Week 57 in Spain! (4th Week in Mostoles)

12/29/14

This week has been so interesting. We knew this week would be hard and that we wouldn’t receive a lot of lessons or people, so we spent most of our time on the streets. I really enjoyed it though and it was such a great experience. Although we didn’t receive a lot of success number wise, I really was able to feel the real importance of Christmas. What better way to spend Christmas than share the wonderful message we have about Jesus Christ with our brothers and sisters. I really felt the spirit this week. It was a wonderful experience. It was a lot different than last year. I was still in the MTC, and it wasn't much different than our Christmas at home. I will cherish and remember these experiences for the rest of my life.

Christmas Eve, we were invited to a members house in a pueblo in our area. They are so cute. They are the two grandparents, their son and his wife, and the three children. It was so much fun to spend Christmas Eve with them and they gave us so much love. We ate with them, played games with them, and while we were eating desert, the grandpa stepped out and came back in wearing a Santa Claus hat. They gave us all presents to open, and then we watched the kids open all their presents. It was so nice of them to include us and treat us like family.

On Christmas day, we woke up and followed our normal schedule. We studied and got ready, and then opened presents together. Hermana Clements and I both bought a present for each other. She bought me a bracelet and I got her a scarf. Thank you for everything you sent me:) Then we relaxed at home until it was time to go to the Jaboñeros for lunch. We ate with them and talked. Hermana Jaboñero would not leave my side.

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas. And I hope you could feel the love that I have for each of you. I love you all so much and miss you so much. Thank you for all your support and love. Your examples help me and my work here, you keep me going and I can’t wait to see you again.

As the end gets closer, it gets a little hard and scary thinking about going home and finishing. I have been feeling a little down on myself. I think I judge myself too roughly, but it is getting better and I am starting to realize that I have accomplished a lot during my time here, just in different (no less important) ways than I thought. I do consider myself a successful missionary. But I'm not done, I still have a lot to go! And I can’t wait to see what Heavenly Father has in store for me, there are important things he has called me to do for his children here in Spain.

I love you guys and I'm thankful for you in my life. Thanks for being there and helping me move forward. I have the best family in the WORLD! Have a great day! I'll talk to you soon!

Much love, Hermana Brumble

Week 56 in Spain! (3rd Week in Mostoles)

12/15/14

Things have been really good this week. Last week was just so hard and stressful, but this week things really picked up and I'm really excited for this transfer. I just love it here. It is a really good area and we are working so hard. Hermana Clements is a really good example to me. She is ALWAYS working. She is an obedience NUT! But it’s really great because we both feel a ton better when we work as hard as we can and Heavenly Father provides us with more blessings. This week has been a true testimony to that. I love the ward too. There are some crazies, but I love them! There is this recent convert named Gustavo. He is so cute! Every Sunday he meets us in the hallway after sacrament meeting, holds up a bag full of treats and say "Bendiciones! " He is always looking out for us. He just recently received the priesthood and has been blessing the sacrament. Every time I can’t help but smile. The ward is really supportive of him and all the recent converts. He has also been sharing the gospel with everyone. He gave us the numbers of two of his friends yesterday. I love him so much, he reminds me of Roger. It's nice to feel so close to people here like the people I love back home. There is also a couple that work in the temple that feed us every Sunday. I really love the husband, he told us his conversion story yesterday. He is so great. His wife scares me....she's a little fuerte....She told the elders to make the message short because she wanted to go to bed:)

I did get released as sister training leader. We have a small zone here with only three companionships of hermanas, they took a companionship out, so there is only need for one STL in my zone and Hermana Costiogla has more experience than I do. It is actually a load off my mind and I feel like I can relax a little and focus on building up our poor little area.

Yep, we are right across from the plaza and next to the library. It really is so cute and they have everything all decorated for Christmas. There are two huge Christmas trees and a big nativity scene set up. We are going to pradillo (the town square) today to check out all the stands and take pictures. It is like the fair in West Valley. It makes me miss home.

Hermana Clements and I have been talking to everyone like crazies! We even talk to the scary old Spaniards and Jovenes! We have really funny stories from those experiences. We have been trying more to involve Christmas more into our contacting. It is interesting how much more open people are to listen to you when you share a message about Christ...or tell them you want to sing them a Christmas song:) We are doing really good though. I don't think I need anything in particular right now:)

I love this time of year in Utah. Everything looks so beautiful. That’s really cool that you were able to hear the madrigals. There aren't very many this year that’s really surprising.

Blessings from Heaven! A guy sitting next to us right this very moment gave us his number because he wants to know more about our church. We didn’t even have to do anything! Crazy!

Thank you so much for the family history stuff, It helped a lot! This whole experience has really helped me realize I need to do more of that when I get home. It is so important and will help us be together as a family sealed together with our Father in Heaven.

Thanks for everything. I sure love you. I have needed a lot of your support these past couple of weeks and I have surely been blessed . Thank you for being there and for being an example to me. I love you and I can't wait to talk to you!

Hermana Brumble

Week 55 in Spain! (2nd Week in Mostoles)

12/8/14

Well I just got through my first week in Mostoles. It is a really cute little town. There are Christmas lights everywhere and we have a really cute view of the plaza by our piso. It has been a really hard week. Just dealing with everyone asking what happened (we try not to say too much) and getting into a new area the last week of the transfer. It's rough. This week has also been filled with meetings at President's house, Zone meeting (which we sang at) and getting to know members. It has been a crazy SUPER stressful week. But we worked hard and I'm glad it's over. Next week looks a ton better and a lot more laid back. We'll have a lot more time to teach and find which is great! I feel like I haven't been in a normal lesson in FOREVER because of all the meetings.

I really have enjoyed Mostoles though. It really is so much fun and even though we have just been so lost, I feel a lot stronger with my companion, I feel like a more responsible missionary, and I've learned a lot! I think this whole experience has been a blessing. I just hope Heavenly Father gives us a little time to relax and be normal before the next blessing in disguise. What happened is done and over with and I'm excited to start new are fresh in my new area Mostoles!

So let me tell you a little about Mostoles. It’s really, really cute and I am really excited. The town itself is really small and we can walk it in one day, but we have a bunch of little pueblos outside of it, so that helps. The town is so involved and they do really cute things. They had a Christmas tree lighting get together where they lit the town Christmas tree. SO FUN! We weren’t there, we just found out about it about 20 minutes after it happened. The ward is so cute and friendly. Right now the Bishop is out of town so the first counselor is in charge.  His dad is blind, but he is the ward pianist.....that was interesting. He has pretty much memorized "versions" of all the hymns and he plays for everything. It is kind of hard to sing to, but it was funny. He played Jingle Bells for prelude during sacrament meeting. I'm not sure how long it will last, the ward found out I play the piano. We are having a Noche de Talentos on the 19th and the first counselor asked us if we would sing Chiciquita by ABBA. He didn’t really give us an option, so we aren't sure what to do. It was either his way or no way. We might just figure something else out and present the option to him. We’ll see. The ward has really been so nice though. There is a recent convert who gave us a bunch of treats and French Christmas cheese. We also had a surprise birthday going away party for Elder Lopez and this really cute old Bolivian member made us scarves. WE feel so loved here. I'm really excited and we've already been invited somewhere for Christmas.

