Precious Notes from Sister Walker

In response to her dad's final letter:

Gee Dad, now I'm sitting in the middle of the library with tears streaming down my face and on to the key board... luckily I'm in corner where not too many people can see me! THIS ISN'T EASY! NOT ONE BIT! Man, I don't want to leave but I know that I have to. My heart is being torn to pieces! I guess that just means that I have been a successful missionary otherwise I would have no problem with this. I HAVE fought my hardest and I know that the battle must come to an end.... I just wish it
could last forever... and I know it will, just not full time. I do look forward to, and I am excited to see my family and friends again. I am excited to get back up to Rexburg but darn it all, I'm not ready to no longer be a full-time missionary. I have put my whole heart and soul into the past 18 months and.... well, you know how I feel! I love you SO MUCH and I am excited to see you on Tuesday! Just be prepared for the tears!!! HAHAHAHA!

Cute note to her mom in response to a letter about housing at BYU-I for Spring Semester:

Phew... actually, I wasn't worried about that at all... in fact housing hadn't even crossed my mind since the last time we talked about it! haha! It sounds WONDERFUL! I think I've been in there before... maybe... I think some of my friends use to live there! I'm excited for you to come with me... no cheating and trying to see your son though (well maybe we will have to accidentally buy him a box of goodies and accidentally come across his living quarters and accidentally drop it off on his porch)!!! Hahahaha!! I love you MOSTEST! Thanks for getting that all set up!

In response to a letter from her mom - an analogy from Mary Poppins... even though the end has come, "It's as it should be" So - Let's Go Fly A Kite!

Thanks Mom, I needed that... today is hard and I do just need to go fly a kite! Read my response to Dad! I love you SO MUCH! Thanks for all your love, support, encouragement and most of all thanks for being MY mom! Love you MOST!!!!

Final Letter from Sister Walker as a Full Time Missionary

Hello Family!!!!

Today, I just want to keep this simple today and share my testimony with you!

Over the past 18 months 2 weeks and 2 days I have come to realize even more than ever that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lords church on the earth today. This IS the ONLY church that contains the fullness of the gospel. I know that God is our loving Heavenly Father he loves us so much that he sent us away out of his presence for a time so that we could learn and grow for ourselves and learn to become more like him. He has given us families on the earth so that we can learn from one another and work towards eternal life together! I know that we have a living prophet on the earth today and I know that as we follow him we will be lead back to our Father in Heaven! I know that through the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ we will be saved so long as we repent and come unto him! I know that the Book of Mormon is Another Testament of Jesus Christ and that it changes lives every day! I know that the CHURCH IS TRUE!

I love you all so much and if I haven’t told you already…. I am so grateful for all of your prayers, love, encouraging words…. EVERYTHING! I could have NEVER done this without ALL of you!

I have fought the fight and THIS battle is ending… but a new one is just about to begin… BRING IT ON!
I am excited to see you and give you all LOTS AND LOTS of hugs and kisses!

For the last time from SISTER Chelsee Walker… Make good choices, don’t do drugs, be happy and remember that you are a child of God and we WILL live together with him someday!

Love, Sister Chelsee Walker

Cute Briggan - 2 months old

Just had to share these darling photos of Briggan. He's two months old and absolutely darling! Big, bright blue eyes! Makes you want to snuggle with him, huh?

Sis. Walker - March 18, 2010

HELLO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh my EVER LIVIN... this is your second to last e-mail from your favorite Sister Chelsee Walker! CRAZY!!!!!!!

First of all... happy St. Pats Day yesterday... yes, it is my favorite holiday and YES I did tell everyone that... I had corned beef and cabbage 2 times this week... I'm not so sure I want any more corned beef for about a year! I liked it but twice in one week is getting a little overboard! Ha!

We had another Sister Exchange on Tuesday and once again, I went Spanish for the day... yes, another 24 hours of nothing but Spanish. My brain didn't hurt as much as it did the last time I did it because I understood about a 3rd of the words this time! It was fun. I was with Hermana Hernandez from Mexico. Hna Hernandez has only been out 2 months so it was fun sharing some insight with her. I had something reaffirmed to me this time... it doesn't matter what language you speak, we all have one common language and that is the Spirit. I could feel the spirit so strong when she shared the first vision with a new investigator. It doesn't matter what language the first vision is told in... it is a true event, Joseph DID see God the Father and His son Jesus Christ.

Cool experience.... The other night I was feeling super sad because one of our investigators who we had set for baptism for this weekend told us that he wasn't ready to be baptized and wanted to wait for a couple of weeks. Well, I was being super selfish and my thought process was... "well if he waits for a couple of weeks I wont be here and there is a possibility of not having a baptism this transfer because we aren't sure if Kelsey is getting baptized on the 27th anymore..." I was super bummed. I went down and laid on my bed and I kept thinking, "this is going to haunt me for the rest of my life... You didn't have a baptism your last transfer, what a failure..." And then the tears came... then after a minute I thought..." WAIT, I AM NOT A FAILURE... Sister Walker, this is Satan trying to make you sad so that you don't feel like working as hard as you can to have a baptism this transfer..." as soon as I had that thought I felt a TON of peace and the second thought came to mind... "Not THY will but MINE.... HELLO SISTER WALKER... If the Lord wants Kelsey to get baptized on the 27 then she will get baptized on the 27th. If it is not His will then it wont happen. AND you are NOT a failure... look at all the other success stories you have had on your mission... sheesh Sister Walker, this is the LORDS work... HIS WILL!" Then I got down on my knees and thanked the Lord for comforting my heart. I wish you could have been inside my head because it would have been quite the comedy show! I feel 100% better now and I am working as hard as I can... we have a lot of people set for baptism for next transfer and I know that my hard work will pay off!

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, I have got to get running now. I only have 6 minutes and I need to send my Presidents letter! I love you all more than anything!

Make good choices, don't do drugs, be happy and love Jesus!
See you real soon baboon!
Love, ME!

Elder Walker March 15, 2010

Hello everyone,

Well I asked President about seeing Chelsee when she comes up here. He said I can! That makes me very excited. He told me I can do what ever I want, I can go to the temple, go to lunch, maybe both... He told me to give her a big hug (not in front of a lot of people) and then tell her I'll see her in two years. I'm very very excited that I can see my sister when she gets home.

Transfers are coming up not this week but the next. I asked President Colton about transfers and he told me that this mission is only getting 4 new missionaries; he wants to keep this transfer as invisible as possible. I said so does that mean that I will be staying in St. Anthony with Elder Call again? He said that most likely we will. I told him that means I am the only missionary that came out with my group that is still with my trainer and will be with him for 6 months. He then responded and said, "well if you didn't baptize 11 people in 2 1/2 transfers then I would consider splitting you up. I do like Elder Call, and I love St. Anthony but things are getting a bit monotonous. I think it's weird to be with your trainer for 4 transfers. Elder Call told me the other day that if we do stay together again then that is cheating me of some learning experiences from other missionaries. He said that he learned the most from his second companion anyways. Who knows though, President told me that before they even decided anything.

Well we still don't have any baptism dates set yet but we are trying really hard. We have a couple that are getting close but are afraid to commit because of word of wisdom problems. I hope to see a difference here this next transfer if I stay again.

I never thought that the temperature getting to the 30s would be warm, but let me tell you, we are getting toasty here in the 30s. When the temperature gets that high we like to park the car and walk because it's warm enough to be outside without coats.

We look forward to general conference because then we can take off our suit coats and just wear white shirts. I wish we could go out in jeans but that is just wishful thinking...

We are going to take Robert Terrill to the Idaho Falls temple visitor center on Tuesday to see the Joseph Smith film and Legacy. It's great to have a visitors center close to take investigators and recent converts to see films and paintings.

I love you all very much. I hope all is well and life is great.

Peace and Love,
Elder Walker

Sis Walker March 11

Happy 18 months and 1 day to me!!!!!! Oh my EVER LIVIN, I cannot BELIEVE that I have been on my mission for 18 months officially! I almost don't want to believe it! I wish I could slow time down but I have come to terms with the fact that I cannot and I'm just going to have to make the best of it! This has been the greatest 18 months and 1 day of my life and I will forever be grateful for the opportunity I have had to be a full-time servant of the Lord! I have thought a lot about the past 18 months... and one day... and all the changes that have taken place in me and I tell you what... WOW! I feel like a new person! Don't worry though, I'm still as quirky and blond as ever... I'm just a bit more in tune with my spiritual side! Haha!

