Hermanas!

Everybody! This week was great!

First off, we've got two baptisms planned for this Saturday! One is a granddaughter of Hna Lopez that hasn't been baptized yet, and her Grandpa is gonna baptize her, so that should be an awesome experience! And... drumroll ...Roberto is getting baptized! Officially! It was an amazing experience, a miracle, really.

The first couple days of this week were tough, to be honest. We were struggling to plan because we didn't have very many people to go visit, everyone kept cancelling on us, and we lost a couple investigators. Pretty discouraging. So we decided on Friday that we would fast on Sunday because we really needed to see some things move forward (which was extra difficult cause our branch president gives us donuts at correlation! But it's worth the pain, heh heh). So before church we were talking with Roberto, asking him (again) if he had been reading or felt anything different about baptism. His answer was the same, that no, he still didn't feel any different. Gah, so we just told him again to keep reading and praying. Fast forward 2 hours, and we're going in to sacrament meeting (we have it at the end of the day). I was talking with other investigators, so Roberto walks right up to my companion and says, "I'm going to get baptized!" WHAT!!! He said he was listening in Young Mens class and was really touched by what was being taught. He realized that Heavenly Father has given him so much, and the least he could do is be baptized and be faithful to what he knows. So that was his sign! Roberto is getting baptized!!!! It really is a miracle. Fasting is so amazing! I don't think I've ever gained such a strong testimony of anything in such a short period of time. If you really need to see some changes in your life, FAST. But do it prayerfully, with real intent to work hard for what you're asking for. I promise the Lord will bless you for your sacrifice!

Other amazing things this week: Yumiko had her son, Adrian, and hadn't been very well the whole week. It's so difficult, they live in a tiny apartment with so many little kids and they can't always pay for electricity and air conditioning and that stuff, and the little bed they have for Yumiko broke in the middle of the night. So things are tough for her! She had a c-section and had been in a lot of pain, especially in her back. We went to visit them the other day, just helping them out with their kids and doing some cleaning with them cause things have been crazy. We asked Yumiko if she wanted a priesthood blessing, but she said no, she was too embarrassed. Well we sent over some elders anyways! Haha, and we went and snagged her some pillows from Walmart to help her be more comfortable. The amazing thing: the next day she was up and walking around! She was in bed all day the day before, in so much pain, feeling really really low. And the day after, she was smiling and shuffling around! It was great to see her up and moving, and it definitely strengthened her testimony of the church. She was embarrassed, but so grateful in the end for the blessing. It really helped her! So great.

Wow, I'm already out of time. I hope that wasn't too confusing! I love you all, everyone have a great week!

Love, Hna Watkins

I forgot to write about it, but we went to the Visitor's Center with Yasury and her dad on Friday. And guess who I saw: TAM! We were getting ready to go into the family display, and someone tapped me on the shoulder. Lo and behold, I turn around and its my sistah!!!!! What a coincidence (aka blessing from the Lord)! So fun. A VC sister took a picture with her iPad, and here's the result! So fun!

What a great week! I feel like in my past couple emails I've rambled a lot, so I'll try to be more organized today!

First off, we had a great experience with Byron this week! He and his cousin are from Guatemala, and they just moved to the area and don't really know anybody. We taught him once like a week and a half ago and we hadn't been able to catch him again until Saturday. We chatted a bit outside his apartment, and committed him to go to church! We were waiting and waiting after correllation and didn't see him anywhere, so we stepped outside and wandered around the building to see if we could find him (cause our church building has like 1,000,000 doors, everybody always gets lost, haha). So we head outside, and on the other side of the parking lot we see him getting in his car to go home! We booked it across to his car, waving our arms and calling his name to get his attention, haha. He pulled over and said he didn't know where we were and he was nervous cause he didn't know anybody, but once he saw us he was ready to go back inside. And he had a great time! We were standing in the foyer before the meetings started, just chatting, and some Hermanos came right up to him and introduced themselves and when we turned our backs for one second to say hi to someone, they had whisked him away to priesthood. So great! I love it when the members step up and fellowship the investigators. So much love!

We also had a great lesson with him later that day about the plan of salvation and the word of wisdom. Everything just made perfect sense to him, and he is really ready to step up and change his life. He has had some problems with drinking, but he really liked the word of wisdom and is willing to do whatever it takes to set those addictions aside. So wonderful! It was especially great that one of the men that took him to priesthood has had the same kinds of problems in the past. He was talking with Byron and testified to him about the power of the atonement. He was in the same place about 3 years ago, but now he's attended the temple with his wife and is super active in the ward. So he's a perfect example for Byron!

