temple trip.

my last youth temple trip... and it sure was a great one! The girls of my ward left early thursday morning to go hike Arches {I didn't get to go with them because I had an orientation for my new job} however, I met up with them Thursday afternoon. Yep... my mom drove me halfway, thank goodness for wonderful parents (: Thursday night we had a campfire and roasted marshmellows. The best part, though, was that Makayla came that night. Makayla was one of my closest friends, who moved to Provo about 2 years ago. We toured BYU together last fall. Since it was the two of us and then basically all beehives, we got our own room and spent a good 4 hours just talking! Then friday, we went to temple square. We just walked around all morning {oh, and watched Clay Christianson play an awesome Organ concerto... BEYOND amazing talent I tell you}. After lunch, the boys met us and we got to do baptisms in the Salt Lake Temple. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. {Oh, and my YW President TALKED TO Elder Holland in the temple. No big deal.} Then that night we went to a barbecue with another ward. After the barbecue, all of us girls just sat and talked for hours. I am so blessed to be in the ward I am, I know I complained right after the wards were split again, but I realized that it really was for the best.
Saturday we went back to temple square: I got paid five bucks to ask a kid to give me "the shirt off his back" {my YW leaders > your YW leaders}, we had a backstage tour of the Tabernacle... including seeing the MoTab dressing rooms, recording studio, and the THREE PRACTICE organs {picture below}, and we went to the Church History Museum. Which I had never been to, so that was an awesome experience. Oh, lastly we meet Bonnie Goodliffe. And she played the organ for us. I sorta was amazed beyond belief. {She was the first woman organist in conference... not to mention just an awesome organist.}

Oh, ya know, just a PRACTICE organ underneath the tabernacle. No big deal really.

Overall, just one more amazing experience to have before college... although, driving by all the BYU stuff and seeing all the church stuff made me SUPER amazingly excited for when I move there in exactly 2,000 hours. (seriously, two thousand hours... that seems so soon!) I am so amazingly blessed to be in a ward with these wonderful youth and leaders, and for the opportunity to visit such wonderful and inspirational places as the Salt Lake Temple.

Sincerely,
Erica Michelle