Oh another cool thing, David Archuleta is coming to have a special devotional with the Spain Madrid missionaries! We can invite a few of our investigators. It’s going to be so cool! I'll be there! I'll tell you all about it.

Ok, so I have a special request. At our last leadership meeting President was talking to us about what he wants the mission to focus on this month. He decided that he wants us to focus on finding families. SO we talked about our families and the importance of them and our Ancestors. We each received a little booklet about our lives and our ancestors that all the missionaries in the world are using right now. We have to fill them out and start using them in our lessons..soooo.. I need your help. This is what I need: I need my pedigree chart (fan and normal), Then I need the dates and places of birth for everyone up to four generations, I also need the dates and places of marriage for everyone up to four generations (this all includes siblings) And then finally, just stories or memories about grandparents and great grandparents. I know it's a lot to ask for and its about 4 months’ worth of research, but I can’t use any other resource. If you could help me out that would be great! if you have any questions, let me know:)

Well, that’s about it this week! I hope you have a great week. You’re in my prayers! I love you guys. Let me know if I can do anything!

Hermana Brumble

Ps. My address now is:
Calle Mariblanca 7 3º4
28937 Mòstoles
Madrid
España

Week 54 in Spain! (1st Week in Mostoles)

12/1/14

Hey,

So this week started out really well. We had a good little group of investigators and we were finally getting the hang of things. We received a cute little family from the Elders. Irene and her boyfriend (who is less active) and the dad of Irene. They just had a baby boy who was born with a disease that made it so he could never breath on his own. He died not very long ago. We had our very first lesson with them. We talked about the plan of Salvation and I shared the Moroni 8 scripture that says that children are alive in Christ. Elder Parkinson called them to confirm our appointment with them and that’s when we found out that their little baby died. They wouldn’t stop saying how they didn't want him to go to hell because he wasn't baptized. The lesson we had was probably the most amazing thing I have ever witnessed in my whole entire life! The spirit was so strong and everyone was just so happy and holding each other in their arms. There was hope and I could feel God's love for them. I felt the spirit bear witness that Heavenly Father has a plan for each and every one of us. He loves us and he is always aware of us.

Hermana Clements and I have been so excited about things going on in Leganes. Unfortunately, we are now the new Hermanas in Mostoles. We had a little "stalker" problem with our old investigator. We had to drop him because we just really felt uncomfortable with him during our lessons. The spirit just told us we couldn't go on with him. SO we had a final lesson about a week and a half ago and he dumped us. He was saying some really inappropriate things and told us he didn’t want anything anymore and gave us the Book of Mormon back. We left it at that and just didn’t worry about him anymore. We talked and considered it a blessing. A couple of days later, he called us wanting the Book of Mormon back. So we took the Elders with us and gave him the book. We still decided not to call him, the spirit told us no. Elder Parkinson told us he didn’t want us to visit him, there wasn't a problem. But he kept showing up to things at the church and he would always just be outside watching. Elder Parkinson just told us never to go to the church alone, so we didn’t. Then on Friday while we were inside doing clases de ingles, he showed up outside waiting. The Elders told us to go into a room and wait, they asked him what he wanted and he said he needed to see us. They said we were in a meeting, and he said that he would wait. Then they told him he couldn't because after we were all leaving to go to another meeting. He got really mad and stormed out saying things. Elder Parkinson called President and he talked to us a little about the situation. He decided it would be best if we changed areas. So he called us Saturday morning and we were changing with the Hermanas in Mostoles. Sundaycomes around and President decides to come to our Sacrament meeting. Well during Sacrament the other Hermanas go out for a second because Hermana O'keef started coughing. They come back in and take Elder Parkinson out who then comes back in and takes our mission leader and President out. Hermana Clements and I were watching the door the whole time. My heart was pounding. After Sacrament Elder Parkinson comes in and tells us to stay where we are and not leave the room because he came! President Jackson called the Police and they came to get him and we had to talk to the police about the situation. President then made sure we were safe and that we were always with someone until Monday. And now here I am in Mostoles. It was scary, but we were always being protected. I'm really thankful for President and Elder Parkinson. He took really good care of us and was always making sure we were safe. I am really sad we had to leave because we had made so much progress this week. But I know it’s for the better and that it is what needed to happen. If I was in Leganes only because I needed to give that lesson on the plan of Salvation, I'm ok with that. They invited us to the funeral. We are heartbroken that we can’t go. But we are here, moving forward. :) It's been a stressful situation, but it’s ok. Mostoles is really pretty and the ward is really great. I'm just sad that we couldn't even last 5 weeks opening an area and now we are white-washing. I'm glad I'm still with Hermana Clements though, that has made things a lot easier and less stressful, we've been through a lot together, so that’s a tender mercy.

SO for thanksgiving, we had grand plans to eat together (Hermana Brumble cooking for everyone) but we can only do things during medio dia which is only 2 hours and we had correlation that day. But Jeison (our ward mission leader) made us allarrepas and bread from Columbia. I also made hamburger and homemade macaroni and cheese for Hermana Clements. Delicious! It was fun and we all went around telling each other what we were thankful for. It was humble, but I enjoyed it and it really helped us think about what we were thankful for. Then Friday Hermana Clements and I were in charge of Noche de Hogar so we did a little thanksgiving activity with a turkey, it was fun.

Well I don't know too much about Christmas right now. Just that it is our P-day. I have a leadership meeting tomorrow, so we should talk about it then. I'm so excited, there are so many Christmas lights hanging in the streets. We live in a little pueblo and everything is decorated so cute, we're really excited. And I'm sure ward members will want to do things with us.

The house looks so cute. I really missed you guys this week. I'm glad you had fun:)

I sure love you guys and miss you! I can't wait to talk to you! And don’t worry, everything has been taken care of and we are totally safe. :) I'm actually really excited, I know everything happens for a reason and that we'll receive a lot of blessings here. We are being watched over. Thanks for the words of encouragement! I love you and I'll talk to you next week. I'll also let you know what my new address is.

Love Hermana Brumble

Week 53 in Spain! (5th week in Leganes)

11/24/14

Hey Guys!

