A Tiny Little Seed

Dear Family, 
 
First off, I would just like to say that Mom touched my heart. After 
telling her that I didn´t have time to mail my ballot, she emailed me 
saying Satan is working hard then. So I found a fax machine and sent 
my vote in. Oh, BTW, I just might´ve scratched off the ``pre-voted´´ 
mark for Mitt Romney that mom put on my paper and my hand might´ve 
slipped and marked Obama. I hope you guys still love me.. 
 
This week was a little slow in actually finding and teaching people. 
It´s because we had a baptism. Not only one, but three people! One is 
a mother, Zoraida Antezana and her 20 year old son, José Darlin. She 
was golden and I just made her my pensionista since she always gives 
us food anyways. Also, José wants to go on a mission. The other one, 
Limber Ruis, is a friend of José and a boyfriend of a member. He 
always comes to church and knows everything. He told us this past week 
that he wants to get baptized. yeah, we can work that out. So the zone 
leaders came down Wednesday for the first two interviews. The 
president came on Thursday for a question 4, and then the zone leaders 
came back friday for Limber. That was basically my week, a lot of 
preparation for a baptism. Now, we need to find others. We have a lot 
of potentials, but they don´t want to make any committments yet. 
 
So I talk alot about faith, miracles, and changing areas or people. 
But I´m not convinced that you guys truly know what I´m talking about 
and how I feel. Well, we all make decisions everyday, and before we 
actually act, we calculate whether we should do it or not. We estimate 
our ablitity to handle the situation and look at the consequences of 
suceeding and failing. But a rule of thumb  includes two things, if we 
can clearly see ourselves doing something and if it is desirable, we 
generally pursue it. We also have to be convinced it´s possible before 
we act. In order for our mind to be convinced, we need appropriate 
evidence. Evidence like facts, statements, or propositions we believe 
to be true. Our perception regarding feasibility is what determines 
our level of confidence. We can´t have confidence in our ability 
unless we see clearly how to accomplish it. If we can´t see ourselves 
completing college, we never do. If we can´t see ourselves with a 
better job, we don´t strive for one. And if we can´t see ourselves 
happy - we never are. So it needs to seen clearly and be desirable. 
But when things we desire or hope for are beyond our control, it´s 
difficult to see clearly. For example, natural elements like rain for 
crops. The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us to pursue righteousness 
even when we can´t see how! ``Faith is things hoped for and are not 
seen (Ether 12:6).´´ The evidence presented and our personal 
worthiness governs the strength or weakness of our faith. But the 
natural disposition is to doubt. If at any moment, we conclude 
something isn´t feasible, we don´t have faith. This is because Faith 
and fears/doubts cannot occupy the mind at the same time! ``Dispute 
not because you see not, for ye recieve no witness (assurance) until 
after the trial of your faith (Ether 12:6).´´ 
This is what I mean when I talk about faith. Pursue righteous things, 
even when you can´t see how, relying on God for guidance. Some 
missionaries learn to see with an eye of faith. When they do, they can 
see how the way will be prepared for people to join the church. I know 
that if we have this kind of faith, miracles will proceed. That is how 
I approach my area and look, I can now see the assurance of how God 
has helped this area. 
 
It is one thing to be aware of divine power and entirely something 
else to see how that power will assist us. 
 
-Elder Walker 
 
P.S. The fotos. I got my laundry machine, my kitchen, and my pet. 
Happy Halloween or as they call it here the witch´s night. But they 
mostly celebrate Dia de los Santos. A day to remember their dead 
ancestors or family. 

Flyer of Marissa's class that she is teaching

    Clases de Inglés y Baile

Inglés: Los Sabados a las 12:30 y los miercoles a las 20:30

dirección: c/Maladeta, 61 –Plaza de la bóbila

Metro: Linea Azul (L5) – Can vidalet

linea rojo (L1) - can serra

(Clases son Gratuito)

Por más información llama: 699-798-271

oh hey.....HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Oh HEYYYY!!!!!!  HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!