Can I just say that I LOVE Sister Matthew! She keeps me laughing constantly. Yesterday we were doing some tracting and out of the blue she turns to me and says, "Sister Walker, my body is a temple, not a visitors center." Yeah, I have no idea where that came from but it was right at the perfect moment because I was getting a little grumpy from tracting... In case you didn't know... I don't like tracting... AT ALL! She is so on top of things and knows how to cheer me up right at the right moment! I LOVE HER! She even bought me lunch yesterday to celebrate my 18 months!!! I wish I could bring her with me in a couple of weeks and set her on my shelf and have her cheer me up when I am piled in homework! I'll just have to find a replacement Marshaleese person until she is done with her mission!!! Ha!

I of course am in love with this work. Things have been a little slower this transfer as far as LTM's and baptisms go but we are still trudging forward! I have been a little nervous because we only have 1 person set for baptism this transfer (a couple more for next) and she is having major problems with her family. But I have faith that all will be well and that she will get baptized. We are still doing a lot of finding and being quite successful... still slow but successful!

So, the sun can't make up it's mind, it is standing on the sidelines and the clouds keep taking the stage! Yesterday the weather was like Colorado. Beautiful and sunny in the morning, cold and raining from noon to 4, sunny and warm till 5, then snow at 5 (yes snow... just flurries... nothing stuck), cleared up by 7... sheesh! Maybe it is just trying to prepare me!

We went to the temple this morning! I LOVE THE TEMPLE!!!!! I love the Las Vegas temple! Do you know what is weird???... The next time I go to the temple Mom and Dad will be there! CRAZY!

Ok, I've got to get running now! I love you all SO MUCH!!!!!!!! Make good choices, don't do drugs, be happy and baptize someone!

Love, ME!

Elder Walker March 8

Hello everyone!

So the funniest thing just happened 30 seconds ago... Elder Call just flipped while reading his e-mail, stood up and started pacing. I was like what's going on? He says read this e-mail. I read a paragraph that says that his family has put up his house for sale and they are now moving to Texas from Illinois. The reason this is so funny is because he has always given me grief about Colorado being the second most prideful state in the Union with Texas being the most. Karma! This is hilarious! Only because this didn't happen to me. hint hint... please don't move away from Colorado... ever.

Alright so the update for this week. We concluded our 11th baptism this Saturday. Robert Terrill was baptized very successfully. He was very excited and very prepared for that day. Once again I had the great opportunity to confirm Brother Terrill. There is no greater opportunity than that of giving a child of God the gift of the Holy Ghost. I can't wait to see him take his wife to the temple a year from now. After the baptism Brother Terrill took me aside and told me that if he had a son he would hope that he would be just like me. I will never forget that moment. That means a hole bunch to me.

We have now run into a problem... Yesterday was the first day of the mission that we did not have anyone with a baptism date. I don't know what has happened. Actually I think that the problem is that the stake just got rearranged and we got 7 new ward mission leaders. I think the work is going to explode when these new bishops and ward mission leaders get things under control.

The next transfers are on the 24th of March. I'm pretty sure Elder Call is going to get transferred because he has been here for a while but then again think of Elder Bosen, he had a lot of junior companions leave before he did. I think we need a little change here to get things going again.

Congratulations to Iver to get his call to Mexico. That officially means that every one of my friends are Spanish speaking except Scott. Bernie, Casey, Spencer, Patrick, and now Iver are Spanish speaking. I think it's great for Iver to go to Mexico because he is already used to eating bugs... haha. I'm very excited for him. I know he'll be a great missionary.

I do have one thing to say about the Idaho Pocatello Mission. There aren't too many missions where you get a shoulder workout because of waving to everybody who honks at us to say hi. Also I feel like a celebrity sometimes especially going to ward parties or church. Everyone wants to shake the missionaries hands.

Yesterday the lesson in church was about home teaching. I had the impression that I know that dad and I taught the Lindsey family for a reason. I believe that by dad making me teach the lessons I was prepared to teach families here in Idaho. I know that wasn't a coincidence. What a great family for me to "practice" on for preparation.

Well the last thing that happened is that we got our new car on Saturday. We got a brand new Chevy Malibu. It smells like new car which is my favorite part. The funny thing is that because our mission is so close to Utah our car has Utah license plates. Now everyone knows who the missionaries are.

Well the work is going forth. We plan on working hard all the way to the end of this mission. I know there are more people to find. We had a district fast yesterday to find more people to teach. I shouldn't complain because having 11 baptisms in 3 1/2 months isn't a bad thing by any means.

I love you all very much. I hope and pray that little Briggan is doing well.

Peace and Love,
Elder Walker

Sister Walker 3/4/2010

ALOHA!!!!!!!!

Ok, I'm feeling a little Hawaiian with Sis. Matthew around... even though she isn't Hawaiian, she is Marshallese ! Oh well, she still spent half her life in Hawaii!

This week has been a great week! Last weekend I went to the temple with Maria May and I tell you what, that made my whole mission. I sat right behind Maria during the session and I loved seeing the excitement/ nervousness/ confusion come across her face during the session! It was fantastic! It reminded me SO much of when I went though the temple to receive my endowment! She did such a great job! The second I got into the Celestial room I wrapped my arms around her and told her how proud I was of her! She hugged me SO tight and said, "Thank you so much for choosing to come on a mission. I know that you came on your mission for me!" I had to fight back the tears at that point because I knew she was right. I am SO glad that I chose to come on a mission! I know that I was sent here to the Nevada Las Vegas Mission at this time because there were and are people here that needed ME, yes, Me, Sister Walker to come and teach them and bring them unto Christ! I have been so blessed and so privileged to teach so many incredible people!

On Sunday Sister Matthew and I gave talks in one of our wards. When the Counselor, Bro. Armantrout got up to introduce us, he said, "Well brothers and sisters, today you get a special treat, you get to hear from a sister who is still fresh from the MTC and a sister who only has 4 weeks left." I laughed! I was trying not to tell everyone, even though most people already know because I have been here so long. I started off my talk by saying, "My name is Sister Walker and if you don't know that by now than you probably moved in in the past 3 months because that was the last time I talked. You know you've been in an area a long time when this is your fourth time giving a talk in the same ward." I actually felt like I was giving a farewell talk because I know everyone in the ward and I have grown so close to all of them. It was great!

On Monday I did an exchange with the sisters serving in Henderson. President asked me last week to organize an exchange with those sisters because they were struggling. I must admit, I sort of felt like a district leader for a second because they are the ones that usually do that with the elders in their district!!! I guess that's what happens when you are the oldest sister in the mission by 7 1/2 months... meaning that the next sister doesn't go home for another 7 1/2 months! The exchange was good, I was able to figure out what the problem is in their companionship and I talked to both of them about it and so far things are getting better!

Ok, I've got to go now. I'm getting kicked off the computer!

I love you all SO SO SO MUCH!!!!

Remember to make good choices, don't do drugs, be happy and serve the Lord!

Love, ME!!!!

Elder Walker - March 1, 2010 FOUR MONTHS!

Hello everyone,

I'm glad to hear the news that Briggan is doing well. There is not much worse than being so close to him and knowing that I am so helpless. I'm am relieved to know that all is well and that I can continue with out worry.

Yesterday I hit my 4 month mark. Can you even believe that it's been four months already? I can't. I also realized that if I stay in St. Anthony another transfer I will hit my 6 month mark here meaning that I would have spent a quarter of my mission in this great place. I hope that happens. I guess we'll find out in a few weeks though.

