Pics from this week

My 6 MONTH TIE haha the smoke got in my
face so I captured the
picture like right when I was coughing.

And yes, the flame got bigger and the whole thing was burned.



Tennisssss todayyyyyy woooo hooooo!!!

Only one I missed today ha ha J
 

 

More tennis... I've got a gnarly back hand!!

 

The whole Zona de León at Zone Conference :)

 

Elder Galvan, Michael, and I just chilling
on Sunday night. Homies.

 

Ups, Downs and Tennis

HI ALL :)

Well I'll be completely honest, this week was extremely tough. We
didn't have a ton of appointments, people failed us a lot, nobody
wanted to talk, and other stuff that I will explain later. I was
feeling pretty down during the week. But somehow, while I am  writing
this summary of the week, I feel like it was successful. The small
good moments of the week outweigh the bad ones. I know that the hard
weeks come for a good reason, to test us and see what we are really
made of. Heavenly Father is proud of us for sticking through it and
keeping a positive attitude! Here's the week :)

Tuesday, we went over to the Tamayo's house to say bye to Nichole!!
Let me tell you, it was hard. It brought back so many memories of when
I was doing all the goodbyes! For the "last supper" (yep Susan cooked
for us again) with her and the whole family together, we all went
around the table sharing our favorite scripture and what it means to
us. I had specifically studied that morning to find something to share
with her, and I found D&C 31:3. It was a wonderful last meeting with
her, and Michael and Susan both made promises to Nichole that they
will read their scriptures every day and come to church every Sunday
because of Nichole's example to them to serve a mission. I was sooooo
happy!! So yes, they are the greatest family ever and Nichole is going
to be a very good missionary. I'm excited to hear about all the
success she has in England :)

On Wednesday we had Zone Conference in León which was super great. We
focused on how to use our time wisely as Missionaries (contacting,
visiting the members, etc.) and making our studies more efficient. And
it's always a plus to see your friends in the Zone :) I realized that
I am one of 3 people who has been in this zone for 4 transfers... I'm
old! When we got back from Zone Conference, we met up with Claudia,
the one who hasn't really been progressing anymore :( we had the drop
talk with her and she didn't take it too well. It has been sad to see
someone not keep their commitments with the Book of Mormon and the
other things we invite them to do. We were pretty bummed after all
that took place. Maybe something will change in the future with her
and she will be more inclined to keep going with the church.

Thursday, we had a nice weekly planning session. Then, we went to
visit Hermana Gene and her family. They lived in Provo for a year and
a half, so they speak very good English! They don't live in a Piso
either like a lot of other members, their house reminded me of one
from Utah. It was a good 45 minute bus ride out to the pueblo where
they live called Tudela de Duero. Hermana Gene is the best, seriously
one of the nicest ladies on the planet. She knows the branch better
than a lot of people because she has lived here her whole life! It was
a good afternoon with her, then we got back to the Piso and burned my
6 MONTH TIE! It does not feel like I've been out for 6 months haha.
But burning that tie felt good, I just have to serve my Sister
Missionary mission then I'll be home ;) TIME FLIES

Friday we got failed on a lot. Like every single appointment. The one
appointment that we did have was with Mabel. It was the first time she
met Elder Galvan, and when we sat down to get started, she flat out
told us that she doesn't want to be a member anymore. It hurt. After
all the work that Elder Peña and I put in with her and all the
progress that I have seen her make, she told us that. It was the last
thing I expected to come out of her mouth. She said that she is having
trouble finding her spiritual side and for now she's going to go with
the Jehovah's Witnesses. There wasn't anything we could do or say in
that moment to change her mind. She asked me to take her scriptures
from the LDS church because if not she was just going to throw them
away. I was not a happy missionary but I took her scriptures and then
we left. I felt lost. Why did we just drop Claudia 2 days before and
then Mabel didn't want to be a member?! I called Elder Peña and asked
him for his advice because I was breaking down. He calmed me down and
told me to just take a deep breath, God knows why these things are
happening and for me not to worry anymore. It was a rough day :/

