Hello all:

So I'm still alive and well. Still serving in Willow Creek and loving the work. We work hard, too. Last week, we found out that we put in almost 50 hours in lessons and tracting, not to mention the many meetings and transfers prep that went on last week. Surprisingly, my old companion Elder Baker stayed close by-- serving only a few miles away in Cherry Creek.

Attached is a picture of my new companion-- Elder Andersen from Rexburg, Idaho. He definitely has that admirable greenie fire, and is super obedient to every mission rule. It'd nice not having a companion with a disobedience issue to deal with. He is that caliber of missionary that is bound to be a Zone Leader someday.

So we had an interesting experience yesterday: we got yelled out of a neighborhood by a very irate lady that is convinced that what we are doing is illegal and that we ought to just be shot for sharing our message, so we changed plans and went tracting on Magnolia Court North of Costilla (not that I expect you to know where in the world that is). We were out for all of two minutes there when a Golden Retriever came running up and started frolicking all over the cul-d-sac. We got him to hold still long enough to read his tags (his name was Chase) and call his owner to leave a message informing them of their dog's whereabouts. They weren't home, so we had to get Animal Control involved, but until they could come, we used my belt as a makeshift leash and walked around with him for a while. What a playful little thing! No teaching appointment came of it, sadly, but it was neat to be able to help out a little.

Now news in investigators. Our primary investigators are doing wonderfully. They have made huge turnarounds this week, and it seems that with the oncoming of Spring, that they are starting to take this missionary thing a bit more seriously. It was wonderful to see them finally feel the Spirit that the message brings and to recognize that it is testifying that the principles we teach are true. They are finally realizing that the source of our message and a testimony of it is the Holy Ghost. To quote from D&C Section 6: "...what greater witness can you have than from God?" That's really why our message is so powerful. We literally call God as our witness to testify of the truth of this wonderful message. Whether opponent or amigo, every person will freely admit that our message-- that God speaks today through a living prophet, that the Heavens are not closed, that families can be together through all eternity, and that God has a plan for His children, made possible through our eldest brother Jesus Christ-- if true, is the most wonderful message the world has ever heard. Those who despise us call our message too good to be true, in fact.

Well, that's about all I have to report on (or vent about) for now. Have a great week!

--
Elder Watkins
Colorado Denver South Mission