(No Subject)

Email received April 7, 2014

querida mama mia,

Muchos thank yous por tu correo y todos tus pensamientos y oracaciones. (Thanks so much for your mail, your thoughts and prayers.) En verdad gracias a la familia entera. I didn’t try the vicks vapor rub for my toe but I do have a bit of the gripe so I might try some for help with that. I still haven’t moved. The house has been done now for 2 weeks- it’s just the legal and paper work side of it all that needs getting done. We should be able to move this week though. I think I got a little taste of Zack’s world because I had to do some paper work this last week. I had to get the dueno(landlord) of the house to sign the contract and then rush it to the zone leaders house for the APs to come and take it. I feel a little more for Zack and the stress he must feel every day for his missionaries. Me and Elder de la cross will be together for at least 1 more transfer. I’m pretty pumped because I should be here for Sara and Heidi’s baptisms. I am really praying hard for Heidi. She made some mistakes earlier on in her life and they are now coming back to bite her. Namely she had a boyfriend when she was 16 or so and he is very mentally insane and she left him and then married a Norwegian guy legally, (yeah this country is full of crazy things) and now the ex boyfriend is jealous and hates us and says we are just trying to turn Heidi against him. Then he starts to call her terrible things that no daughter of god should ever be called. But our bishop and his wife are amazing and are doing what they can to help her out. So Conference was amazing. I watched it cien por ciento(100%) en español de nuevo. My language has been improving a lot with De la Cruz and he has taught me a lot about the mission as well. He has been out the same as Zack and he is an excellent teacher. I am working hard to try and keep up and be observant of what he does. He teaches really well and I have learned more about how the people think and react based off the way he thinks and reacts. I loved Elder Holland, Elder Anderson, Hermana Reeves, y Elder Ucthdorf’s talks the most although I was a big fan of how M Russel Ballard convinced his wife he was the only ex misionero verdadero y viviente(true and living returned missionary). That was way funny but a super powerful talk as well. It gave me a lot of confidence really. It’s been 8 months now and I have learned a lot about myself. I definitely regret a lot of the I did before my mission and I want to make it all right some day. I really had quite the orgullo(pride) about a lot of things and I have learned now that the humble are the ones who learn. I can’t remember who said it but there was a talk that said prayer doesn’t change god but I can change me. I have learned how to pray and I am learning how to change. I am so grateful for my mission and for the Dominican Republic. I am so grateful god let me come down here to teach my brothers and sisters about the truths of the gospel. This is really my heaven on earth and the holiest place I have ever been. I can get so frustrated at times with the people. They are very open about a lot of things to include making fun of Americans speaking espanol but I have learned a thing or two from my grandma now and I know I can speak better and that I can be humble and just love the people with all my heart. I can’t even believe how much my mission has helped me appreciate Grandma that much more. I’m so blessed to have her as an example in my life and we are all blessed that she made the decision to be the first crazy bean to jump into the pot. My mission has also led me to love family history. I have helped a few less actives start theirs and I have almost completed the mi familia booklet Elder Cook talked a little about. President has asked us to walk with ours in our bags or Books of Mormon to show to investigators, members, or less actives who might have interest. Speaking of, I would love to hear more about our antepasados so I can write more in my book about them. Nothing big just little charactaristics or stories I can read fast translate and write down in the book to show to people about my ancestors.

I love you all and espero que pasen una semana excelente.

Con mucho cariño,
Elder Spencer W. Hulsey

(No Subject)

