To Michael Through "DearElder.com"

I am getting on top of the diabetes! I have lost 13 pounds and have my blood sugar down from 124 to 105. That is pretty good, I think. The big thing is that I feel SO much better. I might last a couple of more years.

It was good to hear from you. You are having so many spiritual experiences that it makes me happy to hear of them. How our Heavenly Father blesses those who try to do the right. Of course, this letter is also from Gramps and he feels the same way. Auntie AnnMarie says that each letter that she reads from you makes her want to hurry and go on a mission with Uncle Brandon so that she can share those same kinds of experiences. Of course, she has a few years to wait. Rachel is still a little girl. She will have great experiences through Kyle and Matthew.

We enjoyed hearing about you talk. What a great experience. Gramps printed it off to share with his home teaching families.

Gramps and I had one outstanding experience at the temple Friday evening one week ago. Just outside Nephi on Thursday evening two men were killed in an airplane accident. Robert Marion Lamb, 45, a flight instructor from Woodland Hills, and Peter John Mrowiec, 58, an attorney from Ontario, Canada, died in the crash when their plane was forced from the air because of stormy weather. Of course, I had to cover it for the paper. That was Thursday. Friday evening on our shift, the night or evening shift, we received word that a young man, the son of Robert Lamb, was coming to the temple to receive his own endowments. We were told to be kind and thoughtful because it had not even been 24-hours since the father/husband of the family had died. Of course, when the mom and other family came to the temple they were still fairly upset.

I was at the initiatory desk, that was my assignment as one of the assistant coordinators of the shift, so I was able to hug them and welcome them to the temple. I was also able to encourage them. That was a personal blessing because you know how the spirit guides you and I felt His presence.

Usually, as you know, the temple president, in this case President Pinegar, meets just with the young man and his escort. However, in this case, he took the entire family into his office and taught them from the scriptures. He shared his experience in losing his young son in a tragic accident and blessed the family members. The young man also has a brother who is in the mission field in South America. This young man, I believe, was going to Spain. The women had 40 family members on that session and the men a like amount, give or take a few. Each of them did a Lamb family file card.

When the session was over, President Pinegar met with the family again just to see how they were. The young Elder said he had never had such a wonderful experience in his life. He told President Pinegar that his father’s spirit sat between him and his uncle, who was his escort, the entire session.

His mother had thought, that in light of what had happened, perhaps they should postpone the temple night they had planned. However, the Elder thought that his father would want them to continue with the plans they had made and would like his uncle to be his escort so they all had come.

President Pinegar received a thank you note from the family just this week.

I was so grateful that we have the priesthood in our church to, in the name of our Father and His Son, bless the lives of all. What a gift it is. What a blessing. If the Savior had been at the temple that night in person, He could not have done more than President Pinegar did through the gifts of the priesthood and acting in the name of the Savior. He would have comforted them and would have reviewed the Plan of Happiness with them as well. He would have blessed them and loved them. President Pinegar did all of that as a representative of Christ. How blessed we are. How thankful I am.

Gramps and I love you. Keep up the good work. We will be thinking of you and praying for you each day. (More than once a day.)

Grammy and Gramps