Week 51

Week 51. It is hard to think about another 52 weeks but if these last 51 weeks are any indication of how fast the time goes by it will pass in no time at all. Jacob continues to amaze us with his strong testimony and strength. Here is his latest letter and picture see if you can pick Jacob out. My guess is you will have no trouble at all.
"Hey there!  Well it was certainly a great week with two baptisms!  We had a really special baptismal service when everything just came together.  I'll send the pictures, the young man is Aldair, he's the first in his family to get baptized, but the rest of his family is going to follow.  He wants to serve a mission and his mom has said that this will be her religion, without any doubt whatsoever.  The other woman is Cristina, a 62 year-old woman whose grandaughter was baptized two weeks ago.  The chapel is looking beautiful here and we're going to fill it with members!  Well, this week we were blessed with finding a woman who has just about lost everthing, but still continues forward in the faith.  As we were walking to our apartment, a little boy started talking talking to my companion.  I didn't pay any attention, but he asked us if we were ''Mormones''.  We followed him to his apartment and said that we would pass by tomorrow when we had more time.  The next day we stopped by and found Ana Maria, a single mom of two boys who has rejected every religious group out there for what she has seen.  She was also very ill with gastritis and an infection.  She has been gaining hope and confidence through Ther Book of Mormon and daily prayers.  We are going to visit her regularly this week and prepare her to be baptized in two weeks, because she really wants to do it.  We have been truly blessed and it looks like I'll have 6 more weeks here in Tlapacoyan!  Well thanks for filling me in on life back there, thanks for your support and prayers.  Love you all!  And I know this Work is true!
 
-Elder Butterfield

Week 50

Well it just seems like these weeks are just rolling by. It is so hard to believe that we are soon approaching the one year mark. In some sense it seems like it has been forever but in the other sense the time has flown by. Well here is Jacob's latest email.
"Hola familia mía.  Gracias por el correo que me enviaron.  Jaja, no se preocupen, no voy a escribirles en español.  Well sounds like things are going good there.  I like to hear ''we had a great week'' just as you like to hear it from me.  Well Krew is going to be two years old by the time I get back, but I'll be there for the 3rd birthday party.  You'll always have have a place there in Wisconsin, I actually just met a guy that worked there for a time, in Madison that is.I'm up to Article of Faith number 6 in Spanish.   You could always come down and visit the lovely Veracruz port, in a little more than a year that is.  Great job woth the running, I'll be a little out of shape when I get home, but I should be solid in the shins for all the walking we do.  Well tell everyone I'm doing good and so is the mission.  We're going to have a lot of success here in Tlapacoyan when they open the chapel in two and a half weeks.  Well I'm fine on money, thanks for caring so much.  We're experiencing miracles everyday down here and we are so blessed.  Thanks for all your support and prayers.  Love you all and I'll write you in one week!

-Elder Butterfield

Week 49

Well it is week 49 and we just had a nice visit back to Wisconsin. We were able to go and celebrate Krew's birthday. What a nice time we had and I think back to last year when Krew was born and Jacob was preparing for his mission. The year has really gone by fast even though there have been a lot of changes. Well here is Jacob's latest letter along with a picture and when I saw the picture I though how beautiful of a place that Jacob is in and then I noticed how sunburned his neck is. I sure do worry about the effects of the sun on him.Here is is letter.
"Hey there!  Well it's nice and hot here in Tlapacoyan too, I got a little burned on our zone activity but I should still be recognized as a foreigner, haha.  We had a really special baptism this week of a young 9 year old girl named Cristina.  She was a little afraid of the water in the river and becuase it was raining the water was rising to dangerous levels.  With a quick prayer, she faced her fears and was immersed in the water.  5 minutes later and it would have been too dangerous to go through with.  The work is going forth and the chapel here will be open in less than a month!  Well from this end, we're going strong, it's never easy, but it's worth it.  The conversion is a miraculous process, and I think I'm going to join you all in memorizing Los Articulos de La Fe esta semana!  Pues, les amo muchísimo y sé en verdad que estoy en el lugar perfecto por ahorita.  Sé que La Iglesia es verdadera y que Jesucristo es Mi Salvador.  Nos hablamos en una semana entonces!
 
-Elder Butterfield (Campo de Mantequilla)