Angie & Jim

Kayleigh’s Wedding in San Diegoby Angie

The beautiful San Diego Temple

We had a wonderful experience this weekend in San Deigo for the wedding of a dear friend, Kayleigh Rose Torres…now Mrs. Evan Kidwell. We carpooled down with the Mills family: Kelly & Joleen, their daughter Amber, and Kelly’s mother Edna. Kelly has a brother living in Upland (~2 hours north of San Diego), so we drove that far Friday night and were welcomed by Dean and his family. It was so kind and gracious of them to let us stay!

Saturday morning, we left early and made it to San Diego with plenty of time. The temple is absolutely beautiful and built in a fascinating way: lots of angles, huge windows and skylights, and even a lovely little atrium in the central hallway of the third floor. The Sealing Room was small but full, and the Sealing itself was one of the most insightful I’ve ever attended. I took away several principles that I hope to apply more fully in my own life and marriage. Here are a few of my favorites:

– “If you want the best husband in the world, be the best wife in the world…and vice versa.”
– “You can’t be in the temple every day, but you can have a temple experience every day of your life – every time you get dressed to begin your day.”
– “We need to be spiritually nourished on a daily basis, and so do our marriages: We nourish one another not only with prayers and scripture study, but also with words and notes of love and encouragement, especially “Please,” “Thank You,” “I’m sorry,” and “I love you.”

That evening, at a lovely country club in the hills above the city, Kayleigh’s YSA bishop led their ring ceremony. He had wonderful, fun counsel to give as well, including the injunction to treat their marriage like a brand new car: Take good care of it, fix it up when things go wrong, and patch it up when it gets little scrapes & dings. If you do, down the road you won’t have a run-down old beater, you’ll have a pristine classic worth even more than when you first got it.

A reception followed, including dinner, toasts, and dancing. When the DJ announced the “Anniversary Dance,” he asked all married couples to come to the floor. About 30 seconds apart, he dismissed first the couple married less than one day, then those less than five years, then those less than ten years, and so on until they narrowed it down to the longest-married couple in the room, who had been married for 53 years. The DJ asked what was the secret to being happily married so long. The husband said, “My wife’s grandmother told her on the morning of their wedding that all she needed to do was treat her husband like he was her favorite little boy: love him, take care of him, and give him milk and cookies sometimes…That sure worked for me!” His wife then replied, “Also, you keep a good sense of humor.”

We spent that night in a nearby Marriott Residence Inn, then visited a 9:00 Sacrament Meeting on Sunday morning.  It was a combined meeting for a regular ward and the local Deaf Branch, so there was an interpreter on the stand for the talks, and an ASL conductor to lead us in signing the hymns. And, who should be speaking that day in that ward but the San Diego Temple President and his wife!  Sister Yeager told a story about a man who took his two grandsons for a drive in the nearby hills. After an hour of circuitous travel, they stopped to take in the view. He asked the boys, “Do you boys know where we are?” They shook their heads. He said, “Do you think we’re lost?” One of the boys pointed out over the valley to the bright building that was the temple and answered, “Grandpa, you are never lost when you can see the temple!” It is really true.  Also, she brought up the Bible Dictionary reference that only a home compares to a temple in sacredness, and continued on the idea of our homes being like the temple: Ideally, they will be a place of love and peace, clean and orderly, filled with uplifting images and music. She ended by quoting President Monson, “Temples are more than stone & mortar…They are the all-important, crowning blessing of membership in Christ’s Church.” My testimony of the blessings of the temple has been strengthened in so many ways over this weekend.

Amber, Joleen, & Edna

We returned to the hotel to have a late breakfast, pack up, and check out (and report the ants in our hotel room – ew), before driving to Upland once more. We spent a couple of hours with the Mills’ family again and enjoyed a delicious dinner of homemade fajitas before finally heading home. Despite the break in our driving, we all started to go a little stir crazy after a while, so Jim spent some time helping Amber with her Calculus homework, amazing us all with his Mathmagician skills and tricks. At one point, Edna said, “He’s speaking an entirely different language, I’m sure of it!”  We finally arrived home as the sky was darkening, and were welcomed by a sleepy, purring cat who was thrilled to no longer be home alone.