Don´t worry Mom, I voted way long ago, and it might have been for Obama.  Would you still love me?  I got the abstentee sent off like 2 weeks ago, it was fun!  My first real experience since last time the abstentee never came to me while working in Florida.  Remember that?  Everyone here is stirred up over Romney´s comment about how they are not going to be like Spain or whatever he said.  Get over it the economy YES is TERRIBLE here!  The Elders get called Romney a lot here.  For some reason people always yell Obama at us sisters which makes no sense to me since we are whiter than white or anyone else here.  Anyway, can´t wait to hear the results.  We discuss it a lot in piso.  Not gonna lie, I´m a little sad about missing election stuff.  I didn´t realize how much I kinda like politics.  But I´m a missionary and don´t talk about that so anyway LA OBRA.....

As for the work here in Spain, great and hard at the same time.  We baptize a ton of Africans and south Americans in Zaragoza, more or less in Pamplona, and in hospitalet Africans hate us, muslims and everyone we can´t baptize LOVE us and are so nice, and south americans here are super flakey, but I love them ALL!!!  The work has gotten harder and harder.  Our problem is we live so far away from the church that getting people there is like pulling teeth!  Contacting here in the streets is like putting on a show, good thing showmanship is my gift.  I still hate that part.....everyone starring you down in the metro and thinking you´re CRAZY!!!!!  All though we´ve had some great metro contacts that turn into great investigators!!!!  Being a missionary is scary and fun all at the same time in such a big city.  The other day walkin to the metro we have to go under the crusty graffiti bridge to get there, as we pass this guy in our way we see him just shootin up with a needle and everything crazy!  The members and elders asked why we are in the area we are in because it´s so sketchy.  The elders told me they might switch us out of here and have me whitewash for my last transfer.  It smells like weed or smoke of some type everywhere we go, and it´s hilarious when all the drunk people  try and talk to us in their broken up English...."umm exuse a mi...will yu be mi hosband...oop I mean wife wife?"  We have English class every week and I rather enjoy teaching it, I think I might have a gift in teaching languages.  It comes natural to me.  I will forward our flyer for dance and english classes. 

Right now we are struggling finding people to teach, but it´s gotten better as of yesterday.  We had to clean out the old piso this week which took like 3 days out of the work of the Lord to do it.  That thing was discusting after 25 years of Elders living there!!!!!   I also had to teach people how to clean, who said they had cleaned something and after I checked it it looked like it hadn´t even been touched....okay elders and sisters....this is how you clean!  Some did the Craig move and just disappeared and we found them laying down in a back room sleeping or playing card games.  Thanks to mom and her teaching me how it should be done!  I found mom coming out in me all 3 days.

Interesting things....We teach Jafar.  Everytime he opens his mouth we can´t help but think of Jafar from Aladdin.  Pigeon feet here are gross!!!  Some are crusty and keroded while others look like they are burt off, some feet are missing.  I often find myself observing their feet.  There´s a lot of bird ladies here in Spain.  A huge flock of birds is always following them.  When we changed time we changed seasons and dramatically!!!  It was freezing and blowing super hard yesterday with creepy clouds!!!  Our recent convert Martina yesterday told us that it was a tornado on the water!!!!! hahahahaha.  A little hurricane had made it´s way to Barcelona and they say that never happens!  We also have a ghost investigator!  We knocked on her door one day and she said we could pass by anytime.  She was super nice and Spaniard.  Not a likely combo.  So we came back and this guy answered and said there was no and never was any Paquita that lived there.  We checked a million times to see if we were in the right place.  We were.  We found a spirit that wants her work done!!!!!

welp that´s the jist of my week!  Happy Halloween!!!  I will send pics seperate.  The church is true and we are part of a great and marvelous work!!!!!!  It´s time to prepare the way of the Lord.  The second coming is sooo soon I can feel it!!!!  A couple of signs have been seen lately at this day and age.  Love you all, keep preparing yourselves to be worthy for this day and enjoy your tricker treating!!!!  They don´t even do it here...but we are dressing up for district meeting!!!!  Pictures to come....

okay bye.

Hermana Walker

ps GLAD to see cam is in the butt hugger pants club....hehe

"THE FIELD IS WHITE ALREADY TO HARVEST"

"EL CAMPO ESTA YA PARA LA CIEGA"

hAPPY hALLOWEEN!!!!!

What a week!

