Semana Santa

¡Feliz Pascua!

Well it was another good week. This week is Elder Wells' last full week as a missionary. I'll find out soon who will be coming to replace him. It is pretty wild! So we're keeping busy and making the most out of every last second of his time!

We had a really busy week last week. We did back-to-back splits from Thursday to Saturday, first with the zone leaders and then with the Huelva elders. Elder Lignell (my trainer, if you don't remember) is our zone leader in Sevilla so we got to go on splits together. It was great! Right after switching back we went to the bus station and I caught a bus to Huelva to go do another baptismal interview for them, which is always great. On Saturday morning Elder Wells came in the car to pick us up and we had a nice hour drive to unwind a little bit after a few crazy days.

Speaking of crazy days, this week was pretty wild. All the streets are squeaky now because of all the wax dripped on them from procession candles. We ran into a small one in our area on Wednesday and then we saw one in Huelva that was at least a kilometer long. We were walking by it for about 15 minutes before we got out. I bought a black and white post card of some of the 'nazarenes' (the KKK looking guys) and I was going to send it but I don't think it would make it through the US mail very well....

Well, that's about it. Friday is going to be a HUGE day for the mission and we are all really excited! Keep us in your prayers! I know the Gospel is true and I am so thankful to be able to share it! Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God and speaks for Him to us. And, most importantly, Jesus is the Christ, our loving savior, and our understanding oldest brother.

I love you all!!!

Elder Mockler

Semana Santa...dun dun dunnnnn

Happy April!

Well, this week is Semana Santa - possibly the biggest evidence of the Great Apostasy that exists. Here in Spain they go crazy over it and there are huge processions all day, every day. Sevilla is the world capital of all Semana Santa mayhem so it should be an interesting week. If you've ever wondered where the KKK got their get-up from, just check out some pictures from any processions and it should become pretty clear.

You may be asking "what other crazy things to Spaniards do?" Well, let me tell you. Sometimes they like to do national strikes (Huelgas) to protest the government. We had one of those last Thursday. Luckily here in the pueblos nothing got too crazy but I've heard in the city things were a little more wild and up North things got really bad.

But, despite all the crazy things they do, somehow you can't help but love Spanish people.

Last week we went and saw some Roman ruins here called Itálica. One of the Roman Emperors was actually born and raised there! It was awesome - there is a huge colliseum and lots of really cool mosaic floors left over from the buildings they had there. Roman Ruins in Spain...who woulda thunk?

Really the best part of the week was General Conference. We went to the Sevilla stake center (have I ever mentioned how huge it is? Or that they put it in the middle of one of the biggest roads in Sevilla? It is awesome) to watch 4 of the sessions and watched the last one this morning in a locutorio. And all in English (yayy)! General conference is really an amazing opportunity to listen to Apostles and Prophets, called of God to lead His children on the Earth. I loved hearing all the promises made to us by them about families, overcoming trials, making our mistakes right, and coming unto Christ. I love the church and, moreso, the Gospel that is helps us live. I love the Spirit that teaches us and points to everlasting joy, peace, and happiness - gifts from God that do not expire but which stay with us no matter the circumstance or time. It is never, ever too late for us to desire, gain, or increase these blessings. Luke 15 is the perfect illustration of that.

Have a great week! I love you!

Elder Mockler

The Real McCoy

¡Hola familia!

Well, another good week here in Aljarafe. Elder Wells got really sick on Tuesday and Wednesday so we were stuck in the house. Luckily I dodged it so I just got to take a few days of R&R. Besides that we've been really busy. On Saturday we had a 'cosecha' in our area, which is when all of the missionaries in the zone go to one place to do contacts. There were 16 or 18 missionaries there and it went really well! So we've got lots of people to call and pass by this week.

On Thursday we had specialized training in Sevilla. It was really great, just like all missionary meetings are. Afterward we all went to Dominos pizza (yes, it exists here!!) because they just started doing an all you can eat/drink deal. Yes, all you can drink....most restaurants here charge for refills. But Burger King brought free refills to Spain and it is finally starting to catch on! Hoorayyy!

