Greetings from Madrid Spain! Life here is going very well, and I'm keeping very busy. This past week we had a lot of cool experiences. As always, I'll go about it in sections.
One big thing that happened is that we had the last zone conferences of the Packs. That was very emotional; I even started to tear up a bit at one point. It's going to be very sad to say goodbye to the Packs. Of course, we are excited to welcome the Busseys, but the Packs are going to be very missed. This past conference we talked about the importance of obedience and being the best missionaries that we can be. It really impacted me. One part I really liked was Hermana Pack’s section on our purpose. She talked about the 2 action words of the purpose, "invite” and “help". It was a good conference; it left me with a lot of renewed desires to be a better missionary.
We also had an intercambio with the zone leaders. We ended up going to their area, which is called Torrejon. That was a really good intercambio. We ended up getting pretty busy, but we were able to find a little bit of time to talk to people. We went to another area for a baptism, which was really cool. While I was there, I started talking to this random girl. It turns out she is from Chicago and is here for an exchange program. That was just a funny little thing, finding a 20-year-old girl from Chicago in Alcalá, Spain. Then again, I guess it's about as weird as finding a 20-year-old guy from California there, too.
I had one really cool conversation this past week that comes to my mind. We were on our way to Torrejón to start our intercambios; while we were on the train, I sat down next to a guy who looked really tired. So I started to talk to him, and he is a super cool guy. He moved here about 8 years ago from Venezuela. He works in a little supermarket; he usually does about 11 hours a day which explained a bit why he was so exhausted. We talked a bit about his country and all of the hard stuff that was going on there right now.
One thing I've noticed, and that I mentioned to this man, is that despite all of the trials and difficulties that many people in South America and his country face, as a people they have a very powerful and strong faith. I think in part it's due to some of those trials. This man and others I've met are just some of the most humble and faithful people you will ever find.
Our investigators are doing pretty well. They are all moving at their own paces, but they are progressing pretty well. We currently have 3 people on fecha. 1 for the 23rd and 2 for the 14th. The 1 on the 23rd is an 8-year-old boy named Jose who is part of a less active family that has started coming back to church He is very prepared and right now his only obstacle would be his church attendance. His family lives a little far away, and they don't have enough money to buy a bus pass. So, we are currently working on organizing rides from the other members so that they can get to church.
The other 2 are named Noemi and Daniela. I don't remember if I mentioned them last time, but Noemi is the mother and Daniela is her young daughter. Noemi' s husband was in an accident a while back and has been in the hospital. We have been meeting with them and helping them get through it. They are doing a lot better now. We have started to teach them about the gospel, and they are really seeming to enjoy it. Daniela is being a really great example for her mom and is starting to read a lot in The Book of Mormon. She even looked up and watched the restoration video on her own free time.
Well fam, sorry, but I have to go. I hope you have a great one and that you enjoy your week, wish me luck for transfers! I start working on them this next week. It’s a little early for that, but we are preparing to merge the two missions.
- Elder Bassett
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