Alma 58:10-11

Dear everyone,

Ya, I’m okay. Cool. This week was pretty much the same old. Elder Conteras went to Huancayo for a few days, and so I was companions with Elder Cayo and that was fun. Life’s good. We went to a nice restaurant last Saturday because everyone was having their year or nine month mark, you know half-way anniversary. That was fun. 

Honestly though it is soo annoying when missionaries talk about how fast the time goes. These have been the longest 2 months of my life. But yeah, I don’t know what to write. What do you want to know?

One thing—I literally know the scripture in Alma 58:10-11 to be true. If we pour out our souls in prayer to Him he will speak peace unto our souls and give us GREAT faith and hope of deliverance through Him. Also, before I talked about how much i missed going to Rebel games and activities, but I realize that I don’t really miss going to the Rebel games with Dad and Marc, I miss the car rides to the rebel games when we could talk. I just miss the people, but don’t worry I’m not homesick.

I’ll write more next week. I spent my time writing to Marc this week. 

Love you,

Elder Walker

I Love My Family!

Hello,

I have a question for you. What is harder than being a missionary in Cerro de Pasco for your first area????? Being the mom of that missionary. Hahaahahahahahahhhahahahaha.

Anyway this week nothing really happened because I had the pleasure of making the 9 hour bus ride to Lima for immigrations. It sucked. I don't want to focus on the bad, but yeah I got sick this week. And let me tell you it is the worst being sick without my mom and without my bed! I got a fever and felt colder than I did in Cerro. Also, for the second time, I got used to Cerro again just to leave. It was interesting though going back to Lima because of how much I’ve changed. Not really me, but my mind set. I remember the first day I arrived in Peru and looking outside and thinking I’m in a third world country. Everything is so dirty and impoverished. But going back I realized how nice Lima is compared to Cerro. Like everything is so nice in Lima—there are side walks and real buildings. hHaha. And the hotel we stayed in was a suite. 

Also, it was fun because I got to see all of my CCM friends. But it was short lived. Other than that it is the same old. Yeah, everyone in Lima said I got skinnier. Sad face. But actually I'm either starving or want to throw up because I have eaten so much. By the way, I have to buy my own breakfast right now—no tengo pension. So yeah I've been spending too much money. So please make sure my card is all right.

So, I have seen 3 chapels in Cerro—and there might be one more. In my ward there are 1000 members about 120 come to church. I figured this out yesterday at a stake meeting, and it blew my mind. I am in the Cerro de Pasco ward in the Cerro de Pasco stake and ours is the biggest ward here. There are 5 wards here.

So we went to Huallae (pronounced why-I) and it as a bunch of cool rocks formations that look like animals. The one in the picture is an elephant rock.

To answer your question, we drink store bought, purified water in bottles and drink that in our apartment and then we aways drink a hot tea with our pension. Other than that, I don't drink anything else. What I eat is soup every day with my pension and then for lunch it's soup and then a second dish. You'd be surprised how many different ways you can prepare rice and chicken.

Also I keep forgetting to tell you--the first day with President Henderson we talked about how we were going home together our group and him. Anyway he said we will go home 4 days before him and he told us are release date!!!! I'm go home June 28, 2016!!! Which means I'm back in time to clean for the 4th of July!!!!!!!!!! Hahaha. No not that I want to focus on home or going home but how sick and perfect is that? The only thing is that I want Marcus to go home at the same time. So work on that.

Have a great week! Love you so much!

Elder Walker

Elephant Rock

Elder Contreras and I

Probably my favorite picture of Jesus is with him and the lamb. Not that I’m Jesus! But I’m on his errand. 

Good week

Hello from Cerro de Pasco, la tierra de machos y no muchos.

I’ve come to the realization that Cerro de Pasco is district 12 in the Hunger Games. There is a giant mine, life is physically difficult, and everyone works hard and lives super humbly—district 12. However, it’s cool too because the clouds are literally eye level and the stars are amazing. This week hasn’t been that cold here, but it is high. When I read out loud to my companion, I get winded. 

Last week was hard partly because we were going to Huánuco to a conference, but we had to move apartments before we left. So we looked all of Thursday for a new place, but found nothing. The zone leaders got us a place, but I won’t say anything about it. On Friday we moved left all are stuff then went to Huánuco. In Huánuco the people and even the missionaries live different than we do in Cerro and that’s all I’m gonna say. It never makes you happy to compare. Also, the work is a little difficult because there are 6 missionaries in our ward. When we arrived they had to split the boundaries. It was hard because we have the zone leaders and the hermanas in our ward. So it seemed that we got left with not much of an area, and it never makes you happy to compare. But no worries because this week has been great.

I HAD MY FIRST BAPTISM. I got to baptize an 8 year old investigator of the hermanas named Antony. I was so nervous because it wasn’t only my first baptism in the mission, but first baptism ever. And I had to do it in Spanish. I probably practiced the prayer 100 times. But everything went smoothly and I managed not to mess it up. It was an awesome experience. For the first time, even though Antony wasn’t my investigator, I felt like I made a difference here. 

I have been trying not to let my mind think on things of no value (like worrying and complaining and comparing). As I’ve focused on others and on the positive, I had a much better week.