Hello other world, 
 
So Steven Alan, the president of the missionary work and preach my 
gospel, is coming to the Cochabamba mission in 2 weeks. He called 
president Dyer recently and told him that 11 days after Thomas S. 
Monson announced the big announcement, 8,000 applications came in, 
mostly from women. They are apparently going to send more sister 
missionaries to the Bolivian, Cochabamba mission. 
 
Cam - how did you know that I didn´t have a kitchen? You made me laugh 
when you doubted if I have a washing machine or not. Ya no, I´ll start 
taking pictures of me washing my clothes in the bathroom, buckets, the 
little rivers, with the cholitas, etc. And actually, I do have a 
bathroom, probably the best in the mission. But when I was in Potosi, 
not really... The world is a bathroom here Cameron. 
This brings me to my question for everyone, Why did everyone talk 
about my living conditions this week? How do you know about it? 
Maybe Sister Dyer sent a picture to all of you and not me. 
 
Well, President Dyer and his wife came to our Sacrament meeting 
yesterday and afterwards checked our rooms. It went great because we 
had the most investigators that I´ve seen here (9) come to church with 
us. That impressed the president. Also, after they checked our rooms, 
Sister Dyer said that it was the cleanest apartment she´s been to. I 
said that I´ve always been clean, but at home, it´s clean according to 
my standards and not these kind of standards. 
 
Frase of the week, ``It´s a sin to change religions´´. I can´t count 
the number of times I heard that line. It´s funny, because it came 
mostly from Catholics. In people´s minds, there are 2 types of 
religions here Catholics and Christians. I don´t know why they don´t 
think Catholics aren´t Christians, but yeah. Socialogy. Another funny 
line that that they say when I ask if they belong or attend a certain 
church, they say, ``no, we don´t go to church, we´re Catholic´´. 
What!? Confusing. 
In the end, I just think in my mind, we´ll just see about that. 
Because this Saturday, we´re baptizing two Catholics. One of them said 
that line when we first met him, that he thinks a sin to change 
religions. And look what happened. The spirit touched his heart. 
That´s one thing that I´ve learned here. Be confident in the conving 
power of the spirit. Just like Mormon says to his son Moroni in Moroni 
chapter 8 verse (16-17?)... I speak with boldness, because I have the 
authority of God. And I don´t fear what men can do because perfect 
love casteth out all fear. But I´m also full of charity which is love 
eternal. I feel the same way when I teach and talk with people. 
 
-Elder Walker 
P.s. Check out my fotos! Thanks for the inn - n - out gear. I pictured 
that you sent me a hamburger tambien.

HAPPY 22ND BIRTHDAY BABY BROTHER!!!!!!!!!!!

Don´t worry I didn´t forget, just was waiting until preparation day so i could tell ya.  Glad to hear it went well, I thought about ya all day and even had you written all over my planner.  Can´t wait to see you dance in the samba number.  I still remember all the different birthdays we threw for you growing up, trains to dinosaurs to racecar valvoline, etc..good times!

Craig...wow what living conditions!!!!  Makes me feel humble because of blessed we truly are with housing here in Spain.  Wow...I´m sure your just as happy in a cute little shake like that right?

Right now my companion and I feel like we are living on the movie "The Best 2 Years!"  Why?  Because our apartment has every one of the characters from that movie and the events that are taking place are quite equivalent to that movie.  We live with the cute new girl from Mexico trying to learn English and still adapt to mission life.  She where headphones to to even hear herself talk English, sounds like she is talking to herself a lot.  Then there´s her companion that isn´t obedient at all, doesn´t work para nada and sleeps all day saying she is "sick."  The only time we have seen her out of bed is to eat..she washes her dish then goes back to sleep...haha...oh ya and she´s up today to do email and because it´s preparation day haha interesting how she´s magically better today.  She´s unique.  Then of course you have crazy Hermana Stephenson and I who come acting crazy each night to let out all of our energy.  too much behaving ourselves all day makes us go crazy at night.  We´re running around, playing jokes on everyone, wrestling, ya you know if you´ve seen the movie....need I say anymore?  But we work and we work hard!!!  Anyway we get a call that President is showing up tonight and that the disobedient missionary doesn´t know....DRAMA.....more details to come...we will let you know.

