The Things I Miss...

I miss Utah.

I miss the mountains; the temples...I miss my friends, all of whom are now returned from the mission field.  I miss running and laughing in the rain barefoot past the gates at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, my heels kicked off in a fit of pique.  It was 60 degrees on the 20th of October.  I miss kissing my husband under the branches of an oak tree while our crazy friend ran around looking for his lost Subaru amidst the parking lots full of Conference-bound cars.

I miss the sun-burnt rocks of St. George; walking down the street at 7:30 in the morning without a coat because it was warm as deep springtime.  I miss the feel of the sun on my face as I sat on the cool stone steps of the temple and lost myself in a moment of sheer grace.  I ache to return there, to that place where I instantly belonged; where I could be alone, but was never lonely. 

Someday, I will live there.  I will dance along the sun-drenched streets in bright, pretty sundresses while my children sing me songs of the pioneers.  I will take comfort in the cool shadows of the mountains; I will work patiently and diligently in the temple.  I will serve my Lord as a simple, happy, Latter-Day Saint woman.

On Friday of this week, I am interviewing for a social work position in Wheeling, where I'm from.  It is far indeed from Utah, but I miss it as well.  I miss the familiarity and comfort that comes from being somewhere you know.  Few things have changed in the Ohio Valley since I was a baby; the people are polite and kind to one another, more so than here. 

I miss my family; my friends.  I miss being able to find my way home from anywhere within a 50 mile radius.  I miss the hills.  I miss knowing where to get good food without having to go to a chain restaurant.  I miss spending time with people who have loved me as long as I've lived and who continue to love me just because I'm still here. 

Someday, I will live there.  I will relax in the deep softness that is the love of my family.  I will begin a career that I never imagined for myself.  I will lift my eyes to the hills that cradled most of my life and that of my family.  I will go to the temple at least once a month.  I will serve my Lord as a simple, happy, Latter-Day Saint woman.