Hi Friends and Family!
We had a great weekend and actually a pretty rough week. A few family members already know, but I was "let go" from my job at College Nannies and Tutors this past week. I apparently had been making a lot of crucial mistakes - a few of which I was aware of, a few of which I wasn't. It was a HUGE blow to my pride (essentially, I was fired, which I have NEVER done a poor job with any of the jobs I've held in the past, and always sincerely try to give 110% while at work, so it really did hurt to be forced to leave).
With that being said...a lot of my mistakes could have been prevented if I had received more thorough training on the majority of the tasks I was supposed to complete. We had a little "meet up" on Friday (to my surprise) where I was explained all the things I was doing wrong (most of them the first time I'd heard of them). It was really hard for me to hear, again a huge blow to my pride!! I tried explaining my point of view to my two superiors (one point I made was that I felt I hadn't been trained thoroughly - stating that I had to "figure a lot out on my own - and by doing so, messed things up" - to which my boss responded "we need someone who can just say 'yeah I got this'....? OK...good luck finding someone who can READ YOUR MIND), and for the most part they had already made their choice to get rid of me, so it really was to no avail. They did have some really sweet things to say to me, and things kind of ended on the note that "the job just wasn't a good fit". It ended semi-amicably and I can still use them as references (that was my biggest concern - I'd hate to burn the bridge entirely). While it hurt to be let go (I was in tears over it...complaining Rich about it almost daily..threatening to quit), I know it's a blessing in disguise! I have hated the job since day 1 (for the most part) and throughout the past month I have been in tears - feeling like I wasn't doing enough even though I was really bending over backwards and spreading myself too thin. My boss herself explained that the position is a circus act - one for a juggler (I don't know how she'll find someone who can read her mind). Based on my description of what I did for work in my blog post a few weeks ago - it was certainly not anything glamorous!! I had hesitancy and feelings of doubt before initially taking the job (the full time position) and Rich and I even made a pros and cons list...but I suppose one lesson I've learned from it is to ALWAYS go with my gut!! (Always listen to it!!)
Honestly, I am HUGELY relieved. I have been SO MUCH HAPPIER and I feel "free at last" no that I know I never have to step foot in that heck-hole again! I really hated it!! Our weekend was that much more relaxing with that knowledge.
I already have a job interview set up at the New Canaan Nature Center (I applied and was offered a job there previously before I accept the full time gig at CNT...but turned it down after Rich and I made a pros and cons list). I'll be going out to that tomorrow morning - hopefully it will go well and I'll be able to get something in motion!
Anyway...so we had planned on going to the Hill Cumorah Pageant in Palmyra, NY over the weekend, so it was really relaxing to get to do that.
The weather was actually PERFECT - we had a cool front come through and it brought some rain and fog - but luckily we never got rained on! It just kept it nice and comfortably cool. We were a little worried about it on our way out as we drove through the Catskills - which are some "mountains" you have to drive through to get to the Finger Lakes area of NY (where Palmyra is).
We could see that it was pretty misty up ahead and it gradually became more extreme as we drove in deeper.
Misty.
Mistyer.
Mistyist - you'd think that it's rain or fog - but no...it's definitely mist! It's a weather phenomena unlike anything Utah ever gets...it's literally just misty and it gets you wet! After that it eventually turned into heavier rain. It would rain crazy hard for a a minute and then stop....and then crazy hard....and then stop.
In case you missed my post on facebook - this is the book we decided to listen to (it's a 5 hour drive). I have really been enjoying it. Its unique but I'm learning that my favorite kind of books are fantasy books for young adults... - anything that is like Harry Potter basically! This actually reminds me of Lord of the Rings and Star Wars...so far so good!
Anyway, we made it to the pageant with plenty of time to spare - a good like...4 hours early. We were happy to be out of the car and to stretch our legs. We went over to the visitor's center and checked things out there.
As you can see from the label - here is the first edition copy of the Book of Mormon that they have on display at the visitor's center. They also have about 100 different BOMs that have been translated into many many different languages - a lot of which were languages that I've never heard of! It's pretty amazing how the church has grown and changed.
Here is the Moroni memorial. There were words written at the bottom and I took a picture with the intent of reading it later...but have I read them yet? No....
This was taken at the top of the trail to the Moroni Memorial - it was a pretty steep hill, but like I said we were happy to stretch out our legs - they were pretty tired from being cooped in the car.
Our seats ended up being a little further away - but it was still a good show! It reminded me a lot of the Manti pageant - it is just the story of the Book of Mormon - it brings the stories to life in a way! My favorite story conveyed was that of King Noah - they did some pretty good special effects with fire at that point! And they transformed that stage with a lot of theatrical production stuff - it was neat! My favorite church pageant that I've seen is the one in Nauvoo - if you're ever in Nauvoo in the summer and don't know what to do - go see the Nauvoo pageant - it is SOOOOO good! I really loved that one the most.