there´s always Huelgas (strikes) with the terrible economy here and they happen to land on Mondays, being Preparation day (our play day.)  Poopy!  Everything is closed and the metro only come likes every half hour if even that.  Nov. 14th is a European strike throughout all of Europe meaning that even the airport will be closed...ALL transportation....this causes a problem being transfers and sending our missionaries home on a plane to the US that day.  It will be interesting!  The work is getting harder in Spain the more I´ve been here.  We would baptize more if it weren´t for the terrible marriage policies here and the stinky work schedules.  Everyone who accepts the gospel works on Sundays and everyone that wants to get married to keep the law of chastity can´t until they get papers or their acceptance for marriage goes through....takes about a year here....making it impossible to baptize like South America here....reeeaaallly frustrating as a missionary.  Anyway that´s my only complaints.  Other than that life is great as a missionary!  Just the crazy Spanish crisis!  People ask us for money all the time....kind of obnoxious.

I love this church.  The organization of it is perfect.  The only problem with it is we as people are not perfect, we cannot be as mortals.  People forget that, nobody is perfect, that´s why the Atonement of Jesus Christ is so important to life so that we can repent, forgive and be healed.  Let the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ take an effect in your life.  miss and love you all dearly!

hermana walker :)

WRITING ADDRESS: 

Hermana Walker
c/Rambla de Badal
28-30, 8´3´, Esc. A
Barcelona Spain 08014

well.....

Dear Family, 
 
Feliz Cumpleaños Cameron for the 19th. Tenga un buen dia. 
 
I´m going to make this letter short because nothing really happened 
this week that was interesting. It was a pretty normal week, learning, 
tracting, teaching, etc. and now, i´m tired. zzzz. That´s probably why 
I can´t think. 
 
      I guess I just want to say how great the mission is. It´s like 
Elder Holland said in one of his talks in the MTC, I love my mission, 
it was everything for me. It shaped my life, what I was going to be 
and who I was going to become. I feel the same way. I´ve learned so 
much by study and experience that I can´t write it all in this hour of 
internet. But it´s not only about me and what I become, but about 
others also. All the people I´ve talked to, taught, helped, baptized, 
etc. They´re the reason for my mission. Because if I could just bring 
one person to the knowledge of this gospel, O how great my joy would. 
Now imagine if I could bring more than one. I´ve experienced this joy 
and I would like it to continue. For example, remember Gabriel Velez 
my first convert, well he´s helping all the missionaries in Potosi and 
talking with all of his family, friends, Everyone about the gospel. 
Just yesterday, he came to Bella Vista to visit me and companion us in 
our teachings. His life has changed tremendous because of this gospel. 
And that is just one simple example.  If I counted up all the people I 
have talked to, it would have to be in the thousands, all the lessons 
I´ve taught, over 700. But behind all of these numbers, there are real 
people who are just starting to hear the gospel and changed their 
life. I know it´s very few people in the big scheme of things, but 
like M. Russel Ballard said, we all got to do our part in this gospel 
just like the honey bees in their hive. 
      When I read about and reflect on the great mercy that God has 
shown me in my life and the rest of the children of men, my desires to 
the share the gospel increase. When I just take time to think about 
the love He had for us, that he sent his only begotton son in the 
flesh to die for us so that we could have the chance to be saved, I 
long for the opportunites to share it. And when I pause to ponder the 
powerful mysteries and the mysterious power of the Almighty and 
Eternal God and his time to listen personally to the silent prayers 
every person, I know that man is nothing. 
      Why then do we pause to help others in need? Why do we let 
others to anger us? Why do we put aside the eternal things so that we 
could have more time for things that will die with us? When will we 
ever learn to humble ourselves enough to do the things of God? And 
why, oh please answer me why, do we ever go back ``fishing´´ or return 
to our natural man after the change in our hearts? 
 
 
I can not wait for the day in which we can all rest from our labors in 
the peaceful Kingdom of God. 
 
-Elder Walker

CRAZY WEEK!!!!!!!!.....

