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The Spirit
in the Pegs and Panes:
Chuck Allen Handcrafts the Windows of the Nauvoo Temple
by
Maurine Jensen Proctor
Chuck
Allen points to original sketch of circular windows in Nauvoo Temple
extrapolated from an old photograph (circa 1846) of the temple.
It is 4:15 a.m.
as Chuck Allen flips on the light in his Nauvoo wood shop, casting
the darkness from the room that still hovers outside. He has had
his morning prayers and will pray again with the other workers who
will arrive at 6:30 to begin their 12-hour day. There is joy and
sobriety in their work-creating 126 windows and the doors for the
Nauvoo Temple.
The joy is obvious.
Chuck and his family have lived in Nauvoo for 12 years, absorbing
the spirit and sacrifice that you can still feel in the air there.
Turn a corner in Nauvoo and, like a surprise, it all washes over
you-the sense that still lingers of a people who finished a temple
while they turned their homes into workshops to build wagons to
head West. Across the river, their last glimpse of Nauvoo would
be of that temple shining on a hill. Pioneer Priddy Meeks said of
that last glance, "I have no words with which to convey a proper
conception of my feelings when taking a last look at this sacred
monument...After the lapse of thirty-six years, I can scarcely restrain
my feelings when I write of it."
Click image to
enlarge
Whether
sleuthing around Church historical sites or putting together period
windows, Chuck always depends upon the Spirit.
When Chuck,
whose specialty is historic woodworking, was asked to make the windows
for the re-creation of the Nauvoo Temple, tears filled his eyes,
and he rushed to tell his family of the privilege extended him.
Yet, at the same time, his is a sober responsibility. The windows
he must make are far more challenging than those made by the pioneers.
They have to look historic with the square pegs and wavy glass,
yet meet today's tough code and building expectations so they can
stand the test of time..
How does anyone
know how to do that? Though Chuck had worked on Mark Twain's boyhood
home, the Scott Joplin Historic Site, several sites in Nauvoo, and
had spent a lifetime at the unique job of handcrafting historic
windows, nothing could have prepared him for the scope and pressure
of the job, as well as the new path he must forge through an unmapped
wilderness.
On receiving
his assignment, Chuck asked Robert T. Dewey of the Church's Temple
Construction Department, "What are my marching orders?" The only
answer was, "Just get it right."
Click image to
enlarge
Chuck
is often interacting with tourists, letting them get a feel for
the job of making the windows for the new Nauvoo Temple.
No Manual
Yet, no manual existed to get it right. No elder historic window
maker existed for Chuck to look for advice. No formula was perfected
to create Nauvoo temple windows. He would be finding his own way
with one major exception-he would have to rely on the Spirit to
teach him what he didn't already know. In the months that followed
he would be nudged and taught, enlightened and moved-often in small
ways until he came to declare with his whole soul something he already
understood in his mind, "The Spirit knows woodworking."
Of course, we
say. The Spirit knows all things, but to Chuck, watching intricate
woodworking solutions flash into his mind where there were no apparent
solutions before, it has been humbling and amazing. Chuck was in
a New Hampshire motel pondering how to create the bucks-wooden frames
that go into a concrete pour-and suddenly the idea of a control
pattern flashed into his mind. It was a gift-just a gift.
Another day,
so overburdened and exhausted he had to clear his mind-- he left
the wood shop to drive to Keokuk to get some dog food. He had been
mulling over how to create the star-patterned windows at the top
of the temple, "And suddenly, in 1/100th of a second I saw it,"
he said, "the picture of a polywood ring about four inches wide
that slips over five posts that I could use to mark the ends of
my star points."
He'll be cutting
wood, and find that he has just the right number of pieces. It is
in little things that he is reminded he is on the Lord's errand.
Click image to
enlarge
Chuck
(left) works in his shop with his son Marcus (middle) , and son-in-law,
Mike (not shown).
It is not the
landlubber Nephi building a ship, Chuck says, for he has had years
in his work, but "the Spirit has enlarged my experience," he said,
and he couldn't do it without that heavenly help.