Sorry about the short e-mails lately. I don't think Hermana Clements and I have had any time to write anyone this whole entire time we've been here. There is always something weird going on. But finally! We have time to email:)

This week has been HARD. On Monday President sent us an email saying that our numbers weren't like they should be and that he was a little confused why. We have both been so tired and we've been working so hard, it was a real bummer to hear that from President. I hate feeling like you try and try but nothing comes out of it or others can't see how hard you've worked so they don’t understand. We felt terrible, Elder Parkinson our district leader was there and talked to us a bit and helped us a lot. He told me to watch this Mormon Message and I almost cried. It just talked about how sometimes we are on a journey moving forward and for some reason we just stop. We can either sit and wonder why, or we can go back and change something and try again. We all talked and he asked us how our street lessons were. We have been focusing so much on just getting numbers from people that we haven't really focused on trying to teach a lesson. It was working really well for us until now so we didn’t quite know what to do. That night him and his companion took the time to help us practice street lessons. We were really excited to go out and try and then Hermana Clements got really sick and we had to stay in for a day. That was hard and then we've had nonstop meetings all this week. But the time we have had has worked really well and we're really excited to work more. We aren't down, we just had to take a step back and re-evaluate some things.

The Zone Conference went really well!!! We were really nervous because we found out that our musical number was one of three! Ours was chosen to be a part of the AP's talk. It was really, really cool because the AP's right before just told us that during their talk they were going to have us sing. So we were sitting there and they just ask us to come up. So we are up there waiting while they pass out little bookmarks with the lyrics to the song on it. We started singing and the spirit was so strong. Everyone was crying! It was really funny, everyone was looking at their bookmarks crying and then we would do something different in the song and their heads would shoot up with excitement. It was really neat and everyone said it really made the Zone meeting special. I really wish we could have videotaped it. President took a picture and sent it into the boletìn this week.

The rest of the week got better. We have some new investigators that are really nice and I'm really excited to teach them. One of them is an MA and his wife. We just started teaching them. They had a baby in the hospital who just died today. It's really sad and we are so worried about it. I hope everything will work out fine.

Today we went to Pavones with a bunch of missionaries and we played American Football, Fùtbol, and Frisbee. It was really fun. I think that will be our Thanksgiving activity:) I'm going to miss thanksgiving dinner, but I'll probably try to make something special for Hermana Clements.

This week has been really hard, and I'd be lying if I didn’t say I was frustrated. But I've learned a lot and I think we are getting the hang of things. I think more than anything time is bothering me. I feel so weird turning a year. I'm proud of what I've done, but at the same time, I feel like I don't have much to show. I hate thinking I only have 6 months left. I have two options. I can feel bad about myself and slow down my work, or I can take these feelings and turn them into tools to help me work harder these last 6 months. I think I'd rather chose the second option. I know this work is hard, but it isn't an excuse to work less. I'm here in Laganes for a reason going through these experiences for a reason. I just need to keep moving forward with faith that we'll be blessed with what Heavenly Father has promised. If I do my part He'll do his.

I love you guys and appreciate everything you've done for me. I know it's been a sacrifice for everyone and I just want you to know how much I love each and every one of you. You each have played a huge role in who I am today and I am so blessed to be a part of this family. I love you and am praying for you! Have a great week!

Love Hermana Brumble

PS Joseph's really good at sending pictures! I'll do better...

Week 52 in Spain! (4th week in Leganes)

11/18/14

I was so happy to hear from you. Everyone always says, eventually you family forgets and you get less and less from them. I'm proud to have a family where that doesn’t happen. I know you all are always thinking of me. Thanks for sticking it out to the end.

This week was so hard! We have nothing! Angel dumped us and Victor went on vacation for a little bit. We were stuck contacting in the rain all day! Terrible! And this weekend Hermana Clements and I got a little cold/24 hour flu. But we got blessings from the elders and we are on our way to recovery.

There are a lot of stuff coming up this week and I'm so excited! On Wednesday we are going to the temple! On Thursday we have zone conference! SO excited. Hermana Clements and I have to sing and it’s in front of all the Madrid zones! I'm really scared, but every time we practice it sounds great.

I love you guys and I'm always praying and thinking of you! Have a great week!

Hermana Brumble

Week 51 in Spain! (3rd week in Leganes)

11/10/14

Well, I survived yet another week of opening in Leganes. It was just as hard as last week. We had our leadership meeting this Tuesday at the President's house. Elder Shwenke and Franson and HermanaCostagliola and I all went together super early by Renfe (Spain’s train system) (definitely not my favorite). But we got there and everything was really good. It was really fun seeing other missionaries from my last area again like Hermana Shill, Elder Gentry and Elder Giforos. We finally got a phone at my leadership meeting, so now we can at least call people. We are just lost all the time because we don’t have a map and everyone fails on us. Opening is hard, but I know that you just need to work hard, stick it out, and blessings will come. We are laying a ground work so this area can be ready for those golden investigators. We do have one that is from Bulgaria. His name is Angel and he doesn’t speak very much Spanish or understand everything. He loves coming to church and hasn't failed on us once. We also got him a Book of Mormon in his language and is already in 2 Nephi. The spirit is crazy! I don't know how we are teaching him, but he's progressing. We'll see what happens there.

We were practicing singing one day in our elevator and I really just wanted to rock out, so I was singing this song super loud in the elevator and the door suddenly opens and this girl is just standing there. I get embarrassed and walk out of the elevator thinking it is the right floor, but nope! We're on the wrong floor so again I get embarrassed and get BACK IN the elevator. It was the longest ride down. Hermana Clements was just chuckling. Then we got out of the elevator and outside. Hermana Clements is laughing like a crazy and I'm just upset when all of the sudden this guy stops us and asks if we're missionaries. His name is Victor and apparently he was getting lessons in Malaga, but he just moved. He was being taught by Elder Nyland who was in my MTC group! Crazy! It's weird how small the world seems on the mission. I'm going to e-mail Elder Nyland to find out some more information about him. He seems really great though and he came to our culture activity. He said he always went to all the activities at the church, he just never came to church....he was playing Futbol. That’s going to change! I hear that all the time!

Our activity was so much fun at the church. It was another nations night. So Hermana Clements and I made brownies. Everyone loves brownies here! It’s crazy. The first thing people ask when you tell them you are from Utah is, "So are you going to make brownies sometime?" They also ask if Hermana Clements and I could sing for the talent show. So our district leader was like "You should sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow and Hermana Brumble can play the ukulele. Do I look like someone who plays the ukulele? Well anyways I made a quick phone call to my zone leader Elder Schwenke (also from Utah) and asked if we could borrow his ukulele, I learned Somewhere Over the Rainbow in one day and played it with Hermana Clements at the talent show. Everybody thinks I'm Polynesian. It was super cool, we took videos of everyone dancing. Columbia is my favorite.

Something really funny happened to us this week. We were sitting on this park bench making phone calls when this band of Gypsy children walk up to us and shout all at once, "This is our bench you need to move!" We played along and moved to a different bench. Then 15 seconds later they come up to us otra vez, "this is our bench you need to move!" And so the war begins. I was not going to move for anything! There was no way I was going to let them win. There were four of them just bugging us. All in our faces jumping on the bench asking us questions eating and spitting sunflower seeds everywhere (I'm never eating sunflower seeds ever again). Finally they calm down and just start calling us guapa and asking why we were dressed like old women. SO Hermana Clements gets annoyed and starts calling Elder Parkinson to see if talking in English will bug them and they'll go away, but they just stared at her and mimicked what she said, so she gave the phone to me and I start talking to him and he's telling me to tell them we're going to call the cops, but I'm not going to do that. So Hermana Clements pulls the (we have really important things to do and if you're not going to leave us alone I guess we'll just leave) and it works because they get all sad and say, "No its ok, we'll leave we're sorry!”Haha, it took forever but we one! So we hurried and finished our calls and waited till they were gone to leave. It was crazy, but I felt satisfied that we won.