Los Amo Mucho,

Elder Walker 

2nd Week in the Field

 Hi,

I'm listening to Blink 182. I'm sitting in this small internet cafe, and music is playing. It makes me think of Camron. This has been a hard week so I'll spare you all the details and just send pictures. Mom, I don't know where you got the idea that Elder Shreiner is not in the Huancayo mission because he is definitely in my mission.

I've found hope in pondering Mark 9:23-24 this week. The father of a crippled boy takes his son to Jesus and asks for him to be healed. Jesus says, “If thou canst believe all things are possible to him that believeth.” Immediately the father says, I believe help thou mine unbelief. I believe I’m supposed to be in the Huancayo mission and in Cerro. I believe that I’m doing the Lord’s work. I believe with all my heart, but this week has driven me to my knees. I cry out everyday in every prayer and in every moment for God to help my unbelief, for God to give me strength to do this.

Don't worry about me, Mom. I'm going to be fine.  Enjoy the pictures.

Los amo Mucho, 

Elder Walker
  

Elder Shreiner and I at the Lima Temple for the last time before we head out into the field.

Last day with Elder Shreiner in the CCM

The bus stopped on the way to Huancayo.

I can fly!

Chosen Frozen--Cerro de Pasco Zone--4400 Meters

Cerro de Pasco--Literally and actually on the top of the world! 

Aspira a lo Alto

Hello!

Okay so I arrived at the president's house in Huancayo on Tuesday after over an 8-hour bus ride. He’s a really cool guy. I was the second to last Elder he met with. We talked about my family, and then he asked me if I had a question to ask him. I wasn’t ready for this, but then I asked him how could I be effective as a missionary without speaking Spanish. He told me pretty much that you won’t be. Nicer, but that was a direct quote. Then, he talked about were I was going to be serving and who with. He said I'd be serving with a Latino companion and that my area is the most physically demanding area in the mission—Cerro de Pasco. He said straight up that in two weeks I will be thinking what in the h-e-double hockey sticks am I doing here? While he was saying all of this I just started to smile really big and almost laugh to myself because I couldn’t think of a worse situation to start my mission in. But then again I couldn’t think of a better way—the cold, the altitude, the Latin companion all just give me a reason to work harder and enjoy my mission. Because well the situation may stink but that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it. 

Getting to Cerro de Pasco was a 4-hour bus ride. Honestly, the altitude and cold weren’t as hard to deal with at first as the food. Camron may be right in that the best food I eat is in the CCM. All I’ve eaten is stew twice a day.

My comp is Elder Contreras, and he is awesome. He is 20 months in the mission and is from Ecuador. His family are all non-members. He was a Zone Leader before training me, and seriously all of the members in Huancayo (we got one day to proselyte in Huancayo to help with adjusting to the altitude before going to Cerro) and missionaries love him. He is super loving and likable and kind. I’m learning a lot from him.

What you need to know about Cerro. First, is bigger than you might think. There is a giant mine in the middle of the town, and the town is all around the enormous mine. There are a lot of people here, but doesn’t even make sense why they are here. I guess they are just stuck there. The altitude (over 14,000 feet) and the cold and the ugly mine make the town kind of unpleasant to say the least.

Cerro is cold. It’s bitterly cold. It’s the kind of cold that numbs the limbs and pierces into the very soul. It’s weird though. Sometimes is will be cold, and then it will be extremely cold. And it will switch between these two during the day. It’s very temperamental. Haha. But don’t worry about me mom I sleep with 8 blankets at night so I’m fine. And I’m probably about as cold as you are in Las Vegas. haha. I think I finally understand you, Mom. My toes are always cold like yours, but I don’t have Brody to warm them up :( ohh and heating, I don’t have a heater too. Haha.

Holy cow I’m writing a lot this week. Also after my interview with President Henderson I knew I was going to Cerro, but that night I realized I lost my little baggy with my passport, wallet and temple recommended. It was funny before I was like wow putting all these important documents is a good way to lose everything at once, and I did. Long story short it fell out of my suit jacket pocket in the bus and the other elders unpacked the bus while we went to eat that first day in Huancayo, but IT was FOUND. Yeah! They called the bus company that night when I figured out I was going to Cerro, and they said they didn’t have it. So that night was rough because I was so worried, but then they found it on the bus the next day. It stinks though because I still don’t have my money right now.

Last thing, Elder Bednar describes three different ways to receive revelation. He calls them the pattern of light. One is like a light switch. Instantaneous knowledge and conviction of the truth. The second form is like a sunrise. At first nothing is visible, but almost imperceptibly things start to come into focus. The Third way is like walking down an alley on a super foggy day. You can only see far enough to take maybe a few steps. This fogginess describes me right now, not for revelation but for faith, and I don’t know hope of things. I don’t know everything, but I know enough. I knew enough to come to Cerro, and I know enough to take the smallest of steps forward.  

Yep, I've got a shirt for the Cerro de Pasco zone. I can’t send the picture. But the joke is that the shirt is the best part of going to Cerro. Love you so much. I’m not going to give up.

Elder Walker