Last weekend was the LDS General Conference. For those of you living outside of the Beehive State who are not LDS, you have probably never heard of this event. Twice a year, members of LDS church meet in Salt Lake and discuss various topics relevant to the church. These two Sundays, are the only two Sundays all year that members are not required to attend church. Instead, many families gather together and watch the conference on TV.
During General Conference a few years ago, my family went out for dinner at a local Italian restaurant. This restaurant usually gets pretty crowded on a Saturday night. We were enjoying our pasta, when I looked around the dining room and realized the only two men in the restaurant were my husband and son. This seemed a bit strange and we all noted that this must be some sort of “girl’s night out”. Actually, we learned later, that on Saturday evening during Conference weekend there is a “priesthood meeting”. All LDS men and boys over 13 attend.
This, of course, is no big deal. It was just another evening where we realized we were different from most of our neighbors. That happens a lot in a place where the vast majority of people worship the same way. It is probably similar to Baptist communities in the South or Jewish communities in New York. There might be great comfort in living amongst people who are just like you. I wouldn’t know as until I moved to Utah, I have always lived in very diverse communities. Although Utah’s quality of life and beauty make it a nice place to live, I long to return to a place where I dine with all types of people. Everyone gets to decide for themselves which kind of place they want to inhabit. What should be true for all of us is that...
“There is No Place Like Home!”
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