Email received March 24th, 2014

Dear family,

I have some funny news to tell you- the mission accidently didn’t quite finish the house so we are stuck down here one more week. Now you might wonder why I said funny news. I am trying to be super positive about it. Honestly I laughed when they told me about the mistake. You remember that talk a few years ago by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin that talked about taking and loving what comes our way? I was thinking about that a lot this last week. Remember he told a story about how his daughter had a blind date one night and a man came to the door and she left with him and then ran back into to the house super embarrassed because it turned out to be a different man there to pick up a different daughter who had committed to babysit that night. He said they laughed and laughed and just ended up having a good time about it. I thought about it in relation to my toe. I could be mad about it, feel that I have been mistreated, scared and worried or I can laugh about it and just understand the Lord has His purpose for all things and if we endure them well we will be blessed. It’s really not the easiest thing now. My toe was just operated on and it still hurts to walk on it especially up a super steep hill about 30 minutes but It’s ok. I’m taking good care of it and putting on the special cream the doctor gave me and elevating it and doing what is right. I like a quote from the Other Side of Heaven that says,” Sometimes the Lord calms the sea, other times the sailor, and sometimes you just gotta swim.” Right now I just gotta walk and know that Lord has prepared people for me to go and help and teach. It’s not really worth it to mope around or pout and be upset about the trials but I am learning how to laugh and be stronger through the adversities. I’m excited for this week because we should have a baptism. A girl named Thais who has come to church over a year now and has finally made the choice to be baptized. It should be good. She is very smart and will be a good member. Now we just gotta try and help her family too. I’m very grateful this Easter season. Maybe more than any other one in my life. In truth I was reading an old conference edition of the Liahona (the Ensign) and in the church news section it talked about the relief efforts for the earthquake in Haiti. I never would have guessed how much that earthquake 4 years ago could have affected me so much now. I remembered a family in Bani, the Haitian one that named me the godfather of their children. I remember in the first visit Elder Mortensen and I were sitting there talking with the mom, Roodlina about her life in general. We asked her about her family, religious views etc. and she told us that she left Haiti before the earthquake hit and she still doesn’t know much about her family. She hasn’t been able to keep communication with them. Her husband and her couldn’t go to Haiti because they had no money and working super hard already to gain citizenship here in the DR and also to get legally married. It’s a real blessing to know that even though our earthly communication is limited our heavenly communication is always here. We taught her all about how she is a child of God- He gave her her family and He will always take care of us. He loved us so much He gave us His son to die for us. Jesus Christ really did come to earth and He did set up His church and teach about His evangelio (gospel) and the way to get back to live with God again and the way we need to take to be made clean and have peace. I know He took upon Him all our sins and pain. And I love the happy words the angel said that morning so long ago, that “He is not here but He is risen.” I know He is risen and more than that, that we can rise too and live with our families again no matter what. We showed her pictures of the Santo Domingo temple and told her that we can make eternal covenants there. I know that someday she will be able to go there. I know that life doesn’t end on the other side of the veil. I have this quote on the back of my white bible that says, “I know that we will be with the savior again, that if we are faithful to him, we will stand free, unfettered and unencumbered, and that we will recognize in the marks in his flesh something of his bondage and imprisonment and dying sacrifice for us.” I testify that that is very true. There are families all over who need the gospel of Jesus Christ. They need the peace. It’s not really important if my toe hurts, or I woke up with a headache, or if it’s a million degrees and I’m sweating before I even leave the house. I know that when I leave each day the Lord is with me and is helping me help his children. It’s such a blessing to be a missionary and I’m super excited to see what these next months will bring. Thanks so much for everything and I promise to send some pictures next week.

Con mucho amor,
Elder Spencer W. Hulsey

(No Subject)

