Boston and round about

Temple * minute man * concord lunch * USS constitution * Cassin young destroyer

This morning we had a temple appointment at the Boston Temple for baptisms. We were joined by the missionaries who brought their recent convert to act as witness in the baptistry. This makes our 4th temple visit this summer, and we’ll have one more in Newport Beach CA. It’s been nice to see temples all over the world.

After the temple we meet Caitlyn and Riley at the Minute Man National Park visitors center to learn more about the “shot heard round the world” that officially started the revolutionary wary. We enjoyed an informative movie about the battle of Lexington and Concord and then visited a few of the sights along the road that leads from Lexington to Concord. It’s wild to think about the residents that lived in the area as this battle took place in their yards and farms.

We enjoyed a lunch in Concord at a diner where Caitlyn, Eric, and Charlie were excited to order breakfast for lunch. After our lunch Caitlyn and Riley headed back to Worcester and we drove into Boston to see the USS Constitution and Cassin Young at the Navel Yard.  It was cool to look at all the firing power of this war ship. Guns, torpedoes, charges, etc. It would be scary to be on board a ship during war - you could be killed like everyone else, and you would drown if your ship went down. Double danger.

The USS constitution is the oldest ship still in commission. It is actually run by the US Navy (not the national park service) and still has a captain. It only goes out to sail in the harbor a couple of times a year; the rest of the time it stays in the harbor for visitors to enjoy. It’s most famous for its involvement in the war of 1812.

Again, we enjoyed some games with Stewart and Caitlyn and playing with the baby. We are all sleeping in the front room of their 2-bedroom apartment. Their couch folds out to a bed and Eric and I have the mattress on the floor. It’s tight, but it’s working and it’s fun to be with them so that we can play more games.