When we got to la capilla on Saturday for English class, someone had
graffitied the whole front garage thing. It doesn't matter what was on
it, but I was SO MAD! I spent the next 45 minutes scrubbing the crap
out of it and got pretty much all of it off. I can't believe the nerve
of some people. The highlight of Saturday was that we went to Palencia
to find a less active family from Honduras who put in a missionary
request on the Internet. So, we got up to Palencia and found them.
They are such strong members but don't have any money to come down to
church on Sunday's!! The oldest son, Jared, wants to serve a mission
but just needs to get his money saved up. He reads his scriptures
every day with his mom. The family was sealed in the Guatemala temple
and then some years after, the parents split up and the mom and 3 sons
moved here to Spain. The dad was a bishop in Honduras for 8 years and
he is still active there. When I started talking about Elder Cowley,
they got so excited and I showed them a picture of him on my iPad! We
shared a message with them and promised that if they pray and fast and
ask God for a way to come to church, they will have doors opened up to
them. The next day at church, one of the other members that lives in
Palencia told us that she can give them rides! The mom just needs to
get work off on Sunday's and then they will be ready to come :) it was
one of the coolest experiences I've had on my mission and not to
mention that Palencia is a really cool city!

On Sunday I gave another talk in sacrament, this time it was about the
Love of God. I shared my experience about Quest when President Terry
was dressed up as the Savior and walked through the room and touched
every single one of the kids. When it got to my turn, I couldn't even
look at him because I was crying so much. I had just a tiny idea, in
that very moment, how much God loved me as an individual. And if he
loves me that much, he loves everyone else that much too! The members
really liked that story :) the rest of Sunday, we had Preach My Gospel
classes and then went to the Tamayo's because Susan has been a little
sick! We talked about Nichole haha and then shared another message.

Today for P-Day we played tennis and it was the greatest thing of all
time! I'm basically a professional. The other elder's investigator
invited us to go play at a private tennis club and yeah. My new name
is Elder Nadal hahaha :)

So, that was the week. Sorry it's long, but I had some pretty good
moments and some pretty sad ones too. Needless to say, I'm learning a
lot. I love being a missionary more than anything else in the whole
world. Preaching the Gospel 24/7 is such a blessing, I feel my
relationship growing with my Heavenly Father more every day. I know
when we strive to do what is right, God realizes our efforts and will
fulfill his part and bless us. Thanks for being the greatest family
and friends in the whole world, I love every one of you to pieces :)
have a wonderful week everyone :)

Con Amor,

ELDER BRADY SMITH

Pics from this week

Elder Faustino (who looks like the people I talked about)
and Elder Galvan and I!



  Another BIRTHDAY GIRL shoutout... She wears my clothes better than
I do :) love you Ellie!!

Elder Galvan and I just being ourselves after studies haha



In honor of the BIRTHDAY GIRL!! Look how cute she was/is :):)

Valentine's Day and Another week!

HOLA :)

First thing I gotta say this week... HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELIZABETH FAYE!!!
I seriously can't believe a how much you have grown up while I
have been gone. It's insane and it'd be nice if you slowed down a
bit!! Haha anyways, I love you a lot sis. Everyone who is reading this
knows just how alike we are!! I was seriously blessed with the best 2
sisters in the world!! Also, happy late Valentine's Day everybody :)
Anyways the week was good, I am freaking exhausted!! We worked and
worked and worked and then worked some more. Thanks for all the love
and prayers, we can feel them every day!! Here's the summary :)

Tuesday we had intercambios and I was with Elder Fletcher. I freaking
love that guy. We always have so much fun and we teach super well
together too. Anyways I hope someday I can be his companion! We went
to visit Michael and helped him write a church talk about faith. We're
still working on his testimony but it's coming along! I love that kid
so much. Another kinda sad thing that's happening this week is his
sister Nichole is leaving on her mission!! I'm super happy for her but
she has helped me so much and loves to be with the missionaries. She
will be an incredible missionary :) we had a district meeting on
Wednesday then ended up back at the Tamayo's house on Wednesday to
finalize the talk. Of course the mom Susan cooks for us too like
always, and it was yummy as usual. We eat so much rice and eggs here
in Spain and one thing I've really come to love is Chorizo... This
meat that is so wonderful. It's to die for!