Email received March 17, 2014

Dear family,

Thanks so much for all the prayers that you say for me. I really do feel them and am noticing more and more miracles everyday. It’s a blessing to be here in Buenos Aires with elder De la Cruz. I am learning a lot of Spainish and even more than that I am learning a lot of better ways to preach the gospel. It’s really cool getting to learn so much. I am so grateful for these past 7 months I have had. I really have notIced a change in myself and I can’t wait to keep bettering myself. My companion is trying so hard to learn English and he is learning so much. So good news I am moving tomorrow to a very safe house the church just built for us. It’s amazing because they built the place in a little over a month. I’m super grateful for all the hard work that went into it. We will be living next door to a few members as well and one of them is super excited. She said she is an excellent cook but ya hay las reglas (but we have rules). Anyway I got to see a picture of my next mission president as well at a zone conference. He is an American who served in Spain and was on a church assignment I believe in France for 5 years as well. He lives in California. I’m excited to meet him but I will really miss Presidente Rodriguez. I have learned a lot from him. I’m very happy for all of the kids. It’s crazy Emma is almost a senior and in a year we will probably go to Snow together. I really don’t want to leave this country though. There will always be a special place in my heart for these people. Heidi had a problem this last week but she told us that she prayed with faith and things are getting better. Nos dijo que tiene mucho deseos para seguir adelante (she told us that she desires to keep moving forward). I know she can do it. I know the Lord has a special plan for her. It’s such a blessing to be a messenger of that plan. We also found a family and they now have a date for the 10th of May. There are a lot of time rules here for when we can and can’t baptize. Anyway so today I had a bit of an adventure. I had to go to the ccm (Dominican MTC) again so the doctor could cut my toe nail. Yeah- let’s just say that I might have had a minor infection from when I tried to cut it out myself and there was a lot of puss....jaja but one minor operation later and I’m good to go. The doctor said to take it easy on the walking though. Thank goodness we are moving tomorrow. I love you all so much and I hope you have a great week. Thanks so much for the package as well. Elder De la Cruz loved the sasquatch thing and the jerky. He said if you want to adopt him you can jajaja anyway I found this store that sells American candies and he is now addicted to gummy worms. i got invited to a members wedding on the 29th of Feburary 2016 so I told Elder De la Cruz that I would bring him as much jerky and gummy worms as possible when I come back for that jajajaja.

Mucho thank you (something a menos activo who is learning English likes to tell me) for everything,

Elder Hulsey

(No subject)

Email received February 25, 2014

Querida familia,

Wow what a crazy week. This was the last week of the transfer and it turns out Elder Cragun will be leaving tomorrow. I’m a bit bummed to be honest-he is a very hard worker. I won’t find out my next comp or if I will be training again until tonight. I’m grateful to be here in Buenos Aires and I really love this ward. One thing is for sure- they love playing basketball and this Thursday is independence day down here in the DR so we have planned a big ward basketball game for the early morning. The bishop is a really good player and his sons are very good as well but he is adamant that in his old age he can still whoop up on them. I actually have an ingrown toenail right now that I just got treated and it’s still tender so I will be taking it a bit easy in the game.

Wow! I can’t believe Maren is already doing missionary work. It’s really true that just being a friend to someone really is just the start. She is very sweet. This week we found a really cool investigator named Heidi. She actually contacted us on Tuesday morning I think and asked about the English we have been teaching at the church. She asked if she could come even if she wasn’t a member and we told her absolutely and gave her our number and told her to call us if she was interested in hearing a message or just needed service or anything. She laughed and said that we talk funny but she would love to talk about God anytime. We got the chance to teach her and she read the folleto(pamphlet) for the restauracion(restoration) and marked it up all nice and had amazing questions. We were blessed to be able to answer them clearly enough and she really understood. She showed up to church yesterday and loved it. She said she has gone to a lot of churches but there was something different about ours, she felt different. We explained it’s the spirit, the same spirit she feels when we talk with her and she is reading and it’s telling her that it’s all true. She loved the Book of Mormon and asked if she could go to institute to get even more help understanding it. The institute teacher and her husband are both recently returned missionaries and said she is more than welcome to come to the class or their house with any questions about the book. The work is really progressing. Things with Sara are going well. You know me. I get easily frustrated when I feel that things are clear and people don’t understand but I am trying to learn humility and remember all God has ever worked with is imperfect people and he deals with it so I need to humble myself and do so as well. We pray for her everyday and we are seeing progress with her father now as well. We have a family prayer with them every night. It’s hard because we live so far away but it’s worth running home late at night to be on time and help them feel the spirit a bit more. So anyway the girls definitely hiss here and blow kisses a lot. All you can do is ignore them. We were teaching a menos active (less active) at a member’s house and the door was opened and we sing a hymn to start every lesson and a girl outside heard me sing and started blowing me tons of kisses and hissing at me and telling me how bueno I am and so we closed the door and I think the menos activo tried to put a curse on her with a chicken or something but I didn’t understand so well. I really do love this place so much. Best of luck to Meg and Maren. Tell them I am praying for them and I hope the very best. I know they will do great.