Okay, who else... Silvestre! We went to the Visitor's Center with him on Halloween, haha. It actually was perfect, since it was a Thursday and a holiday, there was hardly anyone there. We had the place to ourselves and looked at just about everything! And we brought a great ward missionary with us, Hermana Anaya. She's a convert too and is absolutely not shy at all. She basically just bore testimony one minute after the other about everything we saw! She's so great, haha. So we have a baptismal date with Silvestre, but he still is having some problems with a girlfriend, even though they're not living together. The only problem is that he has a family in Mexico! So we'll have to work that out with him this week.

We're still having trouble with Roberto! He's seriously such a good kid, and he's basically already a member, just minus the fact that he's not baptized. We're pretty sure he's ready, but he keeps saying he's waiting for a big sign or feeling or something to tell him he should get baptized. The only problem is that he's still not really putting in his full effort! I think we'll have to slap him around to get him to really really listen to us, haha. But he still has his baptismal date, so we're just gonna keep pressing along and try to get him to the Visitor's Center this week.

We got some really exciting news yesterday: Yumiko finally had her baby boy!! His name is Adrian, and we got to visit them this morning at the hospital. So precious! We mostly just talked about how everything went and how she was feeling, but the moment she gets home, we're gonna seize the moment and talk about the plan of salvation. She's so ready to be baptized, but she just says that she wants to know more. So we're gonna give her anything and everything we've got!

A little testimony: fasting is amazing. When we fast, miracles happen. We had 5 investigators in church yesterday, and the spirit was so so strong! I am ashamed to say that I have been a super lame faster all my life. Now that I have the opportunity to fast with real intent, I can bear testimony of the miracles that take place and the blessings that the Lord pours out on us. It's still super hard to fast, especially when you're running around trying to meet new people and get everyone to the right class at church and make sure everyone has a ride, but it is SO WORTH IT. Seriously, I encourage everyone to fast next Fast Sunday. I testify of the power it has in our lives, and that we can fast any day to show our gratitude to our Heavenly Father. And He will bless us in return!

Yay for being a missionary! Life is the BEST. I've never been so happy. One thing we've committed to do is live like this is our last week in the mission. Amazing things have happened! But we are also recognizing Satan, that he's calling for reinforcements against us and all missionaries. I love Moroni 9:6 (I think). Mormon is writing to Moroni, and he says "And now, my beloved son, notwithstanding their hardness, let us labor diligently". No matter what, no matter the hardness of the people around us and their actions against us, we must labor diligently. I love the rest of the verse too: "for we have a labor to perform whilst in this tabernacle of clay, that we may conquer the enemy of all righteousness, and rest our souls in the kingdom of God." So great! We've got work to do and so little time to do it, so let's get to work! Let's conquer the enemy! And we will find peace for our souls with our Heavenly Father in His kingdom. So great!

I love this gospel so much, and I love being a missionary. I hope everyone has a great week! I love you all!
Hna Watkins

Hello errybody!

Where to start this week... We went to the visitor's center with Nereyda, a recent convert, her husband Octavio, an investigator, and their 5 year old daughter, Ashley, who's a mega fashionista, haha. It was really good! We talked a lot about eternal families and eternal marriage, which was really exciting! We had another lesson with them a few days later because Octavio had this whole week off of work, and he committed to baptism! His only struggle is the Word of Wisdom. But his date is the 16th of November! This is actually the 3rd time he's had a baptismal date, but the other day at our ward halloween party, he was talking to one of our Elders and confirmed the date and was discussing baptism and everything. So hopefully it'll all work out!

Speaking of our Trunk or Treat party! Mom sent me a mega-package full of cupcake decorations and cake mixes, and we went crazy! They were a huge hit! Everybody loves the missionaries now, thanks mom!

Okay, other people we've taught: Byron and Yarli, cousins from Guatemala that just moved into our area. Byron is super friendly and Yarli is a bit shy, but they are both looking for a church since they are new to the area, and they're really interested in our message. Byron really just wants to follow the path of Christ but never has been exactly sure how to do it. We had a second lesson with them on Saturday, and Byron committed to baptism, also for the 16th! It's so impressive to me to watch people as they open up to the message we have to share and see the changes they make to follow the example of Christ and be baptized. When people really feel the Spirit, they are willing to change anything. It's always such a good example to me!

