Spiritual Experiences

Yesterday we had a stake meeting with the presiding bishop of the Church, H. David Burton.  Before the stake meeting we had our Seminary and Institute inservice meeting and Bishop Burton attended it.  He made a comment that I have been pondering ever since.  He said most young people do not have spiritual experiences in their homes.  Most spiritual experiences take place in seminary, on their missions and in other settings but rarely at home.  It made me think - did I have spiritual experiences at home?  My first spiritual experience was in our home.  I was about 12 years old and my parents had the missionaries over to teach someone.  I remember feeling the spirit so strongly at the meeting that I could almost see it.  It is hard to describe, but I knew the Holy Spirit was there that day.  that triggered memories of so many others.  I would say the next most significant one was because of being thrown out of home evening.  One night I was presenting the Family Home evening.  At the end of it, I closed and said, Amen.  My Grandma Brugger told me to bear my testimony.  I told her I didn't have a testimony of that.  She told me to go to my room and not show my face until I could bear my testimony.  I think this is ironic now because she and Grandpa were living in our home at the time, but I went to my room and slammed the door.  It was fine with me if I never had to speak to her again.  A few minutes later my dad walked in with two paperback copies of the Book of Mormon.  He told me that just the two of us would read together until we finished the Book of Mormon.  By the time I read in 1 Nephi where Nephi says that he will do whatever the Lord tells him to do - he will do - I realized this was a book of scripture.  As I read those words with my father, he looked at me and hugged me saying, "Pretty exciting, isn't it."  I get that same wonderful feeling every time I read that section and finish the Book of Mormon - to this day.

I have had other spiritual experiences growing up and then with our daughters growing.  But I wonder, did we create an environment where others had spiritual experiences in our home.  I have had spiritual experiences in our daughters homes since they have married, but I am not teaching someone to have the experience now - I know how to experience it. 

The other thing that Bishop Burton said is that if a seminary class is taught well, the spiritual experiences there will be second only to a mission.  That is quite a responsibility. 

8 Years Ago...

8 years ago, I was anxiously awaiting the birth of my 2nd granddaughter and 4th grandchild.  Isabella Lou Nordell, arrived on the 13th of March 2003, in Italy.  My hands were tied and I was so far away while Heather and Brandon welcomed their first child into their home.  The top picture is Bella, Heather and me at Pam's graduation from the University of Utah.  The bottom picture is Bella in my pajamas.  When I was visiting, I walked into the room I was staying in, to change into those very pajamas.  I started laughing and snapped the picture.  It was not what I expected.  I miss Bella so much.  We were able to bond when I stayed with her for 2 months while Heather was expecting Evie.

When I was 4 1/2 years old...

When I was a little older than 4 years old, my parents told me that my mother was pregnant.  I was thrilled.  I prayed every night for a little brother with blonde hair and blue eyes.  On March 15, 1958, I got my wish.  Robert Maynard Brugger was born.  The above picture is Bob, with my paternal grandparents, George and Carrie Myrl Brugger.  I never remember my Grandma Brugger wearing pants.  I don't think she ever put a pair on in her life.  However, my Grandma Tuttle not only wore pants she even owned and wore blue jeans, especially when she worked in the garden, went up into the canyon and worked in her chicken coops when sold eggs and chickens.  Grandma Tuttle sold the chickens off when I was about 6 or 7 years old.  

The Ages of Me

Me at 6 months old

Me at 1 year

My father took this picture when I was about 10 to show how long my hair was.

My sophomore class picture.  This was one of my mother's favorite pictures ever taken of me.  People didn't believe my hair was naturally that blonde.

Clyde's and my engagement pictures.

This was taken 2 weeks after my engagement pictures.  I was talked out of my long hair and into short hair - told it was so much easier.  Balderdash!  I would spend 30 minutes to an hour doing my hair short and 10 minutes doing my hair long!  I've always told Clyde it was because he told me he loved my long hair but that is not quite true.  It was a decision made because of a room mate that was a beautician that beat me down - in truth.