Thanks for everything i love you all so much.

Elder Hulsey

Email received February 17, 2014

Dear family,

Thanks so much for all the prayers for Sara and her family. We have had excellent lessons with their family and Mari and Sara show up to church each week but there is still just something missing so we are postponing the baptism just a little bit more. Elder Cragun and I made a cake for them though and are showing as much love as we can to them. I really love Elder Cragun. I don’t know how much time we will have together though because the transfer is almost over. I can’t believe I already have 6 weeks here in Buenos Aires. Don’t worry about the fan club- they just see the name tag and the white boy and go for it. I haven’t had problems other than cat calls and well last night and my first week here I got proposed to but don’t worry I’m totally fine. It’s just kinda funny to us now. I remember this one time playing baseball with Eli almost right before I left and him telling me, “ Spence I love you, thanks for playin’ ball with me. Can we play tomorrow too?” I remember that moment a lot now and I am excited for the day I can play some ball with him again. I do have very fond memories with each of you. The Dominicans really are just like family to me now. I love them so much and I know I have so much to do here. I know I have bad times here but I don’t remember them to well. I just love it in truth. No hay otro lugar en lo que yo querreria estar (There is no other place I would rather be). It sounds like you guys had a great stake conference. This ward is so amazing doing the work with us. We are trying to give it to Mari’s husband hard and we feel that family history could be an excellent way to do it. He does really love the family and I think it would be good to show him what we really believe as far as eternal families. I know that the spirit of Elijah has been poured out over the face of the earth. I know that maybe if nothing else could this can touch his heart and soften it. It’s such a blessing to have a temple so close to us here in the DR. We have shown the family so many pictures of the temple and I really have the firm hope that someday they can walk in there to be sealed. That really is the goal. I can’t even think of anything that would make me happier at this point. It’s easy sometimes to get down on ourselves in the mission. But I know I need to have hope for a brighter tomorrow. Everybody has the potential of godhood someday. Even the bum on the street you normally wouldn’t give a second glance to is a child of god and has such a wonderful potential for something so much better than what he has been asked to pass through here. What a blessing we have as members and missionaries of this church to spread that message-to bring and establish the peace of Jesus Christ. Uncle Rick wrote something on my Halloween card that had a bigger effect on me than he probably thought when he wrote it. It simply says “Bring the Peace”. I thought it was suiting. There is very little peace here but it’s not important. I was called by God to serve here and help bring that sacred peace that can only be found through obedience to the laws and ordinances of this church. I’m very firm in the faith here. My apartment is super fun. We are building a new one right now and I got the chance to see it and it looks like it will be pretty nice-two bathrooms por lo menos(at least). We have an interview every two to three transfers and we visit the temple every 6 months so I will be going in march. We also do have zone conferences but they are rare here. I love you all and thanks for thinking about me and praying for me. I really feel your love and prayers here all the time.

Love,
Elder Hulsey

(no subject)

