17 December 2010

Tabernacles of Clay


My favorite building in Provo burned down early this morning.  Is it weird to have a favorite building?  Is it weird to feel sad, almost mournful, about a building fire?  Because that's kind of how I feel right now.

I attended services at the Provo Tabernacle maybe a half dozen times--that's all--but I still have a sense of loss.  One Easter morning I went to an early morning concert there.  As usual I sat in the balcony, climbing the spiraling stairs to the narrow wooden pews.  As the choir belted out "Come Thou Fount" the sun crested the mountains and streamed through the stained glass windows; it was truly triumphant.  That moment taught me something about God, and I think that's the Tabernacle's legacy- it was a place to experience the Divine.  I'll miss it.

1 comment:

be said...

I don't think it's weird to have a favorite building (but that's coming from someone with a favorite color of plastic).

I definitely don't think it's weird to be sad about it. It's really sad. I was looking at pictures yesterday after I found out about the fire, and I felt the same way: "almost mournful".