The Christus

Every year around Christmas time we make the annual trip to Temple Square to see the Christmas lights. Every year we get bundled up, try our best to stay warm, and keep the emotions of our children in check. Some years we debate whether or not it's worth the effort as we carry cold, crying children around the Temple just to see a few lights.

This year I was one of the naysayers who didn't really want to go. I'm not a huge fan of crowds and traffic and I kinda wanted a nice evening at home. But I decided I needed to do it for Benjamin and Savannah. So we all loaded in the car and off we went. Parking was a bit of a challenge, but that's just to be expected.

As we neared the Temple grounds, the first thing Savannah asked was if we could see the "Jesus statue". Of course, that's part of the tradition I thought. After we stood in more lines for the bathroom and ascended the spiral walkway that lead to the statue, Savannah grabbed my hand and began to pull me. There was a sense of urgency to get as close as she could to that statue. As she wiggled her way through the crowds and pulled me along with her I didn't try to pull her back or slow her down. I just followed her. Once we arrived at the Savior's feet and she looked up at that statue I started to get teary eyed. I couldn't help but think that if the Savior were here today, this is exactly what we would do. We wouldn't want to wait. We would rush to his side as if our very life depended on it. And it does. Because of this experience, I was so grateful we made the trip. It was completely worth it.