Last week I took my two boys and two of their friends to do baptisms for the dead at the Jordan River Temple. It was a fairly quiet morning at the the temple so I decided to let them do it and I ran upstairs and did some iniatories. I had five names that I was able to do the work for. I am trying to make my temple experience more meaningful so I thought a lot about the words of the ordinances (AMAZING BLESSINGS!) and about these five women.
Four out of Five of them were all christened within just a few months of each other in a town in England in the mid 1840's. I thought there was probably a pretty good chance that these women knew each other, grew up together, and maybe were even friends. I had a picture in my mind (probably based on the Little House on the Prairie) of these four girls with their book bags and braids as they walked to school together, maybe giggling and laughing on their way.
Then I pictured those same four girls, as women, on the other side of the veil, laughing, crying, hugging and rejoicing as their work was done here on earth. Can we even begin to comprehend the celebration that occurs? I'm thankful for the reminder of how lucky I am that I get to participate in these blessings now, that I have the knowledge now, that will help me to make it through this earthly life.
And I loved the thought that we will still gather as women to rejoice and celebrate on the other side!!
In the original of this picture you couldn't see the leaves that he threw up in the air. So I tried brushing in some leaves - they look a little fake, but you 
