The Day Time Stood Still

So we went to Utah in June.  It was our first family trip back there since we moved away in 2002.  We went around visiting places and showing the children sites from their family history.  This is one of them:

M.L. Bigelow and Company Organ Builders in American Fork Utah.  Here's their website.

I worked here from when I graduated from BYU in 1997 until Eric was born in November 1999.

Scott was not sure about the Organ Factory

It's such a cool place.  They build pipe organs, and the shop occupies one of the four original LDS church buildings in American Fork.  Mike Bigelow and his family live upstairs.  The organs are assembled in the chapel and the woodshop is in the gym (First one in Utah Valley!). 

Mark wanted to look at stuff pretty badly

The day we went there were three organs in the shop.  That's a ton!  Every surface was covered with pipes and shutters and pipe organ pieces.  I'm glad to see that business is booming.  The two "office" guys were sitting right in their desks just like when I worked there.  The two "shop" guys I used to work with were both out for the day.  The woodshop was dark and quiet and smelled just like I remembered it, with just a little summer heat trying to sneak in the french doors all the way around.

As we drove around Utah Valley, it was shocking how much things had changed in the 10 years since we left.  Shocking. You expect things to change, but this place is insane.  It's like there was some community-wide goal to leave no house, business, or street unchanged.  That's why it was so awesome to come to the Organ Factory and find things exactly as I left them.  I showed my children around; I knew where everything was because it was all just where it was last time I worked there.  See those pipe trays behind Scotty?  I built some of those!  On the wall in the shop is the stupid, gimpy shelf I hung on the wall so I'd have a place for my tools.  Here's the planer I had a good working relationship with, children!  Here's the creepy coal cart I used to tote the steel action rods around on!

Scott finally agreed to be photographed

It was refreshing to come and find things the same, not because I'm resistant to change, but because I like to see a reason for change.  Or that the changes are for the better.  Most of the stuff that we saw was different for no apparent reason.  The Organ Factory was awesome when I worked there, and it's just that awesome now, because why fix what's not broken?  Refreshing!  I can't stress enough how much it was like a tall, cool glass of Italian Soda in a desert of frivolous progress.

...aaaand there's a smile

I love that I worked here.  I loved being able to show my family around.  I love that this place exists.  And I love that they're all still there, doing what they were doing before I got there and still doing the same things today.  They're doing a good work.  More pipe organs in the world is a change I can get behind!

PS Eric said he was brave enough to go in the creepy original basement area when I was describing it to him; then when we were actually standing in front of the door in the poorly lit basement, he chickened out.  That was good, because I wasn't sure I was ready for that creepiness again...  I wish I had pictures of THAT to share!