March 4, 2013

In one week from now... I`ll have my Mother in my loving arms. Strange. HAHAHA, I mean... AWESOME! It has finally come. The last week. The final stretch. The End of the Road. What a ride this has been. Two years of work. Non stop, continuous work. What an accomplishment. What an achievement. What a blessing. How blessed I`ve been, being able to spend two years among these wonderful, beautiful, happy people of the Patagonia. I have been given so many blessings from my Heavenly Father. I love Him so much. He has given me... Everything in my life, and for that, I owe Him my all. I owe Him everything. 

We are going to have a killer week. In a few hours, I`ll be celebrating my last Pday with a Lamb on a spit... :) I`ll take a bunch of pictures, don`t worry. ;) Elder Childs birthday is tomorrow, we have TWO baptisms on Saturday!! WOOOT!!! Agustina Lagos, the 10 yrs. old girl from the inactive family that we`ve now helped return to church, and Patricio, the Father of Enzo, who we baptized my first week here! He has been an incredible miracle. We have been just... jaw-dropped, dumb founded as we`ve seen him progress, and see the light of Christ growing in his eyes. At the beginning of my time here, 6 weeks ago, he didn`t even talk to us. He wanted nothing to do with us, and now? We announced his baptism on Sunday, and he told us afterwards, with a look of disbelief and shock... I`m getting baptized on Saturday, as if he couldn`t believe it himself!!! HAHA! Wow. What a blessing. I will be working harder this week than ever before. I love the mission. It has been the greatest. This is the last week I have to be able to show my Heavenly Father how much I love Him, and I will dedicate every last second to his will. Bring it on. 

Anyways... I`m very excited. I`m super happy. This is it. What I lived for for 19 years is about to come to a close. But, as said Paul... "I have fought a good fight. I have finished my course. I have kept the faith." Those words bring a lot of peace into my heart. The scriptures hit you in the very soul. Your Spirit calls out for their inspiring words from on High. If there`s one thing I`ve learned on this mission, it`s that Heavenly Father lives. That Jesus Christ, is my Savior. That he REDEEMED ME. It is REAL. It`s all REAL. I am a Child of God. In the most literal sense... I love the Plan of Salvation. I`m grateful for Joseph Smith, and for his bravery and courage in restoring the true Gospel, and the true Church upon the Earth. Thomas S. Monson is THE prophet on the Earth today. I know it. And I know that God knows it, and I cannot deny it. 

I bore my testimony to my Zone in my last Zone Conference. What a moment. What a spiritual experience. In that moment, It hit me that I was going home. I cried. Hard. I am excited to come home, and begin working in my own ward. The Lord has a great work for me to accomplish in the Church. I will not deny Him my service. I come back, changed. And that is the biggest blessing of all of this. I will come, converted. 

I love you all. You have been my love and support for these two years. I will never be able to thank all of you for what you`ve done. Thank you for everything. What a journey, what a blessing, what a miracle. I leave my testimony to you all, to all who will ever read this email, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is THE Church of God on the earth. I will never deny my testimony. Mobs may combine, persecutions may rage, calamity may defame, And the very powers of Hell may assemble to throw me down, but I will not, cannot deny the testimony of my Lord and Savior, even Jesus Christ, Amen. 

Elder Cuthbert

February 25, 2013

Everyone,

Here is Jordan's letter from last week.  At first I wasn't going to send it because it was so short, but after re-reading it, I decided it was worth sending.  He mostly talks about our trip while I'm there, so I won't bore you with those details - can't believe its here!!!  I leave on Sat the 9th and we will be back on Mar. 22nd.  His homecoming will be March 31st (Easter) at 11:00am.  Everyone of you are invited to the house afterwards for lots of good food!

 

Thank you for supporting Jordan for these last two years! 

 

Melanie

Elder Presley should be talking to you right at this moment. Haha, yes! The mission is dividing!! No longer will it be my beloved Argentina Neuquèn Mission! It`s going to be a huge change for the mission. Missionaries will be transfered to the new mission Comodoro Argentina Mission, which covers Trelew all the way down to Ushaiah! Crazay! I`m doing wonderful, just busy seeing miracles and loving my companions. I`m having so much fun with them! They are incredible. E. Child plays the violin and has this FIRE when he testifies, E. Lozada is becoming more and more like his Pa... Me. Haha, he`s becoming a fireball. I`m so happy for them. I honestly never loved a companion as much as I do, them.

 

I love you. See you in two weeks.  

E. Cuthbert

February 18, 2013

You guys will not believe what has happened... HOLY COW!!! HAHAHA! You don`t know HOW EXTREMELY HAPPY I AM!!!  First of all, Happy Valentine`s Day! We celebrated the birthday of Enzo, the boy who we baptized my first week here, he had his birthday on the 14th as well! So we had pizza and birthday cake with the family, it was awesome! Anyway... I want to share the happy news!!!

The "Father" of the "Son" just got another "Son"! HA!" Do you understand? Do you get it? I`m TRAINING AGAIN!!! I have two companions, both of them new! E. Lozada, from Peru, obviously, and my new "Son", is named E. Child, from Alaska! WWOOOOHOOOOO!! Can you believe it? What a change of plans for my last three weeks! I am training two missionaries, one from Peru, and one from the United States. What a blessing, what a challenge, and what a humbling experience. I am super happy. 

On Tuesday night, my Zone Leaders called me up and told me - "Elder, you`d better sit down, because the news we have for you is going to make you limp..." Haha. I sat down, and they said, Elder Cuthbert, you`re training again." I was dumbfounded. I didn`t know what to say. ""WHA??" Haha! What happened was that Elder Child, with a few other Elders had their call to come to Neuquèn, Argentina, but their Visas were taking forever to reach them, so they were working in the MTC as Internet Missionaries, missonaries who spend the majority of their day on the computer, chatting with people on Mormon.org, facebook, Skype, and things like that! He was there for 5 and a half months! He finally got the Visa, and when he arrived here, the President assigned him to me. I was so happy. His Spanish is pretty good, because he got 5 months of practice in the MTC, obviously, it needs work, but at least I don`t have to spend all my time trying to teach him Spanish when we could be spending that time to teach people and baptize. I`m not here to waste a single second! We`re here to baptize! So, we`re now in a trio. The ward loves it, and we love it too. It was pretty hard in the first lesson, because every one of us wanted to say stuff, and share his testimony and speak about everything, so we ended up teaching for an hour and a half! I pulled them aside afterwards and said, "Look, we can`t do that! Haha, we need to learn to be a companionship, we`re a team. We need to say short, powerful statements, and turn the teaching over to our companion, so that all can speak, but also so the influence of the spirit isn`t hindered... And now we`re a very good trio! So yeah, what a change of plans! Que tal, eh!!! I`m REALLY sorry, for some reason, every cyber we go to to write you guys, none of the computers recognize our cameras, so I can`t send you a picture of our awesome trio. Oh well, when I get home! Haha. 

Baptize, baptize, baptize... That`s all that`s on my mind. Well... I lied. Not really. What I`m more worried about are my two "sons". Haha. I want them to become BOMB missionaries. I want them to become Assistants, Zone Leaders, Mission Presidents... Haha! I want them to become TRUE Celestial Missionaries. So, I have a big task ahead of me. I know that as we focus on baptizing, we will grow closer, as three best friends, tied between countries (and even those that live in the same country, tied between a VERY BIG DISTANCE) Ha, we`ll become baptizing machines! We`ve put quite a few baptismal dates for my last week here. I pray and beg that we will baptize. POR FAVOR!!! 

Anyway, Have a wonderful week. Mom... I can`t believe I`m going to see your face in 3 weeks. I can`t believe it. 

I love you all, have a wonderful week... I will see you all very soon! 

E. Cuthbert 

February 11, 2013

Alright, HELLO!!!!!! I love you all!!! You`re all the best!

With the end being so close... It`s getting harder and harder to focus and stay concentrated. Sometimes, thoughts about what I`m going to do come barging into my mind. What will I do the first week that I return? Where will I go? When will I find work? In WHAT will I work? When will I go to school? Bla bla bla bla bla!!! I said to myself.. "ENOUGH!!! Elder Cuthbert, you do NOT need to worry about any of that. Get your head in the game, and worry about ONE thing. Missionary Work. Worry about one goal. Inviting ALL to come unto Christ. Don`t worry about ANYTHING else. Throw it all in the box, throw it in the suitcase - or better yet - throw it in a box and mail it home. I worry about what the Lord wants me to do now. Afterwards, He will worry about me, and help me so that everything goes to plan so that I can fulfill my Divine Nature. As I put my faith in Him, He will put everything into its proper place when I return home, so that when that moment comes, I can pull out everything from the box, throw away some things here, begin again with some things there... Basically, review my life from before, and decide what it is that I no more desire, and what it is that will help me grow and progress. I do NOT need those things now." And so that`s what I did. Whenever a thought comes into my head about movies, Apple iPhones, running sprints or hurdles, school, money, work... Anything like that - I shove it into the box, not to be opened until my feet hit the ground in Salt Lake City. It`s pretty tough. Ha. 

I am enjoying my time, thoroughly in this wonderful little city. To be honest, when I got here, there wasn`t a lot going on. The Elder that was here with E. Lozada for 4 weeks had his thoughts on a girl, and not on the Work. So we`ve been letting go some people who don`t want to progress, and we are in the hard process of finding new people. Remember how it was in Esquel when I was put into a Whitewas with E. Sharp? Same basic thing has happened. E. Lozada was NEW in the mission, and had only 4 weeks here in Allen, of which much of that time wasn`t spent doing stuff a missionary should do. I have come here, and I "tore down the tables of the merchants and sellers" as Christ did with the Temple. We are obedient, hard working and desirous for miracles, and the members can see it. We didn`t have anyone in church yesterday. We are working with an inactive family named Lagos family, who has a daughter named Augustina who isn`t baptized. She`s 10 years old. We`ve been fighting for a good 2 weeks to get them to go to church, but they haven`t been able to make it... I was pretty frustrated yesterday when we went over. When we got to the house, we asked them why they hadn`t gone. The mom said that one of the daughters had felt sick, and that for that reason, no one went. What an excuse. Especially when we had spoken previously that week that if one of the parents couldn`t go, that the other one would take Augustina. Problem was that the husband was busy working on the roof of his new house he`s building. Something we had taught to them during that week was Keeping the Sabbath day HOLY. I saw him working on that roof, and a sorrow... a HUGE sorrow came over my heart. I felt what the Savior felt and feels. People who neglect the sacrifice that He paid for their sins... I dropped the cane a little bit, but then - knowing that making them feel bad won`t really do anything in the end, began teaching about the Atonement, and that no matter what, the next Sunday, they would all be there. It was a tiring lesson. 

