My mother passed away three years ago today. When I first realized she passed on July 24^{th  —} which didn’t happen immediately, because the days had such a fog laying over them –  it gave me a sort of wry satisfaction. That’s because my mom was a Mormon (not a staunch Mormon — a school-teaching, feminist one — but a Mormon nonetheless) and in that culture, July 24^th is Pioneer Day, a special occasion and day of celebration.

It commemorates the day that Brigham Young and the first group of Mormon Pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. We never celebrated this day when I was a kid, or anything like that. Hell, we didn’t even go to church. But still in some esoteric cosmology type of way, I like to imagine my mom arriving in Heaven with all of her Mormon ancestors in the middle of a celebration. I like to think of them making a big deal that she was there to join them.

And then, more Earth-bound and closer to my own sense of how the universe should be (inclusive; equal-rights for everybody), this year, July 24 is special for another reason. Because, of course, today is the day gay marriage becomes legal in New York State. It makes me happy to think that so many people will be celebrating today, because New York is where so many of my own impressions of love and relationships were hatched. Here’s to you Mom! And here’s to love!

We came, we saw, we said the word “Verily” many times to one another

I have returned from my pilgrimage to the Hill Cumorah. And frankly it’s going to take me some time to process it all. To put into context all the discoveries and “revelations” if you will, that took place there. But, while I will hopefully synthesize some of this later on in a much more cohesive way, I wanted to at least give you a few highlights.

Observations on the Hill Cumorah:

There was lovely music that was piped across the hillside. Not exactly hymnal but swelling and nice and uplifting. It carried us along and it was totally pleasant. It made us feel good, optimistic. Like Disneyland. Also it was very clean there. Not a gum wrapper or stray tissue to be found.

There were anti-Mormon protestors, which I hadn’t counted on. A big yellow triangular shaped sign (like a rolling caution sign) was rolling down the street with the words, “What Mormons Don’t Tell.com” in big bold letters. It was cruising through the streets of Palmyra. Parked at the hill too.

There are something like 700 live performers in the show. In the hours before the show begins the performers, all in fabulous costume, mingle about the hillside and talk to people arriving. Many are whole families in costume. The mother dressed as a Lamanite Battle Banner Carrier, the father an Unbeliever With a Torch, the daughter a Harvest Dancer, a son a Nephite. Young women milled about with complimentary copies of the Book of Mormon for anyone who might want one — though in truth I saw very few being handed out as this was an “already in possession of the Book of Mormon” type of crowd.

We had our picture taken with the Evil Nephite King and the Prophet Mormon. We wanted to get our picture taken with Jesus and Joseph Smith but couldn’t find them.

It smelled sweet there. I kid you not – the whole hillside had a sweet smell to it. Wholesome; like flowers and a meadow and baked bread and Lilah and I wondered if there was a special Cumorah scent that was being piped in or it if was just the comingling of everyone’s soap and perfume.

The stage is built into the hillside and is at least 3 stories high. During the performance there is fire, bursting flames, a shimmering tree of life, a raging sea storm, and an exploding volcano. It was really quite exciting and dramatic. Oh and a seriously glowing Jesus floats down from high in the sky.

Some of the t-shirts we saw: “I heart Mormon boys”, “I heart Mormon girls”, the oddly negatively phrased “I don’t – I’m Mormon” and the one I’m kicking myself for not buying that said “Scrapbooking is my drug of choice”. Contrast this with the red sweatshirt Lilah was wearing our first night at the pageant, which said, “Sorry ladies I only date models”.

The language during the performance is very, hmmm, declarative I guess I would call it. For a taste I give you, “In the name of almighty god I command you: Touch Me Not! I am filled with the power of god and whoever lays his hands upon me shall wither like a dried reed.”

I’m not sure I could claim to feel like I know my great grandma Pearl any better after having taken this journey on her behalf, but I do think she would have liked this place. I really do.