Prepared
to Hear the Spirit
Who the Lord calls, he qualifies. Chuck wasn't only prepared
in the necessary wood-working skills to craft the Nauvoo temple
windows; he was shaped through the soul-stretching experiences of
his life which had taught him to hear the Spirit and rely on God.
How can anyone hear the Spirit who hasn't hungered to hear? Chuck
tells his own story:
"I remember,"
he said, "the experience my sweetheart and I had very early in our
marriage when we found out that our first born, a son, was afflicted
with cystic fibrosis, a terminal condition, that we, as parents,
had passed on to him. We had no knowledge that we were carriers
of a devastating disease. He was 18 months old at the time of his
diagnosis and we also had a sweet daughter who had been born 6 months
earlier. Our world changed completely at the understanding of the
disease with the expectation that our little boy would not live
to see his fourth birthday. What use would it be to have any plans
for the future? All expectations we had seemed to vanish.
"Our first daughter
was tested and found to be free of the condition our son had, and
she proved very quickly to be a stabilizing influence for us during
this time. We made a decision not to have any more children since
there was the distinct possibility that we might pass on to them
suffering and early death.
"Yet, as time
passed, I came to realize that this mortal life is the time that
my wife and I have been given to organize our eternal family, and
we needed to reconsider our initial feelings and decision. I felt
that we needed to go forward with trust and accept whatever challenges
the Lord had in store for us. It could be that none of our future
children would be afflicted. I presented this priesthood understanding
to my sweetheart and she readily agreed. Over the next few years,
we were blessed with four more sweet children, one more son and
three more daughters. Our fifth child, a daughter, was born with
the dreaded illness and presented us with another overwhelming and
emotional challenge. We continued with our family and were blessed
with our sixth child, another daughter and evidently fulfilled all
that the Lord required of us as no more children came to our home.
"Our son progressed
long past his fourth year with the blessings of new techniques and
medication and passed away a few days short of his sixteenth birthday.
Our sweet daughter had the advantage of additional years of research
and lived to be 19. Her death concluded a 30-year period in which
we had cared for and prepared terminally ill children for their
passing. That responsibility created an environment in our home
that was unlike any I had ever known or been acquainted with. Your
normal and petty concerns don't seem to be important when you are
concerned for the life of your child.
Click image to
enlarge
Chuck
carefully works all of the casings and pieces of the windows, listening
not only to the sound and speed of the drill, but for the whisperings
of the Spirit.
Experiences
that Get Your Attention
"Every day in those thirty years that I left home for work,
I wondered if a child would be gone by the time I returned that
evening. These experiences tend to get your attention.
"When President
Kimball issued the invitation that all young men should be prepared
for a mission, my son wanted to know what use it was for him to
even think of a mission. I told him that President Kimball's invitation
didn't exclude those who would not live to be the proper age; he
invited all young men to prepare So, we prepared. A few hours before
his passing, he weakly said that it was time for him and now he
could go on his mission.
"Not once in
all that we have experienced over many years did I ever wonder 'why
me?' or 'what did I do wrong that this could happen, that my precious
children should suffer and die.' I felt that I have been greatly
blessed to never have gone down that road of self-pity, blame, and
guilt. Early on I had the understanding that this experience is
life and I needed to find a way to accept and adjust. It is an agonizing
and frustrating experience to watch your children lose ground physically
and suffer, knowing that their death is imminent. My life over the
years has been forever changed by this experience, but the sharpness
and hurt slowly disappeared and was replaced by the sweet peaceful
invitations from the Spirit to understand the things of eternity.
"When invited
to work on the temple, the memory of an important event came to
my mind that happened several years ago. It was a major mid-course
correction for me and vital to my spiritual preparation. Not long
after my son's passing, I was fearful that our sweet little six-year-old
daughter would be passing away soon, so I felt that our family would
be better off moving from Missouri, where we lived at the time,
to the valley east of Spokane, Washington where I was raised and
had numerous long-time family friends. I made the trip to my boyhood
area to check things out and felt convinced that we needed to make
the move. I returned home and reported to my family in council,
and our decision was unanimous to make our move late in the spring
after school was out for the year.