At church yesterday they had a returned missionary speak. He said something that has really made me think... He said, "homesickness results in the guilt of not showing your love for your family when you had the chance." I then think about Max Bastian after he was out a bit and how Spencer would say that he turned into a softy. Maybe I'm just going through one of those stages; I hope you all know that I love you. I know I wasn't perfect at showing my love, especially my Junior and Senior year of high school with the chaos, but please know that If I could do it again I would show more of my love to my family. If there is one thing I learn from this mission it is how much my family means to me.
President Walker, the stake president, said at a recent baptism, "Heavenly Father could have had us do this on our own but that isn't the way he created His plan, he put us here in families for a reason." I strongly testify of what President Walker said. My greatest joy is seeing a family become united in the gospel.

Aaron Boots was baptized Saturday! None of you will understand why that is so significant just trust me when I say that it is. He has been meeting with missionaries for 3 years! The last month or two we really focused on eternal families and our Heavenly Father's plan for us. That has really hit home for Aaron. He now understands the responsibility he has as a husband and father to keep his family together in the Celestial Kingdom with our Father in Heaven. I had the wonderful opportunity to confirm Aaron yesterday. Let me tell you, if there is ever a light that turns on in someone after baptism, Aaron Boots was a spotlight. He had such a different countenance about him. His burdens were lifted and his spirit was rejoicing. THIS IS WHAT IT IS ALL ABOUT. This is why I am here. This is who my Father in Heaven has sent me to find. Aaron is now apart of his fold and I have never felt such spiritual satisfaction than to watch his progress.

On a more temporal note... Elder Call crashed this week. We were late for a meeting so he was speeding. Well the roads were icy and we went off the road. The problem was that the car crashed into this large chunk of ice which took us air born and flip us 180 degrees. We were protected and we are fine. We do get a new car this week which is great. It's either going to be a truck or a Subaru so we will have four wheel drive. The brother who pulled us out asked where we were from and when I said Colorado he made comment, "well why don't they have you drive? I wouldn't be pulling you out of this mess if you were driving." I just laughed because that's what most people say when they find out where I'm from.

Well that's pretty much all the exciting things I'm doing... I do spend quite a bit of time with the Spanish elders because Elder Call has a bunch of leadership meetings this transfer. It's great though because they are teaching me Spanish. I now know how to bear my testimony in Spanish and how to pray. I'm going to ask President if there is an opportunity I would like to be put into a bilingual area. Wouldn't that be cool? Espanol es muy facil.

Peace and love everyone... amame

Elder Walker

Sister Walker 2-25-2010

HELLO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I love missionary work!!! This past week has been a VERY different week in Boulder City. We have had a constant stream of progressing investigators since the first month I was here BUT we have had SO many baptisms lately that we have recently run into a shortage of people to teach. SO this past week we did a TON of finding! It has been a BLAST! Sister Matthew is SO incredible! She has literally kept me running from person to person! We also ran out of miles on our car so we walked all weekend and we taught SO MANY other lessons! We did a little bit of tracting but mostly just street contacts... that's what's nice about the warmer weather, people are actually out and about!

Cool experience... we were driving up a street on Monday night and over in a drainage ditch I saw a guy sitting there, I turned the car around and jumped out (Sis. Matthew had no idea what was going on but she followed). I went up to the guy, he had a half empty bottle of beer by his feet and he was smoking a cigarette! I knew something was up so I said, "Hello, are you OK?" He said, "No." I of course was curious (I've become quite a nosy person) so I said, "What's up?" He told us that he had just been attacked by a drunk guy and was having a VERY BAD day. I could tell. I told him that we were missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and that we could help make his day better. He looked at me like I was some sort of maniac but I kept going. I told him that Heavenly Father was very aware of his situation and that through the Atonement he could have comfort in his life. At this point he stood up and came over to talk to us. He said, "I've only got one question... Where did you come from? People have walked by all night and you are the first ones to stop and talk to me." I felt like a good Samaritan!!! We gave him a Finding Faith in Christ DVD card and set up a time to go and talk to him the next day. We went to his house the next day and he told us that he thought we were angles (I'm sure that had something to do with the half empty bottle of beer)!!!! Hahaha! We taught him the Plan of Salvation and watched Finding Faith in Christ. At the end of the movie all he said was "Wow!" That's how I felt too! He still has quite a way to go... like not drinking while we are at his house. But I think Eddie had his prayers answered that night!

Kelsey's baptism didn't go through on Saturday. Her dad called us on Friday and said, "Kelsey will not be getting baptized until she is 18... that is in 4 weeks and if she wants it that bad then she can wait." I told him that was fine... so now we are planning a baptism for March 27! Kelsey also handled it very well. I called her right up after talking to her dad and told her to keep it cool with her parents and that they would come around eventually and that it would be just fine to wait for a month. So, all is good!

I am SO in LOVE with Boulder City. I'm quite seriously considering moving back here! I have had a TON of job offers from members and one member even offered to buy me a house!!!

I get to go through the temple on Saturday with Maria May!!!! I’m so excited! One of MY recent converts is going through the temple and I get to be there!!!!!!!! Woohoooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think that is just about all the exciting news! I love you all SO MUCH! Make good choices, don't do drugs, be happy and LOVE JESUS!

Love, ME!

Elder Walker 2-22-2010

Hello everyone,

This week has been quite the eventful week. We got a call on Tuesday night that our 75 year old investigator, Robert, had a heart attack and was taken to the Rexburg hospital. Robert Terrell is the one that is going to be baptized on the 6th of March. We immediately canceled our appointments for the night and rushed down to Rexburg. We found him in the ER just as they were strapping him up to take him to Idaho Falls to a heart specialist. When we got there his wife Rose said that we got there at a perfect time because they were just about to go. We asked brother Terrell if he would like a blessing and he replied that he would. We gave him a blessing of comfort and council. I don't remember what was said in the blessing except that the phrase, "everything in your life has prepared you for this moment", has stuck with me since that time. Well they found out that his heart had sped up to about 250 bpm which sparked the heart attack. He now has a pace maker and defibrillator to keep his heart on track. When we got to the hospital his first concern was if he was going to make it to his baptism. We told him that it didn't matter if he did or if his father in heaven called him home that we would take care of his baptism either way. We stopped by to see him yesterday after church and he is doing well. He told us that we are to plan for him to be baptized on the 6th of March unless his doctor tells him otherwise; I'm thinking we are going to have to postpone it...

That event has made me really stop and reflect on the authority that I hold to stand in place of my Heavenly Father and use his power to bless his child. I'm sure that it was hard for Heavenly Father to watch one of his children experience the pain that Brother Terrell went through but to know that I can stand in his place to do what he himself would do is such a humbling experience. I told you last week about Trevon's baptism and how that experience is my most memorable so far on the mission. From the first time I met him he said that he wanted to be baptized so he could have the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Trevon asked me to confirm him and give him that gift that he so desired. That event and the event of Brother Terrell have made me really respect and understand the significance of the priesthood. Think about it, how great is it that we have the priesthood on this earth to be able to give the gift of a God. How great it is to bless someone with comfort and counsel literally from our Father in Heaven. I know that Joseph Smith restored that priesthood to this earth from Peter, James, and John; Christ's original Apostles. I know that our Father in Heaven has blessed us with this power so we can be blessed. I will forever honor and cherish this authority that I hold.

I had the strangest dream last night. I had a dream that Iver Johnson was called to the Idaho Pocatello Mission and that he was assigned to St. Anthony and I served him as his trainer. Weird. Maybe it'll happen...

Well that's all the exciting news here in St. Anthony Idaho. I hope you all are having great experiences too. Remember that we can always expect miracles.

peace and love,

Elder Walker

Note From Me

Well - I just spent the last hour updating this blog and Tyson's Mission blog. That meant that I've had a chance to re-read every letter that Sis. Walker and Elder Walker have emailed home the last month! Wow!

I am so grateful for two of the best missionary children ever! Their testimony is so strong. Their zeal is evident. Their desire to serve is heartwarming!

Tyson recently wrote home and told us that he and his companion recently spoke at a Bishop's Fireside. He said he told the kids that less than 6 months ago he was in their shoes... senior in high school, actively involved at school and with friends, and now... look where he is. That really hit me... In less than six months Tyson has gone from being 'Tyson' to becoming 'Elder Walker'

And... now in just six weeks, Sister Walker will be returning home!

Wow!

When did my kids grow up???