Email received February 10, 2014

My Dear Family,
So first off Sara was unable to get baptized this last week. We had her all set but during the interview some things came up and we felt it best to have her wait for two more weeks. It’s actually a good thing though. This way her mom can hopefully get baptized too with her. Her mom really has so much faith and does know it’s true but her husband or rather man she has been living with for the past thirty years doesn’t want to get legally married. We gave them a Proclamation copy and had him read it out loud with the family and even though he denied it I know he felt it was true. The spirit was super strong and Mari y Sara were crying quite a bit in the lesson. After Mari shook my hand and told me thanks so much for all your patience with us and all I could really think was I should be the one thanking her. I know it’s not easy to have two young Americans come to your house trying to speak Spanish and explain to you what you should do for salvation but I am so grateful she opened up the door and more importantly her heart. I was very grateful for the bishop of our ward as well who after sacrament meeting yesterday visited with Sara and offered her some good counsel and encouragement. He is a fantastic bishop in truth. Elder Ramos is doing better. He told me a few things about the Dominican Republic he heard back in Honduras and he is kinda freaked out about the country. You know how Latins can be. They are very quick to believe the first bad thing they hear and assume it all to be true. He told me he is terrified to leave the capital someday and I told him I started my mission down in the south and that he doesn’t need to be afraid. You really are protected from all the bad things as long as you just do what’s right. Wow I can’t believe Eli is already four! I love showing his pictures to the Dominicans because they absolutely love his blonde hair and blue eyes. I remember there was this one little boy in Bani who was super smart and had about 2 years but talked super well. He also had really blue eyes and blondish hair (not Eli blonde) and when he saw that picture of Eli he said oh he looks just like me. I laughed and laughed and was really reminded in that moment that that little boy was my little brother too and god had given me the chance to teach his family the gospel of Jesus Christ. Being a missionary is really the coolest thing in the world to me for that reason. Give Eli a big hug for me and wish him a super feliz cumpleanos. Any way it sounds like everything is going great up there in the old Utah. I haven’t heard from Elder Mortensen, we can’t write the other elders in our mission but I know he is doing just fine. He is a great missionary and I’m so grateful for the chance I had to get to know him and help him start his mission. They do celebrate Valentine’s day here. The Dominican Republic es el mejor lugar en el mundo entero y estoy bien animado para vivir aqui por 18 meces mas. (the DR really is the best place in the entire world and I am so happy to be able to work here for another 18 months). I really can’t see myself doing anything else besides this.

I love you all,

Elder Spèncer Hulsey

No Subject

Email received February 3, 2014

Dear family,
Wow i cant believe it has been 6 months tampoco(either). by the way excuse the spelling in this email because the keyboard i am using is super broken. Anyway i love my new area. Im still not allowed to eat with anybody due to rules of the country. Its actually not just a rule of the missiion but the area seventy for the caribe(carribean) said missionaries in the dr shouldn’t be eating with members or investigators. It’s all for safety reasons. I have been blessed with a lot of health and strength during my mission. I actually burned a tie on my sixth month mark with my house. It’s so weird living with so many missionaries. Three companionships are a lot and I’m one of the older missionaries time wise in the house. The only one with more time with me is elder Diaz, the Costa Rican and he only has two more weeks on me. He is a super hard worker. His comp is really struggling though. We pray for elder Ramos every day to start adjusting more to the mission life. He has a good testimony he just needs to adjust is all. It can be hard we all know. Anyway if all goes well this Saturday I will have a baptism. Her name is Sara and I hope you guys keep her in your prayers this week especially. She is amazing and really does have a testimony but this week before baptism is always so hard. Her mom really wants to get baptized too but her dad said he doesn’t believe and doesn’t want to get married to her and she doesn’t have enough money to leave him. We gave it to him hard on the family yesterday. We read the Proclamation together and I knew he felt the spirit. He still told me he didn’t believe in all this but he respected our views on the family. All I could say was that realmente no estamos aqui para convincir le que estas cosas son verdaderas pero estamos aqui para invitar le. Por favor hermano hacer una oracion y pedir su padre celestial en el nombre de jesus si este es el camino que el quiere que tome. Si su familia puede ser eterna.(really we are not here to convince you that these things are true. We are only here to invite you to find out for yourself. Please brother, offer a prayer and ask your Father in Heaven in the name of Jesus if this is the path that he want you to take-for your family to be eternal). And after testified that I know families are forever. I really have learned that a lot here on the mission. I love the concept of families. I know there is no such thing as a perfect family. I know we didn’t have one but we really do have a happy family. I really love all of you guys and I am forever grateful to our heavenly father for the opportunity I have to be with you guys forever. I know I gave up two years with you guys to help others feel this same way. I can’t explain to you how happy I am to teach about forever families. I’m very grateful for these past 6 months I have had here. I will always be grateful for them. I can’t wait for these next 18 months. It’s sad to me that I am already a fourth of the way done. It’s weird how fast it is all going. I remember in my setting apart President Eddy said that the angles will guide me home. Really I think he meant that the angles will probably be the only ones with the strength to drag me out of this place. I can’t picture myself anywhere else besides here. I really love these people so much and I can’t believe how much I have learned from them and I am so excited to get to learn even more.
Yo espero que todo este bien alla. estoy muy agradecido por cada uno de ustedes.
Con mucho amor y un abrazo,
Elder Hulsey

