NAUVOO....(Last segment)

We visited this place one day. There is nothing there really, it just

sits quietly, but if a place could talk this one would tell quite a story.

There is a sad, tumbledown town close by, with a reminder of what happened at Haun's Mill.

There was a small group of Mormons here running a grist mill. They knew of the unrest that was going on but they thought that since they were out of the way, no one would bother them here. Joseph Smith had warned them to leave, saying that they were not safe there. However, they had refused, apparently assuming that since they were not directly involved with the troubles going on, they would be left alone, if they minded their own business.

On October 30th, there was an attack on the Mormon community of Haun's Mill. This small, unimportant community, a few miles east of Far West, was enjoying a quiet October day. When the militia rode in, alarm spread. An old man went forward with a white flag, ready to talk things over. He was answered by a deadly barrage of rifle fire, killing him where he stood.

Men, women and children fled across the stream and hid in the hills. One woman reported of bullets raining around her head, and another woman was wounded. Many men and boys barricaded themselves in the blacksmith's shop. The mob stuck their guns through cracks between the logs, and fired point blank until most of the people in the building were dead.

Among those killed were boys under ten and and men over seventy-five. One young boy, crying for help, was shot point blank. The man who did it said; "Nits make lice, he would just grow up to be a Mormon."

The militia left as quickly as they had come. The survivors were so afraid that the militia would return that they did not take time to bury their dead, but put their bodies into a hole being dug for a well. The militia had accomplished a full scale massacre with 1600 rounds of ammunition fired at forty people. Eighteen or nineteen people were killed and fourteen wounded. It was a sad day in history for these poor people.

We next visited this place...

My Ronnie...he can sleep any place..and he does!

The place Adan-ondi-Ahman is the place where Adam called his family together to bless them before he died. This place had been significant in ancient times... and so it will be again.

You can sit on this beautiful green hill and look out over a gorgeous wide valley.

It is a beautiful fertile valley with vast lands of rolling hills... it so very peaceful.

I could have sat here all day...

This earth was once a garden place, with all her glories common,
And men did live a holy race, and worship Jesus face to face,
In Adam-ondi-Ahman.

Hosanna to such days to come, The Savior's second coming,
When all the earth in glorious bloom affords the Saints a holy home,
Like Adam-ondi-Ahnan.

We walked around in it and found this...it almost looked like an ancient alter

over looking a place where people might have gathered together long ago.

It was full of beautiful trees of every kind...

Another look at it...

These trees had long, sharp needles on it, someone

said that the Indians used these for sewing.

We went to Far West next. The last time I was there (22 years ago) there were no trees, just a big square lawn, with 4 huge flat rocks laying in the ground, in the 4 corners of the lawn. When the saints were there, this place had been dedicated, for a temple to be built here at some future time.

This is how it looks now...surrounded by full grown trees and

beautiful flowers. It is a place that felt sacred and so peaceful.

My ancestors did suffer a lot back in those days as they were driven from place to place seeking for religious freedom but they finally found it in Utah. They were lead by the Lord to the Great Salt Lake Valley...now Salt Lake City.

This pioneer migration was the greatest migration in the history of the USA...And it really opened up the West. People were sent out from Salt Lake to establish towns and cities all over the West. Utah is a beautiful, clean state, with 6 or more State Parks now. It was nothing but a desert when the Saints got here, but it (according to prophecy) has "Blossomed like a Rose."

Generations of my family and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has enjoyed freedom here and the church has grown in leaps and bounds and continues to do so today, reaching every corner of the globe...just as the Lord said it would.

...Las Vegas from our airplane...

Some how we got behind a day...I wasn't keeping track of days or time, just so enjoying our vacation. We called the airlines to ask some questions and realized that our flight flew out the next day! So we high-tailed it in that direction. But we had a great last day, driving through many towns and farms. I loved the rolling hills of this lovely country..what fun roads to drive!

We so enjoyed this vacation, the only one I have enjoyed more might have been our vacation to Israel some years ago. These are the kinds of vacations that have great meaning to us. Over the years we have taken all the tourists ones with our kids but these are the ones I love.

We finally got home at 6:30 AM...we had flown and then driven in a down pour of rain all night.
As we drove through our sleepy little town, suddenly, 7 buck deer ran right out in front of our car! It sure woke us up fast and even though deer hunting wasn't until the next week, for a moment I wondered if Ron wasn't going to run right home for his rifle! LOL

I hope you enjoyed coming along...I have put all of this on my blog this way because soon I am going to have a book printed up of my last two years of blog posts. Thanks for your patience! :D