Manti Mormon Miracle Pageant

Me and ... Mormon?

Carl and some Extras

Have you been to this pageant? I thought I had been when I was little, but the set up was so different from what I have in my memory, I wonder if this really was my first time. I loved it. It was a little cheesy, but most LDS spectacles are. When the lights turned out and the spotlight pointed out Moroni on the very top of the temple, facing East, blowing his trumpet while his clothes fluttered in the wind ... I couldn't breathe. I had chills up and down my body and a big lump in my throat. When Jesus came to America and blessed the children, I blamed my sniffling on allergies. I loved it.

Carl's parents (Eva and Stewart) picked us up and we headed down in Eva's mini cooper. Stewart's a very big boy and had me laughing the entire time with his shenanigans. My absolute favorite was after the pageant when we pulled over at a Maverick to fill up Stewart's Big Gulp. I tried to wait patiently in line for the bathroom, but it went nowhere and I eventually gave up.

While I was being patient, I spied Stewart filling his Big Gulp with some Coke, then a pump of cherry, then he'd taste it, then he'd put some more Coke, some more cherry, taste it. He was determined to make this the most perfect soda ever.

Later, after I gave up and joined everyone, Stewart wouldn't let me say no to treats (It was almost midnight, we'd eaten funnel cake and fried potatoes and candy bars, my stomach was not happy). Stewart shoved an ice cream in my hand, "Amy! It's the best thing you've ever eaten, best thing ever! You can get them for fifty cents in China, but I'm happy to pay two bucks for you. Here, let's each get one! Eva! Grab four!" if only I could convey his tone, pure funny. I laughed while I tried to say no and warned him that I would definitely spill in the car, "Amy! We don't care, we don't care! You could wipe it all over the seat!" He then set his huge drink which he had masterfully concocted on the counter, told the lady to charge him for four ice creams and 300 Big Reds. I laughed, the lady paused and immediately sprouted worried eyebrows. "I'm just teasing, what would I do with 300 Big Reds?"

As we climbed into our little clown car, Carl sat behind Stewart, but that was my seat, so Carl and Stewart obnoxiously bickered back and forth.

"Carl! Carl! Move it, you can't sit there! You can't fit, Amy has to sit there."

"Dad! I'm fine, I'll just put my legs up."

"Carl, hurry up and move, I'm not kidding."

Carl didn't move, we were fine, Stewart got in the driver's seat and started to back up with ice cream in his left hand which was steering while his right hand was shifting.

Then there was a bumping sound. Not quite hitting a car sound, maybe running over a small animal sound... We were all confused until,

"Scheisse! My drink!"

I was rocking back and forth I was laughing so hard. Stewart had left his drink on top of the car. "My drink Eva! My drink! It was so perfect, oh! What a waste Eva, what a waste. No, I'm not going to go fill it up again! I can't believe all of that, wasted. Oh ... we have to get out of here, those teenagers are laughing at us."

There really were teenagers laughing at us.

Then Stewart almost drove off the curb in his rush to get out of there. He also dropped a panel of chocolate from his ice cream. "Oh perfect, now my ice cream is ruined too, what a waste Eva, what a waste! I don't know where it went! You can eat it if you find it Eva, you can eat it."