I feel it. Yesterday, I was very tired. I fight and fight and fight, walk and walk and walk, invite and invite and invite, help and help and help, serve and serve and serve... And so many times - Those sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father, just... don`t accept it. But I know that I must go on. Today marks the countdown of one month. ONE month. A lot can happen in one month. I know that if I surrender myself completely to my Father in Heaven, He will make a missionary out of me. Pray for me, all of you. I need your prayers. This is more than a mission. This is more than one month. It is the last month of my life (For all I know) that I will carry the name of the Lord over my heart. One day, I was curious to see what I would look like in a shirt and tie, without the plaque that says:; ELDER CUTHBERT The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter Day Saints. And I looked... wrong. Empty. I threw my plaque on as quickly as I could, then, again, looked in the mirror. There I was. ELDER CUTHBERT. There was the person that I knew. The Son of God that I had grown to recognize every morning. There was a Disciple of Christ, ready to go into battle. There... was Me. 

Two years is a long time. Lucky me, I`ll be on the mission for two years and one week. HAH! 

I love you all, you are my strength. Have a wonderful week. 

E. Cuthbert

February 4, 2013

We had a pretty interesting week. Yesterday, there was a special missionary prep class at 6pm at the church. E. Lozada and I went to it to bear our testimonies. When we bore them... I felt the Spirit SO strongly. In just imagining how much time has gone by as a missionary, and knowing that it`s almost over, I was torn apart. I bore to them the most heart felt testimony that I could. I wanted them to FEEL the need to go on the mission. I wanted them to DROOL for the mission! And I think it worked. It`s amazing to think that it`s almost over. The mission has gone by so quickly, that sometimes, I feel that I`ve learned... Nothing. But then, I realize at ALL the experiences that have happened to me, the people I`ve met, the lessons I`ve taught, the things I`ve experienced, the hardships I`ve endured... And I`ve learned things that for me, are priceless.

 

We`re working on a lot of people. Having lessons that are awesome. Working out every morning. Walking a TON. And doing Missionary Work. I`m happy. And not willing to let any minute pass by without serving my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Sorry this letter is so short, I have to do a bunch of stuff today, and I`m talking to you, Mom, in an hour and a half!!!

 

Your Missionary,

E. Cuthbert

I love you all.

January 28, 2013

P.S. Just so you know. . .  I didn't intentionally send Jordan scissors, Haha!  I wrapped the pkg. in the car and somehow they ended up in the pkg.!!  Wow!   

WOOOOOOOO    HOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

We got the Standard, We got the Standard, We got the Standard, Hey Hey Hey HEY! Who got the Standard? We got the Standard! We got the Standard, Hey Hey Hey HEY!!! (To the music of "The Little Rascals"... HA!

Alright, as you can tell, I`m pretty happy. REALLY happy. SUPER DUPER Happy. We had a week that blew my MIND. I`ll tell you all about it. First of all, yes, I got my Bday package! DOUBLE CHOC. CHIP COOKIES!!!! YES!! Thank you for the card, the balloons, and the cookie mixes. Is there a reason you gave me scissors? Ha, I couldn`t find a use for them in anything that ws in the package, so I thought that maybe someone stole something... Anyway, hopefully not. 

I left Avellaneda, Zapala a little sad, but ready to go. I left a ton of incredible people there. After getting the Standard with E. Irala again, we were pretty tight together. We`ve become really good friends. And I know that I will always remember those days. Those incredible days... Anyway, I got to Allen that night, Monday and met my companion, E. Lozada. He`s from Peru! My first Peruvian! He`s new in the mission, obviously, and is really excited. He thinks a lot about home, (Just like any other new missionary that recently left home) But is full of excitement, and likes to push himself. He wants to learn English really badly, and has an accent that is NOT Argentine. Hahaha! He`s awesome! I`m going to see if I can send a picture of us with our baptism... These computers are pieces of trash. I got here on Monday night, and when we entered the apartment, I was stunned with the amount of TRASH and FILTH that there was... It was incredible. E. Lozada had a companion for 4 weeks before me, and he wasn`t a very good one. It was DIRTAY!!!! So I spent the next few mornings cleaning... Haha! The pench is spic and span - a place where the Spirit can now dwell. It`s a nice apartment. I`m going to like it here. Allen is a pretty big city. It`s not really a City city, but... It`s big. You`re right, it`s apart from General Roca, and no, I don`t go to both of them. The missionaries in my district are in Roca. Allen is the place where E. Syddall, a year ago, was cut from the neck to the cheek... Remember? Haha! Don`t get startled... The guy who cut him was found dead a while back. What goes around comes around! Anyway, before that incident, there was a pair of Sisters and Elders here, and now, we have the whole city to ourselves! I LOVE IT!!! It`s HUGE, and there`s a TON of work to do. As trainer, I will be doing everything that I did with E. Healey... Making sure that this wonderful companion of mine becomes the best missionary in the Argentina Neuquèn mission. As District Leader, I`m over a District of 8 missionaries, including myself... And guess who`s in my district??!! E. Healey!!! Hahaha! When I saw him again, it was awesome! We hugged and spoke a while about everything, it was so good to see him. Heh! That Gringo! Anyway, Yeah, that`s Allen... I can`t send a picture, because the computer doesn`t even recognize the camera.... Stupid computer place... 

I loved what you said about the Atonement... I know that NO ONE here knows what ATONEMENT means... It is something so sad. People say they believe in Christ, but it`s just a blind faith. They know NOTHING about Him or His life. They think that to follow Him they need to lead a good life, not doing anything bad to anyone, and that`s it. People don`t understand a lot about Him. And it`s true, because the Bible was translated so many times, the plain and precious truths were lost. 1 Nephi 13... 

On Tuesday, we met with the family of a recent convert. We are teaching their kids... Enzo (Jared will like that, because it`s the name of a Ferrari) who is 12.... Really likes the church, but didn`t know if he should get baptized. We told him to pray that night to see if he should get baptized on the 26th of January. We went by on Wednesday, and he said: "I prayed last night, and this morning, I woke up with a sensation of happiness, and I know that I have to get baptized." BAM!!!!! We prepared the baptism, and began working our rear ends off, here... We had the baptism on Saturday, and by the end of Sunday, we ended the week with better numbers than I`ve ever had in the entire mission. We destroyed. Destruction. And we got the Standard. It was a testimony to myself that I`m here to work, and I`m here to show the Savior the love that I have for Him, and that I don`t want this time to end. But yeah, I`m happy. Hahahaha. I know that these 6 weeks that I have left are going to be 6 weeks of pain, but I`m excited. Afterwards... I can rest. For now, to the field. 

Anyway, Not being Zone Leader gives me more time to write family... But I don`t know what else to say! Haha, so I love you all. Know that I am working my hardest. I love this Gospel, this Work, my Savior... Pray for me!!! 

The Missionary

E. Cuthbert

January 21, 2013

I AM SO HAPPY!! SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO HAPPY!!! My Birthday was the BOMB, We got the STANDARD BY MIRACLES, I´m SUPER PUMPED about my new area... I´m flying in the clouds... But I´m not going to get ahead of myself... One at a time.

 

Hello, my wonderful family! I love you all SO much. You are all so incredible, thank you for sending me Birthday emails. It´s incredible, I can´t even believe that I´m 21. How the time has flown. How grateful I am for my life, the experiences, the friends, the family, everything that has happened in my life up till now makes me SO happy. Heavenly Father is smiling down on me, here in Zapala. I know it, because I´ve seen incredible blessings this week. First thing´s first... I´m being transferred, E. Irala is staying. I´m going to Allen, General Roca. To the East of Neuquén about an hour away. It´s a wonderful place, I´ve heard. I was told that it´s ready to baptize a ton. My new companion is... a new Elder! I´m training again! I´ll be District Leader, and Trainer. It´s going to be an incredible experience. I´m so excited for my new area, and absolutely ecstatic to get working.

 

We got the Standard. I can´t even tell you guys the amount of prayer that I was doing this week. I have never prayed more earnestly in my life for something. All I wanted was to leave Zapala and E. Irala with the Standard, showing God, President Lovell, and myself, that I´m not going to fizzle out in the end. That I will push myself till the last second. And that´s what we did. By miracles, we got the standard. Yesterday, we ran from house to house, teaching and talking to people... We had 5 Investigators in church, Miracle. 4 lessons with member, Miracle. Spoke with 34 people in the street in about an hour and a half, which doesn´t happen often here, because there´s never a lot of movement in the roads... And we baptized Vanesa and Genaro! Oriana didn´t get baptized, because she needs the permission of her father. But, we are SO happy about the baptisms of Genaro and Vanesa. Genaro got baptized Sunday morning at 8 o clock, before church. Vanesa on Saturday evening. I can´t even write what I want to, the joy that´s filling my heart is indescribable. I know that I left everything on the table here in Zapala. I know that I can hold my head high, knowing that miracles happened, and that I did everything within my abilities to make this area better than when I found it. I´m so grateful for everything.

 

Everyone at church wished me a happy birthday. I had cake with Familia Sanhueza - The wife also had her birthday yesterday, so we shared birthday cake and had a wonderful visit. Then, we were working like never before, trying to achieve all the goals we needed to get the Standard. Finally, the Venegas family invited us over to eat a few pizzas at 8:30... I was suspecting a surprise.... And what do you know!!! They had a huge surprise party there, waiting for me. The Elders and Sisters from the other wards were there as well. Vanesa and her family were there. a HUGE party with a ton of pizza, alfajors, desserts everywhere... And a giant cake for me!!! I went in to bite a piece off the corner, and E. Cooper from a different ward, pushed my face into the cake!!! We all laughed about it, and then we had a wonderful time, eating a ton of food. Then, we all had, basically, a testimony meeting. We said a ton of goodbyes... We all cried. I love the Venegas family so much. I love Vanesa so much. She was a pure miracle baptism. She is incredible. She wanted me to baptize her, so, on Saturday, I baptized her. I can tell you guys, that I have never felt happier. I know that these last 7 weeks will be the best ever. I´m so ready to run till I drop.

