We have the water. Where is Noah?

Greetings Family & Friends--

Angel Moroni on Anchorage AK temple thru fog.

Farrell writing. This warm Anchorage weather we have been having is too good (distracting, although enjoyable) -- makes me want to start working in the yard and gardening. It's been in the mid 40's most days. We understand it's warmer here than in Utah. The last few days have been full of high winds (70mph gusts) and lots of rain. Six inches of rain in some parts of Alaska. I think we are somewhere around three inches in Anchorage. Being a desert boy, this is a lot of rain. All that is about to change. The storms will pass, the skies will clear, and temperatures drop into the negative range -- forecast is -6F on Wednesday. Strangest thing is the ground here. Even after a couple of weeks of warm temperatures and all the snow and ice melted by the rain and wind the ground can be very slippery. We stepped out onto a sloped black driveway tonight, that at one point had melted off, but was now covered in a thin film of very slick ice -- air temperature 45F. No outside planting yet, I guess😉

Been in this pond before. Turned around.

We had success this week getting our Visitors' Center reset on stands after blowing off a couple of weeks ago. It was not easy but we now feel much better with the ability to welcome people and enjoy the cozy work space it is. We cleaned up and moved back in on Friday. Yet to come is an ADA ramp on the front.

We wander the construction site daily with our handy Sony camera. It was a beehive of activity early in the week especially in the Utility Bldg. There were seven people on the roof roofing, eight people inside installing hangers for pipe and conduit, two people outside applying a roll-on water membrane and the brick masons all staged for covering the building in split concrete block. We will have to see tomorrow how much of the plastic surrounding the block work and roof has survived the latest wind attack.

Sunset.

The staging area around the temple has changed dramatically. We received a
truckload of very large air handling units. There is very little steel still sitting on the ground. That means it has been installed. Big bundles of metal corrugated decking have been swinging into place. They seem to manage it in between the wind gusts. They weld it down and crimp the edges together. That will be the roof for awhile and provide some shelter inside. With a temporary poly cover it might even get warm and have an "inside".

We rely on drone pictures -- by far the best for an overview at this stage in the construction. Drones don't fly well or at all in windy or snowy conditions. The drone used here can handle up to about 20mph and even that is rough. So none this week. We have added rendering photos on to our repertoire. What that means is that the architect team has "created" pictures that are designed to look like the final building. We have outside renderings and renderings of individual rooms. They include the paint, carpets, furniture, artwork, millwork, stone etc. The intent is to make the final construction look identical to the rendering. Colors are the most difficult. So now we go to the spot in the construction that matches the location of the rendering view to take weekly/monthly photos. It takes a little doing to identify the location, angle, height, etc. We may need to get a different camera lens when things get framed in more and we don't have the ability to stand anywhere we want.

For our devotional this past week, I used an Elder Bednar post about the California fires.

"My heart aches for the thousands of people who are suffering unimaginable challenges caused by the devastating wildfires in Southern California. I am also humbled by and grateful for all who are assisting the individuals and families who have been affected by this tragedy. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is providing resources and working with multiple local organizations to help assess both the short- and long-term needs.
But much more than temporal resources are required to heal from such overwhelming losses. Please know that we are not, and never need be, alone. You can press forward with heavenly help.
The Lord Jesus Christ perfectly knows and understands, for He has felt and borne our individual burdens. He has perfect empathy and can extend to us His arm of mercy. He can reach out, succor, heal, and strengthen us to do that which we could never do relying on our own limited capacity.
This is a true principle for the people of Southern California and for anyone experiencing pain or disappointment anywhere in the world.
As families recover and communities rebuild, I pray that you will rely on the Savior to bless you with peace, courage, hope, strength, and healing."

We heard about Elder Bednar's visit to Seattle to meet with all the West Area Stake and Mission Presidents. This subject came up there. He was quoted by both our Mission President and Stake President recently.

We are so grateful to realize that the Savior is who He said he is and that he loves each of us. We can look the other way for awhile, but the time will come when we will all know who he is and will feel his overwhelming love. I have felt some of that love. It is real. It is warm. It penetrates to your very center. It stays with you for days after you feel it.

What a wonderful time to be alive. Life is an adventure and all of us are in the middle of it. Enjoy! #Think Celestial

All our love,

Farrell and Kitty

Elder & Sister Badger