October:)

I absolutely loveeee General Conference! It has become one of the things that I look forward to most out here and I can't wait until it comes again in April. For those of you that don't know what General Conference is, it's a worldwide meeting/broadcast of the church that happens twice a year. During the conference, we listen to the words of the Prophet of God, the Twelve Apostles, and other leaders of the church. It is such an incredible experience to listen to them, to watch them, and to learn at their hands. They truly are men and women called of God to lead and direct His church on the earth and there is no way you can know that unless you listen to their words. Unfortunately, I have to wait another six months :( But it goes by fast anyway so it'll be here in no time.:)

This past week was pretty interesting to be honest. Not as successful as we had planned but it did have its good parts. One of those was that I got to play a violin!!!!!! I've gone a year now without touching one and I walked into the chapel one day and saw a few members practicing a musical number and one of them had a violin in her hands. I just stood there in shock almost because I haven't seen a violin my entire mission, ha-ha. Instruments seem to be pretty uncommon here. Well, there's always guitars and pianos, ha-ha, but hardly any violins. So I asked to play and of course she said yes. To them it sounded great apparently. But man I was just like, IJ It made me miss my violin at home. So I'll make sure I play when I get home :).

This past week I hit my one year mark!!!! It was crazy. And now everything is just downhill meaning it’ll just go by so fast from here which is sad :( It's pretty much a push to work harder because I know that time is ticking down and it'll be over before I want it to. But we sorta celebrated my one year mark on the 29^th, ha-ha. We went up to our terrassa at the top of our building and I burned a tie, ha-ha. It was a tie that my trainer gave to me so I burned that one. Not sure why that one though. I am sure my Mom is happy it’s not one of the ties she got me.:)

Tarragona is such an incredible place. It was an ancient Roman city and it still has some ancient Roman ruins which is awesome! But the city itself is just amazing. It's a lot different than Mataró because it's just a lot bigger and the ward is much bigger as well. It's also a bit different with four Elders in the same apartment but it's been pretty fun :). We all get along well and we like to joke around together but obviously in a good missionary way :) ha-ha. There are lots of people from all over the place here: Spain obviously, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Columbia, and wherever else. It's a big melting pot, ha-ha. It's kinda funny because sometimes before we talk to someone in the street we'll try to guess where they're from and then during the contact we'll eventually ask them and then see who wins, ha-ha. It's pretty fun. We've been finding families to teach and other people that the Lord has been preparing and I'm so excited to be working here. I know that there are so many miracles that are just waiting to happen here and I'm so grateful that I can be a part of them.

The people here are so great especially the members. I actually think they're too good, ha-ha. It seems like it's almost a contest to see who can schedule an eating visit with the missionaries first! We've eaten with members every day and I barely have to buy anything to have in our apartment since we don't really eat a lot in our apartment. So it keeps shopping pretty simple, ha-ha. But it also means that I have to make sure I don't eat a ton at home since the members just stuff us full. They don't seem to understand what, "I'm full" means, lol. But it's great!

I love this work and I love Spain. This place is so great. I want to come back so bad after my mission and just see the people I've taught and lived with again. I guess I'd better start saving my pennies, ha-ha.

I love you all and miss you lots! Hope you all loved conference and have a great week!

One Year Down....:(

This week was so great, but so busy at the same time. We were all over the place: running to visits, running to catch the bus or the train, we went from one town to another. It was crazy but I loved it. And my gosh, I have never eaten so much! We had an eating visit with somebody every day! And for those that don't think that's something impressive, I have never had that on my mission so far, ha-ha. So for me, that was pretty sweet. The only bad part is my so called "diet" is probably going down the drain now ha-ha. Oh well. My companion and I go running in the morning every other day now so hopefully that'll help. But this week was just so incredible. We found so many new people to teach that have so much potential. We had people randomly come up to us and ask us what we were and all that. It was just incredible. The city itself is a bit bigger than Mataró. Mataró is bigger area-wise but Tarragona has more people. And since there are four missionaries here, we divide the city and the towns around it. There's one town called Reus that's actually pretty big. I'd say it's almost like Mataró but we spend a lot of time there because most of the members actually live there and a lot of people we teach live there. It's been great though.

