Day 5: Far West and Adam-Ondi-Ahman

Here's how my morning started:

• I took a shower, did my best to straighten my hair, despite the Missouri humidity, and dressed in a navy blue shirt and a pair of white pants.
• Mom was still getting herself together, so I offered to get breakfast from the breakfast bar and bring it back to her. She was appreciative.
• I dropped off my suitcase in front of the hotel, where it was loaded on our tour bus.
• I went to the breakfast bar and brought back the following items: two bagels, a Belgian waffle, an omlette, two pieces of bacon, and two cups of orange juice.
• I offered Mom first choice of breakfast foods, and watched her set a cup of juice on the ironing board.
• Mom pulled her suitcase out to take it to the bus.
• The suitcase wheel caught on the ironing board.
• I lunged for the orange juice to keep it from tipping over and spilling on the floor.
• The orange juice spilled all down the front of my white pants.
• I thought of my dad.
• I walked, bow-legged, out to the bus where people were beginning to board, retrieved another pair of pants, and returned to the room, where Mom offered me half a Belgian waffle. I remarked that, in addition to being cold, wet, and sticky, orange juice resembles urine.
• Mom offered to wash out my white pants by hand.

Mornings on this tour start out with "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" from Oklahoma. As a group, we are getting pretty good at it already.

Our first stop was the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This is a church that split off from ours after the death of Joseph Smith. Since that time, the line of prophets have been direct descendants of Joseph Smith. However, other than a common history, it does not share many resemblances with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today. The place we went in is called a temple.

It promotes peace, and, as far as I can tell, diversity. I snapped this picture because I found it amusing, and mildly offensive:

They are really into Japanese stuff there, as evidenced by the Japanese couple, the Japanese rock garden, and the Japanese architect who designed the temple.

Here is a shot of the inside of the temple:

It is modeled after a nautilus shell.

I never got a clear answer on what this room is used for in terms of meetings, but this man came in as we were leaving and began a rousing organ solo.

When we got back on the bus, we did a drive by of the Harry S. Truman home.

Our next stop was the Far West temple site.

Here is one of the cornerstones that was laid by the Twelve Apostles before members of the church were driven out of Missouri by angry mobs and an extermination order. There is no temple there. Yet.

Look at how green everything there is!

Our next stop was Adam-Ondi-Ahman, which means "the place of God where Adam dwelt." It is believed to be the place where Adam and Eve went when they were cast out of the Garden of Eden.

The valley below is the future site of a gathering of 144,000 priesthood holders where Christ will appear.

Our last stop of the day was to Jamesport, Missouri, which is a community that has Amish, Mennonites, and others living in it. We ate at an Amish restaurant, shopped at a candle store, and, I am ashamed to say, bought five pieces of pie, four cinnamon rolls, and two cookies.

Here is a shot of an Amish man we passed on our way out of town. It reminded me of my mission, which had many Mennonite communities in it. It was always kind of a bummer to tract up and down streets where horses had just been. Look closely at this picture and you can probably guess why.

That's all for today. I have a pair of pants I need to wash out tonight.