Draper Temple Open House

It was amazing. The last temple open house I went to was when the Timpanogos Temple opened 14 or so years ago (at least I think it was 14 years ago), which I was too young to appreciate and understand. Which made my visit to the Draper temple all the sweeter. I have never visited a temple that was so art intensive. The Teichart's, Dewey's, and other famous artist's paintings adorned the walls of the temple. I was especially impressed with the many paintings that depicted the life and teachings of the Savior. The stain glass was picture perfect. And the interior design leaned heavily towards a warm home. I almost expected to see a couple of family portraits, a picture frame stuffed with pictures of grandchildren, or a coat lazily draped over the banister. As I finished the tour the family ish atmosphere turned my thoughts to my parents and siblings, I surely love them and am grateful for them. I'm grateful for the temple that serves as poignant reminder of the most important things in life.

If a Camera Could Capture What I Felt...

there would be no purpose to this blog post, but since a camera will never be able to capture true feelings and emotions, I hope, in some small way this post will capture what I don't want to forget.

Over the last few months I have mostly blogged about my love for Washington, DC. In fact, most of my Washington, DC, blogs are rants and raves about the national mall, long, leisurely runs along the Potomac banks, breakfast from my favorite eatery--Eastern Market, or spending time with Talai, Aaron, and Owen. All those posts are good, and I'm glad I recorded some of my thoughts and feelings, but I felt slightly agitated as to my sheer DC focus. Since last evening I haven't been able to stop thinking about how quickly I can forget my love for Utah--specifically walking home from campus as the sun slips behind the Oaker Mountains in the West:

I finally finished my school day around 6pm. I made my way out the JSB, and slipped out of the building and turned my stare to one of my favorite views--The Oakers, I was taken aback at the deep purple clouds that were brilliantly highlighted by the last rays of sunshine before the sun laid it's rays to rest. As I walked my thoughts vacillated between wishing I had a camera and not wanting this glorious sight to end.

In my amazement I looked around to see if anyone else was enjoying the natural fireworks as much as I was and I was disappointed to find a couple of girls next to me talking incessantly about their future internships. As I listened to them talk about their futures I ached a little bit hoping that they would live in the present and simply enjoy the beautiful sunset with me. I interrupted their jabber and exclaimed "Look at that, isn't it beautiful." As I pointed at the sky. They both chuckled looked up, and quickly agreed. I let it slide and said hi to them, but simply couldn't get my mind off the beauty of the resting of the sun. As I thought more on that interaction I was cheered by the fact that I had taken the time to let that moment seep in--I was living in the moment. At times in my life I have thought too much about the future and and have forgotten to enjoy the little things in the present, but today I was victorious. As the colors began to fade, I promised myself that I would blog about it, and try to capture what I felt inside of me--because I knew that a camera could never capture what I felt, nor can it help me remember to live and enjoy each day of my life.