It's A Wonderful "Dleep!"

"Every time a bell rings, an Angel gets its wings" -Zuzu of the Petals.

Not original to me because I've heard Temple workers joke about it before, but it came again last night as I was waiting in the lobby of the Bountiful Temple next to the Recorder's Office where I could here the sweetly toned "dleep, dleep, dleep" of names scanned into the computer after Temple work was completed on their behalf.

I had a bit of a wait as my wife and I had gone to the separate dressing rooms annexed with the Initiatory areas - men performing the ordinance for men and women ordinance workers for women. It's the middle step in the Temple ordinances on behalf of our kindred dead. It's the highly symbolic washing and annointing as was done in ancient Israel for Aaron and his sons to enter the Tabernacle. Exodus 40:12-13.

My son had already been baptized and confirmed for ten male names and I had gone earlier on my own to do the Initiatory. My daughter had just got us the female names at Thanksgiving from her baptismal work at the Provo Temple so my wife had eleven names. She was only able to do five as the Temple is very busy Friday evenings. I had one name and got it in the queue fairly easily so I was enjoying the peaceful people-watching in the lobby and the digital bell sounds from the next room.

We know that Mormon Angels don't have actual wings, but they ". . . are a representation of power, to move, to act, etc." D&C 77:4. The recording of Temple work is a sacred office required by scripture.

". . . . as are the records on the earth in relation to your dead, which are truly made out, so also are the records in heaven. This, therefore, is the sealing and binding power, and, in one sense of the word, the keys of the kingdom. . . ." D&C 128:14.

So Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life" may be a little syrupy trite, but there are still hints of important truths there. I saw it for the first time in 1979 with my good buddy at the MARB as part of a Frank Capra Film Festival.

This was before the days of cable and VHS now DVDs or digital streaming so you can now see non-stop Christmas marathons of such films (along with the "shooting your eye out with the BB gun" Christmas Story). I mean, even Rudolph and Charlie Brown (which I actually remember seeing on their first broadcasts in the early 1960s!) only came on once a season and if you missed them - good luck next year!

My friend and I walked out of that screening moved and rather thoughtful about life and what we all can mean to each other. That and the connection between heaven and earth - I think Capra was on to something.

It is a wonderful life, and beyond - especially with wings of power to move, act, etc.