We were in Reus this past week after an eating visit and we were walking to a bus stop and I saw this guy walking towards us. I wanted to stop and talk to him but at the last second I chickened out, ha-ha. I was beating myself up afterwards because I didn't talk to him. But as we were waiting for the bus, I saw him coming back! So I had a second chance! But instead of me going to him, he came to us! And the first thing he said to me was, "I like the fact that you smile in the streets. It shows that you represent the church well and the message you carry." I asked him if he was a member and it turns out he was but he was less active. The other Elders don't know him either so it looks like he's been less active for a long time. But it was pretty neat because he said that we can pass by whenever we want and that he has a brother that's not a member. So maybe there's some potential there. Right before he left he said to me, "Make sure you keep smiling. It really makes that big of a difference”. That was a really awesome experience! I never knew that people notice little things like that. At least I know what helps :).

Church on Sunday was great and actually pretty interesting. My very first Sunday I had to translate! Ha-ha-ha. This family from Switzerland came to visit and then this German family as well. So I sat behind them and translated the meeting into English for them. Luckily they all spoke English. The German guy actually had to translate everything that I said back into German. So it was like a double translation, ha-ha. Hopefully I did ok. I got up to introduce myself for five minutes in front of everyone and it went well. There were a good amount of people there and we actually don't really fit in the chapel. Hopefully we can get another soon. It's a two story building and not too bad. The church here in Spain with the chapels, rents out parts of buildings instead of buying their own land and building a chapel. Now that the wards are growing, there's not enough room and we have the problem of finding new locations big enough. So, that's always fun.

This week is my one-year mark and I can't believe it. I cannot believe that this year is already over and that I'm halfway there. It's gone by too fast for me and I'm not exactly sure I want it to end, ha-ha. I miss family and friends, of course. But there's something out here about the work that is just worth everything in the world and I'd love to be here for a lot longer. But of course, I have to go home and move forward in life. I have to study, get a job, etc. Man. I'll enjoy this while it lasts :).

I love and miss you all and I hope you enjoy conference this weekend!

Tarragona!!!

I guess I should start off by saying that I've been transferred!!! I was so sad to leave Mataró though. :( I was seriously heart broken saying goodbye to some people and it was really hard. We got a text from our leaders saying that the calls for transfers were going to take place Saturday night from 8:30 to 9:30. So we were just waiting to see if we would get a call. The time ticked on and 9:30 came and went and Elder Carroll and I were just thinking ‘sweet, we're both staying!’ But then at 10:30 we got a phone call saying that I was leaving :( I told a bunch of people that I was leaving and we had a lot of visits Sunday and Monday to say some goodbyes. I took some pictures with some people to save for memories and we had quite a few eating visits, haha. I was pretty full Monday night. But one of my all time favorite families in Mataró gave me a few little presents, haha. They gave me some marking pens for marking my scriptures and other things, a nice written letter that really meant a lot to me, and a jar of peanut butter!!!! Hahaha. For those of you that don't know, peanut butter is almost non-existent here and it costs a bit of money. So they went out of their way to buy me a jar. I was so happy and excited when I saw it, haha. They will forever be in my heart and prayers and I told them that if there is a family that I want to visit when I return to Mataró, it's them. Who knew that you could get so attached to people? I feel like I'm leaving home again, haha. But I know the Lord needs me in another part of Spain.

Speaking of that, I've been transferred to Tarragona!!! It's a sweet looking city and I'm so excited. There are four missionaries here now instead of just two which is exciting. My companion is Elder Tyler and he's from Ogden, Utah. He's been out the same amount of time as Elder Carroll who I just left. So I'm basically picking up right where I left off, haha. I'll include the address at the bottom.