Church is great. It is a ward and they are just cute and wonderful. The bishop is this super crazy tiny Spanish man. He is always joking around, but he scares me because I can never tell when he's serious.

Other than that this week was just contacting and trying to crecer our area. Opening is hard work, but I feel like I'm growing and hopefully I'll be here long enough to see some success.

I love you and pray for all of you every day! If there is anything you need let me know!

Love ya! Hermana Brumble

Week 50 in Spain! (2nd week in Leganes)

11/3/14

I love Leganes! I am learning so much. It is a great area with a ton of potential. It is HARD opening an area. I don’t think I have ever had this hard of a time on the mission. We are constantly contacting everyday all day because we literally have nothing! But we received so many people this week and someone even came to church. His name is Angel and he is from Bulgaria. He doesn't talk much but he's our first investigator here. But we went all through this week without a phone! It has been so hard. Everything we have gotten has literally been a miracle. I am never going to take anything for granted ever again! Church was great! The ward is really nice. Our mission leader Jason is so young! He's in his 20's and going on a mission in January to Barcelona. I'm so excited for him!

My Companion is Hermana Clements. She is such a hard worker and is always working constantly. She is from Spanish Fork Utah and such a cutie! She is 19 and sings so good! We are going to sing a duet for Zone Conference, I'm so excited! It’s, “If the Savior Stood Beside Me”. It is a super pretty version and we sound great! She is such a great example. I have never worked so hard, been so tired, or so happy in my whole mission. This area has changed my life and even though I am devastated about not being there for Maria (I think I could go to the baptism) I know I'm here for a reason.

Tomorrow we are getting our phone, por fin (at last)! I'm going to the leadership meeting (I'm still Sister Training Leader) So I'll get it there. I'm so overwhelmed right now. I'm opening an area, I don't have a phone, and I'm the only Sister Training leader in our zone so I have to talk at Zone meeting by myself and do all the intercambios(exchanges). But I'm learning a lot and we are getting a lot of help from the Elders and the other Hermanas here. I'm really thankful.

One night Hermana Clements and I were finishing contacting and we had five minutes left before we could go into the apartment building. We looked for someone to contact and there was no one in sight. So I took the book of Mormon I was holding and opened it. This is the verse I read: Alma 15:16 “Y sucedio que Alma y Amulek- yAmulek habia abandonado todo su oro, su plata y sus objectos preciosos que sehallaban en la tierra de Ammoniah, por la palabra de Dios; y habia sido rechazado porlos que antes eran sus amigos, y tambien por su padre y sus parientes.” (And it came to pass that Alma and Amulek, Amulek having forsaken all his gold, and silver, and his precious things, which were in the land of Ammonihah, for the word of God, he being rejected by those who were once his friends and also by his father and his kindred;) It talks about Amulek and all the things that he had to give up after he was converted. I felt so bad afterward. I was complaining about how hard it was without a phone, how hard it is to open and contact all day, how hungry I was.....I realized how selfish I was being and how blessed I am. We need to be more like Amuleck and give everything to this work. That’s my goal for the rest of my mission - sacrifice and gratitude. I am thankful for the time I have been given here and I am going to make sure that every single second of every single day is a sacrifice to my Heavenly Father.

Leganes is beautiful PS:) I love it. We have Leganes and Getafe. There are some ghetto areas, but most of the time I feel like I am in Harry Potter land. The members are really great too, a little crazy, but so willing to help us. There is a huge graffiti mural of Mr. Bean by our piso! It's legit! And there is Modern Art EVERYWHERE! I love it. There is this huge park right by our capilla (chapel) with all Modern art! So cool.

I live with the other Hermanas, Hermana O'keef and Hermana Davis, in a really nice piso. We never see them. We have everything we need downstairs and they have everything up stairs. It doesn’t feel like I'm living with them. :) I like the Elders here a lot. They have helped us a lot. They took all our baggage for us before we got to Leganes and put it in our piso so we didn’t have to travel with it. They’re great!

Well I love you. I think about you guys all the time! I can't wait to tell you about all my fun opening stories.

Love Hermana Brumble

Week 49 in Spain! (1st week in Leganes)

10/27/14

What an amazing week I have had!

Really Hermana Kuhn and I are working so hard and it hasn't seemed like we've been seeing any progression with people. But then we had a lesson with Maria and her family. We decided to watch the restoration video about Joseph Smith and his first vision because they weren't quite getting it. During the movie was a disaster! Ramiro started having a bloody nose (which I stopped with my nursing skills) and Alvaro was so bad the whole entire time. I'm pretty sure they didn't see any of it. Afterwards we were talking about it and I decided to talk to them about the Spirit and how I know when I feel it and then I just bore my testimony about everything. We left feeling like the lesson was just terrible. We also didn't follow up about the law of chastity lesson and if Maria had spoken to her husband about getting married. A couple of days later we had clases de ingles and Noche de Hogar. The family came as usual and Maria was talking to me afterward. She was talking to Elder Miranda and Hermana Kuhn while I was playing with the kids and she told me that what I said about the Spirit really stuck with her and how she has been feeling a pressure and warmth in her chest and how she wants to get BAPTIZED but how Hermana Kuhn and Elder Miranda said she can’t until she gets married! I was talking to her and made her promise that she would talk to her husband. On Saturday the family came with their DAD! AHHHHH! It was our big ward Pais activity where everyone made food from their lands. Maria was sitting by me and she is starting her marriage papers with her husband!!!! They are going to get baptized!!! I can’t believe it! What a miracle! I love them so much. I have never felt so much love for someone in my whole life. I know heavenly father loves them and wants me to know that.

....Unfortunately we got transfer calls that night a couple hours later and I’ve been transferred to Leganes! Right now I'm in Leganes and loving it. Hermana Clements and I are opening another companionship for Hermanas there. Maria and I were crying so much. She was heartbroken. She knew that it was possible but we didn't think it would happen. Sunday I had a talk and the WHOLE family came and stayed the whole 3 hours with the dad! Then we took pictures and cried. I'm heartbroken, but I know they are going to be baptized and that I had a big part in getting them there. I'm thankful for what I've learned with them and will always love them.

Like I said, I'm in Leganes which is a cute little pueblo outside of Madrid. I'm opening which means that we literally have nothing and are starting from ground zero. I'm nervous and excited at the same time, but ready for it. I know this is where I need to be, even though it hurts. There is a reason for everything. I’ve grown and learned so much. I'm really sad about leaving Hermana Kuhn, we're besties, but we're gonnahang after the mission, so I'm not worried. And her and her new companion will take care of the fam. ugh I had to say goodbye to Ana and Pascual too, that was heartbreaking, but that will have to go in another e-mail.

