February 27, 2012

Hey Mom, I’m well. This week has been pretty good. We worked hard; I just wish we could  have something to show for it. The weather has cooled off a little with the storms that have been coming through. I think its going to heat back up. Missionaries have been telling me how terrible the winters are. They are “just so flippin cold.” (In their words.)  These are people from Idaho saying this. They say it’s terrible because you just can’t escape it like you can in the states. With the states you have heating and houses with insulation. Here, not so much. Especially when you go to bed and you can see your breath. Yikes.

The boots that Kristen bought me are perfect. They really work wonders. I’m really grateful to have them.

My Spanish is still kind of bad. I think I just need to study a little better and just talk a lot more with my companion.

Elder Belk is great. He received his papers and flight schedule to go home this week. This kind of shocked him. He feels like he still needs to accomplish so much more before he leaves.

I did receive the Valentine package. Thanks so much. I also received a package from Darian’s family. They sent me lots of snacks. I heard that Darien is going to Ukraine. Wow. I need to write them. If you see them please tell them thanks. I’m loving the peanut butter you sent and thank you for the recipe. I’m sorry to say I tried cooking it last night and I messed up pretty bad. Instead of one and half table spoons of cocoa I put a cup and half. awh man it was so bad. It’s still ok. But it was definitely a learning experience. Today I cooked hamburgers for everyone. They actually turned out a little better. So yes I got the package, but I didn’t get a letter with it. Weird I can’t really think of anything for you to send me. Maybe just more photos of the family.

Well, that really stinks about the boys and girls basketball. I really dislike Hurricane now. We probably just needed more physical play from our guys with Hurricane. That’s the only thing I can think of.

Your dream definitely is an answer to my prayers. It’s the hardest I’ve prayed in my life these past couple weeks to know Brennan better. I hope I can have this experience. I want this because I have no memory of Brennan when he was alive. This makes me really sad because I feel like I don’t know my own brother. I feel like I should know him. Thank you for this.

Thank you for praying everyday. We are studying President George Albert Smith for Sunday school in church. I read a quote from him about prayer and I loved what it said. families that pray together stay together. Thanks so much for doing that. Thanks so much family. Love you all.

Elder Webster

February 20, 2012

Hey family.

This week was all right. I’m just not having as much success as I would like. This week I had the chance to go to my first zone conference, and had a chance to talk with my companion from the MTC. He said he’s had 5 baptisms already. Zone conference was great though, it lasted 5 hours.  The conference was centered on the Book of Mormon and how it is the key of conversion. We had pizza for lunch and the president’s wife made heart shaped cookies for us, since it was Valentines Day.  It was a great experience. I love listening to president Heaton speak.  I hope you guys had a great valentines day. The joke is with missionaries that the next Valentines Day when you get home will be just as lonely as when you were on the mission.

I did not get your letter or package, hopefully tomorrow. We get packages and mail on Tuesdays. Everything comes from Montevideo, the office elders mail everything on Monday. So if you want the gmails to get to me, you need to send them by Sunday night. I greatly look forward for the package though.

Thank you so much for working on my music so fast. It’s greatly appreciated. 
I am in the Young Rio Negro zone.

Its pretty cool you ran into Mike Young. I think I remember him when Lauren had to go get stitches. I think he was the doctor that did that.

I also like in first Nephi, that Nephi prayed that he could see what his father saw. I have so much that I want to tell you guys this week that I’ve learned. Hopefully I can get it written down some how.

Well I love you guys so much. I’m glad you got my letter. I will try to write a letter today, but we are very behind. I’ll try though. Love you so much
Elder Webster

February 13, 2012

Hey Mom,

This week has been a tough one. Probably the toughest week I’ve had on the mission. We didn’t get Pilar baptized because He had one single doubt about the Sabbath day and why it’s on Sunday and not Saturday. We explained in so many ways that Sunday is the Sabbath because Christ was resurrected on Sunday and we spend that day remembering him. He’s still stuck on it. He prays for an answer about it, but he won’t be baptized until he gets one. I guess the only good thing that came out of that lesson is my testimony about the Sabbath day. Now when I take the sacrament I remember the atonement, and I also think about how he has risen and that he has conquered death for us.

