thanks for this email mom i like to read whats up in tremonton and with you guys! grandpa is a funny guy! haha. Dad reminds me of a laminite or nephite haha. The costumes look awesome, what a fun party. Do they ever do things with calebs masks in dws like walk behind the people or anything? things are going good here. Its super hot and unbearable here with the heat and the humidity. You know how we always have cold water that runs out of the sink fossit. here the cold water comes out warm because of how hot it is and i think the lines are like right under the cement here too. Sorry for taking out soo much money, i need to manage better my money and learn how to use it with wisdom.
Griffen is so funny, i would have busted up laughing in church hahaha this kid. well i will tell more in my group mail but thanks for you email mom i am doing good and all is well! Are there any changes in the style of music up there? Styles? Are the stores or prices changing? I feel sooo out of it, like i am in 2013 still haha.
Love you
Elder Wikstrom

Week 3 of being in my new area. Its pretty big and spacious. today i saw the priesthood session of General Conference with the zone here. It was really good. I love one of the messages shared about how its not too late to obtain your own testimony of Jesus Christ, the testimonies of others will only take you soo far until you end up in a place where you have to make your own desecions and stand up for yourself. Of course we know that were never alone, that the lord and his angles watch over us and love us and carrys us through alot of our toughest moments but there are moments too when the lord leaves the desicion making up to us and that is why we came here no, to learn to choose and choose good for ourselves. The lord has a way that is prepared for Every Individual, we can follow it or we can choose not to, but the important is that we learn through our choices. We dont have to make the wrong choice to know that its better to choose the right choice but some people learn like that( even though they dont need to), others learn as they choose good and see the blessings of the lord in their live by choosing the right, everyone learns in their own way because everyone has their own agency, a gift given to us from God. We all have the light of Christ also that helps us to choose between good and bad. Being on the mission and seeing many peoples lives in a gospel point of view i have recognized that those you have obeyed the lord and choosen the right have always been happy and even though they have difficulties and trials in thier lives they have a firm testimony of their savior. Those who havent always choosen the right alot of times deny themselves of blessings from the the lord and those who are actively living the gospel now that werent before are happy but alot of times regret the past. Nobody is perfect. I have learned that the atonement can be applied to all lives and wipe away bad past memories and help us be better everyday. Just like practicing a sport everyday makes one better at that sport, repenting everyday and choosing the right helps us to be better everyday and grow to be something even greater and more like the savior. we all will start as seeds but we can all grow like the redwoods that once started as a seed also. Its not too late to choose the right and gain a testimony of the savior, He can heal you but only if you let him, he will not force himself in your life, you have to let him in. As we live his teachings and follow his example we invite him in and we will grow to become more like him and enjoy the blessings that comes therefrom. I Really like the saying: you reap what you sow. we all need to be like a semi driver and look way ahead down the road when we drive, (into our future) and ask ourselves, is what im doing now going to be a blessing or a burden in my future, and always remember that your decisions determine your destiny and that your desicions affect the lives of others(your kids) maybe even more than it effects your life. I know the savior lives and loves me too. he wants us to have success more than we want ourselves to have success! for that very reason we must follow his teachings and apply them in our lives, the scriptures, the teachings of the modern day prophets, and everything else =).