 

Anyways... That´s everything. Seven weeks. Seven weeks of heavenly bliss, and then... Home.  Anyway, I have to go now. I have to get to the pench, finish packing and leave on the bus! I love you all so much, thank you for the birthday wishes... You are all wonderful. You´re the best.

 

Your Missionary,

E. Cuthbert

January 14, 2013

Hi all,

Each time I read letters like this I say a little prayer thanking Heavenly Father for providing this opportunity for our young men and women.  I know that there is no other way Jordan could become the man he is today without having the opportunity to serve our Heavenly Father and learn what is really important.  

-Melanie

It´s been cold??! What are you talking about?? It´s been FLIIIIPPIN´ HOT!! Holy cow, we had a week of over 100 degrees almost every day. It reached 107 degrees on Friday. Wow, we were sweating bullets, I can tell you that! On Saturday night, we had a rain/thunder storm that I have never seen before in my time here in Argentina. It reminded me of North Carolina. Lighting, flashing across the sky almost every second, with more rain than the sea has water. All the streets were flooded, All of them. But, it cooled down the weather, so I was really grateful for that.

 

Hello, my wonderful family! How are you all doing? I´m doing awesome. That´s incredible that everyone is leaving on a mission... It makes me really happy. The ward is going to be so different when I get home! But anyway, I´m not worried about that right now. Well, she left. Haha. Dani is on the mish! I´m sure she´s having an excellent time. I remember that the MTC was one of the best experiences that I had ever had in my life. The food... Do you remember me talking about the food? Makes my stomach long for the MTC... Hahaha!

 

E. Irala and I are freaking out. This next Monday is transfers. One of us is leaving. It will most likely be me, obviously, but we are still nervous. I´m thinking about where I´m going to be for the last 7 weeks of my mission. Where ever it is, I have a peace that the Lord is at the helm, and that he´s in charge of my mission, and that I´ll be where he needs  me to be. In this week of heat, we had a few wonderful miracles, we will be having 3 baptisms on Saturday, Genaro - The 9 yr. old son of a less active family, who really want him to get baptized. Vanesa and Oriana, the sister and daughter of Laura Venegas, the family with whom we spent Christmas. They, I am praying, and at this moment fasting, that they all make it. Vanesa, because of the death of Lucas (Son of Laura) has realized that this is what she needs to do. We know that Lucas´ death was something that would help many people grow closer to the Savior, and that it would be the strength that Vanesa needed to take the step of baptism. She is a wonderful person with a lot of faith. She is fasting with us, fasting for her baptism - What an incredible experience it is, to fast with your investigators! I love it.

 

I had quite the experience in San Martín last week. I spent the whole day in my old area... And I found a ton of old investigators! Then, on the way home waiting for the bus... Roberto Gori and his wife, (Roberto who I baptized with his son, Matias on the 5th of November more than a year ago) stopped with their car and offered us a ride to the pench of the Elders. Roberto got out and began yelling, bowing down to me, his wife (who was member beforehand) screaming, ran up to me and shook my hand with all her strength. We had a wonderful conversation on the way to the pench, where they informed me that, on the 21st of this month, January, they are GETTING SEALED IN THE TEMPLE OF BUENOS AIRES!!!!! YESSSSSSS!!!!!!! I was so happy! I almost had tears in my eyes because of it. Wow, what a beautiful sensation, knowing that a family you had taught, and baptized... Are now traveling to the temple to make those sacred vows through the Holy Priesthood! What a blessing! :) :) I told them that on the 12th of March, I´ll be there in San Martín with my mother, and they said: We´´ll be waiting for you with an Asado!!! So, get ready, Mom! :)

 

I also had a telephone call with someone.... Really special. The Rama family, Ramón, Mirta, Claudia and Dana... moved to Cutral Co, a city about an hour away from Zapala. I got the phone number from the Elders there, and called them!!! I spoke with Ramón. Right when he answered, I said... "Hi! How are you?" And without even saying my name, from that little sentence... He recognized my voice! Saying: "Hello, Elder Cofber!!! (No one can pronounce Cuthbert... it´s a curse;)) I couldn´t even speak Spanish to him, I couldn´t say anything! After a year without seeing or speaking to him, he recognized my voice... It was such a special moment. We spoke for a while about their lives, how everything was going, and I told him that he needed to go to church in Cutral Co. He said not to worry, that they were already planning on going. We are going to Cutral Co on Tuesday for a meeting with missionaries there, so I´m going to call him tonight and see if we can have lunch with them! What a blessing.... :)

 

This is it, one transfer more. After this week, 7 weeks till the end of the mission. It´s unbelievable. I can´t even... I can´t think. I want you to know that I am very happy. Thank you so much for the support that you always give me. Jared, how are the workouts going? I´m pushing hard, so that when I get home, I don´t find my younger brother stronger than me! HEH!! I love you all so much. Mom, I haven´t gotten the pckg. yet, but we haven´t gone to get the mail yet... It might be there... Anyway, OH! Mom, I have a request for you. Can you try to find a book that´s called TEMPLES. It´s by an Apostle of the church. A member here has desired that book ever since he was a missionary, but it only comes in English, and it doesn´t exist here. Will you try and find it? It´s old. Written in the 70's or 80's, I think. Anyway... That´s all for now! I love you all! This week we´ll be traveling again, a lot. But even with that, we´re going to get the Standard - a final Explosion of Elder Cuthbert/Irala power. ;)

 

E. Cuthbert

January 7, 2013

My Wonderful Family...

 

I´m very happy, and very excited for some reason. I don´t know why, but I´m typing REALLY fast, and it´s awesome. I have butterflies in my stomach, don´t ask me why! Maybe it´s because I read about Jared wanting to do something with the mission papers... You´ll all think I´m like an alcolholic or drug addict, but with the mission! When I hear mission... I flip! And on top of all that, Dani leaves on her mission in two days... WHAT the HECK!! Can´t be! So crazy, everything in my life is changing. But, I love it. I can see the hand of the Lord in everything. In everything, everything, everything.

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! We saw quite a few fireworks that night, and it was a really cool night. Mother, I can´t believe you emailed E. Presley about my little cough!!! Hahaha! It wasn´t a cough, but it really wasn´t much of a deal. I love that though, you care about me! (Big surprise there, Elder... ;)) I´m doing absolutely wonderful now. I had a very big workout this morning, something I haven´t done for about a week because I was just recovering, and apart from that, we weren´t in our area for 4 days last week! So... As you can see, I´ve been pretty busy.

This last week was such a crazy week. We spent half the week outside the area, in other people´s areas or in meetings in Neuquén with the President. Also, the Venegas Family, a really special family that we are very close to, their son died on Friday night. Saturday morning we had the funeral. I had the honor or giving him his last blessing while he was still in this life.... It was a very spiritual experience. I would tell more, but don´t have the time. I love you all so much. Thank you for all you do. You are incredible. Jared, keep it up. Nike. (Just do it) Have a wonderful week, and I will be talking to you guys next week! My time in Zapala is almost done.

December 31, 2012

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!! May the beginning of this New Year bring my entire family and friends, happiness and blessings from our dear Heavenly Father. I`m so grateful for my family, and all the wonderful blessings that you all have received in this time that I`ve been outside of the country, serving the Lord.  The call to you guys was amazing, even though I was green... Ha. I loved seeing your faces, you all look so happy! You guys are a wonderful family. I`m happy, though, that I won`t be calling again. It`s very hard to focus and concentrate with thoughts about home or family or whatnot. So, I`m glad it`s over, and the next time I see my wonderful Mom`s face, it will be on the 11th of March! 

I`m on a computer that takes a ton of time to upload pictures, so I can`t show you guys any! :( Don`t worry, I will get them up as soon as possible. We spent Christmas with a good family. We ate some really delicious food. Our trip on Tuesday was really fun. We packed 6 missionaries into the back of a little moving car, and drove about 2 hours away to a really gorgeous lake. There, I made Asado for everyone, which was really, really good. It started to rain, but I got the fire started anyway. It was a delicious lunch. We saw a bunch of cool stuff. There was a family who had a house that lived there, pretty much farmer people, and they had a huge flock of goats. I got up close to them and got a few pictures. The Patagonia has some beautiful landscapes, and some interesting creatures. It`s awesome. Then, Wednesday, it was back to work. We`ve been pretty frustrated with a lot of people, because they haven`t been progressing really well. They haven`t been keeping their promises to read or pray or go to church, and in that sense... We can`t help them to get baptized, so we`ve been trying to find new investigators these past few days, which is resulting to be difficult. I came down with something on Thursday, and was in bed all day. I`ve been up and running since Friday, but still have some very annoying symptoms following me around. I`ve been trying my best to be super happy and excited, but when you`re sick... It just drags. Haha. But don`t worry, I asked E. Irala for a blessing yesterday, and I`ve felt much better. :) 

With the new year coming around, it`s been a time to seriously reflect about the year that`s come and gone. It`s hard to believe that so much time has passed, but I know that I`m not done yet. Leticia, our wonderful convert, is now the Secretary in the Relief Society. Mariana has had some health problems lately, and hasn`t been going to church as often. We are working hard with a few people to get them baptized on the 12th or 19th of January. I`ll most likely be leaving here the 21st of January, the day after my birthday. We`re working with a woman named Vanesa and her two daughters, Oriana who is 10 and Abril who just turned 8. Vanesa is the sister of an excommunicated member, and never accepted the missionaries or the church until some hard things passed in her life, and now that she opened up, humbled herself and began to listen, she finds that everything that we`ve taught makes perfect sense. She is progressing very well, went to church yesterday with her two daughters, and after church, made us lunch! It was very nice of her. So there you have it. Not a ton of stuff happened this week, because of the Christmas "break" that we were given. We have another New Years "break" today and tomorrow. I don`t like it, because we begin to focus on other stuff, and not missionary work. With only 2ish months left, there is no time to play. 

Your prayers are deeply appreciated. Pray that I may recuperate fully, that I can keep up my excitement and happiness in these times of challenges and trials that the Lord gives me. I`ve been truly humbled this week, and know that It`s brought me closer to God.  I love you all, have a wonderful week! Happy New Years!!!

