Look Up

Look up! It feels good. Doesn't it?

While walking the streets of Heckmondwike, England, my very Spanish missionary companion asked me in his very Spanish accent why I always look up: "You see de clouds, and de buildings; I always look just at de walkway. Why you always look up?" I think he asked the question while I was taking this picture. Beautiful, isn't it?

Upper Independent Chapel, High Street, Heckmondwike, England

Until he mentioned it, I hadn't thought much of it. I just like looking up at all there is to see. But it was a good moment for me--to realize I had a healthy habit of looking heavenward.

Recently, I have found myself looking down more. I guess three kids and three years of law school have added some weight to my responsibilities, making it harder to remember what's up there. But just this afternoon, my sweet, three-year-old [oldest] daughter asked, "Why are you looking down, Daddy?" Instantly, my inner tension was diffused as my mind went back to my Spanish companion. I was also reminded of the words of Carl B. Cook from his 2011 address, "It Is Better to Look Up". I looked up at her with a smile.

And [Jesus] said . . . Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Matt. 18:3)

I have often wondered if one of the reasons children are so happy is because of how much they look up. By nature, children are always looking up. They look up to parents and other adults out of necessity; they look up to the birds and planes out of curiosity; and they look up to heaven out of pure belief.

Here are a few 'snapshots of heaven' followed by one of my favorite passages of scripture. Although a camera lens can never capture the breathtaking beauty of a majestic mountain range, or an open sky sunset in the mid-west, these photos lift my spirit nonetheless.

I will start with a sample of my Utah photos:

Ivins, Utah: one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

Wasatch Front north of Bountiful, Utah.
I always thought these mountains looked like the profile of a battlefront-line of  horses galloping into the valley.

Sunset over the Great Salt Lake from my parents' front porch.

Daytime moon above shear wall along Angel's Landing trail in Zions National Park, Southern Utah.

Looking up at a small sunflower -- which is also looking up  :)

Looking upward to the late-summer warmth on Mount Timpanogos.

Winter shot of Mount Timpanogos from Provo, Utah (reminds me of my Grandma).

Balloon over St. George, Utah from Dixie State University.
When I was in my early teens, I got to ride in a hot air balloon thanks to my dad's friend, Smiley. What an experience!

St. George, Utah temple -- where Tiffani and I were married for time and all eternity. In our first apartment, we lived nearly across the street from the temple. What a remarkable place. So grateful to have lived in St. George for four years.

The following several images I took on a trip to Italy in 2006 (just before I left for my mission in England). A friend who was living in Italy at the time invited me to visit him, and we saw as much of the country as we could in 14 days. What a great time, and what a wonderful country!

Beautiful flaking-plaster stone walls in Città della Pieve, Italy

Detail of Cathedral atop the tuff-cliff city of Orvieto, Italy

Enjoying the powerful wind and breathtaking view on the Rocca Maggiore castle in Assisi, Italy -- probably my favorite place in all of Italy

The Saints surrounding the courtyard of St. Peter's Bascillica in Rome, Italy

Giotto's Campanile across from the Cathedral in Florence, Italy. I climbed every step. (And it was worth every step!)

Tower over St. Mark's Square in Venice, Italy (climbed that one too).

Spiral staircase exiting the Vatican museum.

While sitting in the Pantheon, I noticed what looked like a droplet of light descending from the oculus (upper opening). I rose from my seat and slowly walked toward the center of the floor as the light fell. We (the light and I) reached the center of the room at about the same time, and when the droplet of light touched my hand, I could see it was the soft feather of a pigeon, no doubt perched atop that historic structure. I kept the light feather as a souvenir.

View from the plane window -- love that clear, huge, dark-blue sky .

And now for some of England:

Hartlepool sunrise (view from second-story "flat" window in first area).

Sunrise over Hartlepool Harbour.

Foggy morning at Hartlepool Harbour.

Sunrise, Hartlepool.

Spen Valley sunrise. Loved being on foot (most of the time); saw the sunrise every morning on the way to the bus stop (during some winter months); spent a lot of time on long walks talking to my two great companions (Elders Echarri and Williams) and people by the way.

View from my study desk in Newcastle flat. Minister gave us a tour of the church and tower. Joined in sermon and singing Christmas day.

Church bell-tower.

Castle ruins near Newcastle, England.

View of Newcastle horizon and streets. Walked this way nearly every day to get to town for street contacting.

Newcastle

Durham Cathedral.

Bridge near Durham Cathedral.

Durham Cathedral. Apparently took 40 years to build.

Looking up through the Durham Cathedral courtyard.

Looking up to the light in the Durham Cathedral courtyard.

Sunset above Newcastle rooftops.

Lindisfarne (Holy Island). 

Others:

Morning-run sunrise before a rainy day in Gladstone, Missouri.

Thanks to my daughter's reminder, I feel renewed commitment to "lift up [my] head and be of good cheer" (3 Ne. 1:13).

Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.
And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them. (Mosiah 4:9)