On Monday Sister Schlachter and I met with our supervisor for the Latin America collections group, of the Church History Library. He assigned us with constructing a timeline of self-reliance programming in Mexico using the resources in the collection with a view to better understanding what is available and where there may information gaps to fill. He explained that when resources are available, like us, they like to explore research questions they anticipate receiving. As we have been called as self-reliance missionaries, our work in the Church History Library will also provide us with a better understanding of self-reliance programming in Mexico. This past week we spoke with Javier Romero who was the Stake President of the Popocatepetl Stake who I have met several times over the years when visiting Cholula where we used to live. Someone at the Church History Library has also set up an interview with our dear friend, Alma Soler Vda. de Cervantes from Cholula to add to the personal histories collection - the world is indeed a very small place.
As part of our task at the Church History Library, I have been reading material collected from Church members that moved to northern Mexico about the same time that other members moved to southern Alberta (1885ish). My undergraduate degree studies included the political history of Mexico's revolution (1910-1914), it was very interesting to read about church leaders' interactions with key political personalities in their efforts to remain neutral and the circumstances that led to the decision to abandon their homes to wait out the revolution in the United States.
I have been getting up at 6:15AM to go to the gym in the Church Office Building (COB) before we go to work. The gym is a top notch, fully-equipped facility that includes free weights and all the equipment I have ever seen in a gym and then some, although I haven't found anywhere to attach the TRX equipment they have. I hope I can stay in similar physical and mental shape when we return in 2025 when I will be 65. The short walk to COB first thing in the morning is a very pleasant one. This is a picture of the temple renovation that I have written about in previous posts. We have someone coming to the mission next week to give us a status update on the progress. It took the pioneers 40 years to finish the temple - I expect they would be as gob-smacked as I am with the objectives of the renovation work being done now and its pace.
I am participating in our mission's "Elija Choir". The photo below is my view from the back row with the bass section during our practice in the Assembly Hall, another historic building on Temple Square. The usual practice location wasn't available as there was a water leak. Before our practice began, our choir director was looking for the switch to adjust the height of the podium that she would be directing from. Apparently she instead found and pressed the "panic" button and then we were all quickly surrounded by beefy security guys in suits.
The benches in the Assembly Hall are so close together that the sheet music in my binder is too close to my face to comfortably read, even with my reading glasses on. During the practice, I noticed the trumpet-like attachments that jut out of the front of the organ's pipework (photo below). I marvelled at how they managed to keep boys from swinging off them since 1882. In digging for the photo below I discovered that the organ was replaced in 1983 so, the task of keeping boys off of it involved only 50 years instead of 150 - still a miracle or perhaps this was why a panic button was installed.
Much to my amazement the bass part of one of the pieces our choir is preparing (In a Coming Day) goes up to the D above middle C and I can actually sing in that range - thank you again to my voice teacher Devin Law's "controlled screaming" approach and encouragement prior to our departure on our mission. I also received a red neck tie (not a redneck tie :) on the assumption that I will be there for the choir's next performance on Monday October 9, the week after General Conference. The visa waiters for Ireland got their visas this week.
The view of the Conference Centre from my vantage point in the COB gym on the 7th floor each morning as the sun rises is stunning. Much to my surprise, on the way back to our apartment one day I noticed large dark-coloured splotches on the stone slabs (quartz monzonite) used to clad all of its exterior walls (see close up near door number 3 below). I hadn't seen this before and at first wondered if there was a structural problem. There isn't. This got me thinking about what others have kindly or otherwise pointed out to me as my imperfections and/or character faults that make me, well uniquely me, beautiful, valued and serviceable. The entrance numbers (i.e., "3") guide conference participants to their seats. There is no cost to participate in the Church's General Conference but tickets are issued to help organize the 21,000 person maximum capacity of the venue. We were able to participate in the Saturday afternoon and evening sessions.
The protestors on the street outside the Conference Centre did not disappoint, they bolstered my faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. According to one of the placards we are in very good company. It reads: Warning rebellious women, pot heads, drunks, lewd women, homosexuals, sports nuts, baby killers, Jesus mockers and "Mormons", (i.e., us members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), Hell awaits you - another placard adds believers of the "Koran"). Paraphrasing Elder Dallin H. Oaks who spoke during the Saturday afternoon session, we do not believe there is a Heaven for the righteous whose sum of good deeds outweighs the bad, and Hell for the rest. What matters most is the effort we make to change and who we become, the goal being to be more like our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Bagpipes were one of the protestors' tools. They quieted down once everyone was safely in side, only to start up again when the session ended. Other messages from the conference that I am still pondering include those from President Nelson who recounted some of what he has learned up to this point in his life - he recently began his 100th year of life: Our Heavenly Father's plan of happiness matters and our Saviour's atonement makes this plan possible; what makes our lives here on Earth the best they can be also makes our lives beyond the grave as best they can be; we need to weigh decisions with the end in mind - where we want to be, what kind of body we want to have and who we want to live with; and that public opinion is not the arbitrar of truth.
We went to the Apple Genius Bar in the City Creek Mall across from Temple Square to have Sister Schlachter's phone fixed as our applying Google search result fixes to get it to make and answer calls didn't work. Those Apple people are amazing! While we were waiting for the Genius to attend to us, her phone just started working. Also while we were in the mall I went looking for a place to get my hair cut. The first place I checked out had two chairs and its front door was in the parking garage of the mall - the gal in the first chair that was not occupied said she charged US$50 for a cut, when I jokingly told her that I didn't have that much hair left to cut anymore, the barber with the chair beside her told me he charged US$85 for a cut. Later in the week we checked at another place and they also charged US$85 for a cut, explaining they offered a full service that would take an hour, trimming the edges with a straight razor, a shampoo and styling. They had four chairs and all of them had a client in them. Walking further out from the downtown core we found a place with a rustic cement floor that charged US$30 for a cut but they couldn't fit me in until the next day as they were closing.
I still couldn't wrap my head around spending US$85 for a haircut so contacted our son Alex who lives here in Salt Lake City for a recommendation - he goes to a place called The Dollar Barber that charges US$14 for a cut which is where I went early Saturday morning. I got there at 8:08AM, only 8 minutes after it opened and I was number 65 in line! I was among an eclectic bunch - my kind of people. I had to wait quite a while but I made it back in time for the 10AM session of Conference (it was a 50 minute walk home). My skin fade looks great - I gave my barber US$20. His conspiracy theory about the places that charged US$ 85 a cut was that their main line of business wasn't cutting hair. The photo below is me before my cut - no, not much hair there to cut. The owner of the place (the fellow with the hat) was assuring everyone that more barbers were on their way, though none appeared while I was there. Again, a great place for a haircut. On my way home I came across a fellow gardener's generosity in the form of a box with produce on their lawn, inviting neighbours to help themselves to the abundance of what they produced - I brought home a nice sized zucchini that I stuffed and cooked for us for supper. God is good to us.
On Sunday afternoon we walked to Liberty Park to join our son Alex and his girlfriend Liz there and then at their place for tacos and to say hello to Petzl, their adorable dog. It has been a delight to see them often while we are here. We have lived far from each other for too many years. The park was alive with drummers and others enjoying being outside during the last days of summer here.
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