Temple Blessings

Bountiful Temple

Those who know me well know that I grew up in a very small family. This family basically consisting of just my Mom, Sister, Grandparents and two Great Aunts. On April 15 of 1998 Aunt "Afty" (Afton Ruffin) passed away at the age of 87 due to age related illnesses. She was an amazing women. She did marry but was never able to have children. She was very active in the community and in the Church. She loved music, she sang and played the guitar and organ. She also loved music boxes and had many through out her home. Most people can cook or bake but she could do both really well. I remember when I was young she would make my birthday cakes. Her baking cakes for me is a the reason I do it for my kids. During her life she wrote poems and loved to garden. My fondest memories are of the smells of her beautiful roses in her yard. I can't smell a rose without thinking of her. She was an amazing women and still missed to this day.

Her Sister, Aunt Venna was quite the opposite. Maybe in her younger years she was happy and contributed to society but when I knew her she didn't have the most optimistic personality. She never married and never had any children. So again this explains why we had such a small family. During her life she smoked and due to this was never active in the church. To be honest we don't even know if she was ever blessed or baptized and confirmed a member. But even though she wasn't the happiest person, I loved her. She was my Aunt. When we were little and we would visit her, I remember playing word searches with her and my sister. I always would get so upset because BreAnna would always get more words than me. She is older and so she was faster. Growing up I would go in and clean her house for her. Granted this really was more forced upon, but she paid really great. At lunch time she would make me a tuna fish sandwich on butter bread. I don't know maybe this is common but to me it was really weird. However I would eat it and to be honest it really wasn't that bad. Even though most of the time together was forced upon us, I am so glad now that I had that time with her. Growing up for some reason my family put us into categories. I was Aunt Venna's favorite and BreAnna was Aunt Afty's. So when Aunt Venna passed away on February 11th of 2005 at the age of 90 of age related illnesses I was very sad. But that is life and she had a long one.

But to be honest this wasn't the last moments we have had together. During the last 5 years Aunt Venna has been literally visiting me in my dreams. I would say she has been in at least a good half dozen dreams. I know this may just be guilty conscious but I would rather believe that she was visiting me to tell me she needed me to do her Temple work for her. The dreams all had the same basic plot. Aunt Venna was wherever I was in my dream with me. She never spoke but I always told her she wasn't supposed to be here with me. I just knew even in my dreams that she was in the wrong place. To be honest they have been a little bit disturbing. And the last two have had Aunt Afty there with her. They were really trying to get me to get the work done I guess. So finally after 5 years Will and I went to the Temple on January 16, 2010 and did her Temple work. We spent the whole afternoon at the Bountiful Temple, just the two of us. I did everything for her from baptism to sealing her with her parents. It was such an amazing experience to go do Temple work for somebody I knew and was so close to. It was such a peaceful day. I know in the Temple you aren't supposed to worry about the outside world or anything. And that was exactly how the day went. I didn't think twice about the time of day or anything outside of just doing her work. I feel so very honored to do her work. I miss her so much. Even more now that I have done this, ironically. I am sad to be done but I am glad for her, I hope she still visits me.