HEARTS TIED TOGETHER-ACROSS THE MILES-THANKFUL FOR MISSIONARY COUSINS!! SANTIAGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC TO SINGAPORE

PICTURES FROM 11/27/2014 LOVE THIS BEAUTIFUL PLACE

Hello family!

This past week has-been really good . I'm feeling a little better . I Have Decided to drink more water and see if that helps. It's pretty hot here, gotta get use to it! But I think I will be fine . I know in my last letter I sounded a little frustrated but I decided to have a better out look on everything , the language is coming but I guess it still needs a lot of work . The work here has a lot to do with less active members and it is awesome because we got this one sister to come to church!  She hasn't been in a real long time . Its amazing ! My area is really big and we have to walk up this huge hill to get to a lot of houses.( Hills haha) . I  know it seems pretty fast but we have been teaching this sister, she is 12, and she wants to be baptized!! I will baptizing her in this December 21. She asked for me to do it!!   So ya tha'ts pretty cool!!  We have about four other investigators right now,  a brother asked if he would be baptized and we said yes but does have to do a few things to get ready.Like keeping the law of chastity. He is not married to his girlfriend, but we can take care of that too! .

We go to members and non-members houses and they give me food every time . They need to wait to give me food . I'm still not used to the rice or beans yet and tha's all we eat here . I miss thanksgiving with you guys. but it's okay, I'm sure I'll be fed.

I need to go soon but i love you all and miss you guys so much ! It's harder in the mornings because there's not much work but I try not to think too much. I love you guys soo much and this work could not be any better I just wish my stomach would!

 Family I pray for you everyday That you will be diligent  in the Gospel. I hope I get Gentry's picture but I don't think I will. Hey I want pictures of Chloe . How's she doing anyway? Hundreds of dogs are there just walking around the streets and people are just mean to them. Well talk to you next week and miss and love you guys soo much!

Your Elder Westenskow


I was able to visit for just a second online!!  It was great to visit even for a second.  He really is doing great and so excited about his service!!    How'd  I get soo lucky??  What great kids I have!!  This was his last comment today:

Hey mom I have to get off now but I love you and miss you so much. I am fine!  Things are great and I'm doing great! . I have a baptism already!!!  Can you believe it!!  

Hey!!   
So my new P Day is on Wednesday and its pretty hot where I am now. My new companions nombre es Elder Vasquez and yes he only speaks Español and its really hard to understand him. I'll get it!!  I'm close!!  The new area is pretty cool and beautiful because its really close to the beach. The area is Porta plata. I really like it but i'ts a lot hotter than anywhere else I've ever been.

 Anyway I don't really have a lot time to write but i will try to fill you in a little. Friday went great and I was able to talk more to the people. I got to ask this 12 year old boy named Samuel about baptism and it was pretty cool. Monday was so slow just some orientation meetings then we ate and went to bed. Sunday was good like always but it was really close to leaving so I was getting really nervous. My stomach doesn't feel so good lately but i will be alright. Tuesday I left to the field and had to get up at 5:45 and we got to the mission presidents house around 11 and had some orientation meetings and met with him and it was great. Pero que fue cuando mi rodillos fueron no bueno. My espalda is getting sore to.

 I want you to know that I'm doing alright though and that I love you guys. Today has been really frustrando y no puedo entender mucho. I'ts just hard not to say what I want to say all the time. We have to teach Antonio in a minute and hopefully I can do o.k. Mom yo no tengo recibir algun cartas. It may be a while. Mom I want you to know that I'm doing alright and that before long it will be Christmas and I might be able to Skype. My apartment is really gross! It smells and the shower is all moldy but I have to just do it.

 Mom I love you and miss you soo much and want you to know that I will be safe and watched over. Dad I love you soo much and I will be good and strong and try to focus on the good things. This mission is awesome but really hard because they don't speak real Spanish. Well familia I'm doing alright and the work is moving forward and these people down here are taking care of me. I got to eat at a members house today and the food was good but I'm not feeling so good right now. My companion is good and loves it here. Just stuggling because I think i cant really understand him. I'm working on that! 