So Claudia our investigator has kinda fallen off the deep end. We
still continue to meet with her occasionally but she isn't reading the
Book of Mormon and it shows in her testimony and I get sad. We will
have to see what we can do to help her but it has just strengthened my
testimony so much on the power that the Book of Mormon contains. If
you don't have a testimony, read it! It's super simple! Ask Heavenly
Father and he's going to let you know it's true! So keep her in your
prayers please.

Sunday we had Elder Faustino Lopez come and speak to us! He is a
member of the seventy I think but doesn't have an assigned area
anymore, so he travels around Spain and talks to the areas. He looks
exactly like Dad from the side and from the front, he is like my
Uncles Gary, Gordon, and Tad R. Callister mixed. I attached a picture
haha but yeah it was good stuff. He taught us about living a Celestial
Lifestyle. Because ultimately if that's where we want to end up, why
wouldn't we live that way in the first place? I absolutely loved it.
The guy was so awesome and it was the perfect motivation for me. I
taught Sunday school about the fall of Adam and Eve, that was a riot!
Super fun though, I'm just loving every single second here in Spain :)

This week we passed by an investigator named Rosa who has been
investigating the church for ages. Anyways, somehow and somewhere in
the lesson she got offended and started to say that Joseph Smith was a
racist. Then she called me a racist too because I'm white and my last
name is Smith! I was like holy cow! How sad. This lady has no clue!!
She just kept telling us that she can't accept that the Book of Mormon
is another book of scripture. Well, back to what I was saying earlier,
READ IT! So that was the first time we passed by Rosa and more than
likely the last time as well. We also passed by a girl named Melany
from Bolivia who is a less active. We got in the house and soon found
out that everyone in the family are members!! It was like winning the
lottery!! Anyways, in Preach My Gospel there is a section about asking
inspired questions, which I had just happened to be reading that same
morning. We followed the spirit with Melany and ended up asking the
right questions and committed her to come to church!! I was so pumped
out of my mind and we are going to get back and teach the whole family
now! However, she didn't come to church. So that's the problem. She
sent us a text Sunday morning saying she forgot she had to work... It
was a sucker punch but I tried to not take it personally. Anyways, We
will help her realize that she needs church back in her life and get
her and the family to come again!!

The work here is INCREDIBLE. I love being a missionary. My companion
Elder Galvan and I get along so well, he is a great example, teacher,
and missionary!! For sure we will be lifelong friends. I'm trying
super hard to enjoy these likely last few weeks in Valladolid because
I'm gonna miss it like crazy. I love you all a lot, that will never
change :) thanks for everything!! Have a great week :)

Con Amor,

Elder Brady Smith

PICS FROM THIS WEEK

A Coruna and Zumba

One more of THE BEACH :) y EL LIBRO DE MORMÓN

Elder Müller and I at our midnight birthday selfie hahaha!

Elder Galvan and I chilling at THE BEACH :):)

Elder Gearig, like one of my best friends from the MTC!
(This one is for the Kilgore family)

CRAZY WEEK & THE BEACH!!

Hola Familia y Amigos :)

What a week!! I'm super happy to be here having these experiences. I
know that God has a plan for every single one of us, and yes I know I
say that every week, but it's because I see it more and more in my
life every day. Here's how it all went down...

So Monday through Wednesday I was in a trio with Elders Tree and
Fletcher. That was actually super fun, and I've developed a love for
trio contacting. We split up and go 1 and 2, so I always just picked
the solo position and ended up having a lot of success!! It's hard for
me to not get frustrated sometimes when the people are straight up
jerks to you, but I just have to remember that they aren't prepared
yet. I did my part as a missionary, and one day everyone will know of
the truthfulness of this gospel. On Wednesday night, I picked up Elder
Galvan from the train station!! Haha he is super cool, we have been
having a ton of fun together. He's from California and has been out
for like 19 months, so more than likely he'll finish up his mission
here in Valladolid. He's a convert of 3 years and knows a lot about
the gospel so I'm really excited to learn from him!! All of Wednesday
we just finished unpacking his stuff in the Piso.

