So this week has been super, super good. I already told you about Toledo on Monday, so I´ll skip that day. But it was super awesome. On Tuesday we didn´t do much because Hermana Pavez was prepping all her stuff to leave for Valladolid the next day. That was a little bit of a frustrating day, but I understood that she needed the time to get ready to head out. So we helped her with all her stuff and that night we threw a suprise goodbye party for her in the capilla with the other missionaries, investigators, and some members in the ward. We made it spiritual and it was super fun. She was in this area for 6 months, and her first six months at that. So it was good to send her off in style. The next day we spent the first half prepping for Pavez some more, and then we helped her haul her luggage across 3 different Metro lines to the bus station, where we got sworn at for being part of a "sect". But it turned out great. I love Hermana Pavez so much. She was a really great friend and missionary. On the way back from the train station, we had a total miracle! We were sitting on a bench, waiting for the Metro to come, and we started talking to this really sweet Chinese lady. We ended up talking to her the entire Metro ride, and then we got off at the stop where our capilla is. We asked her if she would like to see it, and she said yes. So we took her to the Capilla and told her all about it. She didn´t know who Jesus Christ or God were, really, and her Spanish, although better than mine, left much to be desired. But it was so amazing, she LOVED it. We ended up teaching her a part of the first lesson and teaching her how to pray. She showed us her goosebumps and kept saying how God had put us in each other´s paths and that we were friends now. We told her the ward needed some Chinos! And she totally agreed. She loved us so much, and we totally love her! I think we have another cita with her tomorrow, and I´m really excited. It was the coolest experience. Another really cool miracle we had this week was our two lessons with los dos J L. They´re these two super old Spanish men that Hermana Fuller met while we were on splits the other day. They´re friends and J L #1 invited us over to teach him them in his apartment. He doesn´t have a leg and they both smoke like no one I´ve ever seen before (except every single other person we´ve met in Spain, of course). They´re so sweet. They love the lessons and though they´re both SUPER Catholic (soooo Catholic), they´re like listening to us and learning. We gave them both Books of Mormon and they are both reading a little bit. Right now they´re having a hard time with the Apostasy and the fact that we don´t worship the Virgin Mary. So we´re working with them. They´re the sweetest men and I just love teaching them. I´m able to say more and more each lesson, and people are starting to actually be able to understand me. So that´s awesome. With M., she wasn´t able to come to church this week, and she has to come two times before she can get baptized. Since she didn´t come this week (the only reason she doens´t come is work. She really, really wants too), we had to push her baptism date back one more week. But it´s ok. She´s so ready to get baptized! She gets more excited every time we see her. We told her about temples and how she can to her mom´s baptism after she gets baptized, which will be cool for her, because her mom just barely died and it´s been hard for her. I´m excited for her baptism! It´s going to be so cool. Keep praying for her, though! She really needs it. I also met our investigator from California, K., the other day. He is an INTERESTING guy. Wow. Super unique. He´s hard to meet with because he´s always really busy with work, but I love him because I can actually talk to and understand him. I met him at Noche de Hogar the other night and since Hermana Fuller told me he hasn´t been to church since the time changed from 11 to 9 in the morning, I just talked up church a BUNCH. Told him how awesome it was, how much I loved it here in Spain, how cool the Spirit is there. It was funny. At the end of the night I was like, "See ya at church, K!" And he just rolled his eyes and laughed at me a little bit. In a friendly way. But there was like, no way he was coming to church. And guess WHAT? He was there on Sunday! He came!! The first time in months and months. I have no idea what made him decide to come, but he came and then we were able to have a lesson with him about keeping the Sabbath Day holy a couple hours after church. He said he was coming from now on and that he would also be able to meet with us on a more regular basis. He´s a super interesting guy. He´s in the music industry- he has a band called the New Aristocrats and he´s got an offer with Sony Music right now to work for them in England. If he gets signed, he moves there in September, I think. He´s like 50 years old, super surfer hippie dude, and really intelligent but then I´m also not sure if he´s ever really comprehending what we´re saying. But then he goes off about how the axis of Western Civilization is the River Rhine and how a lot of people think Visigoths are Vikings but they´re not... and he speaks like 5 languages... weird. Cool but weird. But what matters is that he´s awesome and he came to CHURCH and he´s coming from now on. It was such a cool miracle. Spanish is coming more and more every day! I understand more and more and I try to make myself talk more and more. I had an entire phone conversation by myself yesterday, which was my goal for the week! Usually I start off and then hand the phone to Hermana Fuller, but yesterday she made me keep talking and I did it! It was super cool. Oh, and one last way hardcore story. We play soccer every Saturday morning with investigators and it´s so fun. I´m the best of the missionaries in my district and the Hispanic men are starting to pick me to play on their teams. Basically makes me feel so cool. Anyways, this Saturday I made the mistake of sliding on the ground to get a ball, and mind you, we don´t play on grass. We play on outdoor futsal courts. So I tore up the skin all on my left leg, burned through my exercise pants and the shoelace on my shoe. Like, burned through them. I gained so much respect that day. Wow. I still feel cool talking about it. :)
Well, this week was AWESOME! I learned so much and I´m so excited for this week to work super hard and do the best I can for the people that I´m serving. There´s so much work to be done here! I love Spain so much. Sometimes I feel like I´m in Europe, sometimes I feel like I´m in South America, sometimes I feel like I´m in Africa, and all the time I know I´m in the mission field, and that´s what makes me love it so much. It´s hard and super amazing. I love my companion so much, we´re such good friends. It makes this a lot easier, to have someone you love and trust right by your side! She teaches me so much and we just laugh a whole lot, all while working hard. It´s awesome. The barrio is amazing and they seem to like me. It´s coming, slowly but surely! Every week I feel better and better. I love this Gospel and I love my Heavenly Father and I know this is His work. I´m so lucky to be a part of it! I love you guys so much! I can´t wait to hear more about the vacation and all about the tennis tournament. Oh, and with the postcards slash mail situation, send the rest of the stuff to my piso. I only get mail from the office when I see the office couple, which isn´t often. I emailed dad my address, so use that one. I love you all!!!
Love,
Sam
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