I Love to See the Temple

On January 21, 1950, my grandparents, aunt, and father arrived in the United States. They came to this country from Switzerland so they could be sealed in the temple of the Lord and become an eternal family. Leaving everything they knew and loved, they came to the United States because they loved the temple and they wanted to be together forever as a family. They loved the temple even though they had never been inside one of the buildings. They knew this place was the House and the Lord and they knew they needed to be inside the walls.

Two years after they arrived on July 1, 1952, the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced a temple would be built in Switzerland. On September 11, 1955, the Bern Switzerland temple was dedicated as the 9^th operating LDS temple. My grandfather was the President of the Swiss Temple in the ‘80s.

It’s a beautiful temple, built in a beautiful country. I once asked my grandpa why he left Switzerland to come to the United States. He said, very matter of factly, “I came for you.”

I find it only fitting, that 60 years later, on January 25, 2010, a temple was announced in the city where two of my grandfather’s sons raised their families. The Payson Utah temple will be added to the 152 already operating LDS temples around the world.

I think about what the temple means to my family and the sacrifices my grandparents made for our family, for me, and I’m overwhelmed by the feelings. I’m thrilled there will be a temple in the city that I call home. I’m anxious to watch the temple be built, to see the ground broken, to watch the construction, to be a part of the dedication. I think of the wonderful teaching opportunities this will be for my two nephews. I think of the blessing a temple so nearby will mean to my family. How grateful I am. How blessed I am.