Re: Hola Mi Nino

Email received January 27, 2014

Dear family,

Wow it sounds like a lot has happened lately. I really love this area. It is a way amazing but also truly humbling area. I am trying so hard to be a more humble person. i was reading a lot about the sons of Mosiah and also Nephi and Lehi the sons of Heleman. Mom I don't know if you remember this but i remember this time when we were very little and sitting on your bed reading from the book of mormon. I remember you reading the part about Nephi and Lehi in the prison. we were looking at the pictures of it, I don't know if you remember reading the book of Moromon with the pictures with us nightly, but i remember you telling me that Nephi and Lehi reminded you a lot of me and Zack. How amazing it is for me now to be a missionary like Nephi or Lehi and knowing that my older brother and best friend is doing the same thing. I really am honored to be a part of this work and there is nothing in the world i would give it up for. I am so grateful to have grown up in a home where the book of mormon was taught, where legal and more important eternal marriages are key. Here in the DR they don't really believe in legal marriages. Its just a piece of paper to them so whats the difference. The family truly is under attack. I was very happy yesterday though because i walked into a house in the poorest part of my area for a first lesson with some contacts we had and saw that they had framed their marriage certificate and hung it proudly on their wall. To me that gave me a lot of hope. They were poor but moral values to them were maybe more important than the food they needed that week so that they could get married. It does not matter the commandment god always provides a way for us to keep it. I know its true and i have truly seen the windows of heaven open up to me down here. Mom i will be honest with you i did not want to leave elder Mortensen or Bani. When i found out i would be going to the capital i was even less excited for some reason. I started moping about it for a little bit at a noche de hogar (family home evening) and i said a silent prayer in my heart to give me peace about leaving. The spirit chastised me pretty hard. I heard a very clear and direct voice ask me why i was so sad about leaving, i had done the work that the lord had called me to do in Bani and for elder Mortensen and now he needed me to buck up and get going on to buenos aires because he has a very important work for me here. I was very humbled by that to be honest. I know maybe that sounds all a little bit prideful but it really happened. I know i am here for a reason. I know i was called here for a reason. I am living currently 30 minutes away from my area for reasons i really don't want to go into to many details about to save you some scary feelings. Its up hill both ways and when i say hill I'm not talking about the grass mound in Aunt Diana's back yard but i mean hills. They are so steep and i don't know if i have ever been so tired in my life but its just simply not important. You really are blessed with strength beyond your own on a mission. The lord gives you daily exactly what you need. I don't know anything better than this. I was reading a conference talk given a little while ago by jeffery r holland in the which he said I don't think any youth has or could ever love their mission as much as i loved mine, to that statement i gladly contest. i love serving my mission more than anything in the world. i love these people more than anything else in the world. I have kinda become dominican as well. JAJA thanks for the compliment about working out its actually because I accidentally shrunk my shirts a little. The washing machines here are unforgiving. I have only wrecked one pair of pants in it though. Well i love you guys and i hope you have a great week. Keep working hard and doing whats right.