E. Cuthbert

December 17, 2012

I got your pckg. last week! How fast was that!! I haven´t opened it yet... I´m debating whether or not I have to wait until Christmas morning... Or if I should just rip it open right now! Haha! But yes, it´s intact... And I´m very happy for it, thank you so much Mom. You and Dad are the best for doing that for me. Daina is a little darling, isn´t she? She´s wonderful. Thank you for the congratulations on the Standard of Excellence! We had been working so hard! We have been working hard, every week to tell you the truth. Haha! We had interviews with President Lovell... What an interview. He has been SO proud of E. Irala and me. He gave me a bigger hug than I was expecting. He gave me a huge smile, saying he cared for me so much. That what E. Irala and I were achieving was SO exciting for him. He was seeing two missionaries begin to really MAGNIFY their calling. We spoke about how we were given one more transfer together. He said that we need to be prepared, because no matter what, at the end of this transfer, we will both have new companions for ONE transfer. He said that he was so impressed and happy about everything that we had learned, and our experience in helping others come unto Christ, and told us that we will have 7 weeks to share and channel ALL that experience into our new companion. I've been really humbled during this time, by things that the Lord is doing in our area. He loves us so much. I´ve been realizing in trying to do incredible things in missionary work, I first had to BECOME an incredible missionary. That is something that Brother Douglas, my teacher from the MTC taught me. And I feel that I´m finally putting it all into practice. I love the mission. Don´t let it end!!!

 

Jared, I love you so much, Bro! Can you believe it´s almost been two years??! How time flies! I remember so clearly the day I left you guys to leave to the MTC... Cafe Río, the car ride, the goodbyes... I remember everything like it was yesterday. It´s incredible how fast the mission flies. Thank you so much for writing me, Bud! Congratulations with the promotion in a little bit! When I get back, I want to try the Cookie Monster... Something that E. Healey told me is famous at Pizza Pie Cafe! You will take me there for free, no? ;) Mom, thank you so much for your example in everything you do. I love you so much. Dad... I can´t even tell you at how proud I am of you. I was asked to bear my testimony about the Priesthood in a meeting for young boys of 10 and 11 preparing to receive the Aaronic Priesthood... I testified about the incredible example I had, who was you, in helping me achieve my Faith in God award, my Duty to God award... How you always held your priesthood with dignity... Thank you for giving me that example in that time of my life.

We had a miracle with a new family we found. I don´t have time to tell it to you guys, but I´ll tell you next week. In the meantime... Have a wonderful week, and I will SEE you all on CHRISTMAS!!! 

Love, 

E. Cuthbert 

p.s. The picture is a flippin´ kettle!! It´s HUUUUGE!!! 

December 10, 2012

Well Hello!!! How´s my wonderful family doing? What a week it´s been... We FINALLY got the Standard of Excellence! POR FIN!!! Everything finally worked out. It was amazing how it all happened. Basically, the Lord decided: "Alright, they´ve been humbled enough to achieve it. I´ve shown them that things are in My hands, not theirs. Here you go." And he served it to us on a silver platter! We´re happy, but ready to be even better. We baptized Daina, the daughter of Leticia who got baptized two weeks ago. She is 9 years old and is the purest, sweetest little girl EVER! It was a wonderful baptism. ´The weather this week was a lot nicer. We had a lot of sun, I got sunburned on my arms last Monday while making Asado for a District in my Zone. Ow... Haha! But it´s all good now. Zapala, when it is windy... Is as windy as Comodoro. Like I said right when I got here, I thought I just left the windy place!! Ha, nope!

 

Flippin´  TREE! I miss seeing a HUGE pine tree! Argentine culture says that their trees don´t have to be more than 3 ft. high... So... You can imagine that the Christmas Spirit is only 3 ft. high, and not 20 ft. high!! (How tall is the tree? Send me pictures of the whole family next to the tree, POR FAVOR!!!) OH! I thought I´d better tell you guys that I´m staying!! WOOT! BAPTISMS AFUL!! We´re extremely excited. We´re going to baptize all of Zapala. Seriously. I´m really happy and content that I´m staying. I´ll be in my last area for only a transfer, but that´s ok. I don´t feel like I´m finished here. My race to 50 Baptisms is getting closer. I just reached 30 with the baptism of Daina. 10 baptisms per transfer... Most missionaries in this mission would think that´s impossible... But I´m here to break that mentality.

 

It´s been a wonderful week. I´m content and happy. I got a little sick, with a fever and sore throat, but it´s clearning up now. Haha! I wouldn´t mind drinking water with peppermint and everything else to kill any parasites I might have swimming through my body! I´ve never gotten sick because of the water here, but it is a health risk in Argentina... Incredible how sometimes... You can´t even be safe with the water! Today, I started P90X for the last time. I´m going to be going hardcore! We saw a missionary off on her bus as she left to go to Neuquén, and then, Utah. She finished her mission. I´m terrified!!! It can´t be! Mom, when I see you... It´s going to just be an incredible shock to me. I have to make these three months count more than ever before. No matter what. I can´t eat, I can´t sleep, I have to baptize.

We had an experience this week... On Saturday for the baptism, we had invited a family to come on Friday.. And they came! Familia Baldevenito (Baldaybeneeto... As we would say it in English... ;)) They really like the baptism. After the baptism we invited them to come to church, and they said they were going to come. The next morning, Luciano and Facundo (14 and 10 yrs. old) both came, ALONE! They got up early, and just left to go to church! MIRACLE! I called their mom to ask her if she was going to come for Sacrament meeting, and she told me no. Further more, she told me that she was surprised to wake up that morning and see that her children weren´t there! She didn´t know that they had gone to church. I let her know that we were watching after them, and she was SUPER surprised that they liked it so much. We asked them... Hey, do you guys want to get baptized? And they both were like... YEAH! WE had already taught the family about baptism, and they all have the goal for the 29th of December. They really liked the classes and everything. It was a miracle that they went to church! That´s why I say that the Lord handed us the Standard on a silver platter, because we weren´t even thinking they would come alone!

 

Our Heavenly Father is always aware. I love Him, and I know He loves me. Thank you so much, for all the support that you guys give me. I love you all, see you next week!

 

E. Cuthbert

December 3, 2012

HA! That made me laugh when you said Christmas would be better because Simon wouldn´t be there... It´s so crazy to think that Christmas is around the corner. CHRISTMAS?! Wasn´t I just in San Martín yesterday with E. Calvache, baptizing with that awesome Columbian during the Holidays? It´s incredible. It scares me. Life is coming around the corner, with the end of the mission closer than ever. No... 

What will I DO when I get back? Ha, what is life when you don´t have the name of the Lord on your chest? ... No, wrong. I will always have Christ written in my heart. I have a long way to go on my way to perfection, I´m so imperfect. But, I find joy in knowing that for Jesus Christ, I am everything to Him in these two years and forever. I know that I must do everything in my power to help as many sons and daughters come unto Christ through the waters of baptism before the clock strikes 0. Pray and fast for me, everyone who reads this. That I may have the strength, the courage and the zeal to see this through to the end sprinting like never before. I can´t let those arms down, like so many do. Now, is not the time to fail. 

Mother, I love you so much. Thank you for the pckg. You are incredible. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas. I will try to find a computer to do Skype with. I´m glad you had fun with Tina :). That´s fine with me, I love family traditions... They´re the greatest! How´s Dad, Mom? Let´s give him time to think about talking to me on Christmas NOW. I´m sure he does think about it sometimes, I want to talk to my Dad. HAPPY BIRTHDAY OMI!!!! I LOVE YOU! WHAT A GREAT ABUELA QUE ERES! Haha! I remember the times when I always came up to pick you up after work... It bothered me so much when you would leave late!! But that was a different, Me. I´m much different now. A lot more patient, but I still have a lot to improve on. Thanks for giving me those little memories to think back on... :) They make me smile about times that are now, long gone. 

Anyway, the baptism was AWESOME! Mariana bawled like a baby! (She always bawls like a baby), and we had the entire Primary get up on the stand and sing a primary song for Gustavo and his mom during the baptism! It was so awesome. What a wonderful baptism! I got the pictures of that baptism and the baptism from the week before. Enjoy the pictures! You won´t believe what happened.. We didn´t get the standard... AGAIN! NOOOO!!! We only had 2 people in the Sacrament meeting instead of 4. It was SO windy that morning... There was a Wind Alert from the city of Zapala, gusts of wind going more than 120 kph. Trees were flying everywhere, the metal from rooftops was everywhere, and the SAND!!! There was dirt and sand flying EVERYWHERE! Leticia and Mariana weren´t going to go, because of the wind, but we said  Oh hoh, NO YOU DON´T! And we went and picked them up in a car. Haha. Flip, I don´t have any time left.. We made Asado today, I was in charge of making it. I can´t wait to make you guys an Argentine Asado! But I love you all so much. Know that I am super happy with E. Irala, we found out on Saturday after the baptism of Daina if I leave or if he leaves, or if we stay together on Monday. So... You´ll know next week if I leave or not. I hope not, I´m so done with MOVING!!! Hahaha! I love you all. :) 

E. Cuthbert

November 26, 2012

It´s been a week of MIRACLES!! Honestly, I´ve been so happy over the past few days. I can´t even believe the happiness that´s been in my heart, and how it shows in my smile. A member the other day told us that we "Shined". They could see our Light. I know it´s because we baptized Leticia and Mariana!!!!!!!! YES! What a WONDERFUL baptism it was! One of the best in the entire mission. So many people went, and we had the support of so many people. During the week, we were working to get the Standard of Excellence... At the end, we didn´t get it. :/ We were missing ONE person in the Sacrament Meeting! NOOOOO!!! But anyway, it´s fine, because we´ll get it this next week. We achieved all other requirements except for that one. So be looking for the Standard next week! It´s going to be awesome! 

Right now I´m in San Martín. I´m with my Bud, E. Reid from Idaho. Today, we ran up a mountain, had Asado, went lizard and crawdad hunting, caught five crawdads and two lizards... It brought back the days in Gma´s backyard in St. George. It was such a fun time! We got a ton of pictures, but I dont´have my camera on me right now, so I´ll get you the pictures from the baptism and the trip to San Martín next week. Sorry! 