Hermana Clements is my new companion, she is going to hit 7 months on the mission and I have 11!! She is 19 and is from Spanish Fork Utah. She's a cutie, I'm excited. She loves to sing, another angel voiced companion, and is very animated! FUNFUN! As for Sister Training Leader, I don't think I'm it still. President changes them a lot and I'm in a new area, but we'll see. He calls if you are, but as of right now...we don't have a phone yet:/

Well wish me luck, The packages are fine! You're following all the rules with that so there is no need to worry. As of things I need, nothing right now.  Here I go! Wish me luck!

Hermana Brumble

PS Tell everyone I love them, I'm not going to have time to email everyone else! You're in my heart and prayers!

Week 48 in Spain! (18 in Madrid)

10/20/14

How is everyone? Our week was pretty good, we did a lot and have seen a lot of good things happen with investigators. I decided to write down a couple of things that I wanted to tell you this week so I didn't forget, because that happens a lot:) First, we were in the church waiting for Melisa to come (who fired on us...) and this woman came in who was super nice wanting to know about English classes. She gave us gum:) and then not even 5 minutes later we were still waiting and these two old woman opened the door and peeked in...who said "Hola! Podemos ayudarles?" (Hi! Can we help?) They shut the door when they saw us and then one of them opened it again and asked "Have you seen Jesus here? Has he passed by?" and then she shut the door and was laughing about what she said with her friend! HOW RUDE! I was so mad that an old woman could be such a bully!

On Wednesday we had our district meeting. Elder Ballard decided it would be fun to have a scavanger hunt about scriptures that answer questions of the soul. Hermana Kuhn and I won:) It was fun but after we were talking with the Hermana's from B5 and they said that during their district meeting the Zone leaders were talking to them about how they waste too much time and how they aren't going to get baptisms that way......We felt kind of bad after...
They past two p-days have been filled with traveling to Aluche to do Hermana Kuhn's residency card. The first time we went we couldn't get it because she wasn't empatronized...so we had to go back. Then we went to Pavones to get her empatronized. It takes an hour to get to Povones and she ended up just needing a copy of her empatronizement from the MTC...which took two seconds....and now today we have to travel back to Aluche to do her residency card stuff. It just brings back bad memories of my residency card problems...ugh.
We had a Law of Chastity lesson with Maria and her family. I was so nervous for it. We had decided that we wanted to focus more on why we have the Law of Chastity. So we read a family proclamation to the world and we talked about eternal Marriage and Temples. She was so sweet and really understood everything. During the lesson she asked us "Pienses que soy mala?"(You think I'm bad?) We giggled and said no! Of course not! We talked to her and expressed our love for her. I bore my testimony about you and mom and Mal and Sam and how much eternal marriage means to me, and how we can only have an eternal marriage if we keep the law of chastity. We committed her to talk to her "husband" Everytime I talk with them I can feel that this is their time. I have never felt so impressed in my life to help and teach someone. I have also never felt teh need and rush to get them to baptism. I hope it isn't just me wanting a baptism, but I have so much love for them. They are so special to me.
We had a Noche De Hogar "Family Home Evening" on Friday with the ward and all the investigators. Hermana Kuhn and I taught it. We read in Efesios (I think thats Ephesians in English) about the Armor of God. We had Alvaro (Maria's little boy) Stand in the front of the room and everyone threw paper balls at him. It was so funny he was so excited and just stood and covered his face. Then we dressed him in the armor of God. We made it out of cereal boxes and tinfoil. he had a sword and a sheild everything but a helmet (his head was too big, it fit all the elders...just not Alvaro...) It was a lot of fun and there were a lot of members there talking to Maria and her family. What a blessing.
Saturday there was a baptism of a little boy in our ward. We invited Maria and her family. They loved it, that was so good for them. Then afterward the family had a birthday party for him in the church. Everyone was there having fun. The family had a lot of fun. It was a great night. There was a lot of dancing. Alvaro stole the show with his smooth moves:)
I had a great week. We are seeing the members try to be more involved with the family. It is really touching and I'm so excited for this upcoming transfer.
The transfer calls are this Saturday. I'm terrified! I hope I don't get transferred. It would break my heart! But I know if I do, its because I'm needed somewhere else. I'm just having a hard time with thinking I won't be there to make sure myself that the family gets to baptism, but I need to trust more in other missionaries and Heavenly Father.....that doesn't change my prayers though:)
Change is a struggle for me, but it is so true, especially when it comes to contacting. I have no trouble with changing lessons according to what I feel, but while I'm contacting and I see some success in what I'm doing I stick with it instead of changing it up. Then I get STUCK and we don't recieve anything! The spirit can't work through you in you are in a routine. I need to take a step back and evaluate the things I do and how I do them. When we trust in Heavenly Father and give everything to him and say "I'm in your hands, I'm your instrument" That's when the blessings come.
The Halloween party looked soooo much fun! I miss halloween, they celebrate it here, but as a missionary you can't really do anything. I miss doing stuff with you guys for Halloween. The ward is having a special Pais party the 25, the American family, Hermana Kuhn, Elder Ballard and I are incharge of the United States. We are going to decorate it like Halloween, I'm so excited:) we also might do thriller.....not confirmed:) Since when do you dress up for Halloween!!!
I love you guys! You're in my prayers! Have a great week!

Hermana Brumble

Week 47 in Spain! (17 in Madrid)

10/13/14

It is a lot colder now!

Our week was a ton better than last week! This week we had a lot of blessings. A while ago Elder Giforos called me to ask if I was teaching piano because there was a mom and two kids at English class that night who were interested. So we started teaching them piano this week. Hermana Kuhn talked to Ani, the mom, while I taught the kids. She's from the Dominican Republic and while talking to her she said she had been listening to missionaries in her Paìs(can't remember the English word) (country)and that she knew the Church is true. We were in awe, we didn’t know what to say, and then she said " the problem is I work internally and can't come to church"....NOOO always! We are praying to try to see how we can work things out. She wants her kids to go to church though, which will be good.

We were also walking down the street and a guy stopped us and said (translated) "Hermanas how are you! I took lessons not very long ago, here's my number, call me and you can come over and teach my family some time." We'll see where that goes. :)

There have been a lot of ups and downs lately which is usual. You just need to make sure the downs don't overshadow the ups.

Hermana Kuhn and I are great! She is such a good example and she works so hard. She has also improved so much during our time together. That has been so fun to see. I've always had older (mission wise) companions, but being able to see someone start out and to still have that fire in them has been such an interesting experience. It has helped me get that MTC excitement back in my teaching. I love Hermana Kuhn, she is really good and helping me feel successful. I love her. We have a lot of plans for when she gets back.

