Summer Girl Gets Baptized

We went to the farm the other night. We hadn't been in awhile, and I'd been feeling a missing sort of homesickness for the place. (Which is a surprising thing to feel for a place that has never actually been home).

The starlings were everywhere in great flocks--covering tree branches till they were more bird than leaf, twisting themselves through the sky in patterned clouds of black, perching in great lines across fences and panels. The alfalfa had just been cut and was still lying in rows waiting to be baled. Goldie and I walked some of the littler ones carefully back along the cut lanes--our feet crunching satisfactorily over the low, dry stubble where alfalfa had been severed--to the hidden and overgrown, back pond.

And with us was this little sprite of a child--dressed in a way that would typically not be permitted on the farm:

It was permitted, however, because she had been baptized just 24 hours earlier, and I'd promised her pictures somewhere pretty in her new, white dress. 

And if there'd been any question remaining (after the dried alfalfa, swirls of birds, and goldfish hiding under algae in the cow trough) about the magic of the farm that day, it was put squarely to rest by the presence of this bright little soul--sun filtering through her hair and setting a glow all about her.

She'd been so excited for her baptism day. It didn't seem quite real to her that such an occasion could really, truly be hers. (Words kept failing her as she tried to explain it. "I mean it never seemed like too big of a deal when other people got baptized. But now that it's my baptism ... !")

But she'd also been a bit nervous. She wanted such a significant day to feel as special as it should. And what if it didn't?

I was a little worried too. As our family has grown in size, many of our siblings have entered the realms of grandchildren, etc. In my family in particular it has started to seem that one could conceivably attend an extended family baby blessing, baptism, missionary talk, or wedding every month. (In fact one of my brothers had a granddaughter baptized the very same day as Summer.) So we've tried to somewhat ease the expectations in recent years by mostly just celebrating these events with our own family and grandparents. Luckily our own little family is actually quite a large family, so it's a fair amount of support! Still, I was worried that not having the big gatherings that her oldest few siblings had might somehow mar the day.

And there was a small moment (when I was being brisk about mess, and siblings were bickering) that Summer got a little teary (because that felt very ordinary and not special at all). But I know just that feeling. So I comforted her quite well.

And when it came to the actual baptism, she couldn't stop smiling. (She told me that, while in the font, she made sure to smile the whole time so everyone would know how happy she was. I surely felt that happiness! It felt all of heaven was pausing to rejoice!) Mike gave her a beautiful confirmation blessing. And, afterwards, we had pumpkin pie, chocolate covered strawberries and chocolate milk.

(Here Summer is with Blakely--the other little girl in our ward who was baptized on Saturday.)

(And with Melyssa--our friend from church who all of my little kids plead to go sit by during every sacrament meeting.)

(And with Alma and Gayle. [I was slow telling my mom about the baptism day and she'd already agreed to play for my brother's granddaughter's baptism. But she came out beforehand to bring Summer her own new set of scriptures!])

(Abe had signed up months ago for a race in Salt Lake and so, sadly, missed the baptism, but Daisy and Goldie came back from just having settled into their college dorms/apartments.)

(We tried to have a picture with Summer and all of her sisters. But one small sister was unwilling to leave my side. ...)

(So I tried to bring her in. Somewhat successfully. ...)

(Her primary teacher [on the right], and two members of the primary presidency.)

After pumpkin pie and strawberries, Mike came up with a plan for the rest of her special day that would involve four wheel drive. (Which our van does not have. Luckily we have the truck and the Bronco.)

We drove a solid hour and a half up Willard Road to Inspiration Point--stopping a ways before the top to hike to a tiny lake Mike knows about that is home to loads of salamanders. (I assumed we'd be lucky to see even one, but the kids were catching them left and right. Summer seemed to think that catching salamanders--which she excelled at--was an excellent way to celebrate getting baptized.) Along with the salamanders we saw rabbits (very fluffy and large and not at all appearing to belong in the mountains) and a moose (admittedly the moose was dead ... but it isn't every day you see an entire moose carcass ...).

Here we are at the top. It was incredibly windy and cold--something I did not expect at all (seeing as our temperatures at home have been in the 90s still)--so we didn't last long, but it was a pretty amazing view.

By the time we got back off the mountain onto smooth roads it was after 10 p.m. and everyone was hungry so we stopped at the little McDonald's in Brigham City. Only to have them not let us in at that late hour. So Mike went through the drive through and we ate on the grass out front--in full view of all the other late-night McDonald's drive through goers. Perhaps not the most glamorous way to end the day. But I don't think any of us cared!

Happy baptism, Summer! (And older kids ... I'm sorry it never occurred to me to take baptism pictures for you. If you'd come as a seventh child I might have thought of it by then.)