But this past week in Mataró was crazy. Elder Carroll got pretty sick and we even ended up having to go to the hospital. Wednesday morning we had Zone Conference and I was all excited to go but Elder Carroll woke up and I asked him how he felt. He said not good so I told him to take his temperature and he had a fever and so I said that we weren't going. He woke up later and his fever had gone up to 102.4ish and then an hour later it was up to 103.5. So that's when we really started worrying. I called a member to take us to the hospital and they came and man, Elder Carroll was not doing well. We got to the hospital and the doctors took care of him, and luckily his fever went away with the meds they gave him through his IV. They think he ate something bad because he also had a little bathroom problem...no details, haha. So we were told to stay inside for a few days which was not fun. It was ridiculously boring, haha. You can only sit and read for so long and then after that there's not much to do. Luckily, he got better by Sunday. But talk about a great way to end the transfer :P With me, all is well. I continue to eat healthier, work hard, and all is well out here in Spain. The temperature is slowly starting to change and it's getting a little colder outside. But I'm sorta excited because I love winter out here :) Mostly because I get to wear my coat which I absolutely loveeeee. But anyway, all is well :)

I love and miss you all so much but time flies. Next week I hit a year man! I cannot believe it and I am not going to count down, haha. It'll go by too fast. But until next week!

Here's my address:

Elder Justin Mathews

C/Rambla Nova 125,3,3

43001 Tarragona

Spain

The Last Week of Yet Another Transfer

Well, we're at the last week of yet another transfer. This has gone by so incredibly fast. But that's why there's the sense of urgency in the work. Gotta keep the flame burning :). This week though was probably one of the toughest weeks ever man, haha. And I am not kidding by any means. I'm pretty sure that we had more visits fall through than the total number of visits that we ended the week with, haha. It was brutal. And on top of that, our two fantastic investigators who were going to be baptized this coming week can't anymore. Well, one can't because she can't stop working on Sundays. She's still good though other than that. But the other one, Blanca, just one day told us that she can't continue anymore. She said it was because the son of the lady that she takes care of and lives with doesn't want us passing by. But then we saw her a few days later and caught her in the lie with a few questions. She came up with all these other random excuses that she's never had before so basically we aren't teaching her anymore. It was honestly one of the saddest moments I've had here in Mataró. We put so much time and energy into her, she progressed so well, she loved everything and had no problems whatsoever. And then one day she just gives up. Talk about a dagger to the heart, haha. We did all we could to keep her but in the end we can't. Just means that we gotta work even harder to find those elect and prepared children of God. No worries :). We were on our way home that night after talking with Blanca and we were just frustrated and probably a little mad, too. And we decided to take out that frustration by contacting people on the street. Probably not the best idea but hey, it worked, haha. We had an awesome little miracle with one of them, too. We were going home for the night and we took a road that we don't usually ever take to get home and we were in a hurry. This one lady was coming towards us and my companion told me, "Contact her." So I did. And you know what? She's a member! She said that she joined the church in Honduras before I was even born, haha. But she went inactive before she moved here which is sad. We met with her and she said that she too had taken a road home from work that she doesn't usually ever take. Heavenly Father places us in the paths of those that need the gospel at this moment, members and non members alike.:)

Well, on a little bit less spiritual note, haha… You'll all be proud to know that Elder Mathews has lost some weight baby!!!! hahaha. Yes, I know that's probably not that special to you all. But the other day I got sent a letter from a member that I know in a different ward and he had a picture of me and him on it and holy smokes, I was a chub! But some of that chub has disappeared and I'm actually doing my morning exercise a lot more and doing it every day :). So there is still yet some hope!:)

School has all started up here finally. They started today so we'll see how that affects the schedule of our investigators. I'm sure it'll be fine though. Even though things were rough this past week, we have high expectations for this next week. And since it's the last week of the transfer, it's sorta a little push to do that much more since you never know if you're leaving. So I'm sure I'll have lots to tell next week.

