Last week we took Sister Hunter to the temple and out to lunch. She was baptized five months ago along with her two teenage boys. She has no car, no job, and consequently doesn't get around much. She had not see the Dallas Temple so we took her for a visit. We walked around the gardens, and then went into the foyer and sat down on a sofa there. The foyer in the Dallas Temple is just beautiful! The minute we walked in the door there was that quiet peaceful feeling of the spirit. We spent about an hour just listening to the quiet, and occasionally talking softly about the blessings that come from being in the House of the Lord. We had given her a brochure about the temple a few weeks before we went, and Sis. Hulse also bought her a Temple Ensign.
I was impressed by the way I felt just sitting there in the quiet. Sometimes, when we go to the temple, we are just hurrying to make a session and don't slow down for awhile. It seems to take us a minute to release the ways of the world and commune with the spirit. I really enjoyed the time to sit, and center my feelings on the Savior. After awhile I asked her if she was ready to leave yet. She said, "No, I'd like to stay a little longer."
That beautiful experience has left me thinking about her statement. Yes, when we truly feel the spirit touch us, we yearn to "stay a little longer". Being within the walls of the Lord's house is being in the most sacred place on the earth. How amazing it is that we are so blessed!
Yesterday we did our planning for the coming week. We have several sisters we visit on a weekly basis, and others we see less often. Today we were busy visiting six sisters.
Our first stop was to see Sis. Helena Lawson. We found her on a new move-in list in Plano 4th Ward and visit her twice a week. When we first saw her we discovered she had been in the ward for six months, but had not been seen by any ward members. Since then the young missionary's have started going in, someone is taking her the sacrament, and the Relief Society is visiting. I just love how the church members work together to lift and carry each other. She is very frail and weak. Often she is very sleepy and doesn't say much, but we've had a few visits when she was able to talk. She was so excited when we visited her the first time. I told her we were from the church and she perked up and said, "That's my church!" She has children, but none of them have visited her for about three months.
Today when we arrived, they told us she had been put on oxygen yesterday and wasn't feeling well. We went into her room and reached down to take her hand. I told her who we were, and she opened her eyes and tried to respond a little, but was very weak. We stayed with her for a few minutes. She mentioned the name, Ron a couple of times, but other than that she remained still. It was so hard to leave as we felt she may be getting ready to return to her heavenly home. How great our love has grown for this dear sister in such a short time.
We also visited two other sisters in a nursing home. Sis. Teresa Alarcon was more alert today and responded to the children's book we read. She enjoys the pictures, and seems to like our visits. Sis. Adams is always flat in bed. She can't even sit for more than a few minutes and sleeps a lot. We have to wake her when we come. However, this sweet lady has such a strong testimony of the gospel, and has such a positive attitude about her life. I am always amazed at how well she handles going through this difficult time.
We took Diana York to lunch today. She is a sweet sister in the ward that is living with her daughter and husband. She has a wooden leg, and it's a little hard for her to get around, but she helps in the house all she can, and enjoys her twin granddaughters. Her wooden leg is very old, and she needs a new one badly, but doesn't have the money to get one. My heart aches for her.
Another assisted living place we visited today was to see Sis. Berniece Rabe Tryand. She is an author of children's books so the name Rabe may be one some some people know. She and her husband just moved from their home. She suffers from dementia and struggles with feelings of anger and bitterness. Apparently that is often the case with dementia. She likes us to read children's books to her, but today I gave her a spiritual thought. It was about being encircled by "The Master's Hands." She was touched and said she had needed that message today.
Our next stop was to see Sis. Vivian Page. She is an older sister who comes faithfully to church when she is well enough to do so. Her husband is inactive, as well as her children. She is tearful and sad about the circumstances of her life, but holds tightly to the hope that her family will come back to the church someday.
Our last visit was a good uplift for the two of us. Sis. Kathy Upshaw is an active member of the ward that we became friends with when we first got here. Her husband has been active in scouting in the ward for many years, but refuses to be baptized. They have just remodeled their home so we called to see if we could come by to see it. It was so much fun visiting with her. She is outspoken but in a cute way. Her husband became ill a few weeks ago, and she bluntly told him, "You absolutely cannot die, you have to take me to the temple first!"
Today he came in to visit with us. I had not had the opportunity to talk to him before. He is delightful and outspoken like she is. We had such a fun visit with them. He surprised us when we were ready to leave by asking us to leave a word of prayer in their home. I truly hope she'll get her wish someday be sealed to in the temple.
Well, this is a fairly good example of our day in the mission field. We also did an hour of volunteer work at Sis. Tryand's assisted living center. We go in once or twice a week to assist the activities person. We were going to help at the bishop's storehouse at the end of the day, but they told us they had all the help they needed. Now a few moments to rest....
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