Thursday morning we woke up and got our stuff ready to head to A
Coruña! It was about an 8 hour bus ride from Valladolid and along the
way we picked up the missionaries from León and Ponferrada. We got to
A Coruña and went straight to the hotel to dump our stuff in the room
(the hotel was freaking nice haha, it brought back all the days of
baseball and basketball tournaments with my friends and vacations with
the family) then to get food as a zone. When we got back to the hotel,
my ZL Elder Müller told me that Hermana Pack wanted to talk to me. I
instantly felt like there was a rock inside my stomach. So when I got
up to their room, they told me that Grandpa Smith had passed away. I
didn't want to believe it at first, then I just started crying. I
specifically remembered the last time I saw him in person, when he
came to our house when I was set apart. He shared his testimony with
me and it was so strong!! Then I got super happy because I pictured
him giving Grandma Smith a big hug and everyone who knows Grandpa
knows how long he has been waiting for that day. Anyways, President
and Hermana Pack both gave me big hugs and comforted me which was
really nice. I felt Grandpa and Grandma Smith in that moment tell me
that everything was going to be okay. I spent a night reflecting on
Grandpa Smith in my hotel room, just thinking about what an amazing
guy he is. I believe today is his Funeral, and I'm sad I won't be
there but he's here with me in Spain so it's all good :) I love you
Grandpa Smith!!

Friday, we had the chance to listen to Elder Moreira of the 70! He and
his wife came from Portugal to speak to us. Elder Moreira was
hilarious haha, he had me laughing pretty good the whole time. His
wife only speaks Portuguese, but she did give her talk in Spanish and
I was super proud of her for giving it a good effort. She stressed
that Missionary Work is the most important work we'll ever do in our
lives. Elder Moreira talked about change. I wish I would have counted
the amount of times he actually said the word "change", because it was
in the thousands. We are always changing and that's what I loved about
his message, nobody is perfect. Duh. But sometimes we are stubborn and
don't want to change. Accepting change is hard, but in the end, it's
going to shape us into the missionaries that God wants us to become. I
learned a lot from their messages and had a fun time seeing a bunch of
my MTC friends!! Our bus for Valladolid left early Saturday morning,
so we actually got to work in A Coruña for the rest of the day. Elder
Tree served there so he took us on a tour of the city as we contacted
and passed by members. The best part was definitely when we made our
way down towards THE BEACH HOLY COW I MISS THE BEACH haha and
not gonna lie, it was very tempting to sprint into the ocean but I
held back haha. The rest of the night, we had a Noche de Hogar with
the A Coruña missionaries, and after we did an hour of Zumba!! It was
so much fun haha but I was sore the next morning. Just another bit of
info... My good friend Elder Walster and I are professionals at Zumba
now haha. It was nice to see him this weekend :)

Saturday!! 19!! Haha I don't feel any different, but do want to thank
everyone who sent me birthday packages, emails, and letters. It was
Elder Müller's birthday as well and he slept right below me on the
floor on Friday night, so right when the clock hit 12 o'clock, we got
a nice selfie of the birthday boys haha!! We caught our bus back to
Valladolid at 9, then had a Piso check when we got back. We passed!!
All my hard work with cleaning has been paying off haha :) To end the
night, we got a Kebab to celebrate. Only 1 more birthday in the
mission field :)

Sunday was super good, the members really seem to like Elder Galvan so
I'm excited for that. In priesthood, we talked about the literal power
of the priesthood. We as priesthood holders hold the exact same power
as Christ did when he created the world under the direction of
Heavenly Father. HOW COOL!! Sometimes I think we forget just how
sacred the priesthood is, and this lesson was a good reminder to me.
I'm going to try to find more opportunities to magnify my priesthood
this week. Sunday night, we taught a Preach My Gospel class and it was
super successful! The spirit was strong as we taught about chapter 5
which is focused on the Book of Mormon. We invited Claudia and one of
the other Elders Investigators to come and then the "students" taught
the real investigators what they learned from our class!! Claudia and
Angel, the investigators, felt the spirit really strong! I was so
happy, things just worked out perfectly. It was a little miracle to
me, finish the crazy hectic week off with a bang. I just love being a
missionary!!

I'm sorry this email was so long, but thanks for reading this far. I
love the work here. It's hard, and some weeks I just have more to say
than others! Anyways, I love you all a lot. Sometimes I think about
home and how much I miss my friends and family but then remember that
these 2 years are so short and so sacred. I don't want to have any
regrets when I get home. And I'm planning on all of you to be there to
greet me at the airport, okay?! ;) haha well that's all I have for
this week. Love you all! Thanks for everything!!

