FANTASTIC FIRESIDE

Three posts in one day - sorry we have been busy and I finally got a chance to sit down and write it all up.

Last night Michael and Darcy Kennedy came to speak at a fireside. Michael Kennedy is the third great grandson of the Prophet Joseph Smith. There are here promoting their new movie about Emma. According to Michael about 1/3 of Joseph Smith's posterity is in Australia - I am now interested to know why they came to Australia, but he didn't really cover that bit of information.

He told of his conversion to the gospel and how it all started with an American history assignment in high school. He was told to do some family research and find a story about a family member who had affected American history. He talked to his father about it and his dad said that he had a relative, Joseph Smith, who started the Mormon church and helped to establish Utah (not quite the correct information, but it was a place to start right?). His dad then went and got a box of old pictures and other items which had been handed down from generation to generation. He put them all on the table and soon after the doorbell rang, it was "two men with the same first name" as he put it. They saw what was on the table and were awestruck and asked what it all was for. He told them that he was doing a report and that this man helped to establish Utah. He then got all six discussions about the gospel. After that he tried to avoid the missionaries until finally he took all the discussions again and was baptized thinking it would get the missionaries off his back.

Anyway, to make a long story short he and his wife have made it their mission to find all of Joseph's posterity and bring the Gospel to them. That the man who brought the Church back onto the earth can have his family gathered around him for eternity as well. Michael Kennedy was the first of Joseph's line to be baptized and receive the Melchizedek Priesthood. He talked a bit about the prejudices that are there for members of Joseph Smith's posterity to join the Church. The Church isn't really talked about and is a bit of a sore subject. He also said that they have yet to find a relation of Joseph's due to plural marriage. This due to DNA testing to see if they have the same genes as members of his posterity. I thought that was interesting.

It is also interesting to think that because of Emma's decision to stay behind in Nauvoo the Gospel has been lost to all those descendants of Joseph Smith. I have always had a huge amount of respect for Emma Smith. I have never judged her for staying behind and not moving to Utah. She had suffered so much and for whatever reasons didn't think she could go on. Apparently this movie that is coming out is all about Emma. It is done by the foundation which the Kennedy's have started and who did the Joseph Smith movie a couple of years ago.

After the talking part of the fireside they had a group come and perform their songs for us. It was fantastic! We had taken the kids and they just played on the floor beside us during the fireside. However, when we moved to the rec hall Madi wanted to sit on the front row. She and Cooper sat by some friends of ours on the front row while Kev and I sat towards the back so Rylee could walk around and so she would stay away from the guitars and the performers who were sitting in a circle in the middle of the rec hall.
It was a five man band from Nashville who had put out a CD in tribute to Joseph Smith. It was fantastic. Madi and Cooper sat intently on the front row through most of the performance. Madi was enthralled the entire time - I saw that Cooper listened well to the music but got bored during the talking in between songs. Rylee walked around and danced to the music and kept everyone around us very entertained. It was really late by the time we got home and the kids had great attitudes through the whole thing. I am really glad that we took them so they could experience the fireside as well.

During the performance a man, who had been walking around taking pictures of the band, sat down a chair away from Cooper. Soon I saw that he gave Cooper a sucker. Cooper came and showed me soon after that and was very excited - especially when I told him it was American candy because I saw that it was a Tootsie Pop. Madi told me after that she didn't take one from him because she didn't know him - well at least she is picking up on something we have taught her. At the end she got one too because they gave us all a free copy of the CD and the same guy was handing them out.

On the way home I asked the kids how they felt when they were listening to the music. Madi and Cooper both said that they felt happy inside. We talked about Joseph Smith and about how the Spirit was talking to them to tell them that he was a Prophet of God. It was such a wonderful conversation with the kids. I love moments like that.

So if you get a chance to see the movie I have heard that it is really good - I think I will have to have a family member pick up a copy at Deseret Book when it comes out and send it my way. Also, if you like Church music with a little country feel to it check out the CD. Madi has been playing it non-stop all day today.