We've also been teaching a 14 year old boy named Roberto. His dad and stepmom are both active at church, so he's been attending a lot with them. He's just come from Mexico and is going to high school and learning english at the same time. And he's a great student! That's so impressive to me. Anyways, we've been teaching him for a long time and we even had a baptismal date with him a few weeks back, but he's just been waiting for a special feeling to confirm what he's been learning, even though we're pretty sure he knows it's all true. The only hard thing is that he hasn't been very diligent with scripture study or prayer! We've been trying to help him understand that it's very possible to have that special experience that he's been looking for, but that he has to do his part. It has been tough the past couple weeks to try and find a nice way to say it, so finally we were just kinda tough on him and told him that he has to put in his effort. The Lord is always waiting to bless us! We just need to take that first step and show our willingness. So we taught him that, and we got through to him! He was kinda silent, but in the end he just said, "You guys are right. I haven't been doing my part." So he's gonna work harder now on prayer and scripture study, and he also committed to a baptismal date on the 16th of November!

We also have one more man who's ready to be baptized, Silvestre. We were walking into Gospel Principles class last sunday, and one of the elders in our ward pointed out an older guy sitting in the back that he hadn't seen at church in 4 months, but that he lived in our area. So Hna Arevalo and I went up to him and chatted a bit, and he invited us over this week! So we went by, and basically he's a member that hasn't been baptized yet, haha. The only problem was that he had a girlfriend that he was living with several months ago, but she's gone now, and he's started coming back to church after a few months of realizing that he was really missing it. So he's the fourth person we have for the baptism on the 16th of November! Bottom line, we've had some great miracles in finding and helping people commit to baptism. What a great week!

Everyone remember to do your part! Heavenly Father is waiting to bless you! Show him your willingness by being obedient and humbling yourself through prayer. It's hard but definitely worth it!

I love you all!
Hna Watkins

If anyone REALLY loves me they'll send me some stamps!

Yah! What a good week! It's kind of weird to write again after writing on Wednesday, so I'll try to think of some good stuff to write.

We got Isabel and Daniel and their grandkids to come to Church! First off, we told them that this week was the primary program, meaning they had to be at church at nine. So we told Isabel and Daniel that we'd come help them get ready in the morning, like ironing and brushing hair and stuff, which they were super grateful for because they have like 5 or 6 grandkids (I'm not sure how many, I keep losing track, haha). We showed up at 7:30, started ironing and pouring some cereal, and left them an hour later about halfway prepared. So we were just crossing our fingers that they'd be there in time to take the Sacrament. Then we showed up to the church, and no children were there practicing or anything. After asking around, we realized the primary program wasn't that Sunday, which was super embarrassing!! But the great thing was that Isabel and Daniel showed up about an hour late, so they were right on time for our church! It worked out perfectly!

What else happened.... we had a missionary fireside at our chapel last night, and it was so great! We sang a song with Hna Toledo, a blind woman in our ward who plays the guitar, and some recent converts bore their testimonies. It was really nice. And we got the Riveras to come! They're less-actives that we've been working with a lot, but they both work on Sunday mornings so they haven't been able to attend church. But we got them to the fireside! The only thing is that Yasury wasn't able to go, even though she was all ready to share her testimony! But her sister Yumiko, the pregnant one, has been having a lot of labor pains, and they were planning on taking her to the hospital! So Yasury was being the good sister and took care of her. And we'll have a new baby! Perfect to teach the plan of salvation :)

That's about it... We've just been doing the regular teaching and stuff, trying to get some of our regular investigators to start progressing. We're going to the Visitor's center tonight with a Recent convert named Nereyda and her husband Octavio, a long-time investigator. Hopefully things will turn around for him and he'll get interested again! I'll let everyone know how it goes!

Everyone have a good week! Being a missionary is the best!
Love, Hermana Watkins

Yaaaay a baptism!

I honestly can't even remember what has happened since I last emailed!

Also, this email is 2 days late because it's transfer week! And for some reason, they change P-day to Wednesday during transfers. Nothing changed for us 6 missionaries in the Camelback 1st branch, so that's exciting! We're just gonna keep charging on ahead with the work!

