Tiffany and I visited this temple during her cancer treatments when we were staying in Scottsdale last year.
We began to love the Phoenix area when just the two of us vacationed at the Four Seasons in Scottsdale a few years ago. That was our favorite trip alone together of all time. We didn’t know at the time how close it was to our last one, and we almost didn’t go.
How common in life we let the insignificant and unimportant stop us from doing the significant and important. We fill our lives with the trivial which so easily crowds out the meaningful.
Speaking of meaningful, I had lunch today with a childhood friend who is also one of Tiffany’s teen friends from Los Altos, CA. Cheryl Andre and her husband Michael, and their daughters Natalie and Olivia. We haven’t seen each other for 30 years. It was enjoyable to catch up, talk about the challenges of life, and the good of it too.
I got another delish home-made meal, thanks Cheryl! That’s two in one week 🙂
The Mesa temple was completed in 1927. I learned today that until air conditioning was installed in the 70’s, the temple was shut down during the summers. Too hot!
I met Ann Whetten here today and saw an example of overcoming difficulties in life.
In 2002 her husband succumbed to esophagus cancer. Two years prior her granddaughter, whom she was caring for, died (I can’t remember from what, but it was another disease that lingered over a long period of time). Then five years ago her son was killed in Afghanistan.
What has she done with her life in the midst of these devastating events? Every week she volunteers at a jail to help the women inmates find happiness and joy in their life.
I asked her what woman stands out as an example of doing this. She said this one inmate, who had not been religious since her childhood, was reading the Old Testament. She read how Esther fasted for three days to gain strength before going in to see the king. So this lady fasted for 3 days. That in and of itself is pretty incredible if you ever tried fasting for even 1 day!
For 3 nights in a row she had a dream that God came to her and wrapped his arms around her. She felt loved which she hadn’t felt before in her life. She became a leader among the other women inmates encouraging them to change their lives for the better and many did.
I felt inspired today and am grateful to have met Ann and learned from her life’s experience.
Here is the temple viewed from the north, looking south. It’s a rare day in Mesa when there are dark clouds in the sky 🙂