Click image to
enlarge
Chuck
stands next to a large window completed and on display in the shop.
Staying in
Missouri
"A little more than a month later, the stake president, Dell
E. Johnson, called to say he wanted to meet with me after church
the following Sunday. As we sat down to talk, he mentioned he understood
that we were moving to Spokane soon. I said that we were, and he
continued that he felt it would be a mistake, that I needed to remain
there.
"I told him
that I didn't feel that way and that I was going home. He said that
I had been an asset to the Church over many years in the area. I
told him that I understood that but felt that phase of my life was
over, and I was not needed there anymore, that I could be of service
to the Lord no matter where I lived. He hesitated and looked down
at the floor momentarily as I sat there with my arms folded feeling
good about the firmness of my stand and decision.
"He then looked
up and into my eyes and said, 'Sometimes, we make decisions that
remove us from the blessings of our foreordination!' I instantly
realized that this visit went to a different level and it was a
shock to my understanding. I asked him, 'Are you telling me by the
authority you hold as the stake president and my High Priest Quorum
President that it is the Lord's will that I not move?'
"He softly answered,
'Yes, I am.' When he said that, I knew immediately there was no
room for questions. He suggest that I take time to discuss it with
my wife because if we stayed, there was a call that he would extend
to me. I told him that things have already been decided for us,
there was no need for discussion, and that we would stay. I have
my free agency, that is true, but the greatest thing I can do with
my free agency is to make choices that will place me and my family
in line for the greater blessings and to conform with the will of
the Lord. As it turned out, it was an enormous blessing for me and
my family that we decided to stay.
Click image to
enlarge
Chuck
carefully uses hand tools to carefully make each piece of the windows
of the temple.
"A year later,
I was called to be the branch president and, not long after that
President Johnson ordained me the bishop of our new ward. During
that time, some of our members were diagnosed with serious terminal
conditions and I found myself deeply involved with the families,
helping them to gain an understanding because of the experiences
I had gained in our family's trials. A few days after her husband's
passing at Christmas time, I visited the young widow and her family
to find sweetness, laughter, and joy with children playing. As I
was leaving, the mother walked me to the door and I asked her how
could there be this joy and happiness a few days after her husband's
passing. We had not experienced that at our son's passing. She told
me it was because of the help I had given them and that I was there
with them to understand their emotions and to counsel them as to
what they needed to do even at the moment of the father's passing.
"I got in my
car to drive the eight miles home, discouraged with the thought
of what I had to go through so that others could be happy. It was
a selfish thought, to be sure, but I couldn't help myself. By the
time I got home, I had worked myself out of the discouragement and
darkness I had felt and came to the realization that the only way
I could respond and understand this family's emotions and serve
them in the way they needed was to have experienced the situation
myself. I found I could not have the depth of empathy needed to
console and offer counsel in sorrowing times without having had
the experience. Over the years I have developed a deep gratitude
and appreciation for those experiences.
The Smell
of Sawdust
"With the passing of my son, I could no longer enjoy woodworking,
because my memories were strong of him and me in the shop working
together. I tried selling insurance for a few years. I threw myself
in the training process and became somewhat successful. At the same
time, I was not wise in caring for myself and because hospitalized
twice during a six month period. I was not able to work during this
time and exhausted my disability insurance and meager savings. I
found myself broke. I felt that maybe I could sell annuities which
are investments in insurance companies that could give me a quick
commission. I felt impressed to call my brother who was living in
Bolivia and was working for the Church building department managing
chapel construction. I felt there could be people he knew who might
like to invest in these annuity plans. He agreed and paid for my
ticket as I had very little funds. The night before I left for La
Paz, Bolivia, we had a family council and I explained the situation
in detail to the children. Our bank account held $51.69 and I withdrew
50 of those dollars so that I could make the trip. My wife and I
felt that she could make do with garage sales and what food and
fuel we had on hand for the three weeks I would be gone. We always
made sure our tithe and offerings were paid in full.
