A beautiful baptism

I needed to get out of the world.

There's been too much noise recently about finances, work, commutes, school, kids, family, friends... I just needed some quiet time. Sure a bubble bath works for a few minutes, but I felt drained. Nothing I did seemed to work. Then last week I heard about the youth temple trip.

Perfect!

I talked to Tim about going down early and doing an endowment session and then meeting the youth down there, and we tentatively agreed. Then Sunday he talked to those in charge of organizing the trip and decided that we'd be there at the church instead in case they needed more seat belts. He felt that Heavenly Father would appreciate that more.

OK, fine. I can deal with that.

While we're getting everyone ready to do the baptisms, could I at least sit in front of the mural and ponder for a while?

No, we won't have time.

My hope dashed, I felt like I wasn't ever going to get the peace I needed. We met up with everyone at the church. It turns out that they didn't need the extra seat belts after all. Oh, well. We started the trip down, and Tim and I got to talk to each other without interruption for the whole trip. It was nice. When we got there, we met up with everyone and waited for the last few adults to get there from work locally. One of the sisters decided to go in early so that she could get the family names she'd submitted for work. I decided to go in with her and see if the store was open so I could exchange some items (6 months later and I'm still trying to figure out what is most comfortable for me), but the store was closed. Disappointment again. Wow, I'm batting 1000.

I finally approached the brethren at the desk, showed my recommend, and asked if I could just sit by the mural. One smiled at me and said, "You can do whatever you want to in the temple." Finally, some encouragement. Once inside I sat down and just looked over the faces in the painting. What are they thinking, I wonder, looking at Him. What is He thinking as he looks on. He has a serious expression, but it's not sad or angry, just there. Like when I come home and the kiddos come to me to say hi. I just hold out my arms and they give me hugs. :) Maybe his expression is more 'Here I am, come to me.' It felt good to sit there in silence. I didn't hear anything about outside. No traffic or finances, kids or work, just silence. It was wonderful.

I met up with the other sister a few minutes later, and we went downstairs to meet everyone else at the font. I was excited now because I got to work this time. I even brought my own clothes and everything. :) I was amazed at how much further away the world seemed while I performed my tasks in the temple. I felt like I was contributing to something bigger and better than outside had to offer.

Our group was joined by a brother and sister I didn't recognize. I didn't know it was possible, but I truly saw a beautiful baptism when he baptized her. I just sat in awe and watched. She never touched her face when she went under the water so I had a clear view of her peaceful expression as she arose each time out of the water. She was angelic almost. There was a different feeling there. I don't know why.

The youth on the trip were awesome. They were highly complimented by the temple workers, and I'm very proud of them. We went home after 10pm so it was a late night, but it was worth it. I feel relieved, and I think I'm ready to face the world again.