Since some have asked about it, I’ll start off with soccer and what I do during physical activity every day. When I first got here there were a bunch of people who played soccer, so most of the time I played ultimate football, which is like ultimate Frisbee with a football. I liked it because I didn’t have to wait after every game, and it was continuous activity. Since the 40 new missionaries arrived last week; however, there have been way too many playing UF so now I play soccer. There are actually quite a few good soccer players from North America. You’ll be proud to know that yesterday, I had a hat trick in 3 of the 5 consecutive games we won. Winner stayed on. It is funny to see the Latinos reactions when I do something good though (they don't expect the Americans to know how to play), and I love the Latinos because they love to laugh--most of the time at me trying to speak Spanish! But that’s okay.
I don’t take any new pics this week, and it’s pretty much been the same old in the CCM. After emailing I’ll get to go into town and shop. It’s weird today because the temple is closed. The computers are working now though, but I have no idea when I’ll email next week--just sometime on Wednesday. I have to send you a picture of Elder Schreiner and I on the public buses because it is comical. Literally, they are made for 20 people who are 5 feet 8, but they stuff more than 30 people on the bus, and we usually have to stand. Our shoulders touch the roof.
I have loved reading the Book of Mormon. I have written all of my favorite scriptures down and I wish I could just talk to you about all of them because they are so great. I could talk for hours about them. My favorite book is probably 2 Nephi. I don’t have enough time to talk about all of the things I love in the BoM. The person and missionary I want to be most like though is Ammon. He is the perfect example of how to be a missionary through his example of humble service. He doesn’t ask for anything and rejects King Lamoni’s offer for wives and riches and in short stays focused on the work and serving. I also love the perseverance of Alma the younger in his missionary service because of the amount of time he was rejected and kept going (like in Alma 26:29).
Yesterday, we had a General Authority 70 come. He was Elder Wadel, and he lives in Lima. He was great and talked about our purpose as missionaries. He said that we have to be different missionaries than our dad and brothers because our objective has changed. It was find, teach, and baptize. Now it is convert, retain, and activate. So the focus isn’t to baptize but to convert investigators and members because the final goal is the temple and the first step is baptism. He was a cool guy and is 6’ 5” and big, and he speaks Espana Spanish because he was a mission president there.
The language is slowly coming. I have to teach a fake investigator twice a day and I’m getting better, but it is hard to be patient. Right now I know the verb I want to use, but I just can’t conjugate it to future or whatever I want. My far off goal in the future is to be able to speak good Spanish when I call at Christmas. I mean I hope I can by then, and if I can’t I’ll probably shoot myself. Basically, I’m not getting discouraged until then.
I wrote quite a bit. Mom, don’t expect me to write this much every week. Other random news is I met an Elder form Vegas, and we were just talking about how he went to LVA but was zoned for Palo. Anyways, I found out that he happens to live in the Simister’s ward. That’s cool.
Love,
Elder Nicholas Walker
PS. Thanks to all my other mothers and others who wrote me an email this week. I really appreciate it. Sorry I didn't have time to write back. I spent all my time (I only have 30 minutes) writing this long email.
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| Me today, right now, right outside the computer lab. |
