The past couple of weekends my travels have taken me to Utah, first to help the Coglianese family move and second to attend my nephew Carter’s baptism.

Both weekends I checked in on the progress of both the Draper and Oquirrh Mountain LDS Temples. Here we are in front of the Draper Temple.

I was quite surprised to see what I saw around the Draper Temple — homes that almost overshadowed the grandeur of the temple.

Here are a few photos of some of the homes in that neighborhood.

One in particular, at the top of a cul-de-sac, highest on the mountainside, is truly a castle on a hill. It even has a bridge you drive under to get to the garage. Every detail is impressive from the window casings to the wrought iron work, the stone work to the copper trim and its slate roof. The castle is so big we couldn’t even fit it all in this picture.

Here’s a close-up of some of the castle’s detail:

Vickey really liked the ornamentation on the roof of this home next to the castle:

Another home on that street:

While these residential structures are impressive, as we experienced the opulence, we couldn’t help but wonder what family needs to live in places like these. It seems there are so many with so little that a lot of good could be done.

Perhaps it’s the difference between pride and charity. Or perhaps these families are incredibly charitable and do a lot of good and just need a home with a few thousand square feet per resident. Who am I to judge?

Hopefully people who live in homes that cost more than most of us will make in a lifetime are happy people. And hopefully those of us who live modestly are happy with what the good Lord has blessed us with as well.