The family is such a blessing for me. They are so special to me and I can feel the love God has for them every time I teach them. I love them so much. Even if they don't get baptized while I'm here, they are special to me. Every time we are in a lesson together I can feel the spirit. Especially with Daniela. She is the 14 year old daughter. I see a light in her and I know she feels the spirit. Every time I bear my testimony to them something lights up in her and you can see in in her face. She is special. But, last week we had a lesson with them and the Law of Chastity was a question that Maria brought up. Maria told us after we explained it to her that her and her husband are not married!!! NOOO! My heart was aching! I just couldn't stop thinking about Gema and Ricardo in Gijon. This can't happen again. I wanted to cry. But after that I felt the Spirit tell me that everything was going to work out if we kept moving forward with them, if we kept being bold with them and if I kept showing them that I loved them and that God loved them. That night I talked to Hermana Kuhn and we realized something really interesting, I have been having HUGE desires to get married lately! I have never wanted to get married so bad in my life... which is so weird. But I thought about it and I think it is because I have so many examples of good and righteous couples in my life. That’s the biggest blessing we could receive from our Heavenly Father. It breaks my heart, but I feel like I have been having these feelings because I need to help them know why marriage is so important. After that night we have been seeing the family and their DAD everywhere! He hasn't been interested at all to meet with us, but I really feel like it's his time. We just need to keep moving forward and get the dad in the lessons with us. With hard work and pray it's possible and I know everything will work out.

Exchanges were this Thursday and it was great! I was so nervous because I really wanted to be a good example to Hermana Whiting. She is being trained right now, it was really interesting because I did twelve weeks with her during our companionship study. I tried so hard that day to help her and really try to feel her needs and look for ways to serve her and Hermana Shill. It was a lot of fun and I learned a lot from that opportunity.

This week I also got invited to a sealing. Our Menos Activos (not less active anymore:) are getting sealed and they invited us! I am so touched that they thought of us and wanted us to be there. I am so proud of their progress and now they get to be an eternal family! What a miracle! Unfortunately, as a missionary I can't go...but I will definitely be praying especially for them that day. They are getting sealed November 1.

The miracle of repentance has been on my mind lately. I have been having feelings of inadequacy lately and I've really had to apply repentance. And at the beginning of my mission I really only thought repentance was only something we needed when we make mistakes, but as I've progressed I've learned that repentance is something that has been given to us to help us be better every day regardless of whether or not we've made a serious sin. Repentance is a daily process that helps us feel closer to God. And right now, it is the things that has been critical. When I don't kneel down and night to talk to Heavenly Father about my day, my challenges, my worries and the things that make me happy, I can feel a difference in my life the next day. That to me is the miracle of repentance and the atonement.

I love you and have been thinking about you. Thanks for your example to me and your constant love and support. Thank you for always teaching me who I really am so I can teach others who they are.

Hermana Brumble

Week 46 in Spain! (16 in Madrid)

10/6/14

Thank you so much for all of your birthday wishes! My Birthday was wonderful and I feel so blessed. I could feel everyone's love with me and I feel so blessed to have all of you in my life. I waited to open the package till my birthday, so Hermana Kuhn hid it. We decorated for my Birthday and I made a birthday breakfast. Hermana Kuhn wrote a lot of nice things in our bathroom. Then we got ready and got to conference. We watched the first session (Saturday afternoon) amazing. And then my zone threw me a surprise birthday party! They made a cake, and a piñata. They made me a card and sang to me! It was amazing and so special I am so blessed to have so many good influences and loving people in my life who care about me. Hermana Kuhn put everything together. She is wonderful and so special. I love her so much. She really wanted to make sure I had a good birthday. I definitely did! But apparently it is a tradition in Spain that you have to take a bite out of your birthday cake....queverguenza (what a shame)! We took videos and pictures that I'm going to try to send. I was also surprised to get beautiful flowers from Sammie and Ben! That was such a wonderful surprise:) President Jackson and Hermana Jackson called me to wish me a happy birthday and they sang to me! So Cute. I had a WONDERFUL Birthday! Also the zoo today was a lot of fun. Elder Ballard and Elder Molina came. Elder Gentry and Elder Giforos came (My Zone Leaders) And Hermana Coburn and her companion (can't remember her name) came. We had a lot of fun and I LOVE the zoo!

Things are going great here! We are working so hard this week, we only got 4 lessons which was really bad, but sometimes that happens and we are working hard so that's all that matters. We are finding some really good people and staying busy with that family. They are so cute I love them so much and know they are going to get baptized. I am so excited, they just love everything we teach them and are growing so much. As far as my calling goes I have to do intercambios (exchanges) with the sisters this week and then report to president with things that are happening. That’s really it, and then nothing until next transfer and the next leadership meeting, if I'm still STL. That could change. It is weird that I'm STL and haven't trained, but one of the most important positions you have on the mission is being a trainer. We'll see if that happens. I'm not sure if I could do that. :)

Conference was so great! We went to Pavones and there were so many people, definitely a lot different from Gijon. Our stake was there and I think there was another stake there. It was really cool. We got to watch Women’s Conference, Saturday Morning and Afternoon and Sunday Morning sessions. I really enjoyed the Women’s Conference a lot and the talk from the Seventy that spoke in Spanish was really good as well. I thought it was interesting how many people spoke about the sacrament. I also liked what Elder Oaks said about accepting others no matter what religion they are from. I thought a lot of people talk about acceptance and being more Christ-like. Elder Holland’s talk was very touching. He gets so passionate about what he talks about and what he believes in. I wish I could speak with as much conviction as he does.

I love taking rides in the mountains during the fall. I miss that so much. We'll have to do that before I go to college. I'm going to have to start thinking about that soon... also work...scary.

My mission has really helped me go back to the basics. Teaching simple gospel principles everyday like Heavenly Father loves us has probably strengthened my testimony more than anything. The gospel is so simple and sometimes I think we get caught up in deep doctrine too much. We need to think about how investigators learn and gain their testimony. Through simple gospel principles, sincere prayer, study and attending our church meetings, we can all be converted. I am so thankful for this gospel and love sharing it more than anything in the world. I have never felt so much love and strength in my life. I have the beautiful opportunity every day to share this good news. I have had the opportunity to help bring our brothers and sisters back to our loving Heavenly Father. I wish I knew before that you don't have to have a tag to help show our brothers and sisters that God loves them. I have felt the love of God for his children which has changed my life. I hope I will be able to apply what I have learned here to my future life.

I love all of you. I miss you every day. I'm not quite ready to go home. Time is moving way too fast and I'm not leaving till I can say I have done all I can to help my Savior in this work. Thank you for your prayers and words of love on my birthday. I have such a special family and am blessed with so much love and support. Thank you!

Hermana Brumble (20 YEARS OLD AND NO LONGER A TEENAGER!)

Week 45 in Spain! (15 in Madrid)

9/29/14

My week has been so slow!!!! It has been a hard, busy week. I've had so many meetings and it seems like I've been traveling nonstop which effected our lessons negatively, but it has been a good week as well. I'm glad it's over though.

