February - Is Winter Over?

February has come and gone.  The weather was quite variable.  We actually had two days that were in the 70's and some days that were in the 20-30's.  According to the locals, we have been blessed to have a mild winter.  Our mission covers two summers and one winter so maybe the cold is behind us. In about 4 months we will be wishing for some winter weather.

The crowds were small during the month.  We were lucky to have two very different horse rides during the quite time. The first was a sleigh ride across snow in the cold weather and the second was a ride on the mission limousine carriage during the warm weather.

Valentines's Day was on our Preparation Day during the month.  We were able to take a day trip to St. Louis for a celebration.  St. Louis is a three hour drive from Nauvoo.  It was quite shocking to be in a big city for a few hours with freeways and traffic.  We both love Thai food and have not had any since we left California.  It was a treat to celebrate the day with a Thai food dinner.  I have to admit I don't miss the freeways, traffic and big city.  It was good to drive back into our little town after the day. Unfortunately there are no In-N-Out burgers here in the Midwest.  It looks like that will have to wait until we return home.

One of the special treats for the month was a large migration of bald eagles along the river.  No one ever mentioned to us about the eagles.  They were so exciting to watch.  It was not uncommon to see 10-20 each trip to town.  The town of Keokuk, Iowa which is 20 minutes away, actually has an eagle festival event every February.

Take Off (Photo, Elder Johnson)

Six Eagles on Frozen River (Photo, Elder Johnson)

Snow Geese Arrived for Just a Few Days

Since other news for the month was quite, I thought it would be good to include a section on the animals we see here in Nauvoo.  We are loving the seasons and seeing all of the wild life and mission animals around the grounds of the mission.

Mission Horses

Turtles on River

Cardinal

It is starting to feel like spring is right around the corner.  Our tulips are coming up, the days are getting longer and the first batch of new senior missionaries has arrived for the year.  In three weeks we begin practicing for the summer show Sunset on the Mississippi.  We are excited for the summer because 5 of our 8 kids will be visiting during the Pageants in July this year!

We left home about one year ago.  This mission is a special blessing in our life.  Come and visit us if you get a chance!!

Love to everyone

Elder and Sister Rober

The Exodus Reenactment

Preparing for the Exodus Walk Program

On February 4, 1846 the Mormon people in Nauvoo began lining their wagons up to begin crossing the Mississippi River for the west.  Their Prophet, Brigham Young, knew in late 1845 they were going to have to leave their beautiful city to flee for safety and avoid a civil war.  After taking an inventory of the people and wagons on hand, he determined they would need to build over 1,000 wagons in a few months time.  He asked everyone to help the local blacksmiths, wheelwrights, and wainwrights with this monumental project.  This was going to be an exodus unlike any other in United States history.  An entire town prepared to leave to find a new home where they could be safe and worship as they desired.  At this time the population of Nauvoo had grown to around 12,000 which was very close to the population of Chicago.  They had only been in Nauvoo for six years but in that time had made it into a beautiful city which included 350 brick homes.  They had just finished construction of their temple on the bluff overlooking the river. It took 5 years to complete just months before they left.  Crossing the river was only the beginning.  It would take the saints many months to cross Iowa to Winter Quarters (Omaha, Nebraska) where they would stay for the winter of 1846-47 before Brigham Young's Vanguard Company left for the rocky mountains in April of 1847 to arrive in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847.  Can you imagine the faith it would take to walk away from their beautiful city, their homes and the temple?  Can you imagine the courage it would take to climb in a wagon in sub freezing temperatures that would continue across Iowa and begin a journey to an unknown location?

On February 4, 2017 our mission had a reenactment activity to remember the great sacrifice these people made to leave Nauvoo.  It will be a memory of our mission that Sister Rober and I will never forget.  We walked down Parley Street to the river on a day when the wind chill factor was 18 degrees wearing name tags of ancestors we had who lived in Nauvoo.  At the end of Parley Street was a flag ceremony and program honoring the many pioneers who died en route over the approximately 20 years they crossed the plains.  We were outside for the walk and program for slightly over one hour. It took a few hours to warm up after that.  We felt that when we snuggled in our warm bed that night, the pioneers didn't have that luxury. They endured the bitter cold in their wagons. There were even 9 babies born that first night. It would be months before they would be warm again.

The Exodus Reenactment will be a highlight mission memory.  It was a significant spiritual experience that will change my view of Parley Street forever.  We know that the hand of the Lord was with these people on their journey.  They could not have done it without the help of the Lord who they put their trust in.  They did have great faith and courage.  They were obedient to their Prophet who said they must leave for their safety.  Brigham Young had seen in a vision the place they were to settle. One and one half years after crossing the Mississippi the pioneer companies began arriving in the Salt Lake valley.

