Tuesday Morning Thoughts on Fall, Mountains, and Temples

I’ve always liked fall, but more so than any other season, fall makes me miss the northeast. It doesn’t matter where I am or how beautiful the scenery may be, in my mind fall – with its reds and golds and everything in between – belongs to the northeast. This is the fourth consecutive year that I’m not able to enjoy a proper New England fall; it makes me a little homesick. Fortunately, since moving to Utah, I’ve found a new passion: mountains. I love mountains. No matter how dreary the day, mountains somehow make everything that much more beautiful. What Utah lacks in trees and autumn splendor, it makes up for in mountains.

Several weeks ago I read this scripture in 1 Nephi 18: “And I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things.” In the scriptures, mountains are often symbols or representations of temples or holy places. In our times, this scripture is analogous to prayerfully and frequently attending the temple, where the Lord can show us the “great things” He so desperately wants to show us.

This weekend we put together an enrichment activity for our Relief Society in which we talked about temple preparation, so I’ve been thinking and studying about the temple for several weeks. I love the temple. More than I love New England falls or Utah mountains, I love the temple. Growing up in New Jersey, the closest temple for many years was the Washington DC temple, a good 4 hours drive from where we were. I couldn’t enter the temple until I was baptized (at age 15), but I would faithfully attend every youth temple trip, just to sit outside the temple, to walk the grounds and touch its walls and feel the spirit of that place.

I love the temple.

Since coming home from my mission I’ve tried to attend the temple at least once a month, with varying degrees of success. When I was in Georgia I drove up to Atlanta; back home in New Jersey I would take the train up to Manhattan. Both trips took about an hour and a half each way, which, all things considered, isn’t bad at all. At least I didn’t have to climb to the top of a mountain, right? Now that I’m in Provo, with a temple within walking distance (note: I don’t actually walk there, although I think I will when the weather improves, just because I can), I’ve decided to attend the temple weekly. It has been one of the greatest blessings of my life. Is it a sacrifice of time? Sure, I guess…but is it a sacrifice? Not at all. I get so much more than the effort I put in. And hopefully sometime in the coming weeks I’ll start training as a temple worker. The paperwork is in, and now I’m just waiting to hear back from the Provo temple. I’m excited.

So what, you ask, do I love the most about living in Utah? The mountains. Both kinds.






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