The Diary of a Closet Artist + Wife in Progress: Manti Temple

So my wonderful husband is so very patient with me and my little whims that I get. At the beginning of November we had Stake Conference, and in it they mentioned temple attendance and increasing your personal attendance to the temple. I immediately poked Michael's leg and whispered, "Hey! (poke) We need to go to the temple more! (poke) We are going this week! (poke)" So being the sweetheart he is he didn't even skip a beat before he said "okay, what day do you want to go?" We pulled up our schedule on his iCal and I immediately remembered why spontaneity is no longer a noun used in our lives. We had something every. single. day. But on Saturday, we had been on the fence about attending a wedding clear down in Manti...and that's when I exclaimed "That's it! That's when we are going to the temple! We will go to Ian and Mariah's sealing and stay for a session!" And once again, being the sweetheart he is he didn't say "I have tests and work and blah blah blah." he said "we can make that work."

So Michael was able to get off of work and set aside time so we could go clear down to Manti (an almost 2 hour drive!) and spend our day at the temple there...and boy was it worth it. For anyone who hasn't had the privilege of going to this temple and lives within a decent vicinity, you NEED to go. It was BEAUTIFUL. Michael kept telling me "You're going to love this temple...I can't wait to see YOU see this temple." I wasn't sure what he was talking about until we went inside and it was pink everywhere! Absolutely amazing! And if it wasn't pink, then it was teal! (Only my two favorite colors in the entire world) Plus the artwork was incredible. I couldn't stop gawking almost the entire time we were there.

But more than anything, it was so amazing to be able to attend a sealing with my dear hubby and listen again to the promises and blessings of our own temple marriage. There wasn't enough room in the sealing room for everyone to have a chair, so Michael and I opted to stand. It was so wonderful to be there with my eternal companion's arms wrapped around me and to know that I get to be with him for all eternity. We spent all day in the temple and even had lunch in the cafeteria with all the little old temple worker people.

Side Note: Nobody else in the entire Manti area that attend the temple must drink grape soda. I wanted a grape soda in the cafeteria and it was in this little fridge with two sliding doors that overlapped in the middle. And the grape sodas were SMACK in the middle. No matter which door you opened a door was still covering it!!! It was blasphemous and laughable. However, Michael managed to fenangle things around and pry one of them out for me.

Anyways, it was a wonderful day and such a strengthening experience for our relationship. I have never felt more close to anyone in the whole wide world than I felt with Michael that Saturday.

I love the temple and LOVE being able to go there to feel the Spirit. You can't help but get great clarity and perspective when you are there. I am so grateful to have a worthy Priesthood holder for a husband who takes me to the temple often. The Manti temple will now always hold a special little piece of my heart.