Every day, a new portal!

Every day is a joy.  People are amazed when we tell them that we didn't ask for this "gig".  It is very unusual for a couple to serve three times in the same mission, let alone Italy!  Senior couples can ask to go a certain place and to do a certain thing; however, in the end, we all leave it up to the inspiration from the Lord to the apostles and others on the Missionary Committe of the Church.  We've never made any specific requests.  It helps, of course, that we both served missions in Italy as young people and thus, we both speak the language.  That said, we really were not expecting to serve in Italy a third time.

You can imagine then, the delight to be called back, not only to Italy, but specifically to this "icing-on-the-cake" mission at the Rome Temple Visitors Center.  

Although we've been in the mission since mid-December, we have only been working as RTVC missionaries for about a month, since the temple was dedicated.  We still marvel to see the temple "standing" there - and I mean that word in its very essence.  It radiates an independence of surroundings; it simply IS.  

Then, to be able to enter the temple complex, walk in to the Visitors Center, and begin our six-hour shift, together with ten or twelve bright presences in the persons of the sister missionaries, looking forward to the opportunity and privilege of making the acquaintance of who knows how many individual beings that will grace those rooms ... it's just an awesome privilege.

On any given day, there are 8-12 young sister missionaries in the visitors center, with usually one senior couple in the morning (9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.) and one in the evening (3:00 to 9:00 p.m.).  We and the Briscoe couple are most normally the ones taking those shifts, but the Euvrards, who are the directors of the Visitors Center, also take the occasional shift so that we can get our P-days in (P for preparation, when we do the tourist thing or catch up around the house, etc.).  We each have one P-day a week.

We haven't done much tourist-ing yet, but we'll get there.

We are surprised that four months have already fled by.  

Every day, to varying degrees, we connect with others in happy ways.  This is a place of happiness.  Sometimes people only want to walk around, sometimes they have questions.  Sometimes we have in depth discussions.  Yesterday, for example, we walked away from one of these rejoicing, because we were all uplifted and edified (Doctrine & Covenants 50:13-24).  

More photos:

The wonderful folks in the top pic are Tom and Gayle Holdman.  They are the masterminds behind the wonderful stained glass panel, "Come Unto Me", in the Visitors Center.  His studio also did the stained glass for the temple, as well as for many other temples.  Such kind, earnest, enthusiastic folks one rarely meets.  The eight sister missionaries with them, in front of the "vetrata colorata" (colored glass art) are part of our current 20 young sisters at the Visitors Center:  Sisters Bryant, Yannacallo, Stepherson, Acton, Kessler, Reagan, Heslin, and Ashton, together with Sister and Brother Holdman, in front of said stained glass panel.  Here's an article about it:

http://www.ldsliving.com/15-Stunning-Behind-the-Scenes-Images-of-the-Rome-Temple-Visitors-Center-Stained-Glass-Window/s/90140

I thought this was unique.  These were obviously made to set aside places/things for the First Presidency and President Ballard.  They were sitting forlornly on the hutch in the hallway of what is now the wing of the Visitors Center reserved for those of us who work there, after the dedication of the temple.

During training as Visitors Center missionaries, the young sisters learned computer skills for online teaching.

We saw this panorama of Rome when we went to the doctor's office for an immunization.  Nice place for a doctor's office.  It's very near the "keyhole" photo below.

This sweet young woman, Sister Olfa Haji from Romania, may have been the first sister to receive her endowment (promise of blessings) in the Rome temple!  She is currently in the MTC in Provo, and will serve in the Arizona Tempe Mission.  I was impressed with her humble enthusiasm and with her command of English.  She spent some time in the Visitors Center waiting for other Romanian members who had volunteered to be her escorts and to house her during her stay in Rome.

I love this kind of tree.  The temple grounds are really growing in beauty with the advent of Spring.  The wonderful gentleman in the background is Abraham.

One of Blaine's favorite things to do is to invite visitors to stand in front of the Christus statue and look out into the piazza, toward the temple.  What you can see there, with some careful attention, is revealing and inspiring.

I snapped this photo after we left the VC around 9:00 one evening, while we were waiting for the bus across the street from the temple, which is reflected in the window glass of the adjacent building.

Watching General Conference with some of the Visitors Center sister missionaries, upstairs in our little "personnel" area (off shift of course!).  It was lovely to be there with them, to feel their earnestness and their delight.

Monday my dear friend Sister Millet, the mission nurse, went with me to see the foot doctor (my issue is pain and swelling relating to arthritis/bunions - no uncommon thing).  Nearby was this Rome phenomenon, "the keyhole".  That's me in the photo at the beginning of this blogpost, looking through it.  You walk up to the Malta Embassy and look through the keyhole of the big main door.  You are standing on Italian ground, looking in across Malta territory, and looking at the Vatican.  Three different countries at once.  Cool!  (No infringement of copyright intended).

Nothing particularly remarkable about the above two photos except that they chronicle part of an ordinary day, sitting on a city bus.  Notice in the top photo that someone has unceremoniously "keyed" the plexiglass window of the bus😒.

While dining with the Briscoes one Sunday afternoon, we saw this lovely vision; if you look closely you can see that it's a double rainbow.  Can't get enough of rainbows.

told ya...my phone camera, however, does not do it justice.  For one thing, the sky looked much darker, which made the rainbow brilliant.  

Here's wishing everyone a Happy Easter.   I love Jesus Christ, my Savior and Redeemer, and I know He loves me, and you.  I love His Restored Gospel.  It gives me hope, meaning, purpose, and love.

Alleluia.