Okay, so Yasury's baptism!!! You guys, it was AMAZING! It was a little scary at first cause we couldn't find a jumpsuit that fit well, and we were running around trying to search for more, when finally our district leader told us they were all hanging up in the boy's bathroom! So we had to sneak in there and get some of those, but otherwise, everything went very smoothly! Yasury (the mom) was baptized first. It was a little crazy cause some little kids were running around and yelling, but as Hno Curiel started with the baptism, everything just got really quiet and peaceful. Yumiko (Yasury's sister) was really moved by the whole thing, and Lorenzo, their dad, got to be there, which made it really special. There was a little problem with Yasurita's baptism cause Hno Curiel couldn't get her name right, haha, but it all worked out in the end.

And then their confirmations were on Sunday! Both the blessings were really special. It was Fast and Testimony meeting for us, so beforehand we asked Yasury if she would bear her testimony, saying that we would too (meaning I had to do it in spanish, so scary!), and she did! It was really powerful. She gave a beautiful testimony on her feelings about her baptism and the changes that she's made and feeling the spirit and stuff. So great! She is really special. She's definitely going to be a great asset to the branch and to the church.

What else has happened this week.... We made contact with a street contact from about a month ago, and it was great! Her name is Guadalupe and she has one son named Alexis (who is like 10 and has serious attitude, it's hilarious. The first thing he said when his mom introduced him was, "Soy gordo" with a huge smile on his face! It was so funny). She's been going through a really rough time for about a year now, and was really enjoying our message. We have another appointment for next monday, so hopefully everything goes well!

This week was interesting cause we weren't seening a lot of progression with our investigators like we wanted. We were planning on dropping a bunch of them this week after a final visit, which is always a scary thing cause you don't know if any of the referrals you have to fall back on will actually pull through. So we were just praying and praying that if we did decide to drop these people, we'd find more people to work with. And the Lord answers prayers! But diligence is required. We have worked super hard the last couple days, and the Lord has provided us with great new investigators and a change of heart in some of the old ones that are now progressing more than ever. So great! I love seeing fruits of our labors and answers to prayers.

Well I hope this isn't too long! Everything has been wonderful. Phoenix is full of weird people. A guy just walked into the library with an eyepatch. But I love it here! There are wonderful families like Yasury and her daughters and sister and dad, and great members like our branch. I absolutely love being a missionary!

OH I almost forgot! On Monday night we were leaving a member's house to go to FHE at the Guerrero's house with Yasury. We were pedaling along and were coming up to a corner when a car passed us and stopped right before the stop sign. We rounded the corner and stopped cause smoke was coming out from under the hood, and we were gonna ask if we could help. And then there was a huge boom and all these flames came out from the hood!! And the people in the car just bolted out! It was crazy! There was tons of fire, and Hermana Arevalo was just saying "Alejese, alejese, alejese!!" Finally a firetruck came, and it made me realize how brave firemen are! A guy jumped out of the truck, and before they sprayed the fire or anything, he walked right up to the car with a flashlight to find the problem and make sure nobody was still in there or anything. And then it was great, we met up with Presidente Alvarado, and he introduced us to a family he knows from his work! Potential investigators! So there you go, missionary work can come from anything, even an exploding car :)

Well great! Everyone have an outstanding week!
Love love love
Hermana Watkins

Our zone at the Mesa Temple.

Fiesta patrias!

Yumiko, Yasury, y Estrella at the Visitors' Center.

Conference!

The baptism!

Pretty sure this is week 11

Hi everybody!

This week was GREAT! I can't really remember how it started. That was like a million years ago. But we've had some great lessons with Yasury, who's official baptismal date is October 11th, with her daughter Yasurita. It's so exciting!! We can't wait for this Friday. It's like waiting for Christmas! The challenge now, though, is to help Yamiko and Estrella and even their dad Lorenzo to commit to baptism.

Estrella's baby boy is named Mitsuo! We were a tiny bit disappointed because Hermana Arevalo and I had thought up a name for him: Natalio Patricio (our first names masculinized). Haha, but Mitsuo seems to fit him very well! It was so awesome, they made it to a session of conference! It was Sunday morning, which is perfect because the Prophet spoke! Yamiko wasn't feeling to good so she didn't come, but Yasury and Estrella LOVED it! We were taking some pictures after, and Estrella was talking about how Mitsuo is a future missionary, which is so awesome to hear! They have such an amazing desire to learn more, and are willing to change anything in their lives that isn't in harmony with the doctrines of the gospel. I love their examples of faith!