Con Amor,

Elder Brady Craig Smith

Birthday Dinner

     Happy 19th Birthday Brady!

Nineteen years ago Brady made Craig and I parents.  What a wonderful gift he has been to us and  his sisters.  He is a genuine, compassionate, thoughtful, intelligent and amazing friend to many.  We are so blessed to be best friends for the eternities.  Have a wonderful day Braids!!

 

 

Loving Brady across the miles at LORENA'S

Coincidence???? Don't think so.  We were eating our meal and realized
we were seated at table ..... 23.  Always on our minds!

Goodbye Grandpa Smith

 

 

It was difficult for Brady to leave on his mission knowing he may not see his Grandpa Smith alive again.  They had a special bond and Brady respected and admired him so much.  He was a wonderful example of a Patriarch who led his family in righteousness and focused on the most important things in life.  Below are the communications we had with Sister Pack the “Mission Mom” and an email from Brady.

 

Following an email Kristin sent to inform Pres. & Sister Pack about Grandpa Smith’s Passing

February 4, 2016

We are sorry to hear that.  Our love and prayers are with your family.  I have good news. We will be with Elder Smith tonight and be able to tell him in person.  He is headed to A Coruña for a zone conference tomorrow. Is there any other information you would like us to share? We feel blessed that we will be able to tell him in person.  We will let you know after we speak with him. 

 Love,

Hermana Pack

 

We just had an opportunity to speak with Elder Smith.  He got a little emotional, but handled the news pretty well. We had a chance to talk about his grandpa. He told us what an amazing man he is.  We gave him permission to email you. We will continue to pray for your family at this difficult time. Thank you for sending such a fine young man on a mission. He has grown leaps and bounds since he first got here.  We are very proud of him as we know you are. 

Love, 

Hermana Pack

Spain Madrid Mission

 

Hey mom and dad,

So I'm just sitting in a hotel room at 12:06AM in A Coruña. We had a 7
and a half hour bus ride to get here today and I'm like super tired.
Anyways, elder Müller came up to me and told me that Hermana and
president pack wanted to talk to me when we got back from getting food
as a zone. I kinda had an idea of what it was, but didn't want to
think about it too much. So I knocked on their hotel room door and
went in and then they told me that grandpa smith had passed away. I
started crying and elder galvan and elder cotton (my other zone
leader) were there with me too. The email you sent Hermana and
president pack was perfect, and thanks for letting them do it. Usually
they have to do it over the phone and they told me it was a tender
mercy that we were together tonight so they could tell me in person. I
gave both president and Hermana pack a hug and it comforted me a lot.
President pack shared a story with me and his grandma passed right
before he went on his mission and it was tough for his family as well.
I was super sad at first but now I am super happy because I know how
long grandpa has been waiting for this. I love that man so much and I
can just picture him and grandma giving each other a big hug!! Not a
coincidence that this morning during my personal study this morning I
happened to listen to "you'll be in my heart" by Phil Collins. That
was grandma and grandpa smith letting me know that everything would be
okay!!

So dad, I just want to tell you I'm so sorry. I wish I was there so
bad so I could give you a big hug!! You had the most amazing father in
the whole world. I shared with president pack about how grandpa was
always so generous and they absolutely loved it. Dad I love you the
most and I know that you're sad but so happy too!! He is so happy
right now. I have gained such a strong testimony of families and how
they can really be together forever while I've been in the mission
field. There's no doubt in my mind that grandpa is just beyond happy
right now!! Mom and girls... You guys are sad too but be happy :)
grandpa is awesome. He's happy!! Do a big group hug with you 4 for me
today.

I love you guys a lot. I'm never going to forget grandpa smith and I'm
so happy that he's home. I will talk to you guys on Monday but
president told me to let you guys know that I found out. He will be
missed but he left his mark on all of the people who knew him!! I will
miss him a lot. Anyways, have a great weekend and I'll talk to you on
Monday!!

With love,
Elder Smith

Ps president and Hermana pack gave me special early birthday wishes
right from you guys so thanks for that :) it was almost as if you two
were sitting there in the room talking to me!!!

Setting Apart at the Smith's

Handsome Smith Men!