Several faith promoting stories of ancestors in Nauvoo were shared at a Mission Exodus Fireside. Nahum Curtis, great great grandfather of Sister Rober had an amazing conversion story. In 1833, in Michigan, after Nahum and his wife, Millissant Waite,  had head the missionaries, they were laying in their bed conversing about principles they had heard for the first time, when they noticed their room began to get light. It got lighter and lighter until it was as bright as noonday. They then heard a voice say: "Nahum, the Book of Mormon is a true record of the ancient people who lived on this continent." Their whole family was then baptized and they joined the Saints in Kirtland, Ohio. Later, in Nauvoo at the time of the Exodus, Nahum and his family packed their wagon and walked through the difficult, muddy streets to leave Nauvoo. His family camped for 2 weeks while Nahum went back and forth to and from Nauvoo helping others cross the Mississippi. He wore himself out helping others then died in Nauvoo in March, 1846 before he, too, could leave with the saints. He is buried in the Old Pioneer Cemetery in Nauvoo.

Exodus Reenactment activities:

Sister Rober Sharing About Nahum Curtis at the Fireside

Staging for Walk

Parley Street, Flags from Ancestor Countries

Program at the River

The Nauvoo Legion

Elder Lowe Facing West Playing Taps to Honor the Memory of Those Lost on the Plains

End of a Remarkable Day in the Nauvoo Mission

Farewell 2016

It seems hard to believe that 2016 has come and gone.  We left home March 1st for the Missionary Training Center.  It has been a wonderful experience and continues to be a blessing in our life to serve the Lord as missionaries in the Illinois Nauvoo Mission.  It was different and difficult to spend Christmas away from home.  We definitely missed our families,  There were many mission activities associated with Christmas and New Years that made it a fun and spiritual holiday here with our fellow missionary family.  We did have our son Kirk visit from California for Christmas.  It was definitely a climate shock for his California blood.  We took him to Hannibal, Missouri (1.5 hour drive) on one of the days to visit the Mark Twain museum and sites.  It was a fun day.

Mark Twain Home, Hannibal

Kirk and Mom on Main Street, Nauvoo

December was the coldest weather so far of the mission.  We had one night that got down to -8 F with a wind chill factor of -25 F.  There was one good snow associated with that storm but within a few weeks it was all melted.  The crowds are sparse this time of year.  There are many days where no one comes to the sites.  In our production sites this time of year it is a time to work on building our inventory of bricks at the Brickyard, horse shoes at the Blacksmith Shop and ropes at the Family Living Center. Our goal is to have 20,000 bricks, 4,000 horse shoes and 3,500 ropes.  In the summer when the crowds are so large we spend all of the time giving our tours and handing out items from inventory.  In the non-production sites, I am spending most of the spare time I can on the Teaching Center doing missionary work with people who call in from all over the world.  Other missionaries are spending time making quilts, hats and scarfs for humanitarian projects.

December was filled with many holiday activities for the missionaries.  In last months posts I covered the Christmas Walk and Live Nativity Production.  Other December activities included a holiday open house at the mission home, carols in Carthage, a cast Christmas Party at Elder and Sister Wilsons, a mission Christmas dinner on Christmas eve and a mission New Years Eve Party at the Pageant Building.  We also found time for a Preparation Day trip to a Swedish town called Bishop Hill which is north of Nauvoo (2 hour drive) in Illinois.

Sister Winegar, Sister Bowler and Sister Rober at Mision Home Open House

President and Sister Hall at Carthage Christmas Carol Activity

Emma Hale Cast Christmas Party

Elder Wilson, Elder Rober and Mark Rober Christmas Sweater

Elder and Sister Leemaster at Mission Christmas Dinner

Preparation Day lunch in Bishop Hill

Games at New Years Eve Party

It's onward to 2017 with anticipation of family visits, the return of the Sunset by the Mississippi Show and the Pageants.  We wish everyone a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

All our love,

Elder and Sister Rober

Holiday Season Begins

Fall leaves outside of the Browning Gun Shop

Holiday Greetings from Nauvoo.  The weather in the month of November was quite pleasant.  As can be seen from the above picture, there were still pretty leaves early in the month.  That ended quite abruptly on December 4 when the first snow of the year arrived and temperatures are now in the 10-30 degree range - welcome winter!  The picture below is our little Nauvoo house in the first storm.

December 4 Snow Storm

I was thinking that winter was going to be a easier time here with the crowds being much smaller. What I didn't consider is that with the missionary force down from 200 to 100 people it is necessary that we work 9:30 - 5:00 every day.  In the busy summer months there are three schedules.  We either start at 12, end at 3 or have a 12-3 break in the middle of the day.  We are finding that there just doesn't seem to be as much free time in a day to take care of business around the house or in town for shopping. During our shifts now it is not uncommon to have no visitors in a day.  All of the sites have wi-fi and good furnaces so we use our computers, read books and/or work on the many Humanitarian projects the mission is doing, like quilts, knitted caps, stuffed bears, among others.  I spend time on a computer program called the Teaching Center where I can chat and e-mail people all over the world who express an interest in receiving a free bible, Book of Mormon or have questions about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This is a great blessing to our mission.

