Thursday, March 29, 2012

Washington D.C. Temple trip

Today my friend Katherine Pentz and I went to the D.C. temple. She arrived close to 6 AM. She drove since her car doesn’t die randomly. Nate was going to take Kaylee to school, but Ammon and Brenna came with us. We got them tucked in and started the journey. The drive to D. C. was breathtaking. A lot of the scenery reminds me of a post card. Little farms amongst the rolling hills, emerald green trees, the sunrise...Katherine and I were in awe the whole way there! (About 4 hours) 


Pit stop! Mmmmm....candy....






Katherine used to live in D. C., so it feels like home to her. We drove along the most beautiful walking path and park where she said she used to go jogging. The cherry blossoms that we were hoping to see were gone though since spring tried to come early with the unusually early bouts of warm weather. As we drove around a certain bend, the temple suddenly came into view.


 
 
 The only way I can describe this temple is to say that the gardens surrounding it reminded me of what I would imagine the Garden of Eden to look like! The temple itself is what I would imagine a mansion in heaven to look like. Once on temple grounds, one cannot see any other buildings surrounding it. It truly provides a feeling of peace and complete seclusion. What a stark contrast to the feelings of the inner city! 





Katherine’s cute friend offered to watch Ammon and Brenna while Katherine and I did a session. She planned to take them to another friend’s home who also has two young children in the hopes that they would be able to play together. I left both of them screaming for me with their arms reaching for me. I prayed and prayed they would be at peace and feel safe while I was gone!
Believe it or not, the inside of the temple is even more beautiful than the outside. I tried to take in every minute I was there! My spirit had been starving for this experience.
When we came out of the temple, Katherine’s friend was waiting with the kids. Brenna looked SO happy. She was skipping and giggling. She couldn’t stop smiling! I knew in that moment that she was feeling the spirit of God, and it made her happy. Ammon was just as smiley. It was so unusual for the two of them to be so happy with a complete stranger. What a blessing!
















We found a small picnic table nearby and had lunch. We geared up mentally for the drive home, anticipating rush hour traffic. Fortunately for us, it wasn’t bad at all.


Good kids, all the way home. 

I was pretty worn out after the trip, but it was all worth it.

2 comments:

Allison and Darin said...

That is one beautiful temple!

Cindy said...

That is such a wonderful experience to drive around that bend and see the temple. I love it and am so glad you got to experience that and have the tender mercies that you had for your trip. I love the picts. Great memories!