Con love,

Elder Spencer W. Hulsey

RE: New Area

Email received January 20, 2013

Dear family,
I'm honestly very happy here in my new area called Buenos Aires. Its in the capital and its honestly the best area in the whole mission from what i have heard. Its very different from bani. Its a ward with a way cool bishop who is very excited about the work and is always willing to help us. The ward is very accepting and i have already made so many new friends here. I worry about elder Mortensen about every minute of everyday. JA i cant believe he wrote you but that was very nice of him to say. Really i look so much up to him and i learned so much from him. He is one of the most logical guys i have ever met. He was so funny too. They sent him way out to the Haitian border. Anyway everything worked out and i am totally fine. something kinda cool about this area is that it was where elder Gatherum started his mission. He was my first zone leader and had a really big influence on me. he was a great missionary and he just finished his mission on Wedsenday. Everybody in the ward still remembers him. One thing i already love about this ward is they are big into basketball. I'm very excited to get to play with them. My comps name is elder cragun and he has one transfer less than me and is in his first area still. he is a really hard worker and we will have a fun time together. I'm what we like to call his step dad. I live in a way nice house with 4 other companionships. I feel so bad for this one though. His name is Elder Ramos and he is a recent convert from Honduras and he is really struggling. His trainer is a good guy from Costa Rica and i know they will be able to work things out. He has a strong testimony and that is whats most important. He just needs a little time is all i think. Something funny he told me is that he cant understand the people here. They speak too fast and use too much slang i suppose. I guess he also believes Honduras speaks the most pure form of Spanish as well. JAJA he is funny. Anyway I like what I'm seeing back home. It sounds like a lot of missionaries will be leaving soon and for that me alegra. I am super pumped for Ashley. She will learn so much and be super blessed for her service. Tell Alyssa that the mission really is the best thing in the world. Don't pressure her into going but just say in my opinion she would be a fantastic missionary. I was thinking a moment about what you said about Satan's plan. really i think i always took pity on him because i guess i kinda thought he was at least trying to do the plan of god and maybe got really offended. But then i thought that in his plan there really would be no sacrifice made because there would be no need. He wouldn't need the father and the father would not have needed him in truth it was the biggest something for nothing plan ever created. he wanted all the glory with out paying the sacrifice or atoning for it. Christ entonces was a humble servant of our father who gave all the glory to him and paid the price for us in the end and now i am trying so hard to be his humble messenger to these people here in Buenos Aires. Yes the work is hard but the benefits are many. I have learned so much and i don't ever regret my choice in coming out here. I never ever could have known how much i really could love a people before i came here. I look at everyone the way Christ would. I know he loves them. I know he called me specifically here for a reason. I love this work and i love him. Me encanta el idioma y estoy aprendiendo cada dia. En verdad me encanta la musica cristiana aqui y probablmente voy a escucharla por el resto de mi vida. Os amo bastante y espero que todo este bien.
Con amor,
Elder hulsey

(No subject)

Email received January 13, 2014

Querida family,

Ok- I did get transferred. In fact my whole house did and we have no idea where any one of us will be going. We will be told tonight. So anyway Santiago will leave tomorrow. He is pretty excited. we had a great turn out in church for his last Sunday and i got to do an intercambio with him on Saturday which was kind of a bummer because nobody was in their houses. I hear the last full day of work in the mission is usually like that. Anyway we ended up getting ice cream and having a good time. Elder Mortensen technically has to be trained for the next 6 weeks. Training lasts usually for the first 2 transfers but i guess he is ending early and will be heading for another area soon. I am very curious to know where i will be going and who will be my companion. Its a really weird feeling though. I didn't want to leave bani and i really wanted to stay and finish training elder Mortensen. But like the song says a donde me mandes ire senor. I know i will be fine its just hard for me dealing with the unknown. Elder Meek is pretty upset. he told me he was just getting used to area. Its actually the second time he has been white washed out of an area. He said the first time was worse though because he had a lot of baptisms lined up. Which also kinda makes me sad because i wont get to see Jennifer be baptized. The lord has his plan though and i just really hope these new sister missionaries that come in will be able to finish teaching her and that she will get baptized and complete her family. Also we have been working with this Haitian family. Woodlyn and Roodlina. They have two kids named Udlovin (or as i like to call him mclovins) and darlin. She is also pregnant and yesterday told me that she is going to name me the god father of her child and that i get to choose the name. Jajaja so how bout that i am going to have a Haitian god daughter. i have had a stake conference well i guess really a district conference. Bani isn't a stake- its a district of branches. I guess at one point it was dang close to becoming a stake but it turned out the district president was stealing tithing money and when he got excommunicated a lot of people went in active. A bread and jam social huh? that sounds pretty cool. I'm a bit jealous to be honest. Wow Ashley is getting her call this week? Tell her i predict Mision santo domingo oeste la republica dominicana. Because it is the best mission after all. Really though i love it so much down here. I'm having the best time of my life and i cant believe how fast its going by. I love you guys all so much and hope you have a great week. Remember to trust in the lord and please pray for me. I'm very nervous to start in a new area.

