My little sister got married last week. That's where I've been the past several days. I got to be with her every step of the way, and I felt so honored. In our faith, we believe that the highest blessings any individual can receive are made available when you go through the temple. When you go through for the first time, you have an escort with you who has already been through. Someone is always there to help you or to answer any questions that you may have and to share this special time with you. I got to be that person for my little sister. It was so lovely. It was so neat for me to share those things that are profoundly personal to me with her. And then, last week, I got to be her escort on her wedding day. I got to help her get dressed for the sealing ceremony, and then afterward, into her wedding gown. I wanted so much for her. I wanted it to be everything she had ever wanted. I felt so privileged to be a part of this moment with her. It was very special for me.
In some ways, it seems like it was just yesterday that we spent practically every waking moment together. We would be up late into the night playing inventive games in our beds. We'd eat ice cream on the back porch steps with wet hair just out of the tub before bed. We ran all through our yard as my dad did yardwork, and you could smell that lovely, warm, June evening smells of yardwork and barbeques and the earth breathing. We built "water parks" in our backyard with the pool, slip-n-slide, and ladder from the garage for our high dive. We played restaurant on the back porch with the screen door, serving soda crackers and Koolaid. We played bank along the driveway, using Mrs. Cardall's lilac leaves for our currency (oops), taking turns playing teller. I am sure grateful now that she let us be children if she ever noticed that we picked some of her lilac leaves. She probably had that lovely gift of wisdom to let us delight in childhood and imagination, knowing that these things leave far too quickly. That person is rich who can keep that alive and delight in the wonder and glory of play and the earth, while still being responsible and mature. We used to bathe every night together after dinner. Once I got old enough that I started to want to do that on my own, Christa started to pray at the dinner table saying, "Please bless Elizabeth that she'll take a bath with me." We laugh about it now.
You can see why it was so precious for me to be there with her. We have shared practically everything together. We have been close all our lives. And she was a lovely bride. For pictures of her in her dress, visit her here.
And, here's the next installment.
"Evil multiplies by the response it seeks to provoke, and when I return evil for evil, I engender corruption myself. The chain of evil is broken for good when a pure and loving heart absorbs a hurt and forbears to hurt in return. The forgiveness of Christ bears no grudge. The love of Christ allows no offense to endure. The compassion of Christ embraces all things and draws them toward himself. Deep within every child of God the Light of Christ resides, guiding, comforting, purifying the heart that turns to him."
---Dennis Rasmussen
(And one of the days this week I'm going to post new pictures of my boys. I haven't posted anything in quite a while for family and friends to see these beautiful babes of ours.)
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