Before the show started, we got dinner at the concessions nearby and then met up with Rich's Uncle Kevin and family. I met them for the first time! They explained that they had the opportunity to be IN the pageant a few years back and come to it almost every year.
I'm sorry that's such a truly horrendous picture of me....please ignore my wrinkly neck!
Ok- I gotta bring up Rich's shirt....people understand what that is in reference to, right? It's CLEARLY a joke - some people just think it's shirt reminding people to hold on to their cigarette butts and while that is a great idea...it's CLEARLY in reference to Samuel L. Jackson's famous line in Jurassic Park! Rich has told me that a few people don't understand that and just think it's reminding them to clean up their cigarette butts - even as he wore it people made a few comments at the pageant. Do they really not get it?? Please...enjoy below. (it's literally 3 seconds and is one of the most quoted lines from the famous film)
Anyway...so after the pageant was over...we realized that we had no where to stay. Normally...we just drive to the closest Motel 6 or Econolodge and check in the night of...but there were literally thousands of Mormons who had overridden the small town of Palmyra and surrounding cities and everywhere we called was filled! We debated driving home...but then decided to just find a Walmart parking lot and sleep in the car.
If you don't mind waking up to limps that have fallen asleep and a sore back every few ours then sleeping in the car isn't too bad!! Rich and I were actually pretty surprised at how much sleep we were able to get - I think it really helped to have tinted windows in the car - it made me feel like no one could see inside and it helped me relax.
We had planned on going to church in Palmyra or Waterloo (where the Witmer farm is located), but since we slept in the car - we were unable to shower and get the gross off of us - so we decided church wasn't an option anymore. We were thrilled to know that all of the church history sites were still open on Sunday - which we were very grateful for, because we wanted to make sure to visit the Smith Farm and the Sacred Grove.
Here are several pictures of that.
The log house is a reconstruction built on top of the original foundation.
A small bedroom off of the master bedroom on the bottom floor.
The ceilings were pretty low...I had Rich take this picture so you could kind of see how low they are. Can you imagine 6 ft Joseph trying to live here? 14 year old Joseph would have lived here - surely he hadn't reached his full stature, but still... We ;have it easy friends...
This is the second home that the Smith family moved to later in life - it was just down the road, a short walk away. The sister missionaries informed us that this home is about 86% original and that there were several hiding places where Joseph hid the gold plates when mobs would come looking for them.
One hiding spot was in his little sisters' bedroom. One night an angry mob was coming and Joseph handed them to his sisters to hide...they frantically chose to hide them under the sheets and pretend to be sleeping. The mob tore apart the house but never once disturbed the sleeping girls in their room - and the plates as well as his sisters were unharmed!! (pretty miraculous if you ask me!)
Another hiding place was in the fireplace. We were informed by the sister missionaries that these bricks are each one original.
This is the cellar where surely Joseph hid the place a time or two, but perhaps not as often because it's a stereotypical first place to look!
The next several photos are of the Sacred Grove. The missionaries encouraged each of us to try to pray within the woods, just as Joseph did, and to try to have a spiritual experience. Rich and I found a bench, sat down together and opened our scriptures to JSH and read together the story of the first vision. It was a very peaceful place to be.
Even though it was Sunday - we were very thrilled to know that lots of the church history sites were still open for tourism! So the Sacred Grove still had plenty of tourists walking about...one little boy I noticed (probably between 10-12 yrs old) was walking alone along a less crowded pathway. I watched him kneel down and offer a silent prayer....
It was SO sweet and touching to witness that!! He wanted to get the FULL experience and surely wanted to know how it felt to be the boy Joseph whose mind was so filled with doubt. I don't know if he had some big question in mind like Joseph did, or if he was just pretending - but it was truly humbling to see him - almost reenacting what it would have looked like to be a bystander on that Spring day in 1820.
As cheesy at it sounds, and maybe it's just the teacher/nurturer in me...but that was the best/sweetest part of visiting the sacred grove. Maybe he felt prompted to kneel - just so that I could witness it and be touched by his meekness and testimony of example.
He's not normal.
Lastly, before heading home, we stopped at the Palmyra temple. It was pretty tiny, but so beautiful - as all temples are! The stained glass was made to look like that grove of trees.
How honored our first prophet must feel to have a temple so close to his home in Palmyra.
That pretty much sums up our trip.
We're going back to UT for a few days next week and then to MT for the Wilkins family reunion!!