Elder Wikstrom

14 Months!

hi mom thanks so much for the mail i received from you. i liiiiikked it a lot.
That is true what Dieter F Uchtdorf says no? He's awesome. Today we are here in Jose C Paz. This computer is a piece a junk and i still haven't figured out how i can send pictures with it. There are only elders in this zone so supposedly we do an activity together every Monday. Today at 11:30 our time we are headed over to meet the other elders and then all of us are going to eat at a place called pizza libre. its like a buffet of pizza. after at 2 we are going to the church to play soccer with everyone. It's awesome how were all united here. in other zones its not always the same.
When i got here i could never take money out cause alllll the banks here were fuuuuuull of people. like every day. I finally found a time when i could go and a lot of banks don't have money, lots wouldn't let me see how much money i had,it just said i had zero or that i couldn't use this card. I finally found a bank that told me i had lots in my checking but i couldnt take money cause it was all out of money. So i went to one of the banks that says i have nothing and i took out 1000 pesos today. It says i have nothing so i went back to the other bank to see my inquiry again and it recognized the 1000 i took out. it was so crazy and i have been so stressed about it but finally havethe money. I thank you and grandma and grandpa soo much for the Birthday money and i hope i didnt take out too much. Thanks mom.
On Wednesday and Thursday and Friday i got up at 6:30. Saturday and Sunday and today i woke up at like 7:30 or 7:45. I am getting better but i have realized that the days i have been obedient i had a good day and we did lots of lessons with members present. The other days we had bad numbers and i didnt have such a great day. I realize that being a senior companion that my area depends on me. lots of people say that they enter into a bad area, when really the bad areas don't exist, its the problem of the missionary. I even have more desire to be obedient now! The bishop called us this week and said Hey elders i have a baptism for you guys. On saturday we baptized a guys that lives in my area. sunday he was confirmed. We didn't teach him anything. he is married to an active member. he has leukemia ( the blood cancer) He might die, he repented and decided he wanted to get baptized, he just did the interview and got baptized, even though we did absolutely nothing the baptism counts for us. so technically i had a baptism this weekend. its a sad situation, the whole family was crying in his baptism and it was spiritual, but i was just a witness on the font side. Happy the man got baptized though because now hes just one step closer to be able to be sealed with his family and live as an eternal family.
The house i am in is actually kinda sucky. We don't have drawers or dressers, or a shower or nothing. i shower in the bathroom by filling up a bucket and getting wet, like a poor man. haha. its kinda funny. My area is big, the bus routes here are soo crazy and i feel really lost. There are sooooo many people here and sooo many stores that i am suprised. I feel like i am in the capital but its in the desert. Its like san pedro and the capital mixed together. I hope i can learn the bus routes better. But there are parts of the area where i fill like i'm in the Joseph Smith times. haha. Entering in this new area i started to feel like homesick you could say. Noone knows me and i feel sooo lost, I dont understand how things work here in the area but i am learning. haha. We are already in the second of six weeks so i'm doing alright. People now start to tell me that i have not that much time on my mission left. but i dont know how to feel. its all crazy. going really fast. i love the mission and know that i will miss it alot when its over with. I am glad i choose to come on the mission and I really enjoy being a senior companion. There is a lot more responsibility on my shoulders now i feel like. But i remember that the only thing that matters is the plack that says Elder. The other things are just assignments from the mission.=D. I love you lots mom, this computer wont let me send pictures but i will have to find one that can send cause i have to send a baptism paper to the offices by picture through email. love you guys lots!
Have a great week.=D
Elder Wikstrom

Transfer Day

Ok I am in a new area with a new companion. I am in Jose C. Paz with Elder Risco from Peru. He's a good missionary. I am the senior companion and hes junior but he has a year in the mission. Elder Schwendiman and Hansen are going to train new missionaries. I miss my old area but I am happy to have a change. I am in another area in the provincia not in the capital so I have lots of muddy streets again. haha I love it. The house here is a lot better too! It does need cleaning but has alot more potential. I am nervous and excited. The first thing we did here after drop of my bags was went to the place to help some investigators to be able to get married. i might be walking right into baptisms with a marriage and stuff! exciting! I thank you mom for your sacrifices and your charity for me! I love you!
Elder Son

Happy Birthday

Elder Wikstrom's birthday was on the 4th. He was excited to watch conference on his birthday.

The Villarruel Family celebrated his birthday.

i just wanted to write you all really fast to thank you for the birthday wishes. I just got back from the temple here as a mission we went and now we are headed to a place called teconópolis that is where i started the mission at over by munro. we are going as a zone activity. I will be writing you all better on monday but for right now i just wanted to say hi and thank you and everything where i am at is all good! I hope to be able to talk on monday!
Love you
Elder Wikstrom