A Sweet Temple Experience

One evening, when we were serving our Tuesday shift at the temple, I noticed a name on the reservation sheet that was very unusual.  They didn't come in at the time for which they were signed up but were about 45 minutes late.  I actually started one session, and they came just as I was taking the next.  But it was too full to accommodate them in that one, so I asked them to wait for the next.  That gave us an opportunity to visit.  It was a man from India with his mother who was visiting for the holidays.  I asked him to tell me his conversion story.  His mother spoke no English.  He told me the most fascinating, faith promoting story.  I will tell it as best I can remember it:

When he was a teenager, his mother became interested in Christianity.  She joined a church and he would go with her.  The preacher was a charismatic man who preached with conviction.  Sometimes after late activities or meetings, this teenager would stay at the preacher's home.  He would overhear the preacher talking and laughing with friends.  He was disappointed that the preacher preached one thing but talked and lived another way.  He soon quit attending.

Later, when he was a young adult, he started attending another Christian church.  He believed in Jesus Christ.  His daily routine took him by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints building.  He was drawn to it.  It said on the sign "Visitors Welcome."  But he knew it as an English-speaking church, and he didn't speak English then (his English as he told the story was impeccable) so he didn't ever go there.  He worked at a local grocery store.  One morning, two Elders came in.  They were obviously looking for something, so he asked if he could be of assistance.  He took them to the desired item.  In return, they gave him a pass along card that had five questions on in:

Where did I come from?

Why am I here?

Where am I going?

Is there really a God?

And I don't remember the other one.

He looked  at the card and asked,"Do you know the answers to these questions?"  "Yes, we do." the Elders answered.  He couldn't believe it and asked again, "You know the answers?"   Yes!"  He couldn't believe it.  He just couldn't believe it.  Since he was a small boy, he would look up into the night sky and wonder about the answers to those very questions.  He had asked both Christian pastors, but neither knew the answers.

He was so excited to learn the answers and set an appointment with the Elders.  He soon began learning about the gospel from the Elders.  While he was learning, he went to the pastor of the church he was attending and asked him the questions again and told him he was meeting with the Elders.  The pastor couldn't answer the question, but told him to stay away from the Elders, telling him they were evil.  But he didn't obey and was soon baptized.  

He paused here to look me in the eyes and say to me,"I am so very grateful for you people from Utah who send your children on missions.  Two elders from Utah gave me the gospel."

He then went on to have his brothers, his cousins, and many friends learn from the Elders.  Soon his mother became interested, and she too was eventually baptized.  He was out to convert India!  He then served a mission as did his brother and cousins.  Can you even imagine the multitude converted from that one little pass along card?

That's about when I had to leave and do my work, so I didn't get to ask him more questions.  But I did learn that he lives in this area now and his mother came from India to stay with him for about a month and he was bringing her to the temple as often as he could while she was here.

As I left the room, I took his mother's hands (she was a beautiful woman with a ruby in her forehead) and told her what an honor it was to meet her and have her in the temple.

This was such a sweet experience that I had to share it here.

The Heart of Winter

 

Physical book   Fiction 5 stars

I loved this sweet story of an elderly couple.  The wife is diagnosed with cancer.  As she goes through that horrendous ordeal, there are flashbacks of their life together- the ups and downs of married life.  Is it action-packed?  No.  But it is exactly the kind of book I love, causing me to reflect on my own life and making me want to do better.  5 stars.

The Hypnotist's Love Story

 

The Hypnotist's Love Story by Liane Moriarty
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fiction Physical Book
This is my second Liane Moriarty and I think I’m a fan. I like her stories and her writing. This books gets you inside the head of a stalker. It’s way different in there than I thought from looking from the outside. It’s a good story that ends well. 4 stars from me.


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Camino Island

 

Camino Island by John Grisham
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Fiction Audiobook
Grisham knows how to write a story that captures you from the first page to the last. My husband and I listened to this on a recent road trip. We liked the characters and the plot. It was very entertaining. 3 ½ stars.


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Black Beauty The Autobiography of a Horse

 

Classic Literature    Physical book

I don’t know how I missed reading this in my youth because I was a horse lover.  But I am so glad I read it now.  Set in pre-car time when horses were an essential part of life, Black Beauty tells his life story beautifully this in book. His life starts in a very happy place, but as he is sold from owner to owner, he experiences ill treatment and pain.  Everyone should read this sweet classic.  5 stars

Mexican Cruise 2026

January 3-10 we enjoyed our usually annual Mexican Riviera Cruise on Princess Cruises.  It was an enjoyable, relaxing week.   We flew to Las Angeles on Friday, the 2nd and spent the night in a hotel before boarding the ship on Saturday.