Gracias por todo que hace,

Elder Hulsey

Re: First Sunday in January

Email received January 6, 2014

querida familia,
Feliz año nuevo! It sounds like you guys really had a super great time. I am happy the little boys behaved and that they are growing. This last week as you know was fast Sunday and it really kinda hit me just how short the mission really is. I don´t really know how much longer i will be in Bani, i assume until February but we will see. I really hope so because Jennifer is progressing so well despite our mistakes we make as missionaries. If i left this transfer i would miss her baptism. Sunday was a bit of a bummer because it was raining so not too many people were able to make it out to church but i had the chance to bear my testimony which always feels very good. The spirit was still very strong in the meeting despite the lack of numbers and the little apostate things. There is no such thing as an unitresting testimony meeting here. I had a really nice and short dream last night of me and Zack teaching a Mexican family together back home. I don't really know where we were exactly but i remember both of us teaching this small family in Spanish and then asking if the missionaries could come over and teach her more. It was a very powerful and nice dream and really reminded me how amazing Zack is. He is my best friend and i know he prays for me and he knows i pray for him. he is the kind of person you would really want in a leadership position because you know he will the do the job right, help the people and the other missionaries, and he will never do anything to satisfy his own pride. I have learned a lot from him and his example. I will definitely tell Elder Santiago that. He isn't trunky at all. He is very excited to get back home and he knows where he will be living and all, its just he served a very good mission. he told me he trained 4 other missionaries. That's pretty incredible. i cant remember if i told you this but i read a talk at the beginning of this transfer talking about the importance of a good trainer. A good trainer really makes a big difference and i am very grateful the lord has given me the chance to train so early in my own mission. I am trying my best and even though im not perfect and make mistakes i always feel so good every night when i talk to the lord and feel the spirit tell me that all he is asking for is my best and that i am improving day by day. I know all these feelings i have are of the lord. And even though its hard he is really helping me out here and i have seen so many miracles. Elder Mortensen is super comfortable now and is sharing with los demas. Its so awesome and humbling to see the hand of the lord in his life. I really love him and we have such a fun time together. He is honestly one of the funniest people in the whole world. So we got the name of our new mission president the problem is i cant remember it but i know he will be a north american. President asked us to include him in our fast yesterday. President Rodriguez is really such an incredible man and it will be hard to see him leave when the day comes. I really love these people mom. Today we went to this place called ocoa and saw this water fall and what not and it was incredible. We got to hike around in the mountains up there and i felt right at home. I met some pretty incredible members out there who were super funny. Played a little baseball too. Ill try and send some pics. Anyway i really love you guys. Thanks for all the prayers. Please mom if you could send me some medicine. I don't know if i will have to pass another kidney stone here but i would like to be prepared just in case. And as I've grown a little i have realized that not taking certain medicines, which are given of god, we kind of offend god and are suffering a lot more than we need to. So thanks to the mission and God i feel like maybe i am growing up just a little.
Thanks again for everything,
Con mucho amor y un abrazo por cada uno de ustedes,
Elder Spencer W. Hulsey