The Salt Lake Temple — 1971
The receiving of my mission call permitted me to receive temple recommend and participate in the temple washing and endowment ceremonies. I went through the temple for my endowments on April 21, 1971. It was a wonderful privilege to take out my endowments in the Salt Lake Temple, with my father and mother participating with me. My father was my escort and we were seated together as the session began. I was overwhelmed with the beauty and grandeur of that majestic and historic building, but my focus was soon riveted to what I was hearing and experiencing. In the Salt Lake Temple, participants move from room to room as the endowment session progresses. After starting in the Creation Room, we then stood and filed into the Garden Room. It just so happened that my father was the last person to fill the seats on a given row, and the session worker motioned me to move all the way to the end of the next row. I obeyed reluctantly, and found myself greatly separated from my father, my escort. As the session proceeded and we moved from room to room, I moved progressively farther from my father. I essentially went through my first session with no escort, nor any calming words from an experienced temple patron. The placing on of the robes was an adventure, as I was not only far removed from my father, but I was locked against a wall, away from the session workers. I made it through without major difficulties, and basked in the spirit of the Celestial Room and being with my two wonderful, supportive parents. The temple has blessed my life since that day. For the three weeks before I entered the Mission Home, I lived with my sister Deanna and her husband, Glen Boyle, in Salt Lake City and went to the temple every day except on Sundays. The majesty of the sacred covenants made in the temple infused my soul.
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