Port in Las Angeles

Our first stop on Monday was Cabo San Lucas.  It is such a beautiful approach.  We saw whales as we approached.  That is always exciting.

It's hard to distinguish in this picture, but the boats are surrounding a whale.

Our steward created a dog out of washrags for us and I found a rubber duck in the library.  Duck hiding is a thing on cruises.

Our cabin was on the uppermost deck.  We so enjoyed our balcony and the beautiful views.

We spent a lot of time out there enjoying the views and reading.

Because the ship didn't leave Cabo until 8 pm, the dining room was not very busy that evening.  So, our waiter created a little Mexican man for us.  Both he and his assistant were from the Philipines.

Cabo at night.  So pretty.

On Tuesday we were in Mazatlan

I was on the deck when I saw this ship coming right at our ship.  They turned just in time.  They were just trying to get out of the harbor, and the pilot boat guided them out perfectly.  It sure looked like a crash was imminent.

Wednesday we were in Puerta Vallarta

Ken spent the morning at Area Natural Protegida Estero El Saledo- a local nature preserve.  He was so thrilled to add two new birds to his life list which now numbers 1,188 different species of bird.

Rufus- Bellied Chachalaca

Sinaloa Crow

The food, as always, was delicious and beautifully presented.

This was one of Ken's favorite dinners of the cruise.  Beef tenderloin.  He also loved the prime rib.

We know from doing this cruise so many times that the first day lunch serves this delicious lemon salmon.  We are always anxious to get on the ship and head to the dining room.  It is one of our two favorite meals.  So yummy!

This is my other favorite meal: Chioppino.  It is a delicious seafood soup.  It has a delicious tomato base and, as you can see, is full of seafood.

Oh, and the Beef Wellington is delicious.

One evening we went out on the main deck to watch the fountain show (and get some delicious ice cream.)

It was a lovely, relaxing cruise with lots of beautiful views, good food, reading, and sleeping.  We are already looking forward to next year.

Man on the Moon

 

A New Driver in the Family

 Our grandson Caleb turned 16 this month and got his driver's license.  Because his dad nearly always rides his bike to work, he is driving his dad's truck.  A few days after getting his license, he commented, "I just realized I've got a dog, a truck, and a bike.  My life just peaked at 16!!  It's all downhill from here!"

A New Acting President

 

Dieter F. Uchtdorf has been called to be the new Acting President of the Quorum of the  12 Apostles.

An Historic Photo

 For only about one month, this was the quorum of the 12 apostles.  Because of the short time before Elder Holland passed away, this becomes a very historic photo.  I wanted to include it on our blog.

Can you name them?

Jeffrey R. Holland Passes Away

 President Jeffrey R. Holland passed away on Dec. 27, 2025.  Oh how we will miss him.  His funeral was so inspiring.  All three of his children gave beautiful, inspiring talks.

I loved this story his son Matthew told at the funeral:

" As many know, two and a half years ago, my father was in a month-long fight for his life and in an intensive care unit.  One morning we awoke at 4:00 am because of thirst and asked for some juice.  A young nurse on duty responded with promptness.  My father took the juice and then, there in the darkness before dawn and barely conscious and burdened by pain and weakness, began to ask the nurse about his origin and his life.  After a few minutes, I felt something important and personal was developing so I excused myself from the room.  A time later, the nurse came out of the room, crying.  I asked him if everything was okay.  He looked me in the eyes and said, "I have to get back to church.  After an experience like that, how could I not?"

President Holland came from St. George and was buried here the day after the funeral.  The members of the 1st presidency and the quorum of the 12 apostles came to pay their respects.  Many St. George and Washington county residents lined the streets to do the same.  I copied many pictures from the internet to post here.  

The procession traveled by places near and dear to President Holland.  They started at the historic St. George Tabernacle, where President Holland rededicated the building after a major renovation.  They drove in front of the St. George Temple where over 200 missionaries serving in the Utah/St. George Mission were gathered to sing, "The Spirit of God", for the Holland family, the first presidency and apostles to hear.  President Holland also rededicated the St. George temple after its recent renovation.  The procession drove east on Tabernacle to 500 east where they turned north to drive by Holland's childhood home.  They drove by the building that bears his name at the school he loves, Dixie State University.  He was buried by his wife, Patricia, who was by his side until the summer of 2023.  The plan of salvation teaches that families can be together forever.  He is now reunited with his recently departed sister, family, and friends, and of course his eternal mate, Patricia.

Until We Meet Again, President Holland.