We went to the Phoenix Temple open house. This is the 2nd Temple open house that we have had the privilege to take our girls to, this year. It is a beautiful temple and like the Gilbert Temple has the agave symbolism throughout the temple. The girls really liked seeing it. Elise especially liked the baptismal font that was "sitting on the oxen's backs and the oxen had horns." She clarified to me that they were not real oxen but just pretend oxen.
Anna especially liked seeing the sealing rooms. Her part in the sacrament meeting program this year goes: "Temple marriage is a priesthood ordinance and strengthens my family." When we saw the sealing room I told her it was here that temple marriage takes place and showed here where the bride and groom kneel over the alter to get married. I showed her the mirrors that represented eternity. She was very interested and loved it.
The Phoenix Temple uses the agave flower as a design throughout the temple, just as the Gilbert Temple used the agave plant as it's theme. I have been thinking about why these temples use the agave plant and it's flower, I don't know exactly but I have learned a few beautiful things about his plant.
1) The agave can represent new life, eternal family, and the influence of generations. As new leaves come forth, the old ones die away. On many agave, the older leaves leave their imprint on the next generation of leaves and the newer leaves also leave impressions on the older.
2) The agave plant only blooms once in it's life. Throughout its life it builds up and stores energy/ starch in it's center. When the agave is fully mature, it gives all, literally all, of it's energy and strength to raising it's tall beautiful arm to the heavens to glorify God. Then with no energy left it dies. What a beautiful image.
This morning during my early morning run, I ran by an agave plant with it's flower reaching the sky in all it's glory. I stopped to look at it and I thought: it truly is fulfilling the measure of it's creation.
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