Olá!

This week I had my last interview with Presidente Amorim! The Portugal Porto and the Portugal Lisboa missions are going to turn into one big mission at the start of July, so Presidente and Sister Amorim only have about two more weeks left on their mission. 

But before they go home, Presidente wanted to have one last interview with each of his missionaries. It also seemed like he wanted them majority of these final interviews to be in person, and not by video chat like he sometimes has done. So he scheduled to drive down to Viseu last Wednesday just so that he could interview the six missionaries here. One by one we went into the room with him, and one by one we left feeling really uplifted! This was one of my best interviews that I´ve had with my mission presidente! He was just so happy and positive and encouraging! I really felt like I was talking with a dad, haha. 

He asked that everyone come with a question to ask him, and he would base his final interview off of that. Because I am nearing the end of my mission, he gave me some advice on what I should do when I get home. He told me that when I get home, I should prayerfully make a list of all of the honorable, worthy things that I want to accomplish in the next ten years, and then do everything in my power to accomplish them. 

To end our "chat," we closed with a prayer, and in it he basically just prayed for me and for my safety and my success. It was a successful last interview with Presidente Amorim!

This transfer my companion and I have decided that we want to work more with the members. A few days ago we decided to go and pay a visit to a young couple (Vladi and Marta) that me and my last companion never visited. As we were walking there we passed a small group of people and just said hi to them as we passed. A few seconds later, when we were getting to the apartment building, one of the people from the group appeared behind us and asked us in English if we were looking for Marta. We said yes, and she said that she was her sister and also said "here, let´s go on in", and she went and unlocked the apartment building and then opened the apartment door and yelled inside "Marta! The Elders are here!", haha. 

Unfortunately Vladi wasn´t at home, so we weren´t able to enter and talk, but we combined a day to come back this next week. Me and my companion were both surprised at how nice Marta´s sister and mom were (her mom appeared right behind her), and we both feel really good that we will be able to start to teach them about the gospel! 

There is a new family in the Viseu Ward who just moved here from Brasil. They are so nice! They invited us and the other Elders and Sisters to eat dinner with them yesterday. I knew that they lived pretty far, so I was expecting them to offer us a ride to their house, but instead, they just described how to get there, haha. 

He (Antonio), told us a reference point, and then he said "Vai sempre em frente!" which basically means "just keep going straight forever!". And it was forever, haha. He said that the journey would be about 4km, just to get there. But we weren´t going to pass up a dinner with a Brasilian family, so we (the missionaries) met a little over an hour before the dinner appointment to start walking together over there. 

Haha, it was quite the journey! Especially because it was so hot out, and we were walking on the side of the road for a good part of it. But it was worth it because this family is such a great family, and the food was delicious! They live in our area, so we are going to go back more times (just us, that way we can have a ride!), and start to do missionary work with them. They love the missionaries, and I know that they will really be a great family to have in the ward! 

PS. I just looked at google maps, and it was actually 5.3 kilometers just to get there, which means we walked a total of about 10 KM, yesterday, which is about 6 miles!

I´m grateful that I can be a missionary, and that I get to meet so many different, kind people! I love the people of Portugal, and also of Brasil, haha! Even when the work seems to be going slow or it seems that nothing we do is working out, I know that if I just do my best, than that is enough. There is a part in Preach my Gospel that says that nothing that we do in the missionary work is in vain. Every smile that we give, every card that we pass out, every reference that we contact, nothing is in vain and everything is a part of Heavenly Father´s perfect plan! 

I love and miss you all! Have a great week!

Love,
Elder Barker