This past weekend, John and I had the opportunity to meet up with our friends, the Morans, in Washington DC. I personally had been trying to make this trip since the middle of December, and we had changed the weekend a couple of times. No matter, because everything finally came together.
We had a wonderful time, especially in light of how lousy things have been going for John and me lately. The whole being-released-from-seminary mess has been a heavy burden to bear, and at times it feels like it's all that John and I can think about. So, getting away was a perfect solution.
Of course, going to the temple wouldn't be a trip to the temple without some kind of drama. The night before, we had received several inches of snow, and the driveway was dicey at best. Thankfully, John plowed it before he left for work. Not thankfully, his car (which I was driving) couldn't make it back UP the driveway after I had been out running errands. No worries. I frequently back down the driveway when I can't make it up, and get a faster running start. After trying this three times and still not making it all the way up, I decided to just leave the car halfway down the driveway and walk the rest of the way up. I took my shower, packed, and dragged everything back down the driveway, ready to pick up John at 3:30 in Altoona. When I went to back the car down the driveway, it slid off the tracks and into a snow drift on the side of the driveway. Despite my best efforts, it wouldn't come out.
I called John in tears. I had misplaced my new temple recommend (but thankfully found it), but the car getting stuck was just too much. As cool as he always is when I'm in some predicament, he told me not to worry about it by reminding me how many times he had gotten stuck on the driveway. He told me to go back in the house and just wait for him to get home--he would get the car out, and we would still be able to go.
True to his word, he was home in 40 minutes, and he had the car out in even less time. We were on our way. Two hours late, but still on our way.
We met the Morans at a hotel just north of DC. They had ordered take-out Chinese for us (which, being on a diet, tasted just heavenly). We got straight to the business of playing games. And by some divine miracle, we parted ways that night in good spirits. No anger, no resentment, no disappointment. It was a FUN night of games.
We decided to sleep in in the morning. What a difference from the norm! We usually wake at the crack of dawn on a Saturday to make the 3 hour drive down to DC, rush into the temple, and rush home afterwards. Not exactly the ideal situation for attending the temple! This time, we woke up at a normal hour, had breakfast, played another game, and then headed to the temple together.
I could hardly believe it when, as we were waiting, I realized that we had never been to the temple together. Not in 15 years of friendship! That's crazy! I was glad to break that embarrassing record and be together.
As I sat through the endowment session, I was overcome with feelings of gratitude and happiness. The Morans define "family" more to us than anyone else, and I felt so much joy, imagining us someday, in heaven, together. It was a truly special moment, perhaps made better because we had waited so long to be in the temple together. As we were leaving the celestial room, Jared lamented the fact that we didn't have (and aren't allowed) a camera there. It would have been so fun to catch a selfie of us all, dressed in white, and feeling none of the cares and burdens of life. I can still see us all, looking in the mirror together after we left the celestial room. I may not have had a camera then, but my memory has an eternal picture.
I did insist on a selfie afterwards, and it's a great one:
After that, we honestly didn't want the fun to end, so we headed to a local Ruby Tuesday for "linner", or "dunch" (whichever you prefer) :-) Once again, the Morans proved to be our closest confidants, listening to the worries and cares that John and I can share with no one else. I could feel that none of us were ready to go our separate ways, but we did, planning on making another trip just as soon as we can.
We had a wonderful time, especially in light of how lousy things have been going for John and me lately. The whole being-released-from-seminary mess has been a heavy burden to bear, and at times it feels like it's all that John and I can think about. So, getting away was a perfect solution.
Of course, going to the temple wouldn't be a trip to the temple without some kind of drama. The night before, we had received several inches of snow, and the driveway was dicey at best. Thankfully, John plowed it before he left for work. Not thankfully, his car (which I was driving) couldn't make it back UP the driveway after I had been out running errands. No worries. I frequently back down the driveway when I can't make it up, and get a faster running start. After trying this three times and still not making it all the way up, I decided to just leave the car halfway down the driveway and walk the rest of the way up. I took my shower, packed, and dragged everything back down the driveway, ready to pick up John at 3:30 in Altoona. When I went to back the car down the driveway, it slid off the tracks and into a snow drift on the side of the driveway. Despite my best efforts, it wouldn't come out.
I called John in tears. I had misplaced my new temple recommend (but thankfully found it), but the car getting stuck was just too much. As cool as he always is when I'm in some predicament, he told me not to worry about it by reminding me how many times he had gotten stuck on the driveway. He told me to go back in the house and just wait for him to get home--he would get the car out, and we would still be able to go.
True to his word, he was home in 40 minutes, and he had the car out in even less time. We were on our way. Two hours late, but still on our way.
We met the Morans at a hotel just north of DC. They had ordered take-out Chinese for us (which, being on a diet, tasted just heavenly). We got straight to the business of playing games. And by some divine miracle, we parted ways that night in good spirits. No anger, no resentment, no disappointment. It was a FUN night of games.
We decided to sleep in in the morning. What a difference from the norm! We usually wake at the crack of dawn on a Saturday to make the 3 hour drive down to DC, rush into the temple, and rush home afterwards. Not exactly the ideal situation for attending the temple! This time, we woke up at a normal hour, had breakfast, played another game, and then headed to the temple together.
I could hardly believe it when, as we were waiting, I realized that we had never been to the temple together. Not in 15 years of friendship! That's crazy! I was glad to break that embarrassing record and be together.
As I sat through the endowment session, I was overcome with feelings of gratitude and happiness. The Morans define "family" more to us than anyone else, and I felt so much joy, imagining us someday, in heaven, together. It was a truly special moment, perhaps made better because we had waited so long to be in the temple together. As we were leaving the celestial room, Jared lamented the fact that we didn't have (and aren't allowed) a camera there. It would have been so fun to catch a selfie of us all, dressed in white, and feeling none of the cares and burdens of life. I can still see us all, looking in the mirror together after we left the celestial room. I may not have had a camera then, but my memory has an eternal picture.
I did insist on a selfie afterwards, and it's a great one:
After that, we honestly didn't want the fun to end, so we headed to a local Ruby Tuesday for "linner", or "dunch" (whichever you prefer) :-) Once again, the Morans proved to be our closest confidants, listening to the worries and cares that John and I can share with no one else. I could feel that none of us were ready to go our separate ways, but we did, planning on making another trip just as soon as we can.
Aww family at the best level in the temple! Haha cause the Morans basically are family right?
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