Friday, August 25, 2017 – Weeding – Cleaning & Deadheading, Saw Mill, Pizza & A Movie

Our whole work day was in the Visitor’s Center flowerbeds weeding, cleaning and deadheading. Elder Cantwell and Elder Kyle Johnson also blew the sidewalks of both the Women’s Garden and the Visitor’s Center. Every Monday and Friday we do a general cleaning and blowing but today we did a deep cleaning of the flowerbeds.

 

We also “Dead Headed” a lot of the past bloom flowers in the gardens. They were overdue for a good dead heading. There are so many that we didn’t even finish today. We’ll probably go at it again the first of next week. 

Mid-morning Elder Bass at FM’s sawmill called for help moving logs. After our mid-day break Sis. Johnson and I drove Elder Cantwell and Elder Kyle Johnson over to the sawmill to help Elder Bass. This was the first time we’ve been to the sawmill and it was fascinating.

 

Almost all of the trees that are cut down in Old Nauvoo by the tree removal crew are hollow because they are rotted out in the center. This is the same problem the Prophet Joseph Smith had when he founded Nauvoo in 1839. To find suitable lumber to build a city, the Prophet contracted with lumbermen at the headwaters of the Mississippi in Minnesota to float huge rafts of timber downstream to Nauvoo.

 

When the tree removal crew takes down at tree today, it is usually sent to the wood chipper. But occasionally there is a tree that is whole and healthy and can be used for lumber. That’s were Elder Bass come in. Some of the trees like Ash and Black Walnut are high quality lumber and the boards are used by FM in the Wood Shop and the Cabinet Shop.

Tonight Sis. Johnson invited the young Service Missionaries over for Pizza and a movie. Evidently the pizza was “All you can eat” because everyone was stuffed and there was leftovers.  And the evening didn’t have “a” movie, the Elders watched two. The first movie was Disney’s latest release of “The Jungle Book.” That movie was followed by Marvel’s “Ant Man.” Good movie choices and a great evening.

A good pizza and movie night wouldn’t be complete without pop corn, root beer floats and ice cream cones.  It was a very good evening for our dedicated young Service Missionaries.