Basically, yesterday was miraculous :)
It started out with Mission Prep at 7:30 - honestly, what could be better? I have learned that you don't really know something until you are able to teach it. Boy, do I need a lot of work! But by the time I graduate, I will be ready to share my testimony with anyone and everyone, regardless of if I literally go on a mission or follow the statement of "every member a missionary."
Right after Mission Prep, my friend picked me up and we drove up to see Music and the Spoken Word. Oh, it was absolutely amazing! In my family, it is a tradition to watch it every week as we get ready, but I have never actually been there in person. While watching it is great, there is something so beautiful about actually hearing it live with your own ears.
The drive up was fun - we told memories and funny stories and talked about...well, whatever we felt like! We had to walk really fast through Temple Square, and luckily made it through the doors at about 9:25 - they say they close the doors at 9:15, and I am so glad that they didn't!
Obviously, this is not my picture. However,
when we went, the backlighting really was blue.
We walked down the side aisle of the Tabernacle and found a seat off to the left but pretty close to the front. We watched as the director-person counted down one minute, forty-five seconds, thirty seconds, twenty, fifteen, ten, nine, eight, seven six five, four, ---, --, -, and then, the music started.
During the entire performance I could not keep a smile off of my face :) I just l over being there, seeing all of our favorite people - Belinda, the "Wiggly Guy," Alex Boye - in person. It is definitely an incredible experience!! When the cameras stopped rolling, Brother Newell came around to the front and spoke for a minute, then the choir sang "God Be With You Till We Meet Again."
This is Alex Boye - he sings the solos in "Battle of Jericho"
and "Rock of My Soul", two of our favorite songs.
After the performance ended, my friend and I walked outside to enjoy the rest of Temple Square in the sunshine - what a glorious place to be!
"There is beauty all around"
It seriously was this beautiful - you probably think I am kidding, but I promise I am not!! The sky was a brilliant blue, all of the flowers were bright and blooming, the trees were green and full, and the sun was shining and warm. It was the most perfect, beautiful place to be on a Sunday.
We ran in to some sister missionaries from Canada and Southern California who prompted us to do a "scroll of salvation" on our phones to help our friends receive the gospel - what a wonderful term :) My friend found one and gave them her name so that she could be called and taught about the gospel.
The flowers down this row in the middle were some of my favorites :)
(this is not picture either - none of them are - but they give the gist of what it looked like)
After we finished our discussion with the missionaries, we went into one of the visitor centers so that we could see a model of the temple and the rooms inside. As we were looking at it, a group of Taiwanese tourists came up with a pair of sister missionaries. They asked us to back up so that the group could see, so we shuffled around to the other side; of course, a few minutes later they walked to the other side, and once again, we were in the way. This time, rather that asking us to move, one of the sister missionaries asked if we could be part of lesson/tour that she was giving. We looked at each other, then, of course, said yes. Immediately she started jabbering in rapid Taiwanese to the group, motioning at both of us. She turned to us and said "I just told them that when members come to the temple, the wear suits and ties and skirts like you two are." We nodded, and she continued talking.
These are some Taiwanese characters.
After listening to the sister missionary talk,
it gave me a whole knew level of wonder at the scrambling of languages at the Tower of Babel;
I didn't have a clue what in the world they were saying!!
After talking and motioning some more with her hands, the missionary turned to us and asked "would it be all right if you two bore your testimonies on the eternal nature of the family when I am done?" Once again we glanced at each other, and this time somewhat nervously, said yes.
She turned back to the group and continued talking to them, then all of a sudden she was motioning to my friend. She introduced him to the group, and asked him to talk slowly so that she could translate to the others. He began to share his testimony, and everyone in the group kept their eyes glued on him. He told them of how much he loved his family, and how he knew that someday he could live with them again. It was really neat to hear him share what he knew, and then hear the sister missionary translate it into a whole other language, yet both groups, despite the language barrier, could feel the truth of his testimony.
I was pretty nervous about sharing my testimony to a group of people I had never met, let alone those who didn't understand my language. Also add to that the fact that my friend had gone first, and I was just hoping that I wouldn't repeat all of the things that he said! :) It turned out well though - I think that my Missionary Prep classes have helped, as well as little promptings as I talked. Although I didn't necessarily connect this while I was sharing my testimony, I realize now that I had thoughts brought to mind that I just felt like I needed to share. I testified that not only would I be able to live with my family again, but also with my Heavenly Father. I told them that I know I am a daughter of God, and through the ordinances in the temples, someday I can return to Him.
I really hope that they could see how much my testimony meant to me, and how firmly I believe it. To me, the knowledge that I am a child of God, and that my earthly family can be together forever, is something that I have known since I was little. Sometimes I forget that not everyone knows these things that I am blessed with. I am really going to try harder not to take my testimony for granted.
After both of us had shared, they asked us how old we were. It was neat to find out that we had been able to share our testimonies with a group of students about our own age! Then they all wanted to take pictures of us, so my friend and I stood there as about 15-20 people, including the teachers that were chaperoning the trip, came to take their pictures with us. I felt a little bit like a Disney character at Disneyland or something! I really hope that as they look back through their pictures, they can see the light that my friend and I have as a result of the gospel. I hope they not only remember what my friend and I shared with them, but also the Spirit that they (hopefully) felt.
Taiwan
It was so neat to know that I was sharing my testimony with other kids from half way across the world! It was also kinda miraculous to realize that had we arrived in the visitor center a few minutes earlier or later, we might not have had such an amazing experience. That experience was definitely a testimony builder of how much my Heavenly Father knows where I need to be. I hope that maybe in some small way, I was able to touch someone's life, or say something that one of those students needed to hear. I hope that Heavenly Father knows that He can count on me to help one of His other children, whether they be from across the nations or right next door.
We continued walking around Temple Square some more, and eventually made our way over to the Conference Center. There was actually a stake/regional conference going on, but we walked around, listened to Elder Holland (that would be so amazing to have him speak at a stake conference!!), and then went out on the balcony and down the steps. After trying a few floors of the parking garage, we luckily found the car - it really did take us a few times :)
This was a skylight in the Conference Center - so pretty!
There were mirrors all around it to reflect the light.
The drive home was great - more stories and things shared. We were both so excited about the experience in the visitor center; it was an amazing moment of being in the right place at the right time. I am so thankful that I was able to spend such a wonderful Sunday morning with such an extraordinary person in such a beautiful place!!