And I finally figured out all their daughter's names, haha! Yasury's girls are named: Yasurita, Yukey, and Yza, and Yamiko's daughter is named Mitsue. So Japanese! Can you see why I was so confused until now?

We also made a great connection! We were planning on going to the Visitor's center with Isabel and her fam and The Rivera family, but rides didn't work out, so we had to cancel. We were over at the Cobarubias house (less-actives), and we were telling them about Isabel, and it turns out they're good friends! They had just lost touch over the years. So we gave them Isabel's number, and after talking about conference, they planned on inviting Isabel and Daniel and their girls to come watch Conference with them. So great!

Um also, this week I ate the most delicious hot dog in my life. Hermana Anaya truly is an amazing cook! Or she's just crazy and throws a bunch of things together and they turn out deliciously, haha. This is how it went: warmed bun, 2 american cheese slices, hot dog wrapped in bacon, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, diced onion, tomato, guacamole, grilled onion, and cotija cheese. WHAT. It was like three pounds and SO DELICIOUS. Thank goodness we had to go to an appointment, or I would have eaten another one, haha. Also, we had gigantic lasagna yesterday. It was heavenly. I love mexican food, but a little change never hurts, haha. It was wonderful to have a little break with some italian food.

Thanks for the emails and letters, everyone! I love you all!
Love love love
Hermana Watkins

Does anybody know how many weeks I've been out for?

Hola a todos!

First off, Estrella had her baby 2 nights ago! A beautiful baby boy! We haven't had the chance to go over there and see them because both Hermana Arevalo and I have been pretty sick, but sometime this week we'll get to say hi and ooh and ah over his beautifulness!!

So, on Wednesday we got to go to the Visitor's Center! We went with Estrella, Yamiko, and Yasury and their daughters, and Hermana Correa and Hermana Faw (the other companionship we live with) took a 17 year old investigator named Alex! It was so amazing. We didn't spend a ton of time because the pregnant ladies can't spend a lot of time walking around, haha, but we did get to show them around the visitor's center and walk around the temple a bit. The display on families there is so great, it had everybody teary-eyed! And they loved the Cristus too. Overall it was amazing!

Then later this week we had a lesson about chastity and the Word of Wisdom. We were a bit afraid of offending them, since they all have children and no spouses, but everything went really well! They really liked everything we taught, and Yasury was so great in the end. We asked them to commit to living the law of chastity, and she frankly said, "Well we obviously haven't been living it before, but we're ready now." And they all agreed. It is so amazing to see the changes people are willing to make for the gospel!

Their baptisms have been postponed, though. But for good reasons! Yasury's daughter, Yasury, (Hna Arevalo calls her Yasury pequenita, haha), is turning 8 on October 5th and wants to be baptized too! And Yasury wanted them to be baptized together. So we're going to have a baptism after Conference!

Speaking of Conference, I am so excited! I loved the Relief Society broadcast. The messages were mostly centered on making and keeping covenants, which I don't think I have a huge problem with, but it seemed like every word was made for me. I really loved it a lot. Especially Sister Reeves, the second counselor. She said something along the lines of, "Is this what the Lord wants me to think about myself? Or is Satan working against me?" I love that! We always think we're so unworthy to do anything, like pray or study or take the sacrament, but that's not how Heaveny Father wants us to think about ourselves. Everybody remember that!

What else happened this week... Like I said, we were both pretty sick! We caught a nasty flu. But mom, you'd be very proud! I used the home remedy of hot lemonade and honey. It helped a lot, both our throats and our spirits :) We've been working a lot with less-actives, and the other day we stopped by a less active family's house, the Riveras. They weren't home, but we remembered that other less-actives lived on the other side of the complex, so we thought we'd give it a try and knock on their door. A woman named Isabel and her husband Daniel live there with their granddaughters, and they haven't been to church in about a year. It breaks my heart, because they used to love church, but from one thing or another, Isabel has been really offended by basically the whole branch. She was really happy we stopped by, though! She said nobody has visited her for several months (partially why she's offended), and was glad that we dropped by to say hi. She dumped her whole story on us, and I couldn't understand everything, but I could tell she's not very happy with the church, and I was worried she was really hard-hearted and wasn't going to listen to us. But Hermana Arevalo shared an experience about pride, and you could just see Isabel physically soften! Hna Arevalo didn't like slap her in the face to tell her to get over herself, but used so much love and was really able to open Isabel up to the idea of change. So great!

