Family Visit and Rainy Day Wales

If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth; . . . He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap . . . Truly is light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun.  Ecclesiastes 11:3, 4, 6, 7

The red dragon represents Wales (on their flag/crest)

Mike and Patti came in on Sunday night and we headed for Wales the next day even though it was pouring rain and difficult to see much of the beautiful English and Wales landscape.  The hedge rows this time of year block much of the view unless you are lucky enough to be in a tour bus, which we weren't.  Still, just because it was raining, we didn't let ourselves be disappointed or project we'd have a lousy, wet day because of it.

Our past mission president always said he'd never let the weather dictate what kind of day he was going to have.  

My souvenir.  I really love the red dragon.  He's either really cute like here, or very majestic like on the their flag.

We think that is a great attitude!  If everyone in England decided to wait for no rain to mow grass or get other things done, nothing much would get happen.  If we stayed home and waited for the rain to stop, we wouldn't see anything.

It turned out there were a few short breaks in the rain where we could take some pictures.  The sun actually popped out for a few minutes a couple of times.  All in all, we just stayed bundled against the weather and enjoyed the history of these marvelous structures.  Though Elder Blain and I had been there before, it was fun to explore some places we didn't get to see in Caernarfon and figure out some passages we couldn't get through before.  We love the feel of antiquity.  It surrounds you in these places and there's a feeling of connection, almost like the people of long ago are there as we walk in the footsteps of those who have traipsed these special lands, worked on them, lived on them, and died on them.  This whole land lends itself to that special feeling.

Our adventure in Wales took us to (in Welsh spelling)  Castell Rhuddlan and Castell Conwy first.  Since I've already posted a lot of pictures of these castles, I decided to focus on the ones with things I didn't photograph last time, or had never photographed (except for the few from Caernarfon I couldn't resist.

A tower in Caernarfon with our favorite Welsh flag.

A cute little cottage guard house or something outside the castle walls.

One of hundreds of entryways into chambers, tunnels, and towers

One of the hundreds of scary stairs to go to the towers and rooms on other levels.  Notice the robe to hold on to?

Love the door and these cannon

Another cool door

Castell Criccieth

\Old, old pavement (sidewalks in the U.S.)

Castle Criccieth different view

You can see me taking this picture in the glass reflection

Lots of bed and breakfasts to welcome tourists

Old houses near the castle

Another old house by the castle

An old church turned house.  There's a motorcycle parked inside the house!

Castell Harlech

Closer view of Castell Harlech on the western shores of Northern Wales.

Castell Dolwyddelan

The next day in Accrington, England, the men were looking for food in the market

Patti in the pony tail and the men sticking together

The displays are so pretty.  There's always a great variety of good things to eat in the English outdoor markets.

Is it Sacrilegious to be in a Silly Mood on Sunday?

For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.  Doctrine and Covenants 25:12

I think repentance is the order of the day for me, though the pain meds I had to take for an extremely painful neck and shoulder might have muddled my mind and broken down my normal reserve and reverence at church.  You'll see the evidence of my deviation from gospel principles at the end of this blog. 

On Sunday, the Relief Society had to practice a song for Sacrament Meeting next week.  There was some other business that took a long time, so we had a five minute lesson about Eternal Marriage.  This experience attested to the fact that concise and specific information that is simply presented can stick with you better than a long, drawn out sermon.  If anyone asks me what the lesson was about last Sunday, I can quickly say, "The temple--get there!"   

Meanwhile, before the actual lesson (not during it--I wasn't that out of it), I became a little distracted and took some photos while all the other stuff was going on.  Oh, and by the way, we're going to sing "How Great Thou Art" and sing the chorus to it in Swedish, since the melody comes from a Swedish folk song and our leader is Swedish (just in case you wanted to know).

These are the special toes of our Relief Society president.  The sisters are going to have an evening where they get their toes painted in this metallic polish.  Last week, this same Relief Society president had on gold sandals with what looked like 20 caret gold toe nails!

Many women here have the most gorgeous shoes--especially the young ones who can still walk without too much pain.  Here's a sample from the young single woman next to me in Relief Society.  I wore shoes this high one upon a time.  She shall pay for this vanity someday . . . meanwhile, enjoy, right?  Ha, ha!

So feminine

Let's not forget the nails!

Thanks to this lovely sister for sharing!

 Now, how many people do you know who take a picture of their Relief Society president's feet while she's still in the meeting no less?  Goes to show you what a great sport she is and what a nut case I probably am (obsessive photographer).  The women at these meetings in the wards we've been in here seem like family--just a bunch of sisters uplifting and teaching one another while having fun in the process--just as it should be.

A Story for Sunday: The Nail

And if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God."  Doctrine and Covenants 14:7

As the story goes, they built a new church building and people came from far and wide to see it. They admired its beauty! Up on the roof, a little nail heard the people praising everything about the lovely structure-except the nail! No one even knew he was there, and he became angry and jealous.

“If I am that insignificant, nobody will miss me if I quit!” So the nail then released its hold, slid down the roof, and fell in the mud.

That night it rained and rained. Soon, the shingle that had no nail blew away, and the roof began to leak. The water streaked the walls and the beautiful murals. The plaster began to fall, the carpet was stained, and the pulpit Bible was ruined by water. All this because a little nail decided to quit!

But what of the nail? While holding the shingle, it was obscure but it was also useful. Buried in the mud it was just as obscure, but now it was useless and would soon be eaten up by rust!

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The moral of the story: EVERY MEMBER IS IMPORTANT TO THE CHURCH!

You may, like the nail, feel obscure at times, but just like the nail, your absence is felt. When you are not present