Believe It or Not!!!!

      Believe it or not, we have just finished a fourth of our mission this past week here in Ireland. My, my, how time has flown by so fast! And believe it or not, this past week also had the summer here come to a screaming halt, which was shockingly replaced already by a rapid fall, almost a winter environment. School has officially started for all ages here, including university students. So daily life has changed dramatically here in Limerick.

     This last Monday, we held our weekly FHE with our young adults. We had six young adults attend and four young elder missionaries. We were privilege to connect on a virtual zoom to Palmyra, New York and had the young sister missionaries there take us on a tour of the Smith Log Home, the Frame Home and then into the Sacred Grove. Every time I take a virtual tour at any historic site in the New York Historic Sites Mission now, it makes me smile, as I was there in 2020 when we could only do virtual zooms because of the pandemic. I will never be able to forget how silent and empty each of those sites became during that pause. It was almost ghostly.

     I also remember how all, both the senior and young missionaries, put their heads and hearts together to  developed the beginnings of the now well-used virtual tours. Believe me, there were many daily challenges that needed to be over come during those beginning days, like developing an online schedule to host each tour, finding ways to keep the needed internet signal from dropping off, to deciding what words should be used in the dialogs, and that was just only a few of the challenges we faced. I can also testify that there truly was miracle after miracle seen day after day during that same time. Now, years later, every tour looks so polished and always brings the Spirit into the homes of thousands. All I can say is WOW!!!

     Early sometime Tuesday morning, I had a piece of furniture attack one of my toes on my right foot. My toe lost the battle as seen below in my first picture. It did slow me down for a couple of days, but I am proud to say that I am back to full steam ahead at this time, though I can still see the remnants of the damage done.

You have to admit that I did a nice job!

     We also were able to attend all of our weekly missionary meetings as scheduled this week. I was asked during one of those meetings to address the importance of talking about families and temples whenever we are discussing the gospel message with others. Ha! They only gave me five minutes to do this in. I did it as simply as possible, but in reality, I could have spoken for many more minutes concerning those items that are so near and dear to my heart. 

     We, again, met with our new friend, the single sister, that I had introduced to you in my last blog. Elder Muirhead made us a lasagna dinner to share for luncheon on Wednesday. After eating, we spent time talking about her up-coming educational opportunities. She is so excited to learn a new career. We also talked just a few minutes about some of the questions she posed to us last week. In reality, she stated that she felt that she needed a priesthood blessing. We were able to get in contact with one of her ministering brothers and we all met the next day where a personal blessing was given along with a priesthood blessing on her home. I am so grateful for this heavenly power and worthy men of God.

     On Friday, the branch's first in person Book of Mormon class started since the pandemic. The Branch President asked if I would teach the class as a missionary tool. We had eight branch members come, which included our two young elders. To introduce the course, I posed the question and asked the class to tell, in their opinion, what it took to get the Book of Mormon into our hands that very night? Many responses were expressed including the difficulty that those ancient prophets must of had in the beginning to find ore, refine it, melt it and form it into defined pages, let alone etch in the words on metal without making any mistakes. 

   

    It was also expressed how Moroni had to carry them (sometimes run with them) for many years from those who would have killed him for having them. These commits went all the way to Joseph Smith receiving the plates, translating them and then getting the book published. We, then, spent a few minutes to tell a few personal stories how some of the class members found the book in their lives. It gave us all deeper thoughts and greater gratitude for all that it took for each and everyone of us to have such an amazing book in our possession.

     

Me, up front teaching

     There was one gem that I found while studying this introduction that I would love to share with all of you. Official church educational scripts record that the Book of Mormon had four main authors. Can you name all four? Nephi was listed as first, then Jacob, his brother, then Mormon and finally, Moroni. Very good for those who knew that. But did you know that all four wrote in the Book of Mormon about their own personal spiritual experience and also wrote what their purpose was of why they wrote what they wrote in the book. Here is a small chart for each of you to use if you want to also discovering this fact.

Name of prophet                                  His spiritual experience                              His purpose

Nephi                                                   2 Nephi 11:2                                                2 Nephi 25:26

Jacob                                                    2 Nephi 11:3                                                Jacob 1:7-8

Mormon                                               Mormon 1:5                                                 Mormon 3:20-22

Moroni                                                 Ether 12:38-39                                             Ether 12:41

I don't know about you, but I love to know things like this, so this was a cool discovery for me!

     We completed our week by doing a little more traveling. This whole past week, except for Saturday, it rained and rained. Because of all the rain, we barely made it outside at all. So when Saturday was going to be only cloudy, we jumped in the car and drove to Lough Gur, about 20 km away from Limerick.

     Lough (lake) Gur is the largest lake in Southern Ireland and is home to Ireland's oldest and largest stone circle. This circle dates back to five thousand BC. There is an Irish tale about Lough Gur which involves the Goddess Aine and a boy who finds the goddess's comb and takes it home with him. They say that the goddess banished the boy to the bottom of the lake and that every seven years, he raises to the surface to try to break the spell. The lake is fed by an underwater spring and is only 3.5 better deep in its deepest area. The lake also has two castles near its shores that date back to the 1500's.

Lough Gur near the water's edge

Lough Gur from a different angle

     Grange stone circle is the largest of its kind in Ireland. When it was excavated, they found late Neolithic artifacts, which dates the circle to at least five thousand years BC. The circle was made by using an axial point and rope, to where the diameter of 150 feet was measured out. One hundred and thirteen stones form the circle. The largest stone weighs over forty tons. It could very well have been a ritual site. One clue leads historians to believe this.

     

This is an aerial view that I found on the internet

     

     Here is the clue. The circle also aligns with the four major Solstices. One solstice in particular is very evident here with the ancient stone placement. On the west side of the circle, near where the tall tree on the left side of the above picture, lies two stones that sit side by side and form a V-shape opening. On the fall solstice, October 31st, the sun sets directly, year after year, in-between these two stones. We were told that it is an amazing sight to behold. I have to admit, that when I first stepped down into the circle proper from the stone edges, I felt a power that I had not felt before that moment. How cool to step back in time in such an amazing, historic, probably sacred spot. I loved it.  Here are more pictures.

These are the two V-shaped stones where the Fall Solstice sun sets straight through the middle

Several of the rocks as they line the ancient stone circle

Another angle of the circle. I think the preciseness of the stones is so beautiful

Once again a different angle

This stone, which also lies in the circle, has some ancient carvings engraved in the stone

Entrance into the stone circle on the east side 

This is the largest stone that is thirteen feet tall and weighs 40 tons

     While we were at Lough Gur, nearby is a small chapel ruin and also a well preserved wedge tomb. The church is important still because it lies in the community as a historical remembrance, including its graveyard. The wedge tomb is a Neolithic burial site used between four thousand to two thousand BC. Because these ancient farmers believed in the afterlife, they used these tombs to house their dead. These farmers did not bury their dead, but used cremation instead. When this particular site was excavation in 1938, the remains of eight adults and four children were found.

The chapel ruins

Looking from the inside out onto the graveyard

This is one of the finest wedge tombs in Ireland

Another angle

One last angle of the wedge tomb

     In closing, I want to again express my deep love for my Heavenly Father and for His Precious Son, who not only created this earth that we enjoy throughout all history and in all areas of this earth, but also for Their never failing love that They have for me and you! I am so very grateful to be a covenant daughter and desire to remain faithful, though my human frailties surface often. May the Lord continue to strengthen each of us as we endure and may we clearly see the way back as we follow the light of Christ. Until next week, we love you all!

Maybe my best photo of King John's castle to date! Practice makes perfect, right?