Well that was probably really confusing, haha. Isabel talked really fast, so I probably didn't catch everything that happened, but we're excited to go back and chat with her about going to the temple and stuff. Don't ever give up on anybody! They can change!!

Anyways, I love everyone! I'm almost out of time, so everyone have a good week!
Love love love
Hermana Watkins

Week 10?

Haaay everybodaaay!

What has even happened this week? I can hardly remember 2 days ago, haha.

Let's see... We started teaching Maria! She lives in the trailer park, and has 3 kids and a boyfriend. We talked with her for about an hour. We sat down in the living room, and she just opened up to us about her life and her concerns right now and how she's been searching for a church, or some kind of guidance in her life, and felt really good the one night we stopped and chatted with her. Hermana Arevalo talked with her again, but I was on an exchange, so I didn't get to be there. But we're going to teach her again tonight, so that will be exciting! She's definitely ready for the gospel, and she really loves the Book of Mormon and prayer. The hard thing is, she doesn't have a car, like tons of other investigators, so we basically are begging people in the ward to take her and her kids to church. But hopefully she'll make it next Sunday!

Also, Isis Xochihua, 2 houses down, is the 12 year old daughter of Lucero, the woman we've been teaching, and she is super interested in our message! She has been asking and asking to go to church (they don't have a car either, and rides are scarce, haha). So we're excited to go back and teach her! We didn't know she was so interested because she's kind of shy and has to take care of her younger siblings a lot, so we haven't really had the opportunity to speak with her. But we're also headed over there tonight, so hopefully it works out!

Who else... We've visited a less-active family, la familia Cobarubias, a bunch of times this week, and they're really progressing! They watched the movie Together Forever (again, I was on exchanges, so I missed out!), but they really liked it! We're working on teaching them about the temple and encouraging them to prepare to attend. So exciting!

So yeah, lots of good stuff has been happening this week! I have to say thanks for all the love I get from you guys! Dad sent a 52 oz bag of peanut m&ms that the elders next door loooved (they only have ancient boxes of mac and cheese to eat, haha), and Tam sent me a postcard made from an old cake mix box. Very creative! So thanks for all the words of encouragement and love! Much appreciated :)

I'm out of time! I love you all! Remember that Heavenly Father loves each one of you!
AND SEND ME LETTERS! It's so fun to get letters!
Love love love
Hermana Watkins

I don't know how many weeks I've been here for. It feels like I've been serving forever!

Okay! Where to start... I honestly don't even remember what happened 2 days ago. But I'll try!

First off, we have a few miracle investigators! We had Zone Training on Tuesday, I think, and an Elder had a referral for us, who wanted to be contacted on Thursday. So we head over there, and Thursday was wrong (obviously that Elder was an English speaking Elder or something) so we didn't have time to teach, but we invited them to our ward party on Friday night (Fiesta Patrias - Mexicans party hard!). The amazing thing is that they came! It's two sisters and their sister-in-law, Yasury, Yamiko, and Estrella. They have four daughters between the three of them, with 2 on the way! And they are so super nice. They had a ton of fun at the party, so we made sure to invite them to church on Sunday. And guess what, they came to church too! All three hours! And they really liked it a lot. I didn't get to talk to them a lot about it (I was playing the piano during sacrament meeting, yikes!), but Hna Arevalo said Yasury had some great questions about the sacrament and it's meaning, and Estrella really liked gospel principles class. Success! And we haven't even had the chance to teach them yet! But we're going to have FHE with them tonight at the ward mission leader's house, so we're super excited for that.

What else happened this week... We were riding along after stopping at a less active's house, and a guy getting into his car in his driveway called out to us, "Hey, are you guys church people? You should talk to Molly, she's right over there!" Turns out Molly is his girlfriend that's standing in her doorway, and she says, "Sure! Come on in!" She was super nice, we both liked her right away. We were getting to know her and were getting ready to introduce the first lesson, when she kind of just stopped us and asked us for help with her family. She really opened up and really trusted us, even though we had just met her. And then Hna Arevalo was so great, she just shut the pamphlet, put it in her bag, and started teaching about prayer and fasting and the power that those have in our lives. It was a really powerful experience. I can't wait until we go back to teach her!

