July 6

July 6 was cooler – and fast Sunday. That means break-the-fast day. Dan was up early and cooking hamburger for tacos. Gathered up olives, tortillas, hard taco shells, brownies, jalapenos, tomatoes and headed to branch council. Heard the funniest story: Bro. Jim Walker said he and Bro. Jones had gone fishing (I'm guessing deep sea fishing) and had filleted 220# of fish. It was in a cooler and they left it at Bro. Jones' until the next day. When he arrived the next day to pick up his share of fish, all that was left was a quarter-size piece with soy sauce on it. Bro. Jones is married to a Tongan, and they had a reunion of some sort and they had helped themselves to ALL of the fish – raw with soy sauce. No one had told the grandma that it was to be shared! Good testimony meeting; Tyrei passed sacrament for first time. Had a meeting with those going to Palmyra. The dinner included shredded chicken, guacamole, homemade salsa with all the stuff we took. They ate until it was gone! Encountered some of the logistics of 200 youth doing temple baptisms and having enough brethren to officiate.

Monday after cleaning the apartment and doing laundry we went shopping for rain ponchos and other various items. Had BLT sandwiches for supper, kind of: bacon on hot dog bun and spinach and tomatoes. At FHE they played games and had a cocolate fountain, but couldn't get the chocolate to melt, so dipped fruit, cookies, marshmallows, etc. The kids had fun and ate lots of stuff.

Tuesday workout and cool off in pool. Made bread while Dan picked up elders Terril and Dumont. They practiced Restoration on us as investigators. We threw them a couple of curves but they survived well. Then they went with E. Steffler outside to watch him grill steaks for lunch. I steamed squash and heated corn. Had potato salad, and of course, fresh bread and strawberry jam. Took them back to their apartment with lots of leftovers. After a nap and getting cleaned up, we met with Pres. Lewis and went to Tyrei's house to talk with his parents. Pres. Lewis wanted to personally assure them that we would take good care of their son. I think they were impressed that he was that concerned. It was a good meeting. Then we headed down Hwy 33 to Rocky Mount for our interview with Pres. Baker. (Missionary interviews were scheduled for Friday and we would be gone.) Rural country all the way. Got there early and met an elder who had been transferred from Greenville; good to see him again. His companion is from Meridian, ID. Had a good visit with Pres. Baker, gave them a loaf of fresh bread and invited them to dinner. Found an Outback Steakhouse which was good.

Wednesday we took advantage of the pool again, since we would not have a pool to enjoy on our trip. Did laundry (again!) then packed. Kept thinking of more things to take. The YSA sisters came by for leftovers and took two full bags. I made a batch cookies to take on the bus. Left at 7 to pick up Tyrei at his grandmother's house. She came out to give me her phone number and to call her when we got to New York. Got to Kinston at the stake center early – what a riot! Kids and suitcases everywhere. Not much organized chaos either. Finally got away at 11:15 – so much for the threat of leaving at 10! Picked up 3 kids at Roanoke Rapids, then a potty break at 2:30 a.m. and that took an hour by the time everyone visited the facilities (6 buses with 200 youth plus leaders).

Thursday for breakfast we stopped at McDonalds and half the bus had emptied to visit the potty when we found out it was the wrong McD's! The "real" one (where the food was) was 10 miles further down the road! Anyway, we got to Rochester to the Hyatt Hotel about 3, but the rooms were not ready. Another hour wait, then finally got to shower and get ready for the pageant. It was about half an hour's ride. We bought our own supper (choice of hamburger, cheeseburger, hot dog, salt potatoes or taco in a bag – very original: open a small bag of Doritos and add topping!) Groups of performers were working the crowd – part of their role as members of the cast. They had Books of Mormon and pamphlets and told what parts they played and where they were from, etc. A lot of families from the West come to the pageant to perform. We also met several senior couples, some working the pageant and others to see it, like us. The church family is small – we met several who we were able to connect with by town, state or family. See some of the pictures I took on facebook. The costumes are amazing, as were the effects. Performance lasted from 9:15-10:45, so it was late when we arrived back at the hotel.

Friday started early with a wake-up call at 6:15. Grabbed a McD breakfast and boarded the buses. The 6 buses were divided into 8 sessions at the temple, so it was an organizational nightmare! Our group visited the Whitmer farm first. There is a replica of the log house where the church was organized and a stake center that told some history and a visitors center where a video clip was shown (tear-jerker). Headed to Palmyra stake center where we left our temple clothes, had lunch and walked to the Smith farm house and to the Sacred Grove. The song Joseph Smith's First Prayer kept going through my mind as I walked the path into the Sacred Grove. It was quiet, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and the mosquitoes were biting! I sat off the path on a bench to write in my journal and was attacked, so I left. It was a very sacred spot that I enjoyed until the bites started itching. E. Steffler sat on a bench and meditated while I walked out of the grove. Then he had to look all over for me. Not a happy camper. We walked back to the stake center (about 1/4 mile, uphill and it was hot), changed into Sunday dress and headed to the temple. It also was uphill, but not as far. It is so beautiful. From the road that goes up to the temple, you can look down at the Sacred Grove. It was holy ground. E. Steffler was a witness for the baptisms and I helped gather the wet jumpsuits and towels. We were there about 2 1/2 hours. Learned later that more than a 1,000 baptisms had taken place that day. Supper was pizza and soda and salad. Then a speaker, Bro. Pitts who is supervisor of security at Hill Cumorah, told some of the history and special stories associated with it. One of the groups of Indians that lived originally around Cumorah were called Watchers of the Hill – they didn't know why, but they knew it was a sacred place. They were of the Seneca tribe. Then the stake presidency spoke and some of the youth were called on to share testimonies and feelings from the day.

Wake-up call at 5:15 Saturday and I hadn't slept well, probably because of the pizza. My stomach hurt the whole way home. Hot chocolate and hot chicken noodle soup helped some. On the road at 6:45 a.m. and arrived in Kinston at 10:45 p.m. A long ride home. Traffic was worse during the day, so had to do some round abouts to avoid some of the traffic. D.C. was the worst congestion. We gave the two bus drivers a Book of Mormon each with testimonies written from the YSA and leaders, and some had some money to give as a tip. They were excellent drivers. I know of two accidents that they were able to avoid. It was so good to finally climb into bed. Didn't even bother to shower! And I needed to. Long trip, but so worth it. We could never have gone on our own for what we paid. Thanks to all who made that possible. The stake presidency had been working on this project for a year.

I feel so blessed to be on this mission and be able to attend events like this. As great as the pageant was, the history sites and temple and Sacred Grove were even better. Now I just have to heal up from the trip. My ankles are twice the size they should be and the bites are still swollen. But my testimony has grown of the truthfulness of the Restoration, Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. Our prayer is that all of you can have the same feeling of love of our Savior that we feel. We love all y'all! Elder and Sister Steffler