Quiriza....

Just to let you know, this is my second to last email, I`ll write one more when Mom and Dad are here.

It`s weird that Ryan´s just starting and I`m finishing. His letter made me laugh and made me think about how I started and it was basically the same. Perú and Bolivia used to be the same country, so he`s basically going to experience a similar mission.

So you guys just have NO IDEA what I`ve been through this past week. And to be honest, I can´t write everything here how I felt and what I experienced, but I loved it. I will send a lot of pictures so you guys get a feel of what Quiriza is.

Quiriza is basically a small farming town where half of them are inactive Mormons. We also cover 5 other towns that we walked to, usually 3 hours to get there just to teach one lesson. We work in jeans and sometimes shirt and tie because we`re always doing service. What have I done of service? We do everything with garlic. I`ve harvested garlic a whole day, carried lots of garlic, cut it, gathered goat milk, fed horses and pigs, shucked corn, made a pizza, and anything else you could possibly imagine from a farm. I don`t think anyone in the United States knows what hard labor without payment is until they get here to Quiriza. I actually feel like I`ve been camping for the past week. We literally sleep in the chapel and since there`s not enough beds, we take a matress and sleep in front of the podium. The good thing is, there is a piano two yards away from the bed!

There`s also a great feeling here in Quiriza that really isn`t found in other parts of the world. I`ve felt so much love, the spirit is soo strong here and the people always have a smile on their faces as they greet the elders. The people have so much faith and there are many miracles that has happened here. There is no internet or cell phone service so the spirit knows that these things could not be published.15 people came to church. And that includes the oldest member in Bolivia. He was confirmed a member by Richard G. Scott (sound familiar) who was then the president of the mission. The people here still talk about and Elder Kimball (sound familiar). Spencer W. Kimball came and dedicated the church building. The church building itself is a miracle.

Oh man, there`s just too much to inlclude here that I really can`t. Have a nice week and I`ll see you Sunday Mom and Dad.

-Elder Walker