I love you all and miss you tons. Until next week!

September!!!

This week was a fantastic one full of ups and downs, heat and rain, miracles and rejections haha. There's no better week than that...dead serious too. We saw so many miracles. Less active people whom we've been trying to get to church finally came, we've found new investigators that have so much potential, and just everything. One of those miracles was this man named Fari. He's Dominican and he's a member of 14 years. He went inactive about 10 years ago, I think, because he found work. We ran into him doing a contact one day a while back and he said we could visit. We didn't know he was a member already until he told us! But we've been working with him to get him to come back to church and with his family as well. His wife isn't a member but is very supportive of us and likes our visits. So we're hoping to work with her as well. But yesterday they both came to church! We didn't expect them at all because we hadn't been able to visit them this past week. But we came out of our meeting and we saw them and it just made me so happy! I sat next to them the whole time to help them feel a little more comfortable. Another little miracle was with this man named Carlos. He's Catalan and one day he just walked by the chapel while we were having a ward cleaning activity and just stopped and asked what we were. So we pulled him into a classroom and talked with him for a bit and the visit went really well. That was about a month ago. Now we see him all over the place and one day he looked completely different. He had cut his long hair, he looked healthier, and he said he needs to turn his life around. After that visit he said he knew he had to change. We asked if we could meet again and he said of course and luckily he lives right down the street of the church, haha. We had a good visit and the Bishop came with us and we gave him a Book of Mormon. He said that he wanted to read it a lot and said that he'd read this next week and we could talk again this coming week. It was incredible to see the hand of the Lord touching his heart and preparing him to receive this message. We'll keep meeting with him and see how he does :).

But how about some other things....well. This past week we had quite the awkward situation on the bus, haha. We went up to see the mall for Preparation Day last week just to see what's up there and we went shopping for our groceries there too since they have this huge shopping store kinda like a Walmart or something, haha. But while we were there, this fight broke out a few lines down. This Spaniard guy grabbed this other guy by the collar of the shirt and was shouting at him and then this Muslim lady took something and smacked the guy on the head and everything shattered on the ground and they were all screaming and man what a scene they made, haha. Everyone in the store was watching and security came running and had to literally carry/drag the ladies to a private room to talk with them. What a day to choose to go to the mall right? Well, unfortunately that's not all, hahaha. We took the bus down to our piso and well, we got on the bus and this creepy little guy was sitting up front and as we walked by he touched us and said hi. We kept walking and set our stuff down and by accident, Elder Carroll set his stuff down on a lady's bag and she tried to pull it out and she broke it. She got all mad at him and was saying stuff that I won't repeat. Luckily, Elder Carroll didn't understand her, haha. These three girls of about 25 were sitting across the way and watching and I guess they didn't think we spoke Spanish because I was talking to my companion in English. And so one girl said to a friend, "What are they?" And then another said, "I think they're Jehovah's Witnesses." And then I just turned to them and said in perfect Spanish, "Nope we're not." They all just looked at each other and said, "Oh shoot they speak Spanish." Hahaha It was so funny. Gotta love that. Well, remember that creeper? He decided to come and stand by me at one point on the bus and I just tried to ignore him. It sorta didn't work too well because he tapped my arm and said hello. To be polite I said hi as well and he said, "You know, people like you get along really well with me." And man that was just creepy. The way he said it, his smile, everything lol. He proceeded to shake my hand, rub my stomach for a bit and then hug me around the waist a few times. It was sooooo awkward. Why is it that missionaries attract the weirdest things and people? haha. I was just praying to get off the bus ASAP and luckily we did. But man, talk about a crazy Preparation Day! Hopefully today isn't like that....But we'll see, haha.

I love you all and think about you often. Have fun as school starts up again and I wish you all the best of luck. Luckily, I don't have to do all that for another year :) haha but it will eventually come. Oh well.