This week was literally FULL of miracles. We were working our rear ends to the MAX. We put a TON of fechas! 11 new fechas for the week. We went to a Hospital, thinking that we were going there just for a blessing, but we left with a sure baptism on the 22nd of December. Mariana is helping us with Gustavo, her son so he can be baptized on the 1st, as well as Daina, the daughter of Leticia! ROCK ON! I have SO much to say, and NO time to say it! I´m serious! The baptism was incredible. That morning we had the baptismal interviews, and Mariana who talks a TON, was in there for 2 hours and 40 minutes! Just to give you an idea, a regular interview takes about 20 minutes to do. We warned E. Martinez who was doing the interview that she talked a lot, but he had NO IDEA what he was getting himself into. Haha! During the baptism, Mariana asked me to baptize her. Leticia was baptized by the Bishop. After the ordenances, they both bore their testimonies to the entire ward! NOOO WAY! LEGIT! Yesterday, Mariana bore her testimony in Sacrament Meeting, and it was beautiful. Ha! something funny... We went to her house, and she asks... What was your name again? She then pointed to E. Irala... I know that his name is Marcelo, and that´s really easy, but yours... Edward? Hahahaha! No, ELDER! Anyway, it was incredible. What a wonderful week, full of miracles and baptisms. With more coming up on the way! We´ve got a baptism planned for EVERY single week in December. 

Well, I have to go. We´re in a huge hurry. I love you so much. Thank you so much for your support, and everything you do. Just know that I am 100% dedicated to the Work. That I am becoming a Disciple of Christ, and that the mission has to continue! It can ´t end!!! Anyway, I love you all. Thank you so much. 

E. Cuthbert 

November 19, 2012

I´m so happy you got to change your flight! Changing my flight was a cinch, I´m sure. And I´m SO happy that you´ll be getting there nice and early on Monday morning! :) You´re the best, Mom. I love you so much. Haha, did you like the call from E. Arenas? He´s such a good friend, I love him so much. I´m glad he gave you a contact for BA :) I don´t want anything else for Christmas. Anyone who was going to send me something... Just tell them to deposit the money in my savings account or something. I´ll need it for school supplies and stuff like that when I get back. Just a pair of 34/34 jeans for the trip. Don´t send me anything big or expensive. I´m close to the end, I don´t need anything from the States to spoil the joy of getting back to have those things again.

 

Well... We´re looking at 3 Baptisms this week!! WOOT! Leticia has been one of the EASIEST baptisms I´ve ever had, and it´s helped my testimony grow a TON on the importance of members. We taught her tithing last week, and she asked: Wouldn´t it be alright if I started paying my tithing BEFORE the baptism? Hahaha! YES! She asked us, How do you see my progress? How am I doing? We then had a short testimony meeting with her and the family of the Bishop Salazar (Our ward changed Bishops, and Brother Salazar is now Bishop Salazar! PERFECT!) and we all testified to her of her amazing progress, and the amount of happiness that we have in seeing her do what is right. She´s happy, it´s a locked in baptism. We already gave her invitations to invite people, and everything is going smoothly with her and her daughter.

 

Mariana has had SUCH A HARD LIFE. I don´t know if I told you guys about her cancer and all that, but enough said. She has a faith that stuns me. When we talked with her about smoking last week, she said: Alright, I know what I want to do. All my life I´ve wanted to get baptized, and give my all to Heavenly Father, and I´m not going to allow cigarettes to get in my way. She then gave us her pack of cigarettes that was FULL. She held strong for several days, and then yesterday... She smoked. She had been stressing about her family, her grandson who might die, and things like that. E. Irala was with her yesterday with another missionary doing divisions and they helped her through it, and she committed firmly to never smoking again. Her son, Gustavo, wants to get baptized on the 1st of December. Remember the Standard of Excellence? Well, E. Irala and I are going to achieve it this week, next week, and the week after that. I´ve gone through a big change in this last week. Thinking a lot about myself as a missionary, and the urgency that I have in becoming EVERYTHING that HF wants me to become. There is no reason why we shouldn´t baptize every single Saturday till the end of the transfer, all throughout December, and into January. We are rockin´ and rollin´!! Hopefully I don´t leave after the 8th of December, but... We´ll see. Heavenly Father has His will, His way. Always. So... yeah. I´m going to become the best missionary of the Mission Argentina Neuquén. Not in a boasting manner... I know that as it says in Alma 26, I am nothing, but when Christ helps me, I´m everything. For that reason - I am submitting myself completely to Him. To really become what He wants me to become. He´s going to put me through the Refiner´s Fire, and I shall come forth as gold, as it says in Job 23:10. 2 Samuel 22 something, says that with God, He can make our paths perfect, and make my arms to break a bow of steel... The Gospel is true. I love it. I love my Savior. Through His example, I can submit myself to His will, and become a true, Disciple of Christ. I love you all.

 

Melyn... You´re fat. HA, KIDDING!!! WOW! You´re really pregnant, you weren´t lying! ;) I love you so much, sista! Jared, how are you doing? Reading your scriptures every day? Saying your prayers? I love you, Bud.

Love,

E. Cuthbert

November 12, 2012

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOTHA!!! I love you so much! It´s been 45 yrs. since the world said hello to the most wonderful Mother that ever existed! I´m so happy that you and Dad had a good one! That you got your motorcycle license, and that things are going so well! It´s awesome that things are so good for your birthday! I´m very happy for you. I can´t believe it´s November... Right now, you guys should be seeing snow, no? Be careful on that scooter! Down here, it´s nothing but HEAT! It´s getting pretty hot, but we´re loving it! I don´t have all the time in the world to sweat in a shirt and tie... So I´d better enjoy the time while it lasts! Haha!

 

Well... Mom, didn´t you hear from the mission home about the change? I don´t get released on the 4th... I´m getting released on the 11th! The MTC in Provo is going to be making a change in the schedule of missionaries... Those going to foreign speaking missions will be in the MTC for 6 weeks instead of 9 to make up a little bit for the huge increase in missionaries, and to compensate, in March conveniently the transfer where they´re going to make the change so the MTC and the mission is on the same transfer schedule, they´ve increased my mission by one more week to make up for the time. So.... CHANGE YOUR PLANE TICKET!!! Haha, you need to, NO MATTER WHAT, contact the mission office to find all this stuff out. Everything that you just explained will happen, will now be happening on Monday the 11th, and NOT the 4th. So, when you change your plane ticket, change it for Sunday! That way you get to Neuquén on Monday morning, and we´re together the whole day! I hope and pray that you can change your ticket without any problems... This has also happened to the parents of E. Marriott.. Anyway... Contact the travel agent so she´s aware of everything. Sorry this happened... Dang Prophet!!! ;) Just kidding, I didn´t say that... Haha. :P So, yeah. I´m going to serve for two years and a week! OH BABAY, YEAH! Change that plane ticket for the 10th of March, and from there, we can buy tickets for Ushuaia and everything else. Any updates on Iguazú? Anyway, I´m done talking about this!

 

I heard about Obama... Ha, I don´t really care, because I´m not in the country, and right now... I´m nothing more than a Servant of Christ. One day, soon, the Kingdom of God will come forth, ushered in by the Second Coming... And then the governments will all be under the direction and rule of Christ! YES!  - - Tell Buppi to take care of himself... Tell him he can´t kick the bucket till I get home! I love you so much, Buppi! You´ve always been such a good grandpa. I say that as well to Omi, and Gma and Gpa! I love you all so much! Oh! I thought of something you guys can send me for Christmas... I don´t have any jeans. In San Martín, mine ripped, BAD, so I don´t have anything for when you come down, Mom. So if someone could send me some jeans and chapstick for Christmas, that would be GREAT! That way, when we´re touring the beautiful Argentina, I´m actually wearing something! Haha.

 

Jared, it´s awesome that your car is doing so well... Don´t sell it before I get home, I´ll kill you if you do. But remember, are you paying as much attention to your spiritual welfare as much as the welfare of your car? Don´t forget about yourself in the midst of doing other things! How´s the scripture reading and praying going? Are you preparing for a mission? Prepare yourself for a Patriachal Blessing! Pray about going on the mission! I promise you, that it is the best thing that you could possibly do for your life.

 

Well as of right now, we´re looking at 5 baptisms for the 24th of November and the 1st of December! WHOOOO!!!!! We´ve been working super hard, and the success is showing. Leticia is a FIRE BALL!!! She´s gone to church now for an entire month, We´ve had lessons in the house of the Flia. Salazar, she has a testimony of the BoM, she loves the Plan of Salvation, her daughter and brother will be baptized as well, her mom, in a week or two after that... What a wonderful family! We still haven´t met the husband, but we will, hopefully today in the Family Home Evening we have. We´re going to make Chipas! DO YOU KNOW WHAT CHIPAS ARE???!!! You remember the cheese balls from Tucanos??? IT´s THOSE!!! I didn´t realize that the cheese ball exists in Argentina until NOW??!! No puede SER!!! We made them on Monday, last week. They´re a food really common in Misiones, where E. Irala is from. So basically, I´m making Chipas every single week from here on to the end of my mission. ´Nuff said.

 

Leticia is doing wonderfully well. She loves the church, she knows the Bishop, she and her family have come every week... Things are going perfectly. Now, Mariana... I don´t know if I told you guys about Mariana last week or not. She was a reference from the sister missionaries here in Zapala. She has cancer, her life has been terrible, and she´s fighting to stay alive and follow Christ. When we spoke with her for the first time two weeks ago, we put a baptismal date with her right there in the door. She had accepted it with HUGE excitement. She´s never been baptized, and she is EXCITED. She went to church yesterday, talking with EVERYONE, telling them, Hi, I´m Sister Mariana... And I´m going to be baptized on the 24th. Leticia has also said in public that she´s going to be baptized... They´re both rocks! So that´s two baptisms, we´re going to baptize Daina, the daughter of Leticia with them on the 24th. Later on, Gustavo, the son of Mariana and Angelo, the little brother of Leticia will follow, later followed by the mom of Leticia... 6! 4 more for the goal!

 

Anyway, life as a missionary is BALLIN´! I love it so much, and I don´t want to leave! So LUCKY to have another week in the Lords work. Thank you so much you guys for your support, the love and everything you guys do for me. Thank you for EVERYTHING. As for me, I´m just content, doing the Lords Work, watching miracles take place every day of my mission. It´s hot, I´m sweating, I guess that means we´ll just have to baptize more to stay in the cool water more! ;) Haha! Thank you, I love you, Happy Birthday Mom!