"In the three
weeks I was in Bolivia, I met with many people but never sold an
annuity. I traveled with my brother for a couple of days in the
Amazon basin to check on the mahogany windows, doors, and trim that
was being made for the chapels in a large woodworking business in
the city of Santa Cruz. When I walked in the factory, I instantly
smelled the sawdust and walked over to a door on display to rub
my hand over it. The construction method was similar to the historic
doors I had made in the past.
"As I felt and
inspected the door, something in me changed in an instant and I
knew I had to get back to window and door making. When I arrived
back home, I was concerned about what my wife would say and found
that she had been praying for my success and was directed by the
Spirit to encourage me to get back to working with wood when I returned
home.
"During the
years, I have marveled that we were reduced to near nothing financially,
took a trip paid for by a loving brother, found myself in the Bolivian
interior when I smelled sawdust and felt a door, all so that I could
get turned back to working with wood. It is a marvelous thing when
we consider the path the Lord leads us on to accomplish what he
has in store for us through our foreordination, if we do what we
can to stay the course spiritually. He asks not for perfection,
only valiancy which includes the blessing of the miracle of repentance."
Click image to
enlarge
Sample
of the different small size windows for the Nauvoo Temple.
A Staggering
Weight
It was a Chuck Allen honed in suffering, turned back to woodworking
in a desperate hour, and awakened to the Spirit, then, who took
on the difficult job of crafting the Nauvoo temple windows. It has
been from the beginning a meticulous process, involving finding
solutions to problems unfolding before him each day. A man less
attuned to the Spirit might have faltered.
On the wall
of his wood shop hang the many patterns he has created for the windows.
For the one interior and 126 exterior windows, 16,000 pieces of
wood will be required with each piece requiring an average of 25
steps. These steps must be accomplished in a tight, unyielding time
frame. Sometimes it is staggering.
Click image to
enlarge
Stacks
of window casings in their raw form before they receive the glass.
One day last
fall, Chuck went to his wood shop, unlocked the door and looked
around and the weight of it all just hit him. "Can I pull this thing
off?" he asked, shutting the door again. The Spirit whispered, "You're
not pulling anything off. You're just a tool in this process. This
is the Lord's program."
Then in November,
he took the weight of his worries to the temple where he spent a
great deal of time. Finally, a peace settled upon him-and it has
not left since.
Chuck writes:
"Shortly before
his passing Elder Hugh Pinnock, visited our shop and was greatly
intrigued with the fact that the temple window sash and front
doors are fastened at the joints with square pegs. The following
evening, he addressed our stake and held up the square pegs I
had given him. He said that we are all like this square peg in
this Church. We are not very visible but, oh, so important to
the Lord and his Church as he needs each one of us to perform
to our best ability in our callings.
"I took the
difficult opportunity to speak to my family at my sweet daughter's
funeral. As I wanted them to know that when they are confronted
with a choice, that they not consider taking the path of least
resistance for there are no character-building opportunities and
celestial rewards down that road. I told them that we wouldn't
have been at their sweet sister's funeral that day if their mother
and I had not made a tough decision a long time ago to continue
with our family. We would not have been able to listen to her
brother play his arrangement during the service of "I Know that
My Redeemer Lives" in her honor on the piano, or an older sister
deliver her personal history, or her younger and older sisters
so lovingly prepare her body with cosmetics and a favorite dress
for her funeral. None of the last four children would have been
in our family if we had not sought for the greater blessings from
the Lord early in our marriage, the blessings that bring about
our eternal family.
"Some have
asked me what I plan to do in the future after my work on the
temple is completed . My answer is I will do whatever the Lord
has in store for me; that the present experience I am having is
preparing me for the next one."
"Wherefore,
be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you" (D&C
82:10)
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