Day Eight: The Sabbath Day in Hamilton

Sunday morning we were able to sleep in a bit and then headed over to the Matthew Cowley Museum of Church History. Outside of the Salt Lake City, this is the only dedicated Church History Library although other areas have Repositories holding Church History artifacts and some allow researchers some access.

This was built in one of the buildings which were part of the Church College which was here for many years.  It also exists because of one woman--Sister Parker--who realized years ago in the early 1980s that missionaries--in their journals, their lived history and even in the things they had taken home from their missions to New Zealand carried much of the history of the Church in New Zealand.  She started coming to the United States and interviewing them--all on her own and with her own resources.  She gathered many many significant artifacts and stories and kept them at her home for many years until this museum was built.  She is currently now serving as a senior missionary with her husband there.  Hers is a remarkable story of "doing much good of your own accord."  And the Church and especially the people of New Zealand will be blessed for her work for generations.

It was a beautiful day in Hamilton as you can see in the clouds reflected in the doors.

The building itself...

A display inside--it represents not only the New Zealand people but all of the South Sea Islands.

Matthew Cowley was an important missionary to this area in the early 1900s.  Many children were named after him according to the stories we have heard--even now.

We actually made two stops at the library--before Church and then again Monday morning before we headed out of town.  Our first visit we saw mainly behind the scenes where the Carters work most of the time.

They have a very small archive room to store items with rolling shelves just like in Salt Lake.

This feathered cape recently came into the collection.

We headed to Church where it turned out that Carters were teaching the 5th Sunday lesson about the Book of Mormon and they were able to do much the same presentation that they used to do back in Salt Lake when they did tours and firesides.  Our skills and talents are never wasted if we go and do the things the Lord wants us to do.

We went back to the Museum Monday morning  and took a more general tour of the exhibits and learned more about the Church in this part of the world.  We have been taught that the gospel will spread to every land and isle of the sea....now those isles of the sea are getting temples--such a blessing for them where international travel is so expensive for them.

On Sunday after Church, we headed to the famous Hamilton Botanical Gardens.  It was a great thing to do on a Sunday with good friends on a vacation.  God's handiwork is amazing!

The garden is divided into different regions of the world and they sought to create gardens in the style of those places.  As you entered through the gates of each one, you immediately could sense the difference.  It was very fun.  Of course, I took lots of pictures of flowers--more than you want to see.  Here is just a sample.

Sister Carter and I

A native village garden

The Surrealist Garden which was so fun.  It made me want to have one in our community.

One last photo from the Surrealist Garden--  the NOSE!

We headed home and enjoyed a great dinner of tacos and then played games, talked and ate M&Ms.  Fun times with great friends.  We are so lucky.