 

E. Cuthbert

Novermber 5, 2012

Yep, E. Marriott left, and I am now with E. Irala! What a wonderful companion! It´s been amazing, the time we´ve been together. We´re already seeing a ton of miracles, with people that we already knew, and people that we´ve found during this last week. I´m back to running around like I was with E. Slaugh. E. Slaugh was E. Irala´s second companion in the mission, when E. Slaugh left Esquel, he went up to Neuquén to be the second comp. of E. Irala. And you would never guess at who was the first comp of E. Irala... E. Rojas! Hahaha! We have two companions in common, and more than anything else in common, is our thirst to work and have baptisms. I don´t have a picture of the both of us, yet. Sorry! I have been really busy with a ton of stuff! But it´s been quite the adventure. E. Irala is from Misiones, the Providence of the Iguazú Falls! Ha, I can ask him how it is and if it´s worth going there. I´m positive that I will be leaving Zapala, because E. Irala has the same time as I do! He also goes home in March, which means that one of the two of us has to leave in a transfer or two. It´s almost sure that it will be me, because I have more time here, but you never know!

 

That´s interesting about what the Bishop said... Hmm. The Book of Mormon has many examples of persecution, and righteous people standing up for God. I love the example of Captain Moroni when in Alma 44:3 he said "Ye cannot destroy this our faith." SO COOL!!! Anyway, AGUANTE LOS SANTOS DE LOS ÚLTIMOS DÍAS!!! Oh, and how about a shout out to my boy, Mark Bethers and my girl Debra Lott!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!! You guys are my favorite aunt and uncle... Don´t tell anyone... Shh!! ;) Haha, I´m sure Debra is just DYING with having one more year added on to her... What is it now? 26 years? Happy 27th bday! ;) I love you guys so much!

 

So, Leticia and family... WOOT! Another family!!! FOUND! We had our first lesson with Leticia on Tuesday, and it went really well. E. Irala and I teach well together. As of right now, she has a baptismal date for the 24th of this month. She has been reading the Book of Mormon, and she knows it´s true. The husband of the President of the Relief Society has the BEST conversion story EVER! And it was only after his conversion story, that she had the courage and faith to accept the baptism date. But she has a daughter named Daina who is 9 yrs. old. Leticia has a younger brother that is 8 yrs. old. Leticia´s mom, who has come every week to church as well, will be in the lesson on Tuesday, which leaves the Dad... He´s still pretty resistent. Leticia has invited him to go to church, but he stands firm on that he is a "catholic". But don´t worry, he´ll soften up soon. :) A family of FIVE!!! All with the age to be baptized!!! If we can just get the Dad baptized as well... It will be awesome. Leticia is a very good investigator, whatever we ask her to do, she does it. She reads the BoM, and prays, and does everything! It´s awesome. All of that waiting for the relationship to strengthen between her and the member family was worth it! :) WOOT"! Oh... And she´s MARRIED!!!! FINALLY!!  An Argentine couple that´s MARRIED!!! A MIRACLE!!! Haha! I´ve always had to fight to get these families married, and it takes so much time! But now, it´s just saturated concentration on the conversion of the family, and the need they have to be baptized. It´s awsesome.

 

So I went to San Martín on friday to do a baptismal interview, and there I saw Fabiana and Lautaro!!! I was SO happy to see them! I was grinning from ear to ear the entire day, knowing that they were ok. Fabiana hadn´t been going to church for awhile, but I gave her a good kick in the butt, and she´s going to go now. But she´s just the same wonderful Fabiana, I can´t wait for you to meet her, Mom. I also saw a few other converts of ours from the days of E. Calvache... Everyone remembered me! It was so awesome, I was so happy, all day.

 

Anyway, we are doing well here. Working extremeley hard, and loving the missionary work! We have seen the Lord´s hand in so many things during this last week, and I know that we will be baptizing many in the coming weeks. I hope you are all doing well at home, Jared, how are you doing? I love ya, Bud! How are the elections going? No one has told me anything? When do you find out who won? Anyway, Mom, I love you so much. Thank you for all that you have done for me. Remember, I can help pay for food and anything else on the trip. I love you, again and again and again!

 

E. Cuthbert

October 29, 2012

I`ve been telling everyone that I`m going to be an Uncle. That`s so weird! My sister is going to have a baby... And even weirder... You`re going to be a GRANDMA!!! WHA!? You`re too young to be a grandma! Everyone tells me when I show our family pictures that you and dad are way to young! Haha! It`s going to be awesome, and I`m super excited to see the next wonderful addition to the family.

 

Where are we going on vacation with Omi and Buppi in April? Please tell Buppi to be careful. I already had to go through the death of my dog, no way am I going to see my Bupster kick the bucket! He`s still got at least... 50 yrs. ahead of him. ;) Tell him to take care of himself, I love my family, and want to see everyone when I get home. Surprisingly enough, Argentina is VERY aware about the elections between Romney and Obama... It`s amazing at how much of an influence the United States has on the world... People here are always trying to ask us about our opinions about elections, who we would vote for, stuff like that. We always say the same... We have NO idea what`s going on up there, but what we can talk to you about is the Gospel of Jesus Christ... Hahaha!

 

What`s Dad`s new job at the capitol? Does he get a raise? What`s he doing? I feel like he`s been changing jobs over the last year like a crazy man! I never know what to say to people when they ask me what my dad does... Haha, I want to know. GOOD JOB, Jared! I`m so proud of you for doing well in school!

Well, transfers have come, sorry, I totally forgot to mention that last week. The work here has become my life, and it`s no surprise or anything when transfers come and go... But, sadly, E. Marriott is leaving. We only had one transfer together, such a small amount of time. I`m going to miss him, he`s such a wonderful friend. He lives up in Holladay, his dad is stake pres. up there, so... yeah. Anyway, we had such a good transfer together, we`re going to miss each other a lot. He`s been a good friend, an incredible booster in excitement and hard work, and we`ve learned a ton together. I`ve been VERY grateful for his service, and his companionship. He leaves home with us, well, not really. His mom and dad are coming as well to pick him up, so they`ll be touring the mission as well. But I`m truly sad to see that he`s leaving. We only baptized one time together, but we have left this area A LOT better than how we found it. I have helped him grow, and become more bold as a servant of the Lord, and he has helped me to really focus on prayers, and being diligent in everything. Anyway, he`s gone, and who`s coming? An Argentine!

 

E. Irala was my zone leader in Comodoro, and now he will be my companion here in Zapala! He`s really short, but such a hard worker. I`m really pumped. We`re going to baptize a ton. He`s from Misiones, Argentina which is up in the North of Argentina. He leaves for home in March as well... Which means that Zapala, what I thought would be my last area... Will probably NOT be my last area. When I realized that... I kind of got down for a second. I`m going to have to move AGAIN... Blegh, but at the same time, I had an experience with my Mission President, where I told him of the goal I have to get 50 baptisms, and I said... Presidente, I want you to do WHATEVER it is that you feel inspired to do so that I can reach my goal.. And I know that in putting me in a situation where I might leave in 6 weeks... Is going to push me to baptize as many as I can, NOW, because afterwards... If I get transfered, there`s no other chance to help the Sons and Daughters of God in Zapala, Argentina. So that`s what`s going to happen. I`ve made a goal to come home every night, exhausted. With blisters on the bottom of my feet, and collapsing in bed, falling asleep before my head hits the pillow. That`s the goal. Baptize, teach to baptize, and if I`m not teaching anyone, FIND someone to teach and baptize. BAPTISM!!!

 

So, Leticia and family came again to church, alone!! We`re very excited for this family. We were pretty frustrated, because she was under the impression that she could come to church with her family, but that she didn`t need to accept the missionaries. She didn`t understand our roll in their progress and conversion. So we had a lesson in the Gospel Principles class where we inconspicuously explained our purpose to them, and then invited them to be baptized. We now have an appt. for Tuesday at their house. :) Pray for them, as well as for everyone else that we`re teaching! We`re going to baptize a lot this transfer, I can feel it. We`re asking for tons of references from members, and we have a lot of them! We`re excited, happy, and ready to baptize all of Zapala!

 

Honestly... The mission has been the greatest thing that`s ever happened to me. I get so emotional... Like right now at this moment. I`ve got tears coming to my eyes while thinking about the mission, and how much I love it. I can`t believe it`s almost over. It`s a very sad thought. To think that Bishop Allen is already talking about my Homecoming talk just makes me want to hide myself in Argentina and never come home! I have thought a lot about my purpose as a missionary. As a Disciple of Christ... The moment when Jared takes off my plaque... Is a moment that I never want to come. This plaque that I have over my heart means so much to me. It gives me the right and authority to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ... There is no other experience like this in all the world. There is nothing to compare with it, in all this world. What a blessing, and what a terrifying thought, that soon, it will all be over. Regrets? Up till now, I have none... But I know that I must go above and beyond. My life outside the mission looks grey and bleak compared to the vibrance and excitement that is, Missionary Work.

I love you all. Have a wonderful week. Happy Halloween to all that will be Trick-or-Treating! Oh, so far, the only thing that I could come up with that I want in the Christmas pckg.. is chocolate mint sandwiches... Haha! So far, that`s it, maybe ties as well... I will think more this week, but honestly... I`d rather everyone save their money on Christmas things for me, and just deposit it into my account for a laptop or something when I get home, or a car! Anyways, that`s all I can think of at this moment. I love you!

 

E. Cuthbert

October 22, 2012

I`M AN UNCLE!!!!! Haha! I`m so happy right now! I couldn`t believe it when I heard it! Melyn wrote me, and the smile on my face just kept getting bigger and bigger. What a blessing! I`m so happy that I will be there when she has him! (I`ve already decided it`s a boy...Hopefully) That made me so bouncy... Thank you so much, Melyn for sharing that news with me. Thank you, Mom, for sending me that quote, I really enjoyed it.

 

E. Brown is HOME??! NO! That means I`m up next! This is too terrifying to think about it, so I`m just going to shut my mouth right now. Don`t go to the Arch to swing until I get home! I wanna go, too!

 

E. Francis is doing well, it`s raining today, so I didn`t bring my camera. Marìa Laura`s reference to the temple will be submitted soon. We`re going to explain it to the mother, and have the member who gave us her reference submit her name to be baptized in the temple. Missionary work on both sides of the veil... Que copado!!!

 

More pants?? Ha! No way! I`m going to use the slacks I have till they`re rags... That doesn`t mean that they look like rags right now, don`t worry! Ha. I have two pairs of slacks, my grey pair and brown pair. That, with my suit pants should get me through. Oh, about pckgs, the Customs of Argentina no longer allows protein powder or supplements or vitamins or anything of that sort through the border, so don`t send me anything like that! I`ll start thinking about what I need for Christmas, and send you the wish list. I can`t believe we`re already going through this AGAIN! Christmas was like... YESTERDAY! The cool thing is that I might be able to spend it down in San Martìn, where I had it last year! Haha, how things turn out... Crazy.