This picture was taken in front of our home on the VA grounds in Kerrville, Texas about 1995.  Clyde and I were going to a fancy dinner.

This is me today with Clyde.  This picture was taken last summer by our surrogate daughter, Jodi Carpenter.  I cannot believe that tomorrow I will be 58 years old!  I have had a wonderful life and been truly blessed.  I have an amazing husband, with amazing daughters.  They have in turn married the perfect husband for who they are.  I have 10 incredible grandchildren with one more on the way.  The only down side to my life is that I am so far away. But then we keep in touch by telephone, emails and our blogs.  Thank heaven for modern media!  

The Gardners and the Bruggers

When we were in Germany the first time, one of my father's distant cousins, served as Mission President in Stuttgart, Germany.  He had three daughters.  For the life of me I cannot remember one of their names.  As I was pulling up the pictures, I could remember the names and now I can't!  The fat girl with glasses is me, Marianne is in the plaid dress and Bob is the only boy - I do know that much.  These pictures were taken at the Stuttgart Zoo about 1962.

My Grandpa Brugger

On the left is my dad, Archie Brugger, in the middle is my grandfather, George Brugger and on the right is Raphael Brugger, my father's older brother, at my Aunt Sheri's wedding (my father's youngest sister).  I tried to clean up the slide before I copied it but it was starting to deteriorate.  That is the funky decorations on the white coats and shirts.

The middle picture was taken of my grandfather not too many years before he passed away.  The bottom picture is where my grandfather carved his name and my grandmother's name in this tree.  Grandpa Brugger's birthday was February 20th. I loved sharing a birthday month him and having a birthday so close to his. There are several pictures that we are surrounding a birthday cake. I can't tell if it is Grandpa's birthday or mine we are celebrating.  Sometimes we shared.  I always had a hard time getting along with Grandma Brugger but Grandpa Brugger was my my hero.  He tried hard to help me with my math.  Others - even teachers would get frustrated and I would get knocked on the head because they would think I wasn't trying.  Then we didn't know that being dys-calculate was a problem.  They assumed that if you could read and spell there should be no other learning problem.  I was always in the highest reading and spelling groups and the lowest math group.  Grandpa loved math and tried so hard to instill that love into me.  I will always be grateful for his patience.  I just wish it could have paid off in more ways than teaching me to be patient.  But then what better lesson than that to learn from someone you  love?

A Tale of Three Heathers

Clyde and I spent yesterday in temple.  Our stake completely manned it and we had a very busy and successful day.  President Wood, the Temple President, said it was one of the busiest days the temple had seen in a long time.  He also said, that is why they do these holiday temple days, because it seems that people that cannot come any other time, can come on a Monday holiday.  I ended up running the baptistry and basically had a steady stream of young people and new converts going through.  I was very busy all morning and extremely worn out by the time we got home. However, yesterday morning, just before the alarm clock went off, I thought of three Heathers that I know and love and their vastly different temple experiences. 

The first Heather is our daughter.  She received her endowment, married the love of her life in the Manti Temple and is living her life faithful and happy.

The second Heather married her high school sweetheart but he promised her that if they married outside of the temple, in one year, he would get his life in order and take her to the temple.  Many years later, she is still waiting for him to become active and take her to the temple.

My third Heather, went to the temple the week before she was to marry.  Her fiance did not accompany her but she had a wonderful day with her family.  However, while she was in the Celestial Room, she had a strong impression she needed to confront her fiance.  He told her they were getting married the next week and there was nothing she could do about it.  Heather told him, "Oh yes there is!"  She broke off the engagement, cancelled the wedding plans, sent out the cards and made the calls.  About 18 months later she was married in the temple to someone else and they are now a military family, setting the example of a strong LDS family.

Three women, named Heather, with vastly different 'temple' experiences.