We also had another investigator who is now in jail. Woops. The whole family just had a mental break down I guess. It’s a little frustrating when you spend so much time on people and you come to care about them, but then in the end they don’t make the right choices. A very frustrated Elder right now, but I always try to smile when I want to moan…and it actually really helps.

Last week the Uruguay guest mail didn’t come in. You might have to send it in a day earlier. I think it’s because we have new Elders in the office and they’re kind of slackers.

I felt strongly that I needed to write them a letter that day. It took a lot more time and then I thought it would so sorry that I couldn’t write a letter to you guys. You should be expecting one soon…I hope. It makes me really glad that I could’ve made their day in some way. I love the Wilsons they’ve always been so great to me.

Every other p-day we take a bus to a bigger city where the rest of our zone is. We take an hour bus ride at 6:30 in morning then we usually hang out there and play soccer or basketball with the other elders. When we don’t leave town, we write letters and we clean and make lunch with the other Elders. It’s pretty fun.

I’m greatly enjoying this p-day. It’s been a tough week. This morning we went to the park and played football. I’m teaching our new Latino how to throw a football. He’s really quick and fast. He could’ve been a really good receiver in the states.

I’m glad Simister had a good game. He doesn’t get the credit he deserves. I think our games were exciting because we had an awesome student section. We had players that made great plays in the paint. I just imagine this years team with Ler and Sims shooting 3s the whole game.

Stephen, I’ll send you a jersey. I actually found a Germany jersey last week.

I love you all so much. Thank you for your prayers. I feel them often.

 Stephen,

Well, I just know that goals are important. It’s not a goal unless you write it down. So they told us in the MTC. I guess that it’s kinda true. The one spring getting ready for football was the only time I’ve actually gained any real muscle. But it was also the only time I wrote down my goals of where I wanted to be by summer. So, yeah, goals are important and they become that much more when you write them down.

Soccer is so crazy down here. It’s so much bigger than I thought. I’m getting pretty good though. I think it’s going to help with kicking by a lot.

Hope all is going good. I pray for you everyday.


Love su hermano menor

February 6, 2012

This Week was great! We finally got things worked out with Pilar and we are having his baptism this Saturday. Hopefully things work out with that. Its been raining on and off this past week, a heavy rain storm will come through then the next day it’ll be really hot. The temperature got up to a 100 a couple days ago. Cooking is good. Pancakes and other breakfast things I can do. But my companion still cooks the big things like big chickens or hamburgers. I think I’ll try making the hamburgers this week. It doesn’t look too hard. We had 4 investigators in the church, which was really good. We also had two sister missionaries visit the ward. They’ve been home from their missions for 4 years now. I wonder if I’ll ever come back here. It would be fun for sure. It stinks that the Patriots lost again to the Giants. I hate the Giants argh.

I’ll write a letter tonight talking more about the work. Love you mom thanks for everything. I feel your prayers everyday. 

Hey dad. Hope work is getting better and over all life.  My R`s are coming pretty good, they don’t roll R`s like we do come to find out a Latino is helping me out. He put a pencil in my mouth and told me to keep trying till I got it. So that’s what I do everyday for Spanish study. Speak Spanish with a pencil in my mouth haha.
I’m really excited about this week; I might get the chance to baptize Pilar. We’ll see. Its his choice after all. It’s too bad the patriots lost. I was hoping for some revenge.
All right love you dad. Hope Mitt and Chris are doing well with the elections keep me posted.

Hey Lauren I hope everything is going great. There are so many little girls here that are your age. Its crazy here because when they turn 15 they make it a really big deal. They throw parties and all of this other stuff its bigger than our 16. I sent you a letter that’s just for you it applies to whole family as well. tambien. Well Love you Lauren. Pray for you everyday.

New Years Photo's from Young Uruguay with Elder Belk

Here are some photos. Sorry it took so long. But these are from New Years. The taller one is my companion, the one standing on the right of me.