Dear Parents,

I am so happy to hear of the finalized plans for Spain.  I´m excited!  I think that sounds perfect for each time we will spend in each place.  Lot´s more to do in Barcelona anyway.  Mom-you ask what to wear.  Winter clothes for sure!  It gets quite cold here in December.  I would bring long sleeves and some short sleeves underneath a nice warm winter coat.  I have an extra coat you can wear here if you are worried about weight.  Pants, gloves, scarf, ear warmers, and umbrela, that should be good.  tennis´.  All the parents of missionaries that I have met and talked to when they come through always have a spain cell phone while they are here.  I would for sure barrow the Boohers phone.  Great idea!

Dear Family in general,

As for my week, woo, it´s been a pretty rough week, not gonna lie.  It was stressful!  my companion and I got stuck planning the ward mission talent show and baptism (different days) alone. And on top of that were having problems with our baptism candidate.  No one was helping with anything, the ward mission leader, the elders, the sisters, no body!!!!  And the ward mission talent show wasn´t even our idea, it was the ward mission leader who complains that we never have any activities.  So we find out the day before that nobody is prepared!  We call an emergency meeting and I find myself taking the charge because nothing gets done or the right way if I don´t.  My companion just sits there while I assign everyone what they are doing.  I did it with a smile, but was a little flustered.  It ended off being a kickin talent show!!!!  Lot´s of people showed!  it was packed and all went golden except for the missionaries act...because we never practiced. It was bad and we laughed afterwards how bad and not funny our skit ended up being haha.  I think American humor is completely different than Latin humor because we were the only ones laughing.  Our act was what not to do and what to do in different situations as a missionary.  For example in contacting, lessons, street, metro,etc....ya it was bad!  haha no one thought we were funny!  We are still laughing about it a week later.  Anyway, the next day we had Brenda (our baptism candadite´s) interview.  She shows up late but no big deal, the district leader starts.  20 minutes into it her dad (who naturally is shy) comes storming in and asks to sit in the interview.  We told him that they were almost done and it was something personal.  He got really firm with us and says "no she is my daughter...yata yata.  Well we say okay one moment please.  The dad later comes out and sits quietly across from us...hmmm everything must be okay?  Brenda finishes the interview and her and the district leader are teary eyed.  What now!??  The poor inexperienced district leader tells us that he felt like the dad was about to punch him and kept interupting him...he had to ask the dad to leave the room.  Brenda says if her parents don´t show up to the baptism she is not going down in the water...she wants their support.  Later we go over there and start a fast with her.  Well, the next day more drama happened.  The newly non-experienced had not filled out any records or paperwork in which include getting the parents signuture and permission for her to be baptized.  Long story short the mom was very short with me over the phone and Brenda did not show up all weekend to any activities, and ofcourse didn´t show for her baptism.  I WAS DEVASTATED!!!!  This was the first time I have had this kind of problem and had someone just not show or say anything.  I felt bad and responsible like where did we go wrong?  The spirit taught me a lot of lessons this week about a lot of different things.  It stinks because now we have to start over with her and gain the parents trust again since Brenda didn´t communicate to us that her parents said No that a month was too quick to be baptized.  We were confused and wish she had communicated better.  Now we look like the bad guys.  Stinks, but I know that ever member of this family of 4 has felt the spirit and know this is right, all it is is time now.  Lot´s of time to gain their trust again.  Then ofcourse I gave a candy to a kid and he started choking during the middle of our lesson....the mom jumped up and gave him the heimlich maneuver and the kid wouldn´t stop throwing up everywhere after that...all the way down the hall to the bathroom... CRAZY WEEK!!!!!  Kinda felt down, but were off with the Elders right now to do something fun! 

My hair keeps falling out from the hard calcium water here....I might just come home bald....welp love you all!!!  Keep being amazing and doin what you do!!!!  I know that the Lord truly is in the details of our lives and that Brenda and her family will get baptized someday it will just take some time now.  All on the Lord´s time table not ours.  I invite all of you who are struggling getting along with someone to give them 4 compliments a day and see it work wonders for your relationship with anyone.  Hermana Pace has given us that challenge and it works!  So try it....4 compliments a day!

CONGRATS KATIE PALMER FOR ALMOST MAKING IT INTO THE OLYMPICS!!!!!!!!!!  1.5 seconds off....soooo close can´t believe it!

PS--....my companion knows Curis Penfold really well....we just found that connection the other day after being together a whole transfer....

Welp LOVE LOVE LOVE
Hermana Walker