Yesterday in church Fernando, the member who LOVES America, described something as "the real mccoy." It was hilarious to hear him try to explain what that means in Spanish. Almost every one of his comments starts with "In the US..." or "As the Americans say..." and so forth. It is good to have someone else repping the States with us. And during Elders Quorum he made Elder Wells and I the "American Team" for finding scriptures and I'm proud to say we definitely won the multi-national scripture chase.

Well, that is all for this week. The church is true! I'm so grateful for the Book of Mormon...it brings a special spirit of peace into our lives. Heavenly Father has prepared a plan of happiness for us, we just have to humble ourselves, accept it and follow it. I'm so grateful for the Gospel!

Love you!!
Elder Mockler

P.S. I attached some pictures from our trip to the Real Alcázar last week. It was awesome - it is absolutely gigantic and very pretty inside. I hope you enjoy them!

Andy at zone conference in Sevilla

The Spanish courtyard at Real Alcázar

Another part of the Spanish Courtyard

Elder Wells and Andy with some "popcorn popping" in the gardens

Lost in the hedge maze

Part of the Arab courtyard

Feliz Día del Padre!

¡¡¡Feliz Día del Padre!!!

So here in Spain, Father's day is the 19th of March. So, dad, you get 2 "Happy Father's Day"s this year! Thanks for being the best dad EVER!

This week was pretty normal. Not too much out of the ordinary. Last Monday we tried to go see some Roman Ruins nearby but they are closed on Mondays (nooooo!), so that was pretty anti-climactic. On Saturday we went to Huelva to do a baptismal interview with an awesome guy named Juan Antonio. He is super excited for his baptism and it will happen next Saturday. It is always awesome to see the excitement and change within people who are commited to taking the step of baptism. We didn't have much time to go around Huelva but it is a cool city and it is where Columbus set off from when he made his journey to America. And the best part was how clean the streets were which is really a marvel here in Spain.

Speaking of baptisms, we have to push back Sonya's because she isn't ready yet. She missed church yesterday and is still a little hesitant. So, no baptism next week, unfortunately. We did get a new investigator to church yesterday, though! Her name is Lucia and she lives in San Juan de Aznalfarache. It is really hard to get to Castilleja from there on Sundays so we had a fun hour long bus adventure to and from Sevilla to get to church. She loved the meetings and we're really excited for her.

I read a lot this week in Doctrine and Covenants and one of my favorite parts was reading section 76 which talks about the kingdoms of glory. I'm so thankful to have the knowldge of God's plan for us and to know that he has prepared such great things for us in this life as well as afterward. I know that every trial and difficulty is really just an opportunity to improve and learn and grow and I hope we can all use our trials in that way! If we do, our Heavenly Father will surely accept us into his kingdom one day as heirs to all he has.

I love you so much!!!!!!!

Elder Mockler

Summer is coming!

¡que paha familia!

Pueee gi. It has been a good week. It is starting to get pretty hot here already. Elder Wells only has 5 weeks left and all of them are going to go by way too fast for sure. We've been really busy and the work is going really well here. One of our investigators, Sonya, is on track for baptism on the 24th and we're hoping to confirm everything this week. That'll be awesome!

So I have some bad news. This week we got robbed! Well, ok, not really. The other day we printed out a bunch of materials for English class and as we walked out an old drunk guy stopped us to talk. We started talking to him and as we were about to leave we stole the papers straight out of my hands and wouldn't give them back. After a few minutes of trying to deal with him being completely insane we just went to a different locutorio to print out the pages. It was frustrating but after the fact it is pretty funny.

So being a missionary is cool...just now a guy walked in from Camaroon and started talking to us. His name is Rick. He met missionaries about 10 years ago. He is a cool guy...hopefully we'll be able to see him this week. Meeting new people is so much fun!! He is extremely faithful and knows the Bible really well. He owns an American toy company and is an American resident! Crazy! haha I'll tell more next week!

I have been thinking a lot about Matthew 10:39 this week:

He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

I just want to say that I know that is true! If we lose ourselves in serving others we find that we are really so much more. We just have to let go of our selfishness and we can start to grow. I'm so greatful that I know that!