Okay, food update: We eat dinner at a member's house every night at five. ALL THE FOOD IS SO GOOD AND I EAT SO MUCH. It's great, hahah! The other night we had enchilada-type things (same flavors, just stacked up like pancakes instead of rolled up). Last night we had tostada things that were kind of barbeque-y and spicy and sooo good. And we had tamales filled with chicken and potatoes and peppers and it was SOO good. The members really know how to cook, haha. And a new favorite: Arroz con leche! Except without the raisins. Its so yummy! I love all the members, they love cooking and watching us eat, it's so great!

Basically being a missionary is great and I absolutely love it! There have been some hard days this week, but we are trying our best to be diligent, and we can really see miracles that come from trusting in the Lord.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot Maria! We were confirming an appointment con la familia Xochihua at the trailer park 2 nights ago, and as we were leaving, we noticed a woman sitting on her front steps with her kids, so we went to talk to her. She had so many questions about the Book of Mormon, and we taught her about specific prayer, which she was shocked about but was pretty excited when we invited her to pray tonight. We just had such a good conversation with her, and I feel really good about going back to teach her this Tuesday. So exciting!

ALSO, we met some Jehovah's Witnesses last night! They were a little intimidating, but they were very nice to us. She tried to give us their magazine-preaching thing, which we declined, but she invited us back to teach her about the Book of Mormon, and she wants to teach us more about the Bible. So we'll see how it goes!

That's mostly the exciting stuff from this week. I love you all, I hope everyone has a great week too!!!

Love love love
Hermana Watkins

Week one is done!!

This has been a week of firsts. I even made a list!

1. I played rugby for the first time (District sports on Saturday mornings). It was touch rugby, and we had to wake up a half hour early to play. I'm not quite sure yet if its worth it, haha.

2. I ate 3 taquitos de carnitas without even thinking about it or asking what's in them! There were definitely some fatty pieces that kinda grossed me out, but it was super delish. Also, I'm eating a lot more salsa, but I need to learn to deal with the salsa picante.

3. I've been riding for muchas horas on a bike in the sun, and I'm actually enjoying it! Yesterday was the first day that my bottom didn't hurt as much as it usually does, haha. And I think I'm losing weight, which is a wonderful side blessing! Or I'm just neutral, because I eat so much at the member's houses (they all love to cook super delicious food, it's been quite difficult).

4. I painted a wall! We were doing service for la familia Pineda in our ward, so we just threw some tshirts on over our dresses and started painting! Hermana Correa got some paint on my head, but luckily it was water based or something like that, so it came out when I showered, haha.

5. I lost my shoe twice in one day while biking! I honestly don't know how or why that happened, haha. I had to stop and run back to get it in front of lots of cars, how embarrassing!

6. I've been attacked by a dog! But by attacked, I mean we were riding through a trailer park and a dog came screaming out of a trailer for my bike and was going in for the kill when I think I accidentally ran over its toes. Oops. Bottom line, trailer park dogs and cats are evil.

7. We got rejected twice. Two doors closed on our faces! That was kind of hard, and a shock to me. It's so sad! I just want everyone to listen! Our message will help them so much!

8. The great thing is, for every rejection, we have a great contact. Just yesterday, a door was literally slammed in our faces, just after we had gotten the referral from some members down the street. We were pretty sad, but we turned our bikes around and continued up the road. There was a guy sitting on a bench who we stopped to talk to (Hna Arevalo is so good about talking with everyone!), and he was so interested it was unbelievable! He basically ate up our words and asked where our church was so he could come on Sunday. It was so great! And I actually got to give him the Book of Mormon this time! Usually Hermana Arevalo does most of the talking and I jump in when I feel I'm ready (which I'm getting so much better with spanish, it's great!), but this time I just whipped it out of my bag and gave him Alma 36 and taught him about repentance. It was so cool!

So that was one of the best lessons for me this week: for every rejection, there's someone waiting around the corner, ready to accept our message. It is so hard to have a door closed in your face. But we must always keep going! There is always someone else who wants and needs what we have to offer them. We must always remember that in the work.

Another thing that has helped me a ton: there have been times, just in the first week I've been here, when I think the work is harder than I can bear. It's so hard to keep pedaling when it's 4 pm and we're hot and sweaty and tired, and everyone we talk to waves us off. In these moments, the thoughts come that remind me how easy it would be to quit and go home. There is a nice bed waiting for me and food and friendly people and lots of comfort. But in these moments, I think of Christ, our Savior. Think about what He actually did. He SUFFERED for us, and then He DIED for us. And what He had to do was a million times harder than riding a bike in Phoenix in September and talking to people. He was completely submissive to the will of Heavenly Father. He knew what He had to do, and He did it. So I ask myself: If Christ could suffer through all He did, and end up being crucified by His persecutors, can I ride my bike for a few more hours tonight? Can I say hi to someone and ask them how their day is going? Can I give someone a tiny piece of paper with a picture of Jesus on it? Of course I can!

