December in Salt Lake City 

 

It has gotten really cold here, and the air is smoggy.  We still try to walk, but have to be very careful.  We walk down to Temple Square quite often and just enjoy the lights and decorations, as well as meeting a number of nice people.  There are a number of Sister Missionaries, and we always look at their badges to see what country they are from.  We talked with two sweet sisters, one from Taiwan and the other French, but of African descent.  We had a great talk with them and shared some of our experiences in their countries.  They told us how serving a mission had increased their personal testimonies and how they love serving at Temple Square.

 

 

We attended a free Christmas concert of a mixed voice chorale, at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.  There are many different activities and concerts this time of year around Temple Square and downtown Salt Lake City, and it’s a lot of fun to be able to attend.  I am always impressed with the talent that is here.  I also love to see the architecture of these buildings whether it be the Tabernacle, the Assembly Hall, The Joseph Smith or the Relief Society Building, and of course the Temple, they are all beautiful.

    

 

 

They have a Christmas Concert for the Tabernacle Choir every year, but the tickets are difficult to get, so they use a lottery system.  We tried to get some, but didn’t win.  Fortunately, Lorna's sweet cousin Linda got four tickets, so we were able to go together.  It was absolutely fabulous.  It was held in the conference center and had wonderful dancers and of course singing and orchestra and bells at temple square.  The company was nice too.

 

We also got tickets to the play called “Savior Of The World” that is put on at the little theater at the Conference Center .  It is a beautiful musical drama about the birth, life, and resurrection of our Savior.  What an inspiration!  We had a snow storm that day, but because we live so close, we were able to walk (carefully) to the play.  They considered cancelling it, but fortunately the snow let up enough.  We are so glad we were able to attend.

 

Our mission president from the West Indies, President Robison, had a little get together with some members, Jocelyn and Sadia Eclar, who were visiting SLC from that area.  We were able to visit with them and also see some of the returned missionaries with whom we served.  What fun to renew old acquaintances.  President Robison and his wife will be leaving for their new mission assignment as President of the Ghana MTC, in a short while. We know they will be great and what experiences they will have in that area where the Church is growing so fast.

   

 

As we have mentioned, one of the nice things about being in this area is that we are able to meet and visit with family members we don’t get to see very often. Daniel and Susan stopped by on their way to Washington for Christmas.  Our nephew Brian and his sons came by the Church Office Building on their way to Idaho, but we weren’t there to see them. We hope to visit with them when we head to Idaho soon.

 

Grandkids lunch:  We were able to go to lunch with the Malmrose kids, Kory, Jake, and Athena.  Their parents were out of town, so we thought it was a good time to visit with them and have a little Christmas celebration.  They are all super nice and it was fun to see how much they love each other and how well they get along.  We especially like their sense of humor.  Wonder where they got that?

      

 

Lunch with HR:  We had a little Christmas lunch in the Church building cafeteria, with Lorna's HR group.  What

wonderful people these are and she has enjoyed getting to know them better as she works with them on a daily basis.

 It increases her testimony to see what kind of people the church employs.  They are kind and caring, hard working

 and smart.  What a great combination.

   

 

 Reunions: We had a great time at the Malmrose Family Reunion Christmas Party. They are, of course, fun, talented and bright.  Gerald has  such fun meeting with relatives like his Dad's cousin Dale, and a number of other wonderful family members like Earl Malmrose.  What a nice name, don't you think?  The family has many talented members and several sing in the Tabernacle Choir.

      

 

We got a call from our old friends from Washington, the Knudsens, who just returned from serving their

mission in South Africa.  What experiences they had to tell us and how they love those people they served.

They got to know the King's, who are also serving there.  It's a small world in the Church.  

   

 

So, dear ones, we are busy and happy serving here in Salt Lake City.  Nevertheless, at this time of the year we do miss our friends and family at home.  We are grateful to be able to serve our Beloved Savior whether it is near or far away and pray that His blessings will be upon you and your loved ones.  We are eternally indebted to Him for His Atonement in our behalf.  We love the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  We send our love to each one of you, in His Holy Name, even Jesus Christ, Amen.

 

Below is a collection of pictures we took of Temple Square during this Christmas season.  Have a Merry Christmas!!!