 

Jared, great questions! Now, about someone who was baptized in the Catholic church as a baby.. First of all, how did Christ get baptized? Matthew 3:17 tells us that there were THREE things that were necessary for the baptism of Christ. First of all, he went to John the Baptist. Why John the Baptist? I`ll let you figure that one out... Hint: He was the only one who has the permission. Second, John said: I have need to be baptized of thee, and Christ responds: Suffer it to be so now... What does that mean? It means that Christ desired to be baptized, it was His choice! Does a baby CHOOSE to be baptized? I certainly exclaim, NO! Third, it says that Christ came "straightway out of the water", he was submerged completely in water. Romans 6:4 talks about baptism as a symbolism of death and rebirth... Only through baptism by immersion does it symbolize death, and being born again. Read Moroni 8. WONDERFUL chapter for someone who doubts the baptism of their little ones. Do you remember Cecilia Colque from Esquel? In the beginning when I first got to know her, she was going to baptize Mateo, their son of about a year old... We convinced her through Moroni 8, and prayer. Mark 1:4 says that John the Baptism baptized for the remission of sins. Does a baby have sins? Anyway, that`s all for now. Good studying!!!! ;)

 

Yesterday, I accompanied the Primary Presentation... It was awesome to see all the little kids up there singing and giving talks! :) I played various songs for them, and it was a blast.

 

I have one miracle story to share, and then I have to go.

 

A few weeks ago, we contacted a lady named Leticia at her door. We were speaking with her for a little while about her life and family, and we then invited her to the Gen. Conference. She said that she was going to go. She also mentioned that she works in doing arts and crafts, things like that, girl things... Haha. Anyway, we said; "Hey! The women in our church are looking for a teacher to teach them in arts and crafts! Would you like to help them out?" "Sure, I`d love to!" We then booked it over to the President of the Relief Society, who conveniently lives about a block away from Leticia`s house. We told her the situation, and committed her to going over and inviting her personally to help them out. A week passed by, and she said that she had made contact! On Saturday, the Relief Society had organized an "Open House" of sorts, a guided tour of the chapel to all people who wanted to come. We brought a family of Investigators, and the president of the relief soc. brought Leticia! She loved the tour, and at the end, E. Marriott and I testified boldly of the Restoration and the First Vision. We invited all to come to church. Sunday rolls around, and halfway through the Sacrament meeting, guess who comes walking into the meeting?? Leticia, with her WHOLE family! !!! (Except the dad) It was a miracle! We had 5 investigators in the sacrament meeting, thanks to her and her mom, brother, and daughter. Just a little miracle that happened that has really given us a lot of excitement to keep doing things like that. Missionary work is the best. When we see things like that, there`s no way to deny the hand of the Lord in this Work. I testify that the Work of the Lord is the missionary work of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I love it. And I will never let it go. I`m going to implement the 40 fast that Jenae`s ward did! Thank you for the letter, Jenae!! It was so good to hear from you. I love you all, I pray for you all. We are happy here. The goal of 5 baptisms is... hard. Ha, but we have faith that the Lord is always preparing families, like the family of Leticia. They are going to be having a Family Home Evening with the family of the president of Rel. Soc.

 

Thank you all, I love you all... Have a wonderful week.

E. Cuthbert

October 15, 2012

Chris and Holden sent me pictures of the Gen. Conf. with you... I was SO jealous when I saw them. I can´t believe it, they´ve become your sons! And me? What am I??! Haha, just kidding, thank you for inviting them over, and I thank them SO MUCH for doing that... I have such wonderful friends and family.

 

Jared, HAPPY BDAY! Grandpa, HAPPY BDAY!!! Grandma and Grandpa, HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!! I can´t believe I missed all of that! Oh well... I´m sure you all partied well without me, ;) Now, Jared... I have some more counsel for you. Listen up. Start preparing to receive your Patriarchal Blessing. I know that you are struggling to figure out when you should go on a mission, or if you should do it. But I promise you, if you prepare for that blessing, when you will receive it, you will receive A TON of guidance as to when or IF you should serve a mission. Those blessings are sealed with the Holy Spirit of Promise. They are very unique, in the sense that the things that are said, are written in Heaven. What is said in that blessing, WILL come to pass, in accord with the attention that we pay to their guidance and counsel. Please, prepare yourself. I want you to know, that HF is preparing you. But not only you, He is preparing OTHERS to hear inspired words of testimony from YOU, and no other. I know that. Mom said that you want to work a little bit before. Work? What for? Go to work for the Lord! And you will receive what money can´t buy. I´ll leave it at that.

 

We went to San Martín on Tuesday, and I had the priviledge to see E. Francis! It was good to see him. He is doing well, working hard to be a good example of Christ. I loved being in San Martín again. I got to say hi to only a few people, but we´ll be going back soon. Last Pday, we were evaluating our goal to baptize 5 people this transfer... We were thinking about the prices we would have to pay to do it, and we decided that we would have to sacrifice 2 hours of our pday to go and visit people. It was a little bit of a sacrifice, because we couldn´t do everything we needed to do, but it was such a joy, working hard to help others come unto Christ, teaching them the Restored Gospel. I loved it! Now, up until now... We´re still not pretty sure about if we´re going to baptize or not. It´s pretty frustrating. We´ve got so much faith, but sometimes... The people just don´t progress like they should! It´s making us freak! We´re constantly thinking about it, especially me - I´ve got a goal to baptize a ton of people before the missions end. This is a RACE. I´ve had a few track races in my life where I had regrets coming across the finish line. Not this time. This time, there must be NO REGRETS.

 

I was shocked to hear about the death of Haley Stonehocker. I ask that my love be sent to the family, Haley was such a wonderful person. We too, had our own shock of the week. I think I mentioned last week about how we found a girl who had cancer, or a tumor or something like that, didn´t I? We had taught her twice, and she wanted to come to General Conference. She got pneumonia that morning, so she couldn´t go. Her body was so frail and weak. We passed by on Sunday, and she was just sleeping, exhausted from not sleeping normally. She had accepted a baptismal date for this coming 27th of October. We were then tragically informed, on Tuesday, that she had passed away. We were stunned, and taken aback. Wha? María Laura is dead? We didn´t know what to think. Last night, we went by the house of their family, and we testified and gave comfort to the mother of María. We then, E. Marriott and I, sang Nearer My God to Thee - She was crying, and thanked us greatly for the song and the comfort that we´d given her. We couldn´t help but wonder WHY God had led us to María when all along, she was planned to be called Home. We then decided that it had to be because of the mother. Hopefully, she accepts to listen more and accept the invitation to be baptized. It´s been quite the week.

 

I´ve been meditating a lot and thinking about many things... How quick life is? We can´t hesitate, there´s no time to lose. We need to be follow Christ, I beg you all. Follow Christ, do what He wants you to do. If you love Him, keep His commandments - John 14:15.

 

I love you all, thank you so much for the prayers and the support. Happy Birthday, once again - Have a wonderful week. I am working hard, and will not stop until I cross that finish line in first place.

E. Cuthbert

October 8, 2012

Writing emails to you guys is SO difficult, I want to answer all your questions, and the comments that you put, and at the same time, there is SO much to say about how your son is doing at the bottom of the world! I will do my best.

Conference was amazing. I too, loved E. Holland´s talk. He has always been my favorite Apostle. He has a power when he speaks, unlike any other, except for the Prophet. I too, gave a talk on that VERY subject, two days before, during the interviews with our Mission President! He gave me time to talk about how the mission has helped me become a Disciple of Christ, and I decided to talk about that same experience with Peter and the fish, and the question, Do you love Me? What a wonderful talk, and what a wonderful question. Do we love the Savior? We know that in John 14:15 it says, If you love me, keep my commandments. Such a simple, yet powerful statement. We must be willing to give everything. It´s interesting to know that in Hebrew, the three times that Christ says do you love me, he uses a different verb for the word "love". The first time, the verb he uses is meant for a childlike love. The second time he uses a different verb to say, Do you love me? And this time, the verb is meant in a much more deeper sense... The love that a husband will have for his wife and vice versa. And the third and final time that Christ asks his chief Apostle... He uses a verb that overpasses ALL other form of the word "Love." It is a verb that means, complete, total, nothing held back, complete and utter submission to whomever it is that you love. Christ was asking him to die for Him. Do we love Christ, enough to die for Him? Let´s think about that.

 

I´m sure you guys had an AWESOME time with Chris and Holden! I too, made a huge decision... And decided for the first time in the mission, to actually follow a Cuthbert Tradition... I made scones and honey butter! DELICIOUSSSSS!!! E. Marriott and I were in heaven, honestly, it was so good. I haven´t had that in a year and a half! Whoa! There is also a picture of our celebration of our 19th month in the mission. We used my last Brownie mix from the United States... And followed the special recipe in the back for Oreo Deluxe brownies... I mixed a cup of crushed oreos into the batter, baked it. When it came out, I made a cream cheese frosting, and on top of that, more oreos!!!! It was a MONSTER, and I´m sure we both gained more than a billion pounds. Hahaha! E. Marriott couldn´t handle more than one piece, and I barely mustered down two! It was delectable.

 

Now, Jared... I will put my concentration on you for a little bit. You want to know what my thoughts are about the new rule of being 18 yrs. old to leave on the mission? I think it is wonderful. I think the reason behind it, is that there is more need more than EVER for missionaries. Our beloved Prophet has opened up the flood gates to missionary work. That will mean, the message of the Gospel will be preached with greater efficiency, with more power, and in more parts of the world. My personal opinion, is that this is in preparation for many things that are, surely, on the way. It´s like sending in more warriors for the part of the battle that is MOST important, where the outcome is CRUCIAL. We never think that the Second Coming will be in our life time, but, as we look at the signs... Would it surprise you if it DOESN´T come in our life time? There are many things that still have to happen, obviously, but as wickedness increases... The rate at which it increases will also increase. Anyway, that´s not important. The important thing, is that we´re ready and prepared. I challenge you, my little brother... To prepare yourself now. I know you want more time to prepare yourself during the summer and everything like that. But don´t you realize that you can´t wait until you are graduated to "prepare yourself, and mature" before your mission? START NOW. I want you to study the talk given by E. Holland. Think about the love you have for your Savior. Also, think about the advantages, at beginning the mission at 18... I always thought that the time between graduating high school, and leaving on the mission was a very... awkward time. You both were right, you and Mom. I totally would have done it at 18. And I invite you to do the same. Pray, fast, prepare. Obviously, when I get home, we´ll talk a lot more. I´m not here to "call you to repentance" as I´m sure sometimes you worry about. I´m just your older brother, who, like you, is also learning and growing. But I know that if you put your trust in God, he will bless you. I love you so much, Jared. The Church is true. Could you feel it during Conference?

