My first few days in New York City brought me a whirlwind of activity here in my new surroundings. I felt incredibly happy and grateful every minute for the amazing, totally unexpected opportunity to serve full-time in the Manhattan Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
I had many spiritual experiences that reaffirmed the feeling that many blessings await me as I give my whole heart to this mission.
President and Sister Bench were waiting to greet me when I arrived in the lobby of my new home in the 37-story apartment building adjacent to the temple the night of September 1. They escorted me to my apartment, where I was warmly greeted by my roommate, Sister M----, a delightful person whom I was sorry to see leave to return to her home in Hawaii at the end of her mission September 10. She took me on a walking tour of our neighborhood after church the following day, and gave me lots of vital information about how things work in our apartment building, as well as what is expected of me as a temple missionary.
The couple missionaries are assigned to work in different local wards and branches on Sundays, but we two single sisters attend the Manhattan 1stward, which this year meets from 11:00 AM until 2:00 PM. The brother who plays the organ is a virtuoso, and he plays introductions and intervals between the third and fourth verses of the hymns that, in combination with the voices of many in the congregation who are professional singers, make us feel like we are singing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir!
The congregation is very diverse, and I love seeing people from all races and ethnic groups, and hearing different accents when people speak. There are always many visitors in attendance, so they set up chairs filling up the entire cultural hall. I will try to arrive early to be able to sit on the padded pews because I have always liked to sit near the front to see and hear the speakers to best advantage.
After church, I went with President and Sister Bench to the temple, where President Bench laid his hands on my head to set apart as an ordinance worker, and give me an inspired blessing that confirmed to me that this is one of the experiences God wishes me to have before I leave this earth.
All the missionaries are so friendly, helpful, and loving to me, as are the local volunteer ordinance workers, most of whom come to serve a shift weekly or bi-weekly.
I have enjoyed walking and using public transportation. I love people-watching, so I usually don’t read on the subway.
Saturday, September 9, I had two wonderful experiences in the temple that touched my heart:
At one point a sister approached me saying, “Sister Stone, I’m Hermana H----!” She was a Dominican sister missionary in our mission 20 years ago! We had a chance to chat a bit later, and she mentioned to those around us that I had taught her how to lead music [in a zone conference]. It made me think about how much I enjoyed the three years David and I spent when he was President of the Dominican Republic Santo Domingo West Mission. During our missionary zone conferences David always had me teach a 45 min. lesson, and one of them was on the fundamentals of directing congregational hymns, a skill that was greatly appreciated wherever the missionaries went.
The second special experience was when I was assigned to spend 30 minutes in the entrance foyer, helping patrons to know where to go. I overheard a Spanish-speaking brother say, “Soy Dominicano.” I immediately approached him to ask where in the Dominican Republic he was from, and when he said Santo Domingo, I mentioned that my husband had been a mission president there. He looked at my name tag, and his face lit up as he said he remembered Pres. Stone well. He particularly remembered that after David became a General Authority he gave a talk in General Conference, “Spiritual Hurricanes” October 1999 in which he equated the warnings of apostles and prophets about “spiritual hurricanes” to the warnings given to missionaries and members in the D.R. about the physical hurricane that hit the country 20 years ago this month.
My daughter Carolyn came to NYC on business, and I had a wonderful visit with her over our lovely dinner at the Tea and Sympathy English restaurant in Greenwich Village. After dinner she came back with me to see my apartment with its beautiful view of Lincoln Center and the Juilliard School across the street.
The evening of September 9, the temple missionary couple from Singapore, Bro. and Sis. T---- hosted a home-cooked Chinese dinner for over twenty people to bid farewell to my roommate. Sis. T---- had cooked seven different dishes, all of which were delicious!
After dinner we watched a video on the story of how the Manhattan temple came to be. In one scene filmed during the Fireside service after the cultural presentation at Radio City Music Hall, we saw me sitting on the stage, and David (who was conducting the meeting) motioning Pres. Hinckley to the stand. Precious memories of that special time connected with the temple dedication flooded into my mind, and I marveled again at the kindness of the Lord in allowing me to return to serve in this very special holy temple.
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