That has been the most encouraging thing for me this week. I did not know what I was getting into when I first got to Arizona. I had absolutely no idea how hard missionary work actually is. We're emotionally and physically exhausted all the time. We're getting rejected. People laugh at us. But I've learned, just in the past week, that all of this is absolutely worth it. This whole time I didn't know how hard it would be, but I also didn't realize how HAPPY I would be! I didn't know it was possible to be so happy just serving others, especially on a bike in 100 degree weather. I am so happy! We ride around singing and talking to people and practicing our spanish and teaching, and it has made me happier than anything in my life has ever made me. I'm so incredibly grateful that I decided to serve a mission! There's so much more for me to learn and do and say, and I've only just barely begun, but I can't wait for all the trials and obstacles and miracles and normal things I will see. A mission is the best thing I've ever done with my life, and I can't wait for the rest of it.

Whew, sorry, I didn't know I was gonna get all journal-y! But I can testify that what I've learned is true. The gospel is true, and Heavenly Father truly loves all of us so much. I'm so grateful for all of this, and that I have the chance to share it with everyone every day! I love the gospel and I love being a missionary!

And I love you all! Have a fantastic week, everyone!

Love love love

Hermana Watkins

I'm in ARIZONA!

Everybody, I'm alive! In case anyone was wondering, haha.

I'm in Phoenix! And it's HOT. Mi companera se llama Hermana Arevalo, from El Salvador! Our branch is called Camelback 1st, and we met the branch president last night (but I already can't remember his name, haha). I think it'll be fun! We're living with another companionship, Hermana Correa and Hermana Faw (who was in the CCM with me). Our apartment is actually super nice!

And a surprise of the past two days: We're gonna be biking! We have a car to share between the two companionships, but we're not going to be using it very much, so we're off to buy some bikes today!

The first two days were CRAZY, but so good. We got off the plane and went to the Mesa Temple Visitors Center, which was so beautiful. It's the second most productive visitors center in the world, after Salt lake, which is crazy! Then we went to the mission office and ate some lunch and packed an overnight bag. Can I say how great it was to have a baked potato with BACON and broccoli and a roll and a salad? Mexico was great, but I LOVE american food!

They let us take a nap, then we had a little bit of training and getting to know President Sweeny and his wife (they are great, but don't worry, padres, they're not as good as you!), and then we went CONTACTING! That was crazy. I went with Hermana Wheelwright (also from the CCM), and we walked around with a sister who had been in Arizona for only 6 weeks! She was a pro, though. We talked to a guy sitting outside his trailer and gave him a book of mormon, and then to some other guys who were a little drunk but nice, haha. All hispanics are so nice! They'll listen to whatever you have to say and joke around and are so friendly. Our experiences sounded better than some of the english missionaries, who said that all the white people just ignore you, haha.

So yeah! We stayed the night at a member's house, got up the next morning, and took a written driving test (I still need to figure out how to order my driving record!!). Then we did some training, and right before lunch, they announced our companions and areas! We had to chill for a bit and wait for Hermana Correa to be certified with her driving, but then we headed back to our area and went to a dinner appointment! It was with Hermana Toledo, who is blind and lives by herself, but can do everything on her own! She had some Little Cesars and spaghetti for us (american food, sooo good!), and then she played the guitar, so great! We are going to sing Mas Cerca, Dios, de Ti in 2 weeks at a fireside, so we were practicing for that! After that, we went to a branch correlation meeting, where we met the President and others from the branch. That was kind of hard cause it was super long and sooo hot in the Presidents office, and I was really tired and having a hard time following the spanish. But everyone was so nice! I'm excited to get to know everyone better on Sunday.

Basically that's been our first two days! We're whitewashing, so Hna Arevalo doesn't really know this area, but apparently we have 13 investigators, so we're gonna do some visiting and teaching tonight, so exciting! I'll let you all know how it goes :)

Basically, I'm terrified, so everyone keep me in your prayers! Hopefully I won't die of heat exhaustion before I get to do some work, haha!

I love you all! Everyone have a good week!

Hna Watkins