On Tuesday,
August 18th Albert and I went on a little tour of Manti and Ephraim, Utah. Albert took a bunch of great photos of the
Manti LDS Temple. It was so nice to walk around the grounds and think of the pioneers (some of whom are my relation) who built the temple, hammering the stones from the mountains by hand. My family was
sealed in the Manti temple when I was about 7 and I received my
endowments there so it is a very special temple for our family.
I love the clouds in these pics. So beautiful.
After checking out the temple we took a stroll down Main Street and looked at a craft store and a candy store. We bought a few chocolates to share (much cheaper than in St. Augustine) and headed back to Ephraim where we ate at the Malt Shop. I had a hamburger with no bun, which was sort of like a salad with a hamburger patty on top. We also shared a yummy coconut and almond shake and I told stories about how my grandpa used to take us there for a shake when we were kids.
We drove passed my grandpa Cal's old house which is pretty much dilapidated, not that it was ever in that great of shape. He died when I was on a mission in 2003 so I missed his funeral and I hadn't been to the old house since before I left for Italy. We didn't go inside, but we took some pictures of the outside for remembrance sake and peeked in through the dirty windows.
{my grandpa was a welder by trade so the property is covered with scrap metal}
My dad wanted Albert to take a picture of my grandma with his fancy camera and he took this gem:
This trip to Ephraim made me feel really nostalgic for my childhood and also grown-up. It was the first time I had been there as a married woman, almost 30-yrs-old and maybe the last time I go there before I'm a mom. I feel like my life is changing. Probably because I got this fancy new job and we're thinking about having a baby and settling down somewhere more permanent after Albert finishes school.
Plus being around old things makes you realize how temporary life is. You think you and your family are going to live forever, but I think you get to a point where you realize you'd better start taking it all in because it's not going to be there in a few years. Babies grow-up, people die, things you treasured get lost, and all you're left with are the memories.
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