 

 

 

Pics from this week

With Rosario, Manolo, Juanita, and the grandma who has t
he worst memory in the whole world! It's sad and hilarious! 

What is life without a little mirror pic
with my dad in the mission 

With la familia Yubero at our BBQ!!

Traslados Y Todo :)

SUPPP :) 

Another week has passed. What is happening to the time?!?! And we had transfers. The news you've all been dying to hear haha!! I'll be here in Valladolid for 5 more weeks but with a new companion!! His name is Elder Galvan and he will be getting here on Wednesday. I'm super excited to work with him, I have heard only good things about him and that he's a super good missionary. As for Elder Peña, I dropped him off at the train station this morning! He is headed to the Canary Islands!! He'll more than likely finish his mission up there and he was super happy. It was a very bitter-sweet goodbye, but I think the change is going to be good. In Peru, Elder Peña's house is by the beach and so he's very happy to be going to the coast again! His island is called Lanzarote, and he and his new companion will be the only missionaries on the whole island. Since we received the transfer email Saturday night, he's been walking around the Piso and packing his bags just yelling "Hello Beach!" Hahaha so needless to say, he's pretty excited. 

We had a BBQ with President Yubero and his family Sunday Night (holy freaking best meat I have ever eaten) to send Elder Peña off on a good note, and he gave a "fireside" type of deal to us four missionaries. He thanked us for what we are doing there and recognized how far we have come with a lot of less-active families. It was cool because when we first got here, he gave us 4 families to focus on, and yesterday at church 3 of the 4 came!!  It put a nice big smile on my face. I love Valladolid and feel blessed to have 5 more weeks here! It's gonna be a little weird at first to not be here with Elder Peña, but Elder Galvan and I are gonna have an awesome time together. 

This week we said a lot of goodbyes because we kind of knew that one of the two of us was going to leave, so we got to eat with a lot of members. That's always a good thing haha. One of them was with Rosario, Manolo, Juanita, and the grandma with the bad memory!! Every time we go over to eat, she always gives us her life story because she doesn't remember that we have heard it a bazillion times!! It's so funny. We will be sitting down and she tells us what pueblo she is from and then what she did last week, and then two minutes later she repeats the same thing!! It's hard to not bust up laughing because she gets pretty animated with her stories. But they're always the same ones!! Haha what a good lady. She keeps me laughing :) anyways, everyone loves the Peruvian haha and he really helped me with my relationships with the members. I remember my first few weeks here, I was super shy and didn't want to use my Spanish very much but now that Elder Peña is gone, it's all up to me and I'm very excited! As bad as I wanted a change, I'm gonna miss him a lot. But the work goes on and this change is necessary and I'm going to learn a lot from Elder Galvan!!

This upcoming week we are headed to A Coruña to listen to Elder Joaquin Moreira of the 70! I'm so excited and he has prepared a lot of stuff for us missionaries. I'm also excited to see a bunch of my buddies from the MTC, it's going to be a fun few days! And on Saturday we have a "Surprise" Piso inspection haha. Normally they're a surprise but this week one of the matrimonial couples called us and asked us for our address and told us they'll be in town this weekend for the meetings and he'll be checking in on how we are doing. I feel a little scattered today and with all the things that have been going on, transfers and headed to A Coruña for 2 days and then finally we will start our week on Saturday! So it's been hectic but I'm just super, super, super ready to get this new transfer going :) 

This week I was reading in the Book of Mormon and one passage of scripture really stuck out to me. It's in Mosiah 26:18 and it says Yea, blessed is this people who are willing to bear my name; for in my name shall they be called; and they are mine. We as members of the Lord's true church have chosen to bear his name. As missionaries, we have his name on our chest every single day and it's the greatest thing of all time. I am absolutely loving being a missionary and have noticed big changes in myself since I left. I'm only 18 years old (almost 19 hehe) but I know that this is the Lord's church. It is the one true and living church on the whole Earth. He loves every single one of us and wants what is best. His plan is perfect. Embrace it! Live it! Love it! Take pride in being "THE LORD'S PEOPLE" :)

thank you all for your love and support, especially this week!! All the packages and letters and emails are just the greatest. I love every single one of you to death!! ¡Que tengan una semana FANTÁSTICA! ¡Les quiero muchísimo! 

Con Amor,

Elder Smith