Sayonara!

This is my last post! I'll be heading to Japan in a few days! You can read about my experiences at my mission blog at http://elderwaltoninjapan.blogspot.com/

See you in a few! :)

Sayonara

Seven of the people in my grade had mission farewells today. I spent basically the entire day visiting all of them at their respective homes.

Soon I will leave too.

All I can say is,

Sayonara kids! (That's goodbye in Japanese!)

You're the best friends I could ever have hoped for, and I love you all so dearly.

See you in a few.

Why Did We Stop?

As kids basically all of us loved to run around barefoot. To scamper on the grass, play under the sun, and just have fun free of anything covering our feet.

Why did we stop?

Now, likely most of us still go barefoot here and there and enjoy it, but we seem to be under the preconception that we can only be barefoot on rare occasions, on the beach, in the grass, but in all other circumstances we have to wear shoes because it's "what we do."

Many people cite safety and health concerns, and though the risks are there, they're not nearly as big as people make them out to be, and they almost never consider the risks and problems that come from not taking off their shoes: warts, athletes foot, and deformed, weak, and fragile feet.

Society has taught us to wear shoes, simply because that's what people do, but why not return to our childhood and enjoy the feelings, sensations, and joys that we all experienced as kids?

Recently I have done exactly that, and my feet have never been happier.

Throw off your shoes and free your feet!

 You won't regret it.

Life

Can I just say life is completely and absolutely wonderful for pretty much every reason?

Well I will.

 Life is completely and absolutely wonderful for pretty much every reason. :)

Exactly Where I'm Meant to Go

As most of you probably know I got my mission call on Friday. I'm going to Fukuoka Japan! It's a beautiful place and I'm so excited!

For some reason I always thought I'd be speaking some Asian language, but I actually didn't expect it to be Japanese. I had a cool experience that really testified though that this truly was the place that I'm supposed to go to.

After I opened my call, the friends and family had left and things had settled down I began trying to learn all I could about my field of labor for the next two years.

I stumbled upon the blog of some random missionary who was currently in my mission and began to scroll through the pictures of Japanese people on it.

And something really kind of amazing happened. A powerful feeling of love flowed into me. I almost was in tears for how much love I felt for those people. And that was when I knew that Fukuoka Japan is EXACTLY where I'm supposed to go, and that's where the Lord needs me most.

I'm so excited!

When Did I Change?

In BBC's "Robin Hood" there's a quote by Maiden Marian that goes along the lines of, "What is it with men and glory?"

Up until sometime recently I was one of those men. I sought grandeur. I wanted to be great. I wanted to be remembered in the history books, or in the science books. I wanted to known for my genius and innovation. 

I don't know if I do anymore...

It's not that I don't want to do great things in my career. I do! But that's not what's most important to me now. That's not what I am passionate about, it's not what I get emotional about. 

I'm not exactly sure when this happened, all I know is that it feels so right.

Though doing something like this:

would be amazing!

I'm much more passionate and so much more excited about doing this:

I'm honestly convinced being a father is the most important thing I will do on this earth. And I'm so excited for it!

So Close, Yet So Far

If there was anyone who absolutely wanted to be on a mission right now literally ANY where, so long as they could preach the gospel. Their name is Nick Walton.

Honestly I don't know how I survive. I had a dream the other night that I was in the MTC. When I woke up and realized I wasn't I was completely distraught!

I just want to be out blessing the lives of others already! Recently I've been volunteering at the referral center at the MTC. And rather than curbing my hunger for missionary work, it's just enlarging my hunger to a ravenous black hole. I think I had to really see and understand the lives of people without the Gospel to know how much they really need it, even if they don't realize it.

And I'm already beginning to fear the day when my mission will end. Not withstanding the fact that I haven't started yet... But missions don't end when they "end." In fact they don't really begin when they "begin." Our whole lives should be an extension of our desire to share the "good news" of the gospel with others and to enrich their lives. Elder Bednar taught me this in his talk "Becoming a Missionary" which is basically my favorite thing ever.

Though I might have to wait several months to enter the mission field. I don't have to wait to become a missionary. I can become a missionary right now and forever! =D

I can't wait!