Parting is such sweet sorrow

Eagle days.  Photo taken by Elder Bruce Cornwell on the Mississippi

Once again I will combine two weeks, mostly because these last two weeks flow together as the Lusvardis take their leave of the mission.  We also did the same work each week, MWF on grounds, TTH with the paint crew.

Sunday, January 5th was Sister Lusvardi's farewell fireside.  The sisters had a party the night before, but this was for the whole mission.  She and President Lusvardi presented their message together.  First they handed out three sets of gloves, one thin, plastic pair, one pair of winter gloves, and one pair of heavy duty work gloves.  At different points in the lesson they had the glove wearers find scriptures in a bound book, not on a device.  The gloves represented different ways people feel the spirit and how hard it is to understand things of the spirit if you are "past feeling".

With our mission president and his wife.

 This past Wednesday was President Lusvardi's last mission training.

President Lusvardi introduces us to our new Historic Site director, via media.

                                   

He taught me what to think about the last week of my mission. 

President Lusvardi says good-bye to the FM group.  He came to our 7:00 prayer meeting almost every morning. 

We also said good-bye to our zone leaders and fellow grounds couple, the Pinettes.   Little by little the people who were here when we came have left.  The only ones still here are the 23 month missionaries, like the Pinettes.  They  kept the Visitor Center and the Women's garden looking pretty and neat.  We loved working with them when there was a big project, like planting annuals or bulbs, and on smaller projects like leaf raking.  In the winter they washed pots with us and did other greenhouse work.  All the missionaries are wonderful, but some we get to know more than others.  The Pinettes were part of my grounds world and I miss them.

Richard presents Pinette's with their FM flag.

Grounds Crew farewell lunch for Pinettes at the Red Front

We get told all the time that no one works harder than the grounds crew, but I beg to differ.  The paint crew works equally hard if not at times harder. What we did this week with the paint crew was as hard as anything we've had to do. Both groups have work that needs to be done.  I'm just glad I have been assigned to grounds, but this winter the paint department needs some help to get things finished before spring, so we volunteered.  We worked in the young sisters' apartments and also the Browning Gun home.  The sisters' live in a regular modern apartment and that wasn't any different than painting our own homes.  Doing historic preservation work is very different.  The previous paint was rolled on the walls.  There were no rollers in the 1840s so all of that had to be sanded down. Not fun.  In another room the old paint wasn't adhering properly to the wall so we had to chip it away.  That was actually fun when it did give way to our knives. The rest of the time we worked in the paint shop with Elder Mensel, who was a professional painter in a former life.  We mostly sanded baseboard molding that will go in the Hunter home.  It feels good to make a small contribution to preserving the historic homes of Nauvoo.

The paint crew

Sanding Browning Gun wall

Sanding molding for Hunter home

We also started coleus cuttings - again.  But this is one of the most interesting things we do.  I love it.

We cleaned up this garden 

And found this little house

Carving class

Our district's assignment was to clean up the grove.  Louis added his "stick" to our trailer. 

Irene's dulcimer Tuesday group

In our mailbox.  It really is getting close. 

Saturday evening, on the ice, we had to do security.  They haven't found someone to hire to do security on the weekends, soooo the missionaries get to do it.  We check every building, including the FM buildings and the historic homes.  It would have been fun, except we were on ice the whole time.  Elder Barrow did meet the new president of the historic sites - we are no longer a mission, even though we are still missionaries.  I stayed in the car.

Checking the doors at the FM compound.  Slippery business. 

Joy and Sorrow

Sisters of the Illinois Nauvoo Mission

The old year died to peals of laughter in the Visitor Center West Theater, where we were entertained by our fellow missionaries with acts from the sublime to the ridiculous,  including a visit from Carnak the Magnificent performing his amazing clairvoyant act.   The talent was geared to the over 60 age set.  Under 60 would have missed most of what was funny.

Oedekirk played the dulcimer 

A trio on the piano  - Jensen, Barkley, and Warner

Monoa and Draney as Karnac the Magnificent
"Clean cars, good restaurant, traffic light"
Three things you won't find in Nauvoo.
1845, 1974, 2025
Years the Weeks house was completed

The Carlsons sing So Happy Together

                                                 

The Clucks - Bailies and Plesheks

New Year's Day sites were closed, so FM missionaries also had a rare day off.  A group of us dragged our husbands away from the bowl games and went to Burlington to see Little Women.  The sisters loved it. The men left somewhat confused, except for my husband, who actually knew the story well enough to follow all of the flashbacks. 

The week started out cold, so we potted pansy seedlings into cells.  We also finished our three month project of  alphabetizing and inventorying all of the coleus.  This is my contribution to this mission - saving as many types of coleus as we could from the blight of mealy bugs this summer.

Inventory of coleus

Baby pansies

The second half of the week we took advantage of warmer weather.  First we undecorated Nauvoo.  Then I learned to use the leaf vacuum.  This looks like it would be easier and faster than raking, but not necessarily.  It was something different.   After cleaning up the president's yard, getting it ready for a new historic site director, we went on a stick run to end all stick runs.  We found huge branches on White Street and other places.  After greenhouse work, and a day off, we weren't ready for such a heavy work day, and I came home exhausted.  The next day we washed pots, took pine cones off of the greenery before sending the decorations to the burn pile, and ended at Lucy Mack Smith's house cleaning up the yard of leaves and dead plants.

Pine cones saved for next year

swags and wreaths headed to the burn pile

vacuuming leaves

Saturday morning we joined the other missionaries for a memorial service for Elder Meyocks.  Since Elder Meycocks is from the mid-west, the family decided to hold the service in Nauvoo, which is a central location for the family who are spread throughout the US.  This decision also allowed the missionaries to attend.  Elder Meyocks mother came from Iowa City, and Sister Meyocks was released from the hospital during the week, so she was able to come.   Several gave a beautiful tribute to a man whose personality and character was as large as he was.  An unusual tribute was given by the organist, Sister Barkley, who played several cowboy tunes on the organs as prelude and postlude. The teamsters arranged to give Elder Meyocks a final ride to the Visitor's center.  One speaker shared the message that the only way to eliminate sorrow in this life is to eliminate love.  Knowing that because of Jesus Christ's atonement and resurrection,  death is only a separation until we meet again brings us comfort at times like these.

The teamsters wait to load the coffin for one last ride.

The week ended on a joyous note as the sisters gathered to say good-by to Sister Lusvardi.  The room was filled with sweet feelings of sisterhood and love.  I don't exaggerate to describe the unity that exists in this community.  I've never experienced anything like it.  I have never made so many immediate friends.  There is no one who I "don't get".   We are all committed to living the gospel. None of us do it perfectly, but we are quick to forgive when things go wrong, or the foot is inserted in the mouth.  And Sister Lusvardi is the best role model of all of the sisters.  We will miss her, but then, we are all leaving in the next 18 months. There will be reunions and our paths will cross again.  That's how it is in the church.

Sister  Flanders reminded us of a story President Lusvardi told.  The Lusvardis were in a restaurant in Austria.  Some heavy drinking was going on and the party was getting more and more raucous.  President Lusvardi had enough and went to get a cab so they could go back to the hotel.  When he returned the restaurant customers were singing Edleweiss, led by Sister Lusvardi.   She had changed the atmosphere in the restaurant with music.  So we sang Edleweiss and Sisters in Zion.  She said she preferred singing in public over speaking.

The FM sisters

So the New Year begins with a roller coaster ride of emotions.  And we only have 2 months left of our Nauvoo experience.  I will miss Nauvoo - but I'm still here, so I'm going to enjoy every minute.