Sister Walker Stays in Boulder City

Hello!!!!

So let me explain a little something called transfers to you... in our mission it works like this:

• if you and your companion are getting double transferred out of an area you get a call the Saturday night before transfers.-
• if you are getting sent to Elko you get a call the Saturday night before transfers so that you can get ready to go Monday morning.-
• if you are training you get a call the Sunday night before transfers.-
• if you are getting transferred you find out on Monday early afternoon.-
• if you or your companion are getting transferred you go to Transfer conference on Tuesday afternoon.

Ok, now that I have explained all of that you can somewhat understand how stressful the weekend before transfers can be. Many thoughts run through a missionaries head such as, "Am I getting transferred, or am I staying here..." "Am I getting a new companion, what if they are lazy..." "Is the work going to continue if I'm gone..." STRESSFUL!!!

Well, lets start my story off here... Every transfer I have found out at least a week ahead of time if I was staying or not... President knows me too well... and I'm a bit sneaky! BUT... Last week, I had NO CLUE what was going to happen. I was SO STRESSED all weekend. I had no idea what was going to happen for my last transfer. As you all know, I really, really wanted to stay in Boulder City but in the back of my mind I was preparing myself to head out.

Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

On Sunday night I received a phone call from the Assistants and of course I knew this meant a training call because this was the 3rd time I had received the "Sunday night call." I'm not going to lie, I was hoping to have an experienced companion for my last transfer because I was getting a bit worn out from training... but of course, I was willing to do whatever the Lord asked of me!!! I asked the Elder if that meant that I was staying in Boulder City and he said he could not tell me! YIKES! I had another slight freak out session then went to bed. I couldn't sleep all night because I was so stressed out. WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN!!!!!! So........ I thought for sure I was getting transferred UNTIL I got a call Monday morning from President. He called and made me promise him I would stay focused because......... I would be STAYING in Boulder City for another 6 weeks!

I'm pretty sure I squealed! I'm creating quite the habit of squealing a lot! He also made me cry. He told me that he knew right away that I needed to train my last transfer. He told me that he had full confidence in me and he told me that if this were his daughter coming into the mission he would want me to be her trainer. He told me that he wanted my legacy to live on in the Nevada Las Vegas Mission and that it was through training this transfer that that would happen. I told him that I promise to make him proud and I WILL!!!!!!!!!!!

Well Folks, lets just say it's a good thing I am in LOVE with Boulder City because at the end of this transfer I will have spent half of my mission here! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE MY COMPANION!!! Her name is Sister Matthew and she is from the Martial Islands... but most recently Honolulu! She is the greatest, most excited, hardest working companion I have had my entire mission. In a trainers meeting that we had on Tuesday morning President told us trainers that the transfer that we spend training should be the most exhausting transfer next to our last transfer. I am the only Trainer going home at the end of this transfer so I said, "ok President, then I'll be double exhausted for you!..." and let me tell ya, after yesterday I am exhausted and SO EXCITED for this transfer! We literally ran from person to person, house to house yesterday to tell EVERYONE we saw about the Restoration of the gospel!

I am so grateful to be serving with Sister Matthew because she is just what I need to go out with a bang! She has the most powerful testimony I have ever seen!!! She is the BEST!!!!!!!!! The Lord does work in mysterious ways!!! He knows that Sister Matthew is the PERFECT companion for my last transfer!

Cami's baptism was perfect! She bore her testimony and simply said, "I know that this church is true. When I went into the water... I felt it. Amen." As she said those simple but truly heartfelt words, her eyes filled with tears and I knew that the Spirit had touched everyone in the room at that moment. And dang, it hit me like a ton of bricks, I couldn't hold back the tears!

Kelsey had her interview for baptism last night and it went great! She is so ready for baptism!!!!!! I am so happy for the decision she has made and that she has stuck to it even without her parents support! I am constantly amazed at the things people go through to be members of the True Church. THE CHURCH IS TRUE!!!!!!!!

Ok, I think that's about all I've got to tell you this week! I love this work so much and I am so blessed to be serving the Lord!

Remember that I love you! Make good choices, don't do drugs, and go spread the gospel! I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love, ME!

Elder Walker 2-15-10

St Anthony is going to get Translated

Hello everyone,

So this week wasn't as exciting as last week due to the fact that we didn't have any Apostles come speak to us. We have had a great week though. Saturday concluded baptism number nine. Trevon E was finally baptized after lots of prayer and fasting for his parents to soften their hearts. Trevon asked me to confirm him a member of the church which, if you knew him, was a huge honor. Treven was more prepared for his baptism than anyone else that has been baptized since I've been here. I will never forget the first time I met treven nearly 12 weeks ago and I asked him why he wanted to be baptized, his response was more profound than I think he realized at the time; he told me that the reason he wanted to be baptized was so that he could have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost to protect him. Keep in mind that answer came from a 10 year old.

We've been teaching this man who is 75 named Robert Terrell from Colorado. He just recently moved here to get married to his 4th wife after loosing the past 3 to cancer and sicknesses. He has been so prepared throughout his life to receive the restored gospel. I can't even describe to you the experiences that he has had that have led up to this point of him meeting with us. He has experienced more heart ache and more sorrow than any one person I have ever met, yet he has keep looking forward to see how he can make the future better. The reason he married his current wife was so that he could give her a better life than the one she has had with the death of her husband due to illness. That goes to show the kind of man Robert Terrell is. Well we met with him two days ago to teach him for the 3rd time. While teaching him we got on a conversation about how the world is today. He spoke up and said, "it's going to be up to the Mormons to save this world from corruption and I'm ready to join them." That was way cool to experience someone recognizing the power of the church. We have set up to go to Idaho Falls with Robert and his wife Rose to the temple visitor center. He said I'll agree to go on one condition; I get to take you out to dinner at Chuck-a-rama. Anyone who knows me knows that I am so excited for that! I would always have my birthday dinners there when I lived in Utah every year until I moved to Colorado.

We also set another baptism date with Aaron Boots. This is the first time he has committed to a date since he started meeting with the missionaries three years ago. He will be baptized on the 27th of this month. He was super emotional when he accepted the date. Aaron is going to be such a diligent member of the church.

I love this work. I know that I am on the Lord's errand. I am the Lord's missionary and will bring the world his truth.

Peace and Love,

Elder Walker

p.s. this stake has seen 9 baptisms in 10 weeks... That is remarkable

Sis Walker 2-11-10

I LOVE MY MISSION!

That's really all I have to say!

So this morning I was starting a fire in our gas burning fireplace and I was starting it with some pocket matches... well, I had the gas up to high so when I stuck the match in there it went... POOF... I only singed a good chunk of hair so I gave myself a little trim and now you cant even tell!!!! My comp. told me I am no longer allowed to start fires! I agree!

Last week I discovered a new recipe! I bought myself some frozen chicken but I didn't have anything flavoring for it so I went on a hunt... in my search I saw the otterpops in the freezer and thought I would try that. I placed 5 pieces of chicken in a cake pan, cut up the otter pops, two orange and 1 pink, and placed it on the chicken and then cooked for an hour at 375... YUM! Who woulda thought??? It was almost as good as mom's orange juice chicken! I'm so creative!!! Haha!

Earlier this week we left our condo only to realize that I had locked the keys inside... Yes, the condo keys and the car keys. Oh and it was raining like crazy outside and probably only 40 degrees. We called our landlord's three different numbers... no answer... so we decided we best get walking because the Lord's work isn't going to get done by standing around waiting for a phone call! An hour later our Landlord's wife called... they were at the hospital... but they had received our message and they were sending a key with one of their daughters down to their other daughters house! We finally got the key a couple hours and a lot of laughs later!!!!!! We were happy to get inside and get dry clothes on!!!!

Um... what else! We have Cami's baptism this weekend! We only have 20 pages to go before we meet our goal in the B of M!!! Kelsey's parents both gave her permission to be baptized so she is FOR SURE getting baptized on the 20th.

Transfers are on Tuesday and again, I am praying like crazy that I don't get transferred but I'll do whatever the Lord wants me to do!

I LOVE THIS WORK!!!!!!! Make good choices, don't do drugs, be happy and LOVE LIFE!!!!!!

