September 4, 2010 – Saturday – Council Bluffs, Iowa to West Branch, Iowa (drove 4.5 hours and 265 miles)

Winter Quarters, Iowa

1. Breakfast at the motel including bananas, Danish, and grits on muffins

2. Visited Kanesville Tabernacle in Council Bluffs where the First Presidency of the Church was reorganized in 1847 for the first time since the assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith in 1844.

3. Visited Winter Quarters where pioneers stayed for several years and one in twelve (a total of 400) died from cold and disease. We walked through the cemetery and around the temple constructed in 2001.

4. Lunch on the go from a pharmacy: shared a premade, prepackaged club sandwich and Dad had a Hostess fruit pie and his daily chocolate milk. No complaint from Dad

Kanesville Tabernacle - Dad next to Grandpa Willard Richards

5. Drove to West Branch, Iowa and checked into the EconoLodge, Room 117. This place is just plopped out in the middle of Iowa cornfields next to a gas station, but no restaurants or other services around. We chose the place because it was late and dark. The room smelled so moldy that we had to run the air-conditioning and leave the door open for several hours even though we were freezing just to air the place out. Dad says: “Doesn’t bother me.”  I just hope we'll still be alive in the morning.

6. Because there are no restaurants anywhere, so for dinner we just had trail mix, granola bars and a day old banana. No complaint from Dad.

With no women around to mother us along, the cockpit of the Toyota has a month’s supply of licorice, hot tamale candies, vanilla cookies, granola bars, and trail mix. Other than watching the corn fields of Iowa roll by outside the window, we haven’t seen a vegetable in days. With all the “healthy” eating we are doing, tonight Dad tested his blood on his diabetes glucose meter and the contraption started screaming and beeping like a fire alarm as though his body had been immersed in a bath of sugar all day. But no complaint from Dad.

Temple at Winter Quarters

Dad is possibly the easiest traveling companion ever. He is always cheerful and has never once complained. His needs are so simple. He is as happy with a cold hot dog as with prime rib. He goes longer than me between pit stops. He carries his own bags and pitches in wherever he can. He hasn't used his wheel chair or cane one time. He sleeps long and quiet and wakes up cheerful, but not obnoxiously so. He doesn’t tie up the bathroom because he only showers every few days. He is an excellent conversationalist with interesting ideas on a wide range of topics. Maybe he is so happy because he’s on a constant sugar high.

At our stops today, in addition to the historical significance of the places, Dad and I were both touched by the humility, sincerity, dedication and testimony of both the original pioneers as well as the modern day senior and younger missionaries.