My meetings were really good. Elder Giforos, Elder Gentry, Hermana Sanchez and I went to the mission home on Tuesday where we had our meeting with the other Zone leaders and Sister Training leaders. It was really good and we mainly focused on our purpose as missionaries which is to INVITE. We talked about how right now our baptisms for the mission are a lot lower. We talked about why and we think it is fear. It was a really good meeting and I got to see a lot of missionaries whom I've worked with before like Elder Nielson and Hermana Endicott in Gijon and I also met a lot of new missionaries. It was also fun to get to know the zone leaders in our area Elder Giforosand Elder Gentry. They are really good elders and good examples. Hermana Sanchez and I are such a good team!!! She is Spanish and so nice I really enjoyed being with her and learning with her. That night when we got back we found out that we were going to the temple that next morning, so Hermana Sanchez and Hermana Frost stayed with us that night because they're in Sagovia. So we did splits the rest of that night and I learned sooo much! That morning we went to the temple which is always a good experience and then had zone meeting right after that in Pavones. Hermana Sanchez and I only had 15 minutes to prepare, but we did such a good job! The Elders wanted us to talk about inviting our investigators and street contacts. We talked about fear and how we can overcome that fear. We shared the story about David and Goliath and how sometimes we have a huge trial of our courage. Sometimes we have people telling us that this work is too big for us and that we are only a muchacho :) but we have so many things that will help us. We had every companionship pick their 5 rocks that they were going to use against Goliath. It was really an uplifting meeting and I love my new calling. I feel really privileged to have this calling and it has helped me so much. It has really helped me look at what I need to improve on in order to be a good example and has helped me be more bold as a missionary. At our meeting with president he showed us a video of President Monson talking to the new mission presidents and their wives in April of this year. It was fantastic! It has changed my mission! You should look it up. I'm going to send it to Joseph. I just go on exchanges once or twice a transfer with the sisters in our area. Hermana Sanchez is going with the Villalba sisters and I am going with the B5 sisters. Hermana Kuhn is fine with that. She'll probably go to B5 with a Hermana with more experience and her trainee will come to B1 with me.

I definitely wish I prepared a little more for my mission. I've learned so many things that maybe I wouldn't have learned if I did prepare a little more. Our missions are specific to our needs and everything that happens to us here is for our benefit and good.

I am so excited for conference this year and it's on my birthday! What a wonderful opportunity and experience. On Saturday at 4 we are going to see the Women’s Conference and at 6 the Saturday morning session. Then Sunday we are going to see Saturday afternoon at 2 and Sunday morning at 6. We'll miss Sunday afternoon, but I know we are so blessed to be able to see any of it. I'm so excited. One more conference after this and I'll be home! Time is flying by so fast. I'm kind of torn about it. It's bitter sweet. but I'm eternally thankful for this time. I have been changed and molded for my heavenly father and I know I've been blessed.

It sounds like Sammie and Ben are taking great care of Scout. That was such a nice thing. She said they took her to the vet and they said she was soo healthy! What a blessing. :)

I did get the package, I'm not opening it till my birthday! I'm so excited. We are all going to the zoo on the sixth for p-day. I can't believe I'll be 20! I'm sad you won’t be here with me, but I can feel all of your prayers and love. Thank you so much for everything! I love you all so much. I am truly blessed to have so many examples of love and faith in my life. Not many missionaries can say that. Thank you for everything!

Hermana Brumble

Week 44 in Spain! (14 in Madrid)

9/22/14

My week has been pretty great! My first week with my new companion and I Love it! Hermana Kuhn is great! She is so much fun and a really hard worker. I have never had a companion before with less time on the mission. It has been interesting being on the other side of things and remembering what it was like. I have learned so much this week. Having to take on more responsibility has been really good for me and my confidence. Our leadership meeting with president is on Tuesday. I'm really excited and nervous at the same time. We'll get there, talk, have lunch, then get back and the Zone leaders are supposed to call sometime that night to tell me what I need to talk about the next day. Then the next morning before the Zone meeting, Hermana Sanchez (the other STL) and I will have some time to put it together. The AP's called me this morning and I also have to direct the music for the meeting. I'm excited really, I know I am going to learn a lot.

I have heard about that movie (Meet the Mormons). I hope we will have the opportunity to see it, but I'm not sure if it will be a movie in the theatres.

I am so excited to see General Conference soon. All the missionaries in the Madrid area will go to Povones to watch it together and I'm sooo excited. It will be a really neat experience and I know there are going to be some neat things said. Hermana Endicott is back in Madrid so maybe I'll see her:)

Hermana Kuhn and I are trying really hard to find more people. We have been teaching English class and we have started teaching this family that comes. They are adorable and they love me! They are from Bolivia. The mom, Maria, and her 13 year old daughter Daniella come to church with us and she has two more boys that are 9 and 5. The 5 year old is the CUTEST little boy I have ever seen. They always ask us so much about being a missionary. I know they are so prepared and I am excited for the opportunity to help their family be an eternal one!

We met with Ana and Pascual again this week. They are so cute! I called Pascualand he wouldn't stop talking about telepathy and how he was just wishing that I would call and then I did:) and then that night he told me that Ana was going to take a picture of his face and give it to me so I would never forget him and that he would marry me! He is so funny. I really love Ana and Pascual so much.

Well I will talk to you guys soon! I can't wait to share more experiences with you! I love you so much!

Love Hermana Brumble

Week 43 in Spain! (13 in Madrid)

9/15/14

I'm GREAT and sooooo excited for this transfer! WHY?? BECAUSE::::::::: Well, I'm staying in Madrid, but I'm getting a new companion. Her name is Hermana Kuhn. She is so sweet. She has 3 transfers in the mission, so I'm definitely the senior companion now. She is 20 years old. I still have yet to be older than my companion....that's a little frustrating. She is from Maryland. She is such a good singer and is going to be famous one day, for sure! Also, my name is no longer Hermana Brumble.....meet Hermana Sister Training Leader Brumble! President called me today while I was making lunch. I'm so nervous! I have to go to the mission home in a week for the meeting he has with all the Zone Leaders. And during Zone Meeting I have to speak. I am also in charge of all the intercambios (exchanges) for the transfer. I'm not sure how prepared I am for that, I'm area training again, I know more Spanish than my companion, and I'm Sister Training Leader. I'm so scared, and I know I'll make mistakes, but I'm going to learn a lot. I'm ready for the challenge and am excited for the new experiences I'm going to have. I can't wait to share them with you.