I hope you all have a great week! I Love you!!!!!!!!!

Elder Mockler

10 months....AHHH!

¡Buenos Días!

Well this week went WAY too fast! I think I could say that about most weeks on the mission, though. Today is my 10 month mark...I can't believe that 1 year is right around the corner already.I'll just try not to think about it haha

On Tuesday I did splits with the Utrera Elders. I always love doing splits because you get to meet all new people and see new areas. And this one was particularly good because they have a DRYER in their piso! I took all my socks and my towel so I could put them in the dryer after I washed them, haha. They also live near an American base and they got us ROOT BEER! Yes, that's right - real life A&W Root Beer. AND when we visited some members they gave us Root Beer FLOATS! It was almost too much to handle...Root Beer twice in one week. It was a truly incredible experience hahaha

Elder Wells and I had quite the elevator adventure this week. I'm not sure if I have ever talked about Spanish elevators before, but I would like to say a few words about them today. They're awful. This is just one example: On Thursday we were in an apartment building in a pueblo called 'Nueva Sevilla' and we were coming down from the 11th floor to the 5th floor. And then it passed the 5th floor so we tried hitting the 4 button to stop it at the 4th floor. It didn't stop then either. So we figured we would just go all the way down and then go back up. That is, until it stopped itself between the 2nd and 3rd floor. The elevator doors opened but the door to the outside was locked and we couldn't open it. Luckily some people saw us and went to get the emergency key. We found our way out after a little while and climbed down onto the 2nd floor. We weren't in there too long, luckily, but it was long enough! But, as much as I may gripe about the elevators, it still beats walking up 11 stories of stairs. I guess the moral of the story is to count your blessings, haha.

This week I started reading the Book of Mormon again from the beginning, but in Spanish this time. It has been great so far, as it always is. It is amazing to me that the scriptures can teach us so profoundly everytime we read them no matter how many times we have pondered them or in what language it is in. The Spirit of the Lord touches us when we study the Gospel and can always teach us the way to Eternal Happiness. I'm so grateful for that!!

I love you!!!!!

Elder Mockler

Tortilla de Patata!!

Hola!!

This week went by WAY too fast! We were really busy doing splits with the zone leaders and having zone conference...I ended up spending about half the week in Sevilla instead of here in our area! It was a lot of fun, though...I love being in the city!

So the food of the week would probably be tortilla de patata. We ate a lot of it. On Monday some members invited us over and we ate homemade tortilla with them AND got to take almost a whole one home with us which was great. And while I was in Sevilla with Elder Hafen we decided to try to make one. It turned out really good, actually. I've learned to love tortilla...it is a little different but if you make it right it is awesome.

We have 2 investigators who are really progressing towards baptism. Sonya is married to a member (Tito) who recently reactivated and they are striving towards going to the temple to be sealed. It is awesome to see how the Gospel is blessing their lives. Tito is an awesome guy and an awesome member missionary. And, interestingly enough, he lived in Utah for 3 years while he was in high school so he speaks english perfectly. I think I've said it before but probably half our ward speaks English really well. And one of the members absolutely LOVES the USA. He is always talking about how awesome it is. It is great, haha. The other investigator is named Orlando and he is a great guy from Ecuador. When he gets excited he'll pump his fists and say "yes we can! yes we can!" haha it is hilarious. He is a super outgoing and fun guy but is searching for something more in his life. Lucky for him we can show him where to find it!

Well, not too much more exciting to report. The work is moving on and going really well. I'm so grateful to be able to teach the Gospel and remind people of the eternal goals they set before being born. We are all striving to live worthy to enter into the presence of our Father again. We get there by living the Gospel and for it we are blessed every step of the way. It isn't always easy (in fact it hardly ever is), but it is worth it. I'm so grateful to know that and to have such blessings in my life!

I love you!!!

Elder Mockler

These photos are from the Spain Malaga mission blog and were taken at zone conference this past week.

Elders Crawford, Mockler, Pearce, and Barrett