Love, ME!

Elder Scott - Tyson's Mission Conference Experience

Elder Scott

Hello everyone,

It is now official, the St. Anthony stake has now been redone and is starting new. We sustained 5 new bishops, lost 4 ward mission leaders, got a new ward, and now have new ward boundries for 9 of the 11 wards... pretty much the most exciting thing that has happened around here since the Teton Dam broke in '76. This change had been the topic of discussion in every house we have gone to. We were told what the boundries were going to be before they announced it to the stake due to our investigators and their fellowshippers. So now that the word is out we have been trying to re-pair our investigators with families that can take them to church and such. Pretty much chaos.

Saturday was definately on the top 5 of my most spiritual experiences. Elder Richard G. Scott is an amazing man. We left for Idaho Falls on Friday night to stay with some Elders down there so the drive would be shorter for us in the morning. We got up around 5 to get ready and to drive the rest of the way to Pocatello to be seated and spiritually preparing at 7. We had the whole mission in the Alameda Stake center in Pocatello, roughly 190 missionaries. It was quite funny actually because we would look down to our scriptues to read a few verses then look up to see if Elder Scott had come in yet, then down to read some more verses. Finally Elder Scott came in around ten to 8:00. The whole mission just stood up in silence as Elder Scott walked with Elder Snow and Elder Hammond to the stand with President and Sister Colton. Elder Scott asked us to shake hands at the start so he could get out quickly to a meeting at noon. He asked us to tell him our name and where we were from. I learned something about Elder Scott that day. Number one he is shorter than I thought, and number two he has more qenuine love than any other person I have ever shook hands with. We all sat back down anxiously awaiting his message. To be honest, I didn't care too much for what he had to tell us. Not to make that sound like I was disregarding the message of a Prophet, its just that he was talking about marriage and getting married in the temple and such. My thoughts are that I have 21 months left before I need to think and/or worry about that. During his talk he brought up one of the Sisters who is learning English. He asked her a few questions and then said,"as an Apostle of Jesus Christ I bestow upon you the gift on tongues." My favorite part was the last 10 minutes when he bore his witness of the Savior. He said, "Elders and Sisters, I have been talking to you as Elder Scott, I am now going to talk to you as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ one of the 15 who holds all keys of the priesthood in the Kingdom of God. Me as Richard G. Scott doesn't mean anything, I am nothing, but what I represent and testify of means everything." at that point the Spirit just filled to room, He, the spirit, was preparing us for a testimony of our Savior given by Elder Scott. I don't remember everything that was said other than his last sentence that I will never forget. He said, "I bear solemn witness that he lives... I know Him." I will never forget those words that were spoken by an Apostle of the Lord.

So let me just tell you transfer information with a little story of how I found out about transfers... Our zone leaders called us last night around 9:45 which is weird because they never call to give us transfer information, they usually just send it out in a voicemail. So Elder Dangerfield says, "well Elder Walker and Elder Call, I have bad news." We were thinking alright well one of us is getting transfered, that's cool. Then he proceeds to tell us that President has seen it fit to white wash St. Anthony or to transfer us both out. I was like yeah right, you're joking, why did you call us. He then said that we wished he was joking and that we are number 3 and 4 in the baggage line. Oh at that point I lost it. I was like are you kidding me! We just got new ward boundries and all of our investigators don't have fellowshippers yet, I am calling president, there is no way they can take us both out of here! Finally after getting me heated for 5 minutes Elder Lagazo our other zone leader gets on to tell us that they were joking, they just wanted to see how we would react to that. Let me just tell you something, I have been in theatre for a very long time and I have not seen/heard anyone be as convincing as Elder Dangerfield was last night. I still get heated thinking about that mean joke. Long story short, Elder Call and I are staying in St. Anthony for another transfer. I am very excited and thankful for this opportunity. I know that there is still work for me to do here and I am ready to get it done.

well I love you all so much. I hope you know how much I really appreciate you. I am loving each day more and more as a missionary. This is such a great opportunity to stay here once again. I look forward to telling you about the growth that will happen in the next 6 weeks here.

peace and love,
Elder Walker

Sis Walker Feb 4

Hello Family!!!!!

This week has been a great week! Phil’s baptism was incredible! There was a great turnout! Jammie, Phil’s recently baptized wife gave a combined talk on Baptism and the Gift of the Holy Ghost… lets just say, she is ready to speak in Stake Conference. The talk was phenomenal!!!! They are so excited to go to the temple in a year and I can’t wait to be here for that!

We have an investigator, Kelsey, who really wants to get baptized on the 20th of this month but she is only 17 and her parents aren’t too keen on the idea. But get this, before we even taught her about fasting, she asked us if we would join her in a fast for her parent’s hearts to be softened. I guess she had learned about fasting in Seminary… at any rate, we had a fast yesterday and I really feel as though things are going to work out! Kelsey is another one of those really mature teenagers whom I feel so privileged to be teaching. I feel like she teaches me more than I teach her!!! I love it!

We are getting so close to our goal in the Book of Mormon with Cami!!! We are almost done with Mosiah! I have noticed a couple of things as we have read, 1. her understanding of the gospel has increased, 2. her family is growing closer together as we read together 3. her reading skills are picking up quite a bit! I just love the Book of Mormon!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cami’s dad is now sitting in as we read and contributing quite a bit!!! We are getting Cami to enjoy primary and she even attended the Activity Day’s activity this past Tuesday!!! This girl has come a LONG way and she is doing so great! We are excited for her baptism next weekend!

The Carranza family, the family with 6 daughters, is doing great! We have had some really fun lessons the past few weeks and they are also coming a long way! Tomorrow we are going over to teach them about the Wise Man and the Foolish Man and we are going to do a little object lesson… lets just say it includes lots of sand, a rock, water and a popsicle stick house, or two!!!! A family in the ward invited them over for FHE this past Monday and they had a blast! They are getting so close to baptism!!!

We are teaching a girl, Tamika, who just moved here from Chicago a few months ago! I LOVE HER!!! She is as black as black gets and I’m pretty sure she had some Baptist upbringing! She is great to teach. I’m not sure how committed she is yet but she does her reading assignments and asks really great questions in lessons… we’ve just got to get her to church!!

I LOVE BOULDER CITY!!! I would love to finish off my mission here but of course, I will go wherever the Lord needs me! I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!! I love the happiness I feel at the end of every day! I love the strength my testimony has received. I love having the Spirit with me at all times! I love meeting new people! I love serving others! I love seeing families accept the gospel and work toward the temple together! I love baptisms! I LOVE THIS WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for all of you love, prayers and support!

Make good choices, don’t do drugs, be happy and go out and baptize someone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love, ME!

Elder Walker Feb 1

Family,

I just passed up my three month mark a few days ago, my second transfer is almost over, and we just concluded our 8th baptism in the St. Anthony Stake in two months. Where has the time gone? Like I said in the last e-mail, every week seems to go faster and faster.

We just got an e-mail from President Colton telling us that Elder Richard G. Scott of the quorum of the twelve and Elder Steven E. Snow of the presidency of the seventy are going to be at our mission conference this Saturday. Elder Call and I are going to drive down to Idaho Falls on Friday night and stay with some Elders there in Iona then we'll go with them to Pocatello Saturday morning for the conference. I'm really excited for this conference; it'll be one that I will always remember.

Saturday night when we were talking with President Crapo (in the Stake Presidency and who we live with) he said to us that they are going to make a big change in the stake that will give us some work to do. We tried to get the information out of him but he wouldn't tell us; he said that they would be announcing it in church the next day. So the big news is that the St. Anthony stake has called a stake meeting this Saturday night for all 10 wards in which they will be changing all of the ward boundries and adding a new ward. They will be releasing 4 bishops and calling 5 new ones (one for the new ward). When we saw President Walker (the stake president) we asked him, jokingly, when are you going to update our area book for us? We are going to have to take a three inch binder that is full of teaching records and ward information and move them all to their appropriate wards. That is going to be super fun...