Until next time.
-Rich and Tara
We had a great weekend and actually a pretty rough week. A few family members already know, but I was "let go" from my job at College Nannies and Tutors this past week. I apparently had been making a lot of crucial mistakes - a few of which I was aware of, a few of which I wasn't. It was a HUGE blow to my pride (essentially, I was fired, which I have NEVER done a poor job with any of the jobs I've held in the past, and always sincerely try to give 110% while at work, so it really did hurt to be forced to leave).
With that being said...a lot of my mistakes could have been prevented if I had received more thorough training on the majority of the tasks I was supposed to complete. We had a little "meet up" on Friday (to my surprise) where I was explained all the things I was doing wrong (most of them the first time I'd heard of them). It was really hard for me to hear, again a huge blow to my pride!! I tried explaining my point of view to my two superiors (one point I made was that I felt I hadn't been trained thoroughly - stating that I had to "figure a lot out on my own - and by doing so, messed things up" - to which my boss responded "we need someone who can just say 'yeah I got this'....? OK...good luck finding someone who can READ YOUR MIND), and for the most part they had already made their choice to get rid of me, so it really was to no avail. They did have some really sweet things to say to me, and things kind of ended on the note that "the job just wasn't a good fit". It ended semi-amicably and I can still use them as references (that was my biggest concern - I'd hate to burn the bridge entirely). While it hurt to be let go (I was in tears over it...complaining Rich about it almost daily..threatening to quit), I know it's a blessing in disguise! I have hated the job since day 1 (for the most part) and throughout the past month I have been in tears - feeling like I wasn't doing enough even though I was really bending over backwards and spreading myself too thin. My boss herself explained that the position is a circus act - one for a juggler (I don't know how she'll find someone who can read her mind). Based on my description of what I did for work in my blog post a few weeks ago - it was certainly not anything glamorous!! I had hesitancy and feelings of doubt before initially taking the job (the full time position) and Rich and I even made a pros and cons list...but I suppose one lesson I've learned from it is to ALWAYS go with my gut!! (Always listen to it!!)
Honestly, I am HUGELY relieved. I have been SO MUCH HAPPIER and I feel "free at last" no that I know I never have to step foot in that heck-hole again! I really hated it!! Our weekend was that much more relaxing with that knowledge.
I already have a job interview set up at the New Canaan Nature Center (I applied and was offered a job there previously before I accept the full time gig at CNT...but turned it down after Rich and I made a pros and cons list). I'll be going out to that tomorrow morning - hopefully it will go well and I'll be able to get something in motion!
Anyway...so we had planned on going to the Hill Cumorah Pageant in Palmyra, NY over the weekend, so it was really relaxing to get to do that.
The weather was actually PERFECT - we had a cool front come through and it brought some rain and fog - but luckily we never got rained on! It just kept it nice and comfortably cool. We were a little worried about it on our way out as we drove through the Catskills - which are some "mountains" you have to drive through to get to the Finger Lakes area of NY (where Palmyra is).
We could see that it was pretty misty up ahead and it gradually became more extreme as we drove in deeper.
Misty.
Mistyer.
Mistyist - you'd think that it's rain or fog - but no...it's definitely mist! It's a weather phenomena unlike anything Utah ever gets...it's literally just misty and it gets you wet! After that it eventually turned into heavier rain. It would rain crazy hard for a a minute and then stop....and then crazy hard....and then stop.
In case you missed my post on facebook - this is the book we decided to listen to (it's a 5 hour drive). I have really been enjoying it. Its unique but I'm learning that my favorite kind of books are fantasy books for young adults... - anything that is like Harry Potter basically! This actually reminds me of Lord of the Rings and Star Wars...so far so good!
Anyway, we made it to the pageant with plenty of time to spare - a good like...4 hours early. We were happy to be out of the car and to stretch our legs. We went over to the visitor's center and checked things out there.
As you can see from the label - here is the first edition copy of the Book of Mormon that they have on display at the visitor's center. They also have about 100 different BOMs that have been translated into many many different languages - a lot of which were languages that I've never heard of! It's pretty amazing how the church has grown and changed.
Here is the Moroni memorial. There were words written at the bottom and I took a picture with the intent of reading it later...but have I read them yet? No....
This was taken at the top of the trail to the Moroni Memorial - it was a pretty steep hill, but like I said we were happy to stretch out our legs - they were pretty tired from being cooped in the car.