 

Did I tell you guys about the goal of E. Marriott and me? We have the goal to baptize 5 people before the end of October. We have been exorcizing faith like never before, working harder than ever before. There are so many things that have happened in so little time. I´m so grateful to have a companion like E. Marriott. Did you know that E. Neil A. Anderson talked about his family during the Saturday afternoon session? They showed a picture of his mom and dad, and his passed away sister. His family was spoken of during Conference. It was a very spiritual moment, being companions with someone who was being told by an Apostle that the death of his sister was a trial of faith. What an incredible experience. The spirit filled the room as we heard that talk. He got very quiet, and I couldn´t help but try and keep the silence, knowing that in that moment... He was remembering the life of his beloved sister. I´m a very lucky missionary.

 

An investigator we have named María, just the other day, prayed at the end of a lesson. When she stopped praying, she exclaimed... What is this feeling I have in my chest? It´s something I´ve never felt before! She was stunned and confused by what was happening. She began crying. We, cheering on the Holy Ghost, began to explain to her, simply and clearly, that what she was feeling was the Holy Ghost, and that she was receiving an answer to her prayers and that the HG was testifying that the Church was true. She is progressing rapidly, and E. Marriott and I are doing everything possible to make sure that we make our goal of 5. The people are ready, but are we?

 

I´m over my time limit for writing... I love you all so much. This next week is going to be insane. It´s going to take a lot of effort to make our goals and dreams, visions and plans become a reality. Pray for us, PLEASE!!! I love you all so much, and know that Christ is my Savior. Tomorrow, we´re headed off to San Martín de los Andes for a Zone Meeting that we´ve prepared, and later on, I will be doing divisions with the District Leader. I will see E. Francis there. It should be wonderful..

 

I love you all,

E. Cuthbert

October 1, 2012

I don´t have much time to write. I have spent the most of my time sending numbers to the President of the mission, and the other half I have been writing an email to Dad. But, I wanted to say... That I have never felt farther away than right now. My wonderful dog, Maggie... Is gone. I couldn´t hold back the tears when I read about the pain she was in, and how it hurt you all so much to have to let her rest in peace. I can only say I´m so sorry that you all had to experience that. I loved that dog, so much. And I know that a wonderful part of our family has now passed on. All animals go back to our Heavenly Father.

 

Maggie was a wonderful dog. I remember the day that I pulled her letter out from the mailbox, that described her as a little puppy, who was lost in our house. How we scoured the entire house looking for her, until if finally occurred to us to look in our parents´ bathroom. There she was, a tiny little fluff-ball of cuteness. From day one, she was an incredible pain in the butt, and at the same time, such a joy in our lives. I remember her cry at night in her little card board box those first few weeks as the newest member of the family, and how when I would take her out to stave the crying, she would have an accident in my bed... What fond memories. How she would run into my room whenever Dad said on Saturday morning, "Should we go wake up Jordan?" Waking up to her wet kisses, wiping up her waterfall butt, no one ever wanting to take responsibility for cleaning up her muddy feet. The snow that would always clump up on her fur during winter, how she would always hog the bed... She was such a wonderful dog. And I will miss her dearly.

 

I give my love to all of you. This life is so short. Jared, hang in there. Know that she will be there, waiting for us when we part from this life. She too, has a Spirit, and it has gone back to the God who gave her life. I love you all so much, and miss you all dearly. Tomorrow is the 5 months to go, mark. It´s hard to believe. I don´t want to go, but at the same time, I miss seeing your faces. I just wish I could have seen her one more time. That I could have called her name, and have her come tearing into my room and jump on the bed. What wonderful, fond memories. I love you all, so much. I´m so sorry that had to happen. And I feel so far away, not being with those I love during those moments of trial and sorrow. But, I am serving the Lord, and that is the only excuse that is excusable. If not, I would have left for home. Stay strong.

As Zone Leader, I am in charge of the Zone of Zapala. It has about 20 missionaries. We do divisions with all the companionships, we take the numbers for the week, we go to meetings with the president at the beginning of every month, we hold meetings with the entire zone, we come up with the goals for the zone, we are in charge with the welfare and wellbeing of our missionaries, and a bunch of other stuff to start. It´s been a crazy week, but I just don´t have more time. I love you all. How are preparations coming for the trip, mom? I love you all. So much.

 

E. Cuthbert

September 24, 2012

So, when I heard that my wonderful friends came to pay you guys a visit, I got SO happy. Wow... Thank you so much, Holden, Chris and Kim for doing that. I know Aubs couldn`t go, because she`s too busy being a married woman now, heh! But wow, I`m very happy and grateful to know that my friends are like that. Even more, when I heard that Holden gave you a hug mom... Such a huge rush of gratitude came over me. Holden, you`re a true friend. I love you, man. What`s more, HOW CAN YOU INVITE THEM OVER FOR SCONES AND HONEY BUTTER, AND ME NO???!!! Doesn`t seem fair, if you ask me. But whatever, I`m sure you guys will have a wonderful time! FLIP! I miss you guys! But honestly, I am loving my life here. Loving it. The mission, as I`m sure Holden explained... Is unlike any other thing I`ve ever done. It is something that completely changes you, and the experiences you have, which are completely selfless, without the least bit of attention paid on yourself, brings more blessings from on high that I thought were even possible. Anyway, I love you all, and thank you for paying such a wonderful visit to my mother and brother. I love you guys.

 

So, Maggie is rolling down a pretty steep hill? What did I tell you? Is there a chance that I won`t see my annoying girl friend by the time I get home? Hopefully yes. It looks like her color has really faded away, she`s practically white now! Crazy stuff. Yes, I got the pckgs. Your package with gloves and all of that stuff, and the pckg. from the ward which was awesome! Thank you, 1st Ward!! You really are number one!!! And yes, Bro. Harrop was my teacher in Seminary, ask him about me.

 

So when I left Comodoro last week, I left with a BANG! We had a GIANT Asado with Marta and Jorge, they gave me an Argentine Sombrero, an argentine cowboy neck tie and a tie! FLIPPIN, WONDERFUL PEOPLE! I miss them SO much. They were such wonderful investigators-soon to be members! So we left Comodoro on the bus and started the 18 hour journey up towards Neuquèn and then west to Zapala. I said goodbye to everyone, and couldn`t believe that 6 months had gone by.. My time there went by in a flash, what`s more, I was so sad to leave E. Healey, my little Child!! Hahaha, he will do great. So I got to Zapala on Tuesday around 2 o clock, and it was work from the moment i stepped on the bus, which is exactly what I wanted! I never even got lunch that day! Haha, E. Marriott had completely forgotten that I hadn`t eaten lunch, so we just went  on with work, but I wasn`t too worried about lunch, so I just didn`t say anything! We went to a members house to visit them, I had known them from San Martìn when they moved to Zapala, and they offered us some cookies. E. Marriott, when he saw my ravenous eating fest ( I devoured the cookies in about 3 seconds... ) He realized what he had done and wouldn`t stop apologizing for the rest of the day! Needless to say, we have started off on a great relationship, we`re happy, excited, and thirsty for baptisms.

 

We prepared a kid named Facundo, 22 yrs. old, for the waters of baptism, and he was baptized on Saturday! I included the picture. He`s a wonderful kid, so happy and with a rock hard testimony. We are on the race now... I had put a baptism goal since Esquel... And I am now on the final stretch.. I`m nowhere near, but E. Marriott and I have been focusing our efforts on one thing. Baptisms. We are planning on baptizing 5 more people this transfer, at least. I have realized that these last 6 months are honestly the last push. It`s just like a 400m race, and I`m on the final 100m, and we all know that here is when you give it your all. And that is exactly what we`re doing. We are giving it our all. What`s more, as a Zone leader, the missionaries in my zone look to us as the examples, and if we aren`t baptizing, how can we expect them to do it? We are pushing hard, doing everything we can to baptize until the last second. I`m so excited and happy to be here, because in just 3 weeks, I`ll be going to San Martìn to visit E. Michael Francis from Mapleton!!! Hahahahahahahaha! I`m so excited to see him. When I found out he was in my Zone, I was so happy! I will be able to see a bunch of members, and all my converts as well... Mirta and Ramòn, Fabiana... Everyone! YES!

 

Being a Zone Leader really makes you ponder being a missionary. I have never been so busy just thinking about what I can do better to get the area baptizing. It`s AWESOME. I met an older member who said, you look German. Your eyes have that German elegance, and you hold yourself like a very proud person (Not as in prideful, but... Nevermind, I don`t even know what she was saying... ) HAHA! There you go, Buppi! We, the Germans are Elegant! Hahahahahahaha! E. Marriott has been making fun of me for the past few days since we heard that, saying things like, Your elegant german feet, your elegant german walk... a bunch of really funny things, it made us laugh a lot.

 

So anyway, we are here now, in Zapala, working awful! The area was REALLY windy when I got here, almost like Comodoro! I was thinking, what the flip? Didn`t I just leave there? But it is getting warmer, there were a few cold days during the week, but it`s getting rather nice outside. The area is honestly, ugly. Only a few paved roads, and not very many trees, Zapala is a desert town, but it`s going to be a wonderful desert town. We`re going to baptize a lot here, if I put my faith in God, and do what He has asked me to do, it will happen. Really excited for General Conference! WOOOOOOH!!!! I love you all. I have a goal to work out and cut the fat out of my food as much as I can. I want to get back ready for that cruise! Haha, Thank you all for the support, I know I`m coming home in around 6 months, but please, don`t say that!!! Haha, I need everyone to help me focus. I need to stay focused on my mission. I have only 2 years to show the Lord what i`m made of, and how willing i am to serve Him. Help me with that. Obviously if you have a question about what we`re going to do when I get back and stuff like that, ask away, but don`t say things like - I can`t wait for you to get home. I don`t want to think about that moment. At least, not right now. I love you all. Have a wonderful week, and go to church. Ha.

 

E. Cuthbert