Well this past week was super slow in teaching. We didn't teach too many lessons but we did set another baptism date! There is this boy who has been taking the lessons for quite a few months. He has such a desire to recieve the Holy Ghost and to be baptized. It's been really hard to see this 10 year old with such a desire to come unto the Savior but that his parents wouldn't let him. At one point Trevon's Mom mocked Elder Call's testimony. We have prayed and prayed for their hearts to be softened. We dropped by last Monday night to pick up some CDs that I left when we knocked on the door Jenine (Trevon's Mom) answered and said, "so we've decided that we want Trevon to get baptized on the 13th of Feb". We are so excited for him and for his parents to have realized the importance of this day. Trevon has asked me to give the talk on the Holy Ghost at his baptism and to confirm him in church the next day. So family, please pray that I don't get transfered because I would hate to have to tell him that I wont be at his baptism now that he finally has a day.

Mom: Happy Birthday on Wednesday!!!

Have a great week everyone!

peace and love,

Elder Walker

Sister Walker 1-28-10

Hello my favorite People!!!

Boulder City is still 100% incredible! On Friday evening we went over to have a lesson with our investigator, Phil, who had just got home for a week and a half road-trip through the mid-west, including Nauvoo. Anyway, after telling us about their trip, Jammie, his wife, said, "So, Phil do you have something you would like to tell them..." After a minute of hesitation, Phil said, "Well, I have decided I am going to be baptized." WE HADN'T EVEN CHALLENGED HIM FOR BAPTISM YET. I squeeled, of course!!!! So then we said, "Ok, how does Feb. 13th sound?" and he said, "Wait, why do I have to wait so long, why cant we do it next Saturday?" I am pretty sure that it was at that point that my eyes filled up with tears. So, Phil is getting baptized on Saturday! YAY!!!!! And that my friends is what we call the power of members.

Phil is really good friends with a lot of members and they have been there for him every step of the way, answering questions, being there to study when we could be there, etc. I LOVE MEMBERS!!!

We are in Mosiah with Cami. We have to get to page 265 by the 13th. AND... We received a phone call the other day from a man, Jason, who is a recovering heroine addict whose wife is a member and kicked him out a few months ago because he relapsed. She told him that he needs to be reading the Book of Mormon every day and so he decided that he was going to do that. SO, he reads a chapter every day and then calls us every evening and explains what he read and then we add our 2 cents! We are also meeting with him every couple of days to have a lesson!!! OH BOY, I am REALLY going to get to know the Book of Mormon in the next couple of weeks! I LOVE IT!!!

We have anther new investigator, Kelsey, who is 17. She is attending the Las Vegas Arts Academy where she is friends with a lot of LDS kids. She has been attending seminary up there for the past year and just decided that she wanted to take the lessons. Her fellowshipper is a great kid who is preparing to leave on his mission in March. Anyway, when we had our first lesson on Monday, she told us that she has already read the entire Book of Mormon and she knows it is true. So, we are going to set her for baptism on Saturday... then quickly go through the lessons... that was easy!

Did I tell you that Maria May got her mission call to Ft. Lauderdale???? Dad, you will have to fill her up with referrals!!! She goes into the MTC the day that I fly home. Anyway, she is receiving her edwoment next month and President just told me that I will be able to go!!!!!!! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a treat! That is what this work is all about! Teach, Baptize, Temple!!! Yay!!!

Well, I think that is just about it with the exciting news!!! Oh, so it keeps raining. Last week we had CRAZY rain. I'm sure you saw some of it on the news. It was a pretty big deal! We had floods all over the place! I loved it! Lots and lots and lots of puddle jumping... and wet, pruny feet!!!

I LOVE THIS WORK!!!

I love you all so much! Make good choices, don't do drugs, be happy and remember that Sister Chelsee Walker LOVES YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!!

Love, ME!

Elder Walker Week 13

Hello there,

So it seems to me that the weeks are just speeding by. I can't even believe that this transfer is now more than half way through and that I've been out nearly 3 months. Every week seems to go faster and faster.

I loved seeing the pictures of the baby! Elder Call didn't think it was appropriate to have a picture of Estee on the table naked but I just laughed. It's just who she is. So has the name finally been decided? Briggan Samuel Harrop? You better make your mind up soon or this kid is going to be confused! I'm already confused as to what to tell people my new nephew's name is.

On Feb. 6th we are having a mission conference with an Apostle and a member of the presidency of the Seventy down in Pocatello. We wont know who they are going to be yet but President Colton told us that he will know by next week. How cool is that though? Apparently Elder Bednar came in May so probably not him but if it is I will make a connection with him through Adam. I'll tell him, "hey you know my brother-in-law." That way we can talk more than just saying hello. Oh p.s. a lot of people know Adam here. Just the other day I was talking with a lady whose husband works at BYU. She said that she lived in Decatur so I asked her if she knew Adam's parents she did and then went on to say, "I think their son was student body pres when he was 17." I was like yeah he's a pretty cool guy. She then asked how I knew him. I said well he married my sister. She was so excited to hear about Adam again and says congrats on the baby.

I had a very spiritual lesson this last week. I've told you about our investigator Aaron and how missionaries have been teaching him for 3 years now. Well we were on exchanges this week with the Spanish Elders which was the same day that we were going to teach Aaron. Elder Hernandez and I went with the ward mission leader and taught from Luke 15:1-7 about the "ninety and nine" and "the one". Aaron is definitely "the one". We told him that the Savior is still trying to bring him back to the fold and that he is only continuing to loose himself. The scripture says that Heavenly Father's joy is greater for the one that repents and joins the fold then it is for the ones that are doing the right thing. Finally, speaking from the Spirit, I said, "Aaron, look at your daughter, do you love her?" He said through tears, "yes". Then I said, "If you truly love her you will do anything in your power to keep her for ever." The Spirit was so strong in that lesson. Aaron knows the church is true, he knows the Book of Mormon is true, and he knows that Joseph Smith is a prophet. Aaron then proceeded to ask, "what do I need to do to get baptized?" I was about to stand up and shout the Hallelujah Chorus! Aaron Boots wants to get baptized! This investigator who has met with missionaries for 3 years has now developed the desire to be baptized! Aaron is definitely one of the people I was sent to St. Anthony to find. It's cool to see experiences like that and how the Spirit is the one that converts, not missionaries.

Last night at our dinner appointment there was a boy in the family named Tyson. I was so confused last night! When ever they would talk to him or tell him something I would think they were talking to me. One time they got upset with him and I got offended inside because I thought I was getting in trouble! I haven't been out long enough for that name not to register with me yet so there were several times when I would start to respond to this family but then realize that they weren't talking to me. Weird!

Well I love this work. I love the Gospel. I love my family. I love my friends. I hope you all have a great week and will continue to be awesome.

Peace and Love

Elder Tyson Rigby Walker

MORE RAIN - January 21

My most dearest family in the whole entire world!!!! Hello!

It is SO WET here! Oh my goodness, I have NEVER seen this much rain in Nevada! Lets just say that there is a dry lake bed in Boulder City that isn't so dry anymore!!!! The streets are completely flooded! Needless to say, my feet have been prunes for the past 3 days. Literally non-stop rain for 3 days now. I can't believe my eyes! I have quite enjoyed splashing in the puddles, the only problem is that I am constantly WET! I love it!

We are still truggin' along with Cami reading the Book of Mormon every night. We are now on 2 Nephi 28. LOTS of reading! It has been a blast! Slowly yet surely the more and more members of the family are sitting in as we read! We've just got to get her dad in on it! As we were reading the other day we came across the word fatigue and Coty the 9-year-old was reading. He said the word correctly, of course, because he is a genius... it reminded me of Tys though when he was about that same age and we were reading as a family and he came across the word fatigue and read it as fat-i-goo! I had to giggle inside! I love our Rigs!

So, other than being really wet and reading the Book of Mormon like crazy people... nothing too new is going on since last week! We are hoping to set Phil (Jaimee's husband) for baptism tomorrow. I am SO excited for him. Oh get this, they had to go out to Michigan for a funeral this past week and they drove out there and then decided to take the southern route home so of course they just had to stop in Nauvoo!!! They said that there was an ice storm so Nauvoo was all shut down. However, they ran into a Senior couple who took them around and showed them some sights. Can you say GOLDEN!!! Oh yeah and he went to church on Sunday in Michigan! I love them!

