That's out of my league so the big boys with the big toys were called in to start digging the place up to provide for space to work at cutting. ....Well there goes the neighborhood and it's quite tranquility.  We were planning on cutting the concrete floor in the basement when the concrete cutter wouldn't work on propane and we decided to wait until it could.  The last time the plumbers used it in a basement it was only a Nauvoo miracle that presented a catastrophe.  It did work well on the garage floor as Marcus had wanted us to replace it...why?  It's now a race against the weather with winter on the horizon......can snow be far behind?

      It's the 4th....
     I'm sorry to see Rendezvous go.....it was a great vehicle for me to share the Nauvoo story...then again....I still have my perceived sanity.  The chaos and Sister Hipple were mind boggling to me.  They are gone now  and I am relieved.  Six out of Seven nights last week we started at 5:00 a.m. and ended around 9:00 p.m.  We ain't kids anymore.....well maybe in some ways!!
       The Nauvoo Community Christmas Tree Lighting and Walk had their glitches but it was an amazing experience for Sister Gibson and myself to be such an integral part of it.  Good people make for a good event.....and we were blessed with the best.
   And So....in the End....I Didn't Need the Fifth