Love you guys soo much and hope that you guys will be alright. Please stay active in the church and read the Book of Mormon and pray for guia love you sooooooooooo much!!! 

HEY FAMLIY! This past week has been really a ton of work I really can't wait until I get  to the field. Friday was when I went to the campo and was able to teach real people and it was the best thing I have ever done. We just went contacting and taught a few actual lessons and it was great, I still need to work on my spanish..... a little. It's ok though because I know a lot more than I thought when they started talking. Mi compenero y yo fuimos enseñando una hermana y preguntamos sobre que es fe en Jesucristo y ella fue hablando por mucho tiempo. las personas estan muy interesado en hablando sobre Jesucristo. Familia this mission is great. Saturday it was full of all these different classes and it was crazy. A lot of information to remember but I think that I will be alright.

 Like i say every letter Sundays are the best. we always get to hear a couple of devotionals and they are always great. Last Sunday I had to do a talk about Fe en Jesucristo. There were members there from the Quorum of the 70 and I was really nervous. I had to do my talks in Spanish and that's what made me even more nervous. But after my talk I was able to meet them and they said my Spanish sounds really good!!!! They both speak 4 different languages. I think that would be great. Later that day I heard something really sad but I'm glad that he isn't suffering anymore. One of the temple workers from Utah, here on a mission had a stroke and passed away in the hospital. He was a great guy and he was someone  that I got to know really well here on my mission. It was hard to hear about it.

 

Monday was a good day because I weighed myself and I have only lost about 9 pounds. I feel better since Monday, and I think I'm getting used to the food. Tuesday was a normal day except I was able to see a devotional by Elder Perry and I really love our Apostles because everything they say is correct and means a lot to me. There is a Mormon message by Elder Jeffery R Holland from 2010 and he bares his testimony about the Book of Mormon and it helped me think more about how important that book is in our daily lives. Wednesdays are always long and that's when I think more about you guys more because its almost P Day. But I decided that  because on WednesdaysI I'm  not as focused on being on my mission because we do other things. I'll have to run more during gym, and its working keeping my mind focused.  

Today has been the best day so far. The temple received the new video.  I'm glad because the old one isn't as good. I have only had to go through it Spanish once and that was pretty hard but I got through it. I have like 5 days left in the MTC.  I'm getting really excited to get out there. I'm going to tell you something now about what its like out there. I have never been so humbled when seeing what I saw. The people are really poor and they need every bit of hope. The children sometimes don't have any clothes and it really isn't fun to see them bathing in water on someones porch. I am grateful for what I have been given. But makes me want to give them this gospel of hope even more. I am grateful for the opportunity to be here and serve these people because they are the best and they have the greatest spirits. 

Tomorrow I get to do splits again and we have about 6 appointments set up. So wish me luck and hopefully I will be great. Next P Day i will be out in the field I leave on the 19th, so I don't think the P DAY is the same so look out for my letters. Anyway about the letter that you and gentry sent I haven't got it yet and I'm not sure when it will come. But I will look for it!!   I really don't care about what you want to put in the package for Christmas just decide for me, any thing is great. Maybe some sour patch kids. 

I love you guys and miss you soo much. You guys are in my prayers everyday and I hope that you can be blessed. Mom and Dad I love you guys so much and hope that you are doing ok. It's okay that the Packers aren't winning because I'm not there. Mi hermanos y hermanas I love you sooooooo much and hope that you guys are doing ok.  yo se que cuando  quardamos nuestro fe fuerza en El podemos bendice en todas cosas. yo quiero cada de mi familia ser fuerza en todas cosas y cuando oramos a Dios podemos sentir paz en sus vidas. love you guys sooo much. Please tell my little buddys how much i miss them and cant to wait to see how big they will get. i will take a picture of my letter from gentry as soon as i get it.