We seem to meet a lot of drunk people lately! They are so stinkin fun to talk to! We can get all sorts of info out of them and they aren't afraid to give out their phone numbers! Then when we call back they have no clue who we are! Hahaha! Oh yeah, and of course I have Sis. Burgess talk to them! I get some great giggles in!

I LOVE MY LIFE! Oh, I am sitting next to one of the other Sisters, Sister Done and I asked her what else I should tell you and she said to say, "I love Sister Done!!!" It's true! I have wanted to serve with Sis. Done my whole mission but seeing as how this is her last transfer and we haven't served together yet... well, I suppose that just isn't going to happen! Sad day. However, she just got transfered into my zone so at least I get to see her a couple of times a week now! We have come to realize why we have never served together... we are just too good of friends and we would probably drive people crazy because we just have too much fun around each other! I am trying to convert her to BYU-I so that we can live together but she just isn't buying it! Ha! I'll keep trying! She is going to go to LDSBC though so at least we can play on the weekends!!!!

Ok, I really don't know what else to talk about so I am going to sign off now! I love you all more that the desert loves rain!

Remember who you are, remember that I love you!

Make good choices, don't do drugs and be the best missionaries you can be!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love, ME!!!

Oh P.S. my new baby is SO CUTE!!!!! OK, maybe a little squished out of shape but still cute!!! I need more pictures!

Rain - Letter from Sis Walker Jan 14

This week has been a great week! Not anything too exciting but it has surely been good! It rained yesterday and that made me smile!!! I of course had to pull over the car and jump out and dance in it!!! Luckily we were in the middle of nowhere so I could get away with it!!!

I love Sister Burgess! She is SO Green!!!!! I love it! She keeps me on my toes! She is very shy but she is totally coming out of her shell!!!! I just have to remember to shut my yapper so that I can allow her to shine!

We have done about 2 hours of tracting this past week… which I HATE, because tracting is the biggest waste of time in the world… but, I have had to humble myself because it has been SO GOOD for Sister Burgess to come out of her shell. In fact, yesterday while tracting, we knocked on a door of a woman who wasn’t interested, she said she was Born Again (which in my opinion is just another way of saying we only go to church on Easter and Christmas because we have been saved and don’t need a church) and that she didn’t want us to waste our literature on her. As we were leaving her doorstep, before she closed the door, Sister Burgess said, “Wait I really feel like I need to leave this with you…” and handed her a Proclamation pamphlet. Then we went on to the next house. As we were going back down the street that same woman was sitting in her garage smoking and we said “Hi” then kept walking. THEN all of the sudden Sister Burgess then turned around a b-lined over to this woman and said (actually more like blurted out), “So what if I told you that the same church that Jesus Christ set up while on the earth has been restored and that we have a Prophet who leads that church today?” The woman was a bit dumbfounded and said, “Well what do you mean by restored…” Then Sister Burgess explained. The whole time I was just standing there with my jaw hanging down to my knees because I was NOT EXPECTING THAT! I wish I had a picture of my face. I didn’t even know what to say to the woman… so I just let Sis. Burgess talk… then I shared my testimony with her. We gave her a restoration pamphlet and told her she didn’t need to even look at it but that at least she had it! She said, “thank you” and we headed off on our way. It is amazing how when shy people decide they are going to talk… they just talk!!! Anyway, that is one of the MANY reasons I love Sister Burgess!

I have come to realize this transfer that having a companion that is COMPLETELY opposite from you is an amazing thing because we both have our strengths but just in totally different ways and we are able to use those strengths together to do amazing things! It’s like Batman and Robin! Haha! I love it! I have learned so many new things in the past week with Sister Burgess. It is fun having an Asian Studies Major for a companion. I have learned all about the Asian culture, cinema, ANIME, and many other things that I could have cared less about a week ago but I have learned to appreciate them because that is Sister Burgess’ passion! Totally different experience than training Sister Johnson. This is a great prep for when I have kids and they all come out completely different. You just learn to enjoy what they enjoy!

We re-set Cami for baptism last night. She is now set for Feb. 13th. She told us that she is okay with that date but that she wanted to read at least half the Book of Mormon before getting baptized and she was only on page 22. So told her that we would come over to her house everyday and read for 30 minutes with her. We have to read 8.1 pages day to meet her goal!!! Exciting!!! How many 10 year-olds do you know that want to read the Book of Mormon for that long every day????? Haha!

Well, that is just about it! Everything else is going so great! I love you all! Make good choices, don’t do drugs, be happy and go out there and spread the gospel!

Love, ME!

Missionary Work in Idaho Jan 18

Well hello there family and friends,

Due to the success in December we are now a little slow in January. We have not had much interest from people and it seems like the possible baptisms keep falling through. It's sad because I was so used to the baptisms we were having in Dec. that not having a baptism every Saturday is really a tough thing. I continue loving to work here in St. Anthony and hope I don't get transferred.

We have a family that has to wait until March to get baptized, due to approval from the First Presidency, so I told President Colton that means I'm staying in St. Anthony at least two more transfers to see that happen... don't think that's going to happen. President Walker, the stake president in St. Anthony, called President Colton for something the other day and mentioned to him that the English Elders are to finish out their mission in this stake... I don't think he succeeded either.

I got a phone call from the mission office around 1:00 PM on Friday telling me that I have a new Nephew! Sister Parkins said she would sing me a lullaby but I probably wouldn't like it. I'm so glad that Britnee and the Baby (Samuel or Briggin) are doing well. I need some help from everyone to make sure some of his first words are "uncle tys", that means that Devin is not allowed to be around that baby until I can be there to help him understand who his real favorite uncle is. I'm not to worried about Estee because she already knows that I'm favorite, but the new baby wont see the light for 21 more months.

This week of missionary work... The coolest story for this week... the missionaries have been working with this guy named Aaron for a long time. In fact his three year anniversary with missionaries was yesterday. We taught him on Friday and showed him "Between Heaven and Earth", a video about temples and family. During the video Elder Holland says "I can't imagine not being sealed to my wife in heaven because it wouldn't be heaven if I didn't have her forever." That sentence really struck Aaron and now we think he is going to be making some serious changes. We had a powerful lesson after that about eternal families. Aaron loves his family but has something that is holding him up. His wife gets emotional every time we go over to teach because she wants more than anything for their family to be sealed together in the temple. When we bore testimony of eternal families and the power of the temple Aaron was in tears. He understands what he needs to do and how to get there, he just has something that is holding him back. I love being able to testify of family and the temple because then my own testimony strengthens and I realize everyday the importance of keeping your family close to your heart.

Well all is well here in Idaho. We are now back on our cycle of meat and potatoes for dinner appointments though. It seems to be a month of meat and potatoes and then a few days of pizza, a month of meat and potatoes and then a few days of pizza, etc. I'm pretty sure I have gravy in my blood stream all the time. I am working out a lot though because there is no way I am going to gain 40lbs like the average missionary in this mission does.

I've learned something the last few months of being here and that is that I really don't like sending e-mails; it's not very personal on my part. If you send me an e-mail, I will most likely write you back through snail mail. If you have the time or the desire I would highly encourage you to write to me through snail mail too because then I will be able to keep your letter forever. I know that's a lot to ask for in this day and age because of how easy it is to shoot off a quick e-mail, but that way I will have letters forever.

I hope all is well for everyone and life is great.

Peace and Love,
Elder Walker

p.s. Happy anniversary to Devin and Lianne a long time ago!