It is hard when you don't see outward results from your work. But we receive blessings from what we do. Our work NEVER goes unrecognized. I get sad when missionaries are so focused in numbers, they don't realize what they have accomplished or the blessings they have received. Grandma Brumble sent me a picture with this saying, "To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may mean the world." We are serving and affecting lives every day, whether we can see it or not. Also, we are preparing fruits for other missionaries. Every fruit from your labor is going to be harvested, by you or other missionaries. There have been two baptisms in Gijon that were people I found and taught, and even though I wasn't there for the end, I was the one who started it. I feel and see results from my efforts through the love I feel from my Heavenly Father. I can tell a difference in how I feel when I know I've worked my hardest and when I haven't. I know heavenly Father is proud of what I've done and that I am progressing, when I can feel his love and spirit around me. When I feel good about my work and when I feel WHOLE. We may not be progressing in the way we expect because what we want isn't apart of God’s plan for us. He knows what we need and in his time, we will receive it. We just need to be patient and faithful, continuing forward with a perfect brightness of hope. Hope has been really important to me on the mission. Hope is having a knowledge that we will receive the blessings the Lord has promised us if we are obedient (PMG). I know this is true

We haven't had any experiences quite as bad as that one. Madrid is a safe place. I know if it wasn’t I wouldn't be here. Even though that was a scary experience, I feel perfectly fine. I know I'm worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost and that If I'm focused I will receive promptings of where I need to be at what time. Whether is it a warning or a spiritual prompting. I know I'm guided by the spirit.

Being kind to others is so important and something I need to work on. Being kind to one another isn't just how you act when you’re around them, it is also your thoughts and actions when they are gone.

Oh, I forgot to tell you where Hermana Reyes went, TENERIFE! One of the most beautiful Islands on the Canaries. She is probably going to finish her mission there! QueSuerte! Maybe I will replace her when she goes home in January, it's possible:)

I love you and miss you guys! Thanks for everything!

Love Hermana Brumble

Week 42 in Spain! (12th in Madrid)

9/8/14

This week has been pretty challenging, not very many lessons. But I'm feeling good regardless. :) Our investigator came to church this week! Finally! I was so happy. We had a pretty serious lesson with her.  Summer is a hard time in Madrid because everyone is on vacations, and now they're getting ready for school so everything is really busy. I think it will be better soon.

We had a pretty crazy experience this week. Hermana Reyes and I were walking back to our piso at night. It is getting really dark pretty early now. And this man stops us right in front of our piso and starts talking to us and asking us if we were Mormons. I think he had some experiences that were not very good, so he has a problem with religion. He was acting crazy though and kept on asking if we were scared. He was getting pretty angry. I was prepared to do anything I had to. I had the worst feeling. I heard this grunt and I looked up and a man in our building was looking down at us. The man talking to us heard him and immediately stopped and walked away. I looked back up at the man and he waved at us. Right in that moment I felt so much peace and gratitude that he was there. I don't know what would have happened. The next day we saw him in the hallway. We thanked him and he said that he always thinks about us and our safety. He said that he knew the Elders that were living in our piso before. He said that if we needed anything that we can come and get him. He is a super nice older man. We are going to make him cookies this week. That night he was our guardian angel! I know Heavenly Father is watching over us and knows what we need when we need it.

Thanks for e mailing me Josephs letter. He sent me one too. He is so funny. It sounds like he's doing just fine. :) He is going to have a great time in the MTC. You are surrounded by the Spirit there. His experiences have already strengthened my testimony. I hope mine will do the same for him.

I had similar experiences in the MTC. My District really tried to be unified. My district leader tried to get to know everyone, he tried to make it so everyone was comfortable and happy. Having a close district makes a huge difference. I have really tried to apply that in all my districts. It helps a lot. I've made some really good friends through my districts. People I know I will probably stay in contact with for a long time. In the MTC the elders and sisters there would call me Humble Brumble. :) I had to learn a lot about humility there. Before I left I had this attitude about how I was going to help other people with everything and how they were all going to look up to me. I had to learn that before I could try to tell others what they needed, I needed to work on what I could improve myself, what I could learn from others, and being able to accept the fact that I needed help. It made a big difference for me. Now whenever I meet someone new or have a new companion, if I have a humble attitude and look for things I can learn from them, we have a lot more unity and love for each other which makes it so we can work more with the Spirit. I think that's why I haven't had companion troubles at all.

It is getting hard not to count down how much time I have left. I'm soo excited to see all of you, but at the same time I wish I was at the beginning again. I think I have reached a hard time in my mission. Realizing how much time you have left and feeling like you could have done more with the time you've had. It makes you feel terrible, but at the same time, it is helping me cherish the remaining time more and I'm working harder than I was before. The key is not to get discouraged because those feelings aren't from our Heavenly Father. I've worked so hard and I'm proud of what I've done so far. I can't wait for the experiences that I have ahead of me.

Thank you for everything! For your constant love and support. A lot of missionaries don't have the kind of support from families like I do. I am truly blessed and grateful for the wonderful family I have been given. You truly fill my life with love and strength to keep going. I love you and pray for you! Have a great week!

Hermana Brumble

Week 41 in Spain! (11th in Madrid)

9/1/14

How is everything? What’s going on? How is it with one less child to take care of? It sounds like everything went really well, I'm glad. I have been worried all week long about Joseph leaving. I just want him to have the best experience. I got an e mail from him and it sounds like all is well. I's so relieved. Also thank you for sending me pictures, I appreciate that. It is nice to get e mails, but it is different when I can see everyone.

I've had a great week. Nothing unusual, but Hermana Reyes and I have been getting some really good lessons. Everyone right now is having a hard time getting to "Lesson 2" But I know that we talk to people for a reason and even though they don't accept the gospel now, they have a higher chance in the future. Jose and Isabel came back from Ecuador this week and brought Hermana Reyes and I little coin bags. They are so cute, I love them.

There was a huge riot/protest in front of our Piso this week about racism. Hermana Reyes and I had to go back to our piso for a while and do work there. It was pretty intense, but I don't think there was really any danger, our district leader just thought it would be better to be inside. Sometimes when people get really excited, they do stupid things.

I wish I could have been there for Joseph's setting apart. I wanted to so bad. I remember being so nervous. My emotions were going crazy! I'm glad I don't have to do that again. It is funny hearing about Joseph's experience and remembering mine. It sounds a lot different. I think I was the only missionary in the airport for a while. I didn’t want to look back at you and mom in the airport because I knew if I did I probably wouldn’t be here right now. :)

I can't wait to hear all about his mission. Hermano Sanchez, my MTC teacher in my ward went to Uruguay on his mission, he was telling me how much he loved it. Joseph is going to have a great time and I'm so proud of him.

I'm great! I don't need anything. Time is going by so fast. I can't believe I have already hit the half way mark! I'll be home before you know it! Every day I feel like I have so much left to do. I hope when I'm finished I'll have a complete feeling. Everyone says they don't feel ready to go home when they're finished, but I feel like if I know that I did what the Lord has called me to do, I will feel ready, complete and ready to take on my next calling. I am really truly thankful for this experience. I know I talk to people every day who are being prepared, and maybe I am helping prepare them for the next missionary who will cross their path. I know I am here for a reason. I know I have been called to be an instrument in the Lords hands.

As a mission we are reading the Book of Mormon together and we are going to end on Joseph Smith’s birthday. I think it is so cool and every day I feel my testimony of the restoration strengthen. You guys should do it too if you want!

I love you! I'll talk to you soon!

Hermana Brumble