Sorry about my short, lame email last week! Usually we receive the news about transfers on Sunday night, but we got a text sunday afternoon telling us that we wouldn´t know until Monday around noon. But then around 11am we got a message telling us we wouldn´t find out until Monday at 6pm! I´m pretty sure everyone on the mission was so antsy to find out what would happen. I was especially anxious because this would determine who would be my last companion, and if I would be staying in the same area. Well...
I´ll be staying in Viseu! I already knew that I would probably end my mission here, but sometimes crazy things happen with transfers. My new (and last) companion will be Elder Hirschi, from Treemonten, Utah. He will actually goes home a few months after me, so he´ll be "killing me" and then he will receive his last companion as well. It seems that that tends to happen a lot in this area, haha. If this first week is any indication of how the rest of the transfer will be, then I will be grateful, because I will have a great last transfer! We get along really well, and he understands that I want to end my mission working well.
We also received one more companionship of Elderes in Viseu, Elder Pina and Elder Howard. So now there are four elders and two sisters, and we all get along pretty well! I´m looking forward to serving with all of these missionaries these next five weeks, and I know that we will have success this transfer!
This last week Elder Hirschi and I decided to take a twenty minute bus ride to a small "aldeia" (village), that is in our area, because I have never been there, and we had a reference of a person that lives there. I´m so glad that we went! The people there are so nice and humble! I think its because the missionaries don´t usually go to this place (Vila Chã de Sá), so the people are as used to us, so they are actually curious, haha. This village seemed exactly how I pictured how all of Portugal would look like: tiny cobblestone roads and houses, and lots of farms. I know that there are plenty of people that live there that will listen to our message, we just have to go back and find them! I unfortunately didn´t bring my camera, but the next time we go, I´ll be sure to take a few pictures!
For our first day as a companionship, we went to a funeral 
. There was a member who had been sick for several years, who just passed away the day before we got back to Viseu. His name was Irmão Cardoso, and I had never met him, but I had gotten in the habit of praying for him because all of the members loved him and always kept him in their prayers. At the funeral, the bishop and a member of the stake presidency gave talks, based on the plan of salvation. They were really positive and full of hope. So many of our members went to the funeral, and it was really hard for me to seem them so sad. I have grown to love the members of the Church in Viseu (like in all of my areas), that when I saw them crying I started crying as well!
I was sitting in Sacrament meeting yesterday at Church, and I just felt a great love for the Viseu ward. The members here are so kind, and so strong in their testimonies. I truly am so blessed to be able to serve here and help them. I love Portugal so much! Everything about it is so wonderful, I just know that I am going to be so sad when I have to say goodbye.
I am so grateful that I can be a missionary! I love this Church and this Gospel so much! I know that my life has slowly been changed over the past two years, and that my testimony has grown. I love being able to wear my nametag everyday and have the opportunity to represent Jesus Christ wherever I go!
I love and miss you all! Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Barker
Elder Barker
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