Email from Elder Walker 1-11-2010

Some notes to family:

• I havn't heard anything about the baby yet. It makes me nervous because nobody sent me an e-mail this week either. I hope everything is all good. I thought Britnee was going to deliver on the 10th but now it is the 11th please don't forget to call the mission office. If you need the number it is 208-233-0130. My vote is Briggin if it's a boy and... well I don't know for a girl. I'm convinced the baby is going to be a boy though so there is no need for a girls name.
• Mom, thank you so much for the stationary and the letter you sent me. I really appreciate the advice and the concern you have for me. You are the greatest mother in the world. We teach about families in the first lesson because then I get to testify of my family. One of my greatest testimony is that my family is ordained of God. He has blessed me with such a solid family with great standards

From his weekly letter home:

• I just completed the 7th baptism so far on Saturday. Her name is Jenna Miller and she was the "golden" contact. She just moved here to St. Anthony from Washington. She was contacted by ward members and they set up the lessons for us. When we met her the first time we committed her to baptism and just taught her 4 times then she was baptized. I love it when that happens. Well come to think of it, most of the people we baptized we haven't had to "fight" them to the font. Long story short, St. Anthony Idaho is the best.
• I received a package from my best friends! When missionaries receive a package its like we loose all control and rip it open! It's quite funny actually. I got the package from Ashante, Hedy Lu, and Garrett. They sent me all sorts of stuff like sun flower seeds, spider-man crayons, bubble gum, and a puzzle. There was much more than that but that gives you an idea of what was in there. They included pictures of themselves and a sweet spider-man inner tube. Receiving packages makes the day so much better.
• As missionaries we have a teaching pool, or people that we are teaching. The problem that we are running into right now is that we are baptizing everyone in our teaching pool! The members saw how successful we were and how much work we were doing that I think they just gave up on trying to find people for us to teach. After baptizing 7 we now have a teaching pool of 6. Kinda crazy that we don't have that many to teach when we cover 10 wards. The referrals that we do get though are great and then get baptized so I guess I can't complain.
• I get really frustrated with people when they say they don't know anyone or there isn't anyone to teach but there are! Then I think about Colorado where there are more than plenty of people to teach! I didn't do the work that I should have done when I lived in a town with plenty of people to teach and now I'm getting upset with people that really don't know of people that aren't already members of the church. I hope you all back home will try to do your part for the Elders serving you. We cannot fulfill our purpose without the help of the members.
• I hope you all are having a great New Year! I know 2010 is going to be a great year. I look forward to the work that we get to do. By the way our mission had 750 baptisms this last year. We had 80 in December. The IPM rocks. I love you all.
  
  Peace and Love,
  
  Elder Tyson Rigby Walker

Sister Walker Highlights January 2010

SISTER WALKER

• Happy New Year… I can’t believe 2009 has come to an end. Where did the time go? Well, I for one would LOVE for 2010 to be Much slower than 2009 but I don’t think that is going to happen! Maybe if we combined our efforts and prayed really, really, really hard than the next 3 months will go really SLOW! I would rather enjoy that thank you!
• So, this has been quite the eventful past couple of weeks! We had 2 baptisms last week, one of which I never thought I would see the day that he got baptized. I have been teaching Jimmy since the second week I was in Boulder City and he was off and on for all of that time. Finally he decided back in September that he was going to get baptized on Dec. 26th and even though it was still a rocky road he finally made it to his baptism! He is going to be a great member! The other one was a 9 year old genius! Coty was/is the smartest investigator I have ever taught and he has grasped the gospel more that anyone I have ever taught! They were 2 fantastic baptisms!
• Coty’s family has been less active for quite some time but now they are back into activity! Coty’s 10-year-old sister Cami is currently taking the lessons and wants to get baptized in March… we hope to move that up some! Cami has made a huge 180 since we first met her a month ago… she was trying to go down the “gothic” route and now she has turned into a little sweetheart! Their family has been very active the past month or so and I believe they will remain active! They are such a great family and I am excited for the adventures in the gospel that lay ahead! Oh man, I love this work!!!
• Oh, P.S. I have shingles on my leg! Ouch! I guess they are caused by stress or something like that! The doc says they are clearing up though and should be gone in 3-4 weeks! I might miss them when they go. They are rather interesting looking and you all know how I love my battle wounds! Haha! However, I don’t suggest getting them they are extremely painful!
• Guess what, guess what, guess what, I survived another transfer and I am still in Boulder City! I am training again this transfer. Sister Burgess is straight from the MTC!!! Sister Burgess is from Maryland! I LOVE Sister Burgess! What a great missionary! She reminds me a LOT of Melanie Hunter! I am excited be serving with her. She has a solid testimony and isn’t afraid to open up and share it in appointments. Yesterday we had quite a few appointments with investigators that have very interesting questions and she just opened right up and answered their questions without any hesitation! We went to check on a new investigator who ended up not being home and as we were walking back to the car, Sister Burgess noticed an open door to an apartment a few doors down (that I hadn’t noticed because I was focused on who we were going to see next) and she said, “Hey, shouldn’t we go talk to those people.” So, we did! She shared a simple testimony with them, then we gave them a card for Finding Faith in Christ and a Restoration pamphlet. They weren’t interested in us coming back but, heck, I was so proud of Sister Burgess! I have a lot to learn form her!!!! She is going to be a great asset to our mission!
• I am so excited for this transfer! This means that at the end of this transfer I will have done 7 ½ months in Boulder AND I could possibly finish my mission here which means I would spend 9 months here!!! That is half my mission!!
• Oh goodness, we had the best baptisms last week. We had Jammie’s baptism on Thursday and it went so well! Then her daughter Abby was baptized on Saturday and again it went very well. AND… we are starting to teach Jammie’s husband Phil who wasn’t really interested before and then he came to the baptisms and Church on Sunday and now he is totally interested. He has had the first lesson and we are going back tonight to teach the second one! Yay!!! I love when a whole family embraces the gospel! I can’t wait to be in the temple when they are sealed!!!

Elder Walker Letter January 4, 2010

ELDER WALKER:

• So I am very excited to be staying in St. Anthony. I love the people here and the work that we are doing. I am creating this bond with this area that when the time comes to leave I really wont want to. When President Colton was talking about splitting this area I had a hard time with even thinking about other missionaries "poaching" my area.
  We are still seeing a bunch of success. We set another baptism date on Saturday which brings our total to 5. Our goal is to beat Decembers baptisms with 7 instead of the mere 6 we had last month. haha
• While tracting we ran into this boy named Shawn. He was visiting a member family for Christmas. We asked if we could share a message with him and shared a brief restoration. He had wide eyes the whole time and his response was that he thinks it is so great that God would call a prophet once again to lead and guide us today. We gave him a Book of Mormon to read and he already read the chapter we gave him (Moroni 10) and prayed. He said that his Mom is Christian and his Dad Catholic; his whole life he has been confused. When we went back today we taught a more detailed 1st and asked a few more questions. His answers were so profound and so genuine. He's 14 and had more interest in the gospel than most adults we teach. The only problem is that he lives in L.A. and was flying back home today. He said that he would really like to continue learning from us and that he wished we could keep teaching him. We said, "that's alright we have missionaries in California too." He had no idea the church was around the world. We described the L.A. temple and said that was a temple of our church. He was so excited. Too bad he isn't our investigator anymore. We just set up a golden investigator for the L.A. mission.
• Yesterday I experienced my most spiritual low of the mission. We have been teaching a boy named Carson H___ for a while and yesterday when we went back to teach him his Dad came to the door and told us that Carson wasn't interested anymore and that we shouldn't come back. I get sad thinking about it because Carson is such a great kid and knew so much about the church. We don't think that Carson actually said that and that his parents are still bitter towards the church. It's terrible because Carson's dad served as an Assistant when he served his mission but now is less active and doesn't like the church. I was asked just the other day by our Zone leaders what the hardest part about serving a mission is. My response was that It's hard to see somebody's potential and then watch them not reach for it. That's how it is for Carson only worse; he has great potential but his parents are restricting him from achieving it.
• Here in Idaho we teach so many over aged youth and part member families. Most of our converts are teenagers or pre teen kids. It really makes me appreciate the way I was raised in the gospel and the structure I have. Some families are so closed minded and restrict their children from growing. As a missionary you really want to sit the parents down and tell them how to raise their children but we don't necessarily have the authority to do that.
• Yesterday Sarah Ferwerda, one of our investigators with a baptism date, bore her testimony in church! It was her first Sunday in her new ward and the first time we heard her say that she knows that Joseph Smith is a prophet and the Book of Mormon is true! Elder Call and I sat there with our jaws hanging down in our laps. We were about to fall of the bench out of shock! The Lord works in mysterious ways...