The mission had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.  This time of year we miss the holidays with our families but it is a time to share the holidays here with our mission family. The food was fantastic and the company amazing. We truly love our missionary friends.

Sitting by Elder and Sister Beecher

The Temple Missionaries joined in for the dinner

On the night of December 2nd, the mission hosted a community Christmas activity that included a tree lighting, live nativity production, wagon rides, food and caroling.

Visitor Center Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony (every ornament represents a site)

Sister Rober was the Director of the Live Nativity production with Elder Rober doing lights and sound.  She and Sister Melody Van Horn had lots of fun creating the amazing new costumes to make the evening even more memorable for the cast and audience. The spirit was felt by all as we testified of our Savior,  Jesus Christ's birth and mission. We performed the 15 minute program three times that night with a repeat performance Sunday evening for missionaries who had assignments outside the visitor center and could not attend.  Here are some pictures of the nativity production. You can view the production at the following link:    https://youtu.be/WdRmmoRzki0

I was in charge of sound and lights.  This is the lighting control panel in the booth.

Our amazing cast of missionaries.  The production was a spiritual experience for everyone depicting the events of the birth of our Savior.

The Technician with the Director.

The sites are all decorated for Christmas which makes the area very festive and beautiful for the Christmas season.

Brigham Young home decorated for Christmas

Nutcracker helping make horse shoes at the Blacksmith Shop

As of this week we are passing the half way point of our mission.  We can't believe how fast the time goes by.  It continues to be a wonderful opportunity to serve the Lord in such a historic and spiritual city. We look forward to our 2017 mission experiences.

We wish everyone a joyous Christmas and Happy New Year! 

Love

Elder and Sister Rober

October

Joseph and Emma Smith, Nauvoo Women's Garden (Photo by Pickle Barrel)

October was an interesting month in the mission.  I was thinking the crowds would continue to diminish but that was not the case.  There were many bus tours and visitors in October making the sites more crowded than September.  They were mainly people wanting to see the leaves turning but also people hoping for that perfect weather month - not too hot or too cold.  They were not disappointed on that front.  The weather was actually above average levels.  In fact for the city Halloween activity it was 80 degrees and it was pleasant because the humidity is gone.  We did have one morning where we had to scrape ice of the windshield to remind us of what is on the way.

Almost all of the corn and soy beans have been harvested from the fields. The fall colors are quite spectacular.  Here are some examples near some of the famous historical sites.

The Red Brick Store

Joseph Smith Homestead (Photo by Pickle Barrel)

Mansion House

Nauvoo Temple

On Halloween, the City of Nauvoo hosted a Boo-ti-ful Nauvoo Festival.  They estimate 5,000 people came to our little 1,000 person town.  The missionaries were involved in the activities and parade. The main street was lined with over 500 pumpkins that were carved with great skill by members of the community and missionaries.  The high light of the day was an old fashioned Halloween parade open to anyone who wanted to march in their costume.  It was a fun night for everyone in attendance and the mission to be a part of the activities.

Lots of work carving pumpkins

Very detailed and artistic talents

Senior Missionary Halloween wagon with entertainment

Sister Rober was in charge of music and choreography

Costume Parade

In the winter months there will definitely be more free time in the sites including a few days where no one may come into a site. During this free time the missionaries can study and/or work on humanitarian projects.  We are blessed that starting this year our missionaries have received access to the Teaching Center.  This is a world wide internet based system where people can call, text, chat and e-mail their questions about the church.  The Church also makes free Bibles and Book of Mormons available to those who request them.  As a missionary, we can log on and click on people who are routed to the system with their questions and requests.  It is amazing to me to see how many people are logged in to mormon.org and send in requests seeking answers to their questions.  We can answer their questions and, in cases where they approve, have missionaries deliver the books or make personal visits to further answer their questions.  We can stay in touch with the people and become their friends as they meet with the local missionaries.  I am participating every minute I can find on the system.  I have been in contact with people from Ireland, England, Russia, Nigeria, Brazil and many US States. In our historical mission we don't have many opportunities to meet and know people more as they pass through our site to the next.  This is giving those who want to participate a chance to engage in more conventional proselyting work.  

We are enjoying our mission.  What a marvelous opportunity to meet so many people who visit and contact the Teaching Center.  We are making new friends with our fellow missionaries.  We are experiencing a change in seasons and seeing the beauty of the Midwest and the Mississippi River.  We are learning so much more about Church history and the church members who lived here between 1939-1846.  We are learning about the Midwest and getting to know some of the people who now live here and call it home.  We are learning about farming and the big part that it plays in the lives of people living here in America's heartland. We are enjoying our little grandma house in this very small town that receives 250,000 visitors every year who want to learn more about the history and see the spectacular pageants.  We are learning of the great joy that comes from being a missionary and testifying about our Savior Jesus Christ and the restored gospel.

There are Thanksgiving and Christmas activities planned for the community and mission.  We look forward to our holidays here in Illinois but we will miss being around our family and friends. Thank goodness for social media and Facetime to see and feel the excitement of the grand kids.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Rober