Road Trip #7 - Adam-ondi-Ahman, Far West and Liberty Jail

"And the peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. " Phillipians 4:7

The best way I can describe this beautiful area called Spring Hill is a place of peace, like the temple, there is a lovely, calming, quiet, peaceful reverence here. We wanted to stay!
According to the prophet Joseph, ancient Americans called Nephites lived in this beautiful valley and Adam met here with his posterity three years prior to his death - it is prophecied that he will again one day visit his people here.
The peace and beauty here invite quiet contemplation and fill the heart with gratitude for all the many blessings we have been given.

Sandy, Ray, Arianne ~ at Adam-ondi-Ahman

This is one of the temple cornerstones laid at Far West, Missouri. The Saints were driven out before they could get their temple built. But the four cornerstones of the temple remain.

An interesting bit of history about Far West. In 1838, Joseph Smith received a revelation that some of the apostles would be leaving for a mission to the British Isles the following year from the temple site in Far West. A year later, this seemed impossible, because the Saints had been driven out of Missouri by angry mobs and lives were threatened if they ever returned. The Saints were then living in Quincy, Illinois, but the apostles, faithful, and obedient, went back to Missouri to the temple site in Far West. Even though it was very dangerous for them to do so and Missouri was in the opposite direction from where they needed to go, Brigham Young, Heber C Kimball, Orson Pratt, John E Page, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, and George A Smith along with others faithfully went back to the temple site, prayed, sang and ordained new apostles and left for their missions. It is said, as they came into the area, not a dog barked, nor did a cow moo . . . they arrived and left peacefully and unnoticed.

Liberty Jail, near Independence, Missouri is another place that invites serious contemplation about faith, courage and endurance. It was here that Joseph and five companions were incarcerated for nearly five months during one of the coldest winters on record. The ceiling in the lower area of the jail where the prisoners were kept was so low that the men could not stand up straight, the food was so bad that it made them very ill and they were constantly cold. A bit of history that I didn't know was that the men were pleading with the Lord to be delivered from this awful prison. The Lord revealed to Joseph that he would provide the way for them to escape if all six men agreed and were in accord to attempt it. They all agreed but one and that night the guard left the hatch door wide open, along with the front door and he was absorbed in reading a book in the corner. But the men did not try to escape because they were not all in unison to attempt it! The prison became a place that tried them severely physically, but strengthened them spiritually and brought them close to the Lord.
Elder Neal A Maxwell said, "It wasn't until the prophet was physically confined that his mind was fully liberated . . . the double walls, fourfeet thick kept Joseph and his companions in, but they could not keep the spirit and revelations out."

Our lovely guide had a beautiful voice and she sang to us as we left Liberty Jail ~ I was singing the song for days after we got back home.

"Lead kindly light amid the encircling gloom

Lead thou me on

The night is dark and I am far from home

Lead thou me on.

Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see

The distant scene—one step enough for me."

Our Road Trip #6 - Ray's cousin Richard

One of the highlights of the trip was meeting Ray's second cousin, Richard. He kindly spent his whole day with us - and we found he is a great man with a remarkable memory. Richard and Arianne at Keith's Diner. . . a great place to eat in Memphis. The restaurant was packed, the food was good, but it was noisy and hard to hear. Richard told us about his courtship and marriage to his sweetheart, Anna Mae - a true love story!

We drove by the home where Ray's grandparents lived. Ray remembers visiting them there and Irene has lots of fun stories growing up there. Richard also took us to three cemetaries: Memphis City, Prairie View and Mt Moriah, where he told us a lot about Ray's family history.

We ended up at Richard's lovely farm, where he showed us around, then treated us to a view of his photo albums. Richard is 92 and has an amazing memory - he told us a lot about serving in Burma, China and India during World War II, as an airplane mechanic. And he showed us tons of family photos. Our one regret was not having a good tape recorder to get all this important family history down for posterity! Thank you Richard, for spending your whole day showing us around and teaching us about our family.

Our Road Trip #5 - To Carthage Jail

I enjoyed our visit to Carthage. It seemed a quiet, small, peaceful town. Here at Carthage Jail where Joseph and his brother Hyrum were both martyred for what they believed, I couldn't help but reflect on these great men~ their faith, their obedience and their unwavering testimonies of the restoration of the gospel.

This photo of two of my sons, standing with Joseph and Hyrum was a poignant reminder not only of the great loss that the Saints felt at their death, but also the sorrow their mother experienced when she lost them both at once. . . I can't even imagine how difficult that would be for her and their wives and children. I stand in awe of these early Latter-Day Saints and what they faithfully endured.

Grant checks out the dark, gloomy jail cell in the upper story at Carthage Jail. Something that I didn't know before and learned on the tour was how kind the jailer and his family were to the prophet Joseph Smith, his brother Hyrum, Willard Richards and John Taylor as they were incarcerated there. The jailer and his family lived downstairs and were kind to the prophet and his companions; they were able to eat with them, and socialize with them. Because it was so hot in the jail cell, they were allowed to move into the jailer's bedroom, where there were windows for ventilation and the jailer and his family slept downstairs.

The bullet that went through this door killed Hyrum instantly, then
Joseph was shot four times as he leaped through this upper story window.

Brittany, Hunter, Jesse, Cori & Ray - at Carthage.

"Hey, guys, I think it's time to wake-up!" Gracie was kind to be the center pillow for Megan & Ethan. We went to a park so the kids could play and have a picnic of some "New York style" pizza after our visit to the jail, but found it just another cardboard pizza, expensive and tasteless . . . we'll stick with our good pizza here in the West! We all drove to Keokuk and spend the night . . . then it was hard, as always, to say good-bye to our Illinois family, but we had to part ways here . . . we drove west and they drove north.