Our seats ended up being a little further away - but it was still a good show! It reminded me a lot of the Manti pageant - it is just the story of the Book of Mormon - it brings the stories to life in a way! My favorite story conveyed was that of King Noah - they did some pretty good special effects with fire at that point! And they transformed that stage with a lot of theatrical production stuff - it was neat! My favorite church pageant that I've seen is the one in Nauvoo - if you're ever in Nauvoo in the summer and don't know what to do - go see the Nauvoo pageant - it is SOOOOO good! I really loved that one the most.
Before the show started, we got dinner at the concessions nearby and then met up with Rich's Uncle Kevin and family. I met them for the first time! They explained that they had the opportunity to be IN the pageant a few years back and come to it almost every year.
I'm sorry that's such a truly horrendous picture of me....please ignore my wrinkly neck!
Ok- I gotta bring up Rich's shirt....people understand what that is in reference to, right? It's CLEARLY a joke - some people just think it's shirt reminding people to hold on to their cigarette butts and while that is a great idea...it's CLEARLY in reference to Samuel L. Jackson's famous line in Jurassic Park! Rich has told me that a few people don't understand that and just think it's reminding them to clean up their cigarette butts - even as he wore it people made a few comments at the pageant. Do they really not get it?? Please...enjoy below. (it's literally 3 seconds and is one of the most quoted lines from the famous film)
Anyway...so after the pageant was over...we realized that we had no where to stay. Normally...we just drive to the closest Motel 6 or Econolodge and check in the night of...but there were literally thousands of Mormons who had overridden the small town of Palmyra and surrounding cities and everywhere we called was filled! We debated driving home...but then decided to just find a Walmart parking lot and sleep in the car.
If you don't mind waking up to limps that have fallen asleep and a sore back every few ours then sleeping in the car isn't too bad!! Rich and I were actually pretty surprised at how much sleep we were able to get - I think it really helped to have tinted windows in the car - it made me feel like no one could see inside and it helped me relax.
We had planned on going to church in Palmyra or Waterloo (where the Witmer farm is located), but since we slept in the car - we were unable to shower and get the gross off of us - so we decided church wasn't an option anymore. We were thrilled to know that all of the church history sites were still open on Sunday - which we were very grateful for, because we wanted to make sure to visit the Smith Farm and the Sacred Grove.
Here are several pictures of that.
The log house is a reconstruction built on top of the original foundation.
The ceilings were pretty low...I had Rich take this picture so you could kind of see how low they are. Can you imagine 6 ft Joseph trying to live here? 14 year old Joseph would have lived here - surely he hadn't reached his full stature, but still... We ;have it easy friends...
This is the second home that the Smith family moved to later in life - it was just down the road, a short walk away. The sister missionaries informed us that this home is about 86% original and that there were several hiding places where Joseph hid the gold plates when mobs would come looking for them.
One hiding spot was in his little sisters' bedroom. One night an angry mob was coming and Joseph handed them to his sisters to hide...they frantically chose to hide them under the sheets and pretend to be sleeping. The mob tore apart the house but never once disturbed the sleeping girls in their room - and the plates as well as his sisters were unharmed!! (pretty miraculous if you ask me!)
Another hiding place was in the fireplace. We were informed by the sister missionaries that these bricks are each one original.
This is the cellar where surely Joseph hid the place a time or two, but perhaps not as often because it's a stereotypical first place to look!
The next several photos are of the Sacred Grove. The missionaries encouraged each of us to try to pray within the woods, just as Joseph did, and to try to have a spiritual experience. Rich and I found a bench, sat down together and opened our scriptures to JSH and read together the story of the first vision. It was a very peaceful place to be.
Even though it was Sunday - we were very thrilled to know that lots of the church history sites were still open for tourism! So the Sacred Grove still had plenty of tourists walking about...one little boy I noticed (probably between 10-12 yrs old) was walking alone along a less crowded pathway. I watched him kneel down and offer a silent prayer....
It was SO sweet and touching to witness that!! He wanted to get the FULL experience and surely wanted to know how it felt to be the boy Joseph whose mind was so filled with doubt. I don't know if he had some big question in mind like Joseph did, or if he was just pretending - but it was truly humbling to see him - almost reenacting what it would have looked like to be a bystander on that Spring day in 1820.
As cheesy at it sounds, and maybe it's just the teacher/nurturer in me...but that was the best/sweetest part of visiting the sacred grove. Maybe he felt prompted to kneel - just so that I could witness it and be touched by his meekness and testimony of example.
He's not normal.
Lastly, before heading home, we stopped at the Palmyra temple. It was pretty tiny, but so beautiful - as all temples are! The stained glass was made to look like that grove of trees.
How honored our first prophet must feel to have a temple so close to his home in Palmyra.
That pretty much sums up our trip.
We're going back to UT for a few days next week and then to MT for the Wilkins family reunion!!
Until next time.
-Rich and Tara