 

love you and miss you soooooooooooo much!!

your missionary Elder Westeskow

I JUST LOVE THIS KID!!  MISS HIS FACE!!  

SO GRATEFUL FOR BLESSINGS!!  

Hola familia!!!! 

hey miss you guys so much and wish i could be with you guys!

Friday was really great por que mi compenero y yo fuimos enseñando sobre diez personas y todos personas fueron muy interesado. yo se que mi mission es the best thing in the world. las personas de Republica Dominicana estan Hijos de Dios. cuando yo enseño las personas escuchan todo el tiempo. Sorry when i talk i like to translate in Spanish. La universidad was great we did great. The people really love there God and want to know how to obey him and follow him. We talked to about 10 people and they all seemed pretty interested but one wasn't because she was a baptist haha . 

I love the lord so much for blessing me with such a great family. i think about you guys all the time.

 Saturday was a pretty much a normal day but i got to play ultimate frisbee so it was better in that sense. So i have lost about 5 pounds but that's it. Sundays are the best!!!! We start off the day with the normal Sunday that i would have at home but later we get to watch a movie about the church and this time it was about José Smith and we were told to think about what we would do to protect the church. It really showed me that he was able to die for the church. It had me thinking would we all give our lives for the church? Later that day watched a devotional with Jeffery R Holland and it gave me that answer, I would definatly give my life up for this WONDERFUL GOSPEL. As me and my district talked about that question we all decided that La Iglesia De Jesucristo de los Santos de los Ultimos Dias would be worth it. 

Monday was awesome. We had another family home evening con the Crismons they are some great people. We taught sobre Revalation mediante El libro De Mormon. it went really great. So Tuesday!! We went to la tienda is was great. I got a few things like body wash and stuff but mostly treats because they have those Límon Lays chips. But other than that it has been great.   

Entonces miercoles. miercoles son muy duro por que yo pienso sobre todos mi familia!! yo quiero ser con ustedes. Yo se que todos mi familia pueden ser bendice cuando yo soy obediente. Por Favor Familia envian mas fotos con todos mi familia. Cuando yo pienso sobre ustedes es normalmente cuando yo estoy tuviendo a duro tiempo con la idioma. Well family I miss you guys more then you know. So today has been really great! I get to go to the templo!! I wish you guys could see the inside of the temple its beautiful. It makes the weeks soo much better. I don't really have that much much time to write because some people are on the computers all day and we can't get on. But oh well. 

Tomorrow is going to be when i find out if my Spanish is ready!!! We get to go splits con otro missioneros. I think I will be o.k. but I'm still pretty nervous. I have been studying way harder this week because I want to be ready. 

Family i miss you and love you soooooo much. FELIZ CUMPLEANOS MI ABUELO!!!  Mom i love you soo much and I wish you could be here every step of the way with me. I know you would love it. The people here would love you!! Dad so I love you soo much and want you to know how great of a dad you are. You have no idea how much of an impact you have had on my life. Emilee love you soo much and I'm sorry that the Honda has been stolen but hey enjoy the Fiat. I saw the picture of Mylee riding the bike and it was hard not to be there. I miss her and you and Jordan so much. Ryan sup bro I hope your doing alright and work and everything are going well. How's the dog and everything? Alyssa love you soo much and wish I could be there and go to wing coop with you guys. When you eat here you start really missing cooked meat. All the meat here is either over cooked or not even cooked so we need to be careful. But it's soo cool how Ryker is already crawling that's soo cool. I read that, and I kind let a few tears out!  But not too many because I have to up hold my image here. Love you and Gentry and Ryker and Landan soo much. Me and my companion are doing great and we wont be able to see each other after a few weeks becuase he goes to Puerto Rico but it's alright. tThe weather here is still really hot!! When I walk outside I instantly start sweating. but its fine.  Well... better get out of the computer room. so love you guys soooooooooooooooo much and i pray really hard for you guys soooo much.

Love Elder Westenskow