L.D.S
Family Traveling Traveling to L.D.S. Church history sites is an experience that will have a positive and lasting effect on you and your family. Though we have enjoyed seeing some of the popular sites and attractions of the world, some of the most memorable trips have been to places that hold special religious significance for us. While trips to amusement parks are fun, going to Church historical sites has a much more lasting impact. Scripture passages will take on new meaning, long past Church events will be better understood, and Church historical sites will become a vivid mental image after actually seeing them. You can’t help but develop a greater love and appreciation for those who sacrificed so much after hearing their personal stories, visiting their homes, seeing some of their belongings, and standing by their gravesites. Imagine walking into the country store where Joseph Smith Sr. first met Lucy Mack or sharing stories about our beloved Prophet Joseph Smith at the site of his birth. Think of the wonderful opportunity you could have discussing the importance of baptism next to the Susquehanna River where John the Baptist came to Joseph and Oliver, or sitting with your family in the Sacred Grove while reading the Prophet’s account of the first vision. Relive in your imagination Joseph’s painful experience of being beaten, tarred, and feathered as you stand in the room in which a sleeping Joseph lay by his infant child before being taken away by an angry mob at the John Johnson farm. Learn about the many spiritual events that occurred in Kirtland as you walk through the Newel K. Whitney Store, visit the Isaac Morley Farm and tour the Kirtland Temple. Everyone will enjoy time spent at the beach near what was once an important Lake Erie port used by arriving Saints and departing missionaries. While standing at the site of the W.W. Phelps Printing Office in Independence, relate the courageous story of two sisters, Mary Elizabeth and Caroline Rollins, as they gathered pages of the recently printed Book of Commandments in their aprons before fleeing from the mob into a nearby cornfield. Listen to the audiovisual presentation at historic Liberty Jail and imagine what it must have been like to be confined under such dreary and cold conditions. While standing at the temple site in Far West, recall that this was once a community of over 5,000 Saints before their expulsion from Missouri. For a spiritual feast, imagine sitting with your family at Adam-ondi-Ahman as you read from your scriptures and other suggested readings and discuss the past and future significance of this area. Your children would love dipping a candle, braiding a rope, learning to bake bread, or playing pioneer games. These are just a few of the many hands-on activities in and around the Family Living Center in Nauvoo. Walk through the homes of Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, or Wilford Woodruff and see some of their personal belongings as you learn about these early Church leaders. Imagine gazing up at the beautifully rebuilt Nauvoo Temple with your family and recounting some of the personal sacrifices made by our early pioneer ancestors. Relive the last few hours of the Prophet’s life as you stand by the statue of Joseph and his beloved brother Hyrum, hear the audio presentation inside the upper bedroom in Carthage Jail, and look out of the window at the well below. These are just a few of the many opportunities that await you and your family. I encourage you to start planning now for a wonderful family vacation visiting some of our historic Church sites. Have a great trip! (Coming next week – The three “P’s” of successful family traveling.) © 2003 LDS Family Travels. All Rights Reserved. |