6-6-2011

Hey people

I'm doing pretty good. My birthday was alright. Some members took us to Golden Coral for dinner but besides that it was a pretty normal day. The only things I've gotten are the package and a letter from Rachel. So far nothing else has come yet. As for the camel back Mom, we were tracting and we ran into this guy who is in the air force (not all that uncommon) but he said that he had a bunch of extra camel backs and he would give one to me. So don't worry about getting one. If it turns out that it doesn't work ill let you know.

As for Bi*, he got sick over the weekend so he couldn't make it to church. This week hasn't been all that eventful. We helped this guy move in that a set of sisters were teaching so we'll start teaching him soon but that's pretty much it. I wasn't feeling too great yesterday so I went to bed real early and got a lot of sleep and I'm doing a lot better today.

I cant look at the blogs anymore cuz they're blocked. Tahlia sends me their blogs and I can read them but the pictures don't show up. Its been really warm here lately like in the upper 70's. Its been super nice. Its good to hear that people are starting to get ready to go on their missions. I was talking to Elder Guymon the other day and he told me that his girlfriend got her mission call to little rock, Arkansas. I can't remember when she leaves but i think its sometime in July. I kinda laughed when I heard that. As for Spencer's call, I'm going to guess either Guatemala or Florida.

Well I hope everyone continues to do good. I miss all of you!

Love Elder Butler

5-31-2011

Hello everybody

I am emailing today because yesterday was Memorial Day so the libraries were closed. So today is p-day which is always fun. This week we found two new investigators but they have both dropped us. One got antied cuz she looked up Mormon on the internet. The other one said he wasn't interested anymore. But the good news is that we met with Bi* and hes looking pretty good. He was in Salida this past weekend so he wasn't at church but he said he'd be there the next few weeks.

I got the package and it was awesome.

The weather here has been pretty good lately. Its been nice enough to wear short sleeves so that's been really nice. We were tracting the other day and we knocked on this one door and this fat guy with gray hair and beard opens the door with a baseball bat. Lets just say he didn't seem too friendly.

We had our last zone conference with president Pfile this week. It was really awesome. We talked a lot about focusing on Christ. We practiced teaching the plan of salvation in about 15 mins. Its not that easy so it'll be a work in progress. We also watched a talk given by Elder Holland at the MTC a few months ago. It was awesome as usual. Anyways cant think of much else to say. Hop you all have a good week.

Love Elder Butler

5-23-2011

This week was pretty good. On Tuesday We did a lot of biking. My bike still works I just can't change the front gear but its not all that bad. So we were biking and we were taking this turn and all of a sudden I hear this noise like air shooting out of something. Then after a few seconds it stopped. We get to where we were going and I check my back tire and sure enough there's a big ole cut in it. Apparently I ran over some glass or something. The slime in my tube was able to seal it kinda but not all the way. We went to dinner and after that we walked over to target which wasn't too far away. I bought another tube that has sealant stuff in it. A less active member that we've been working with gave us a ball pump that has a bike tire hose on it so we carry that with us in case we get a flat. So I pumped up by tire and hoped that it would keep enough air in it to get me home. The next day we go out there to put the new tube on and the tire is holding air. I take off the wheel to get a better look at it and start to pump it up with the bike pump. As I'm doing this the sealant pops out of the tube and sprays me in the face. So it was a good thing that I bought the new one.

Wednesday started off really nice out. As the day went on though we saw these nasty clouds coming over the mountains. Then out of nowhere the wind picked up and it got freezing cold. Then it started to rain a little bit. We jumped on our bikes and booked it back to the house so that Elder McGrath could get his coat. It started pouring rain and hailing a little bit. We were getting close to our place and we saw some members that let us come in their house until the rain calmed down a little. So we waited a little bit then went up to our place, grabbed his coat and went to dinner.

Thursday was kinda the same thing. It started off nice and then got cold and rained and hailed. It seems to hail a lot around here. I think Ive seen just as much hail here the 5 months I've been in Colorado Springs then I have my whole life. Almost every time it rains hard it also hails.

Friday we had district meeting where we met all the new elders that came into the district. We did some tracting. The members we were supposed to have dinner with couldn't feed us cuz they had something come up so they got us a gift card for Fazoli's. So we went there for dinner and it rained again. Saturday we did more tracting and we found a new investigator. His name is Bi*. He was supposed to come to church but he didn't show. More about that later. Saturday was actually pretty hot out. But the day started off kinda cold so we started the day with our jackets on but about half an hour later we had to take them off and put them in our backpacks. While we were tracting we came up to this one house that had a huskie in front. Is was on the leash and barking but the leash had slack on it. I went up to the dog nice and slow with my hand out so that we could get to the door and knock it. The dog didn't seem all that happy we were there. The dog barked a few times and then all of a sudden it jumped a little like it was ready to attack. I knew that and so did Elder McGrath so we both made a run for it. The dog almost got us but we got away in time. This weekend was stake conference so Saturday night we went to the adult session and President and Sister Pfile spoke there.

Sunday We had Stake conference in the morning. We called Bi* an hour before to remind him but there was no answer so we left a message. We called him a total of about prolly 3 or 4 times and he never answered. But stake conference was good. We got home and tracted for a little bit. We went by Bil*'s house to see what was going on but no one answered the door either.

So that was pretty much my whole week. I met a lady that lives in our ward now that knows Amy real well and she met you guys when you went out to pick Amy up at the end of her mission. Her name is Ju*. So let Amy know because sister Fl* wants to get back in touch with her.

The only other thing I could think of that you guys could send me or give me money for would be a camel-back. I think that's how its spelled. But its those backpack things that was a water bladder in it so that I can be on my bike or tracting and always have water.

I love you guys and hope that you all continue to do well. I miss you!

Love Elder Butler

5-16-2011

So I just found out that me and Elder McGrath will be staying together for another 6 weeks. And in the same area I might add. But things are going well. This morning we woke up at 8 on accident because the power had gone out sometime in the middle of the night so the alarm clocks were all messed up.

We started teaching Ta* again and we found this girl off tracting. Unfortunately no one was at church again this week. This new family moved into the ward a little while ago and we started teaching them. Two of the sons were baptized back in January. So we went over a few times and had some lessons with them. But the past couple days its been rainy and cold. Not too much fun. Especially when your on a bike going downhill. Speaking of my bike, the cable that controls the front derailer broke this past week. So I had to basically lock it in second and I can't change gears. The back one is fine though. Were going to a members house because he was gunna help fix Elder McGraths breaks so hopefully he can fix my cable too.

Overall this week was pretty good. Nothing super awesome really happened but on the other hand, nothing super bad did either. As for stuff for my birthday, I'd like some Bulls stuff like a shirt or something. I was also thinking it would be really cool to have some footie pajamas like the ones in Sky Mall. Yeah that's all I can really think of. I'm trying to think of things I could actually use and not stuff that will just take up more room in my luggage.

Its good to hear that everything is going well back home. Do you guys have any plans for the summer? I can't wait for it to stop becoming randomly cold here. It wouldn't be so bad if we had a car then on those days where its pretty warm I could wear short sleeves but being on a bike and going downhill you need a jacket unless its really nice. I think I'm gunna go to Kohls today since its p-day and take a look at their dress pants and see if they have any good ones for cheap.

Were still waiting to get this month's Ensign. We'll prolly get it at zone conference next week.

This is the last transfer that President Pfile will be here. He'll go home at the end of next month. The new mission president I believe has been announced. His name is President Anderson? or something like that. Anyways its kinda exciting to see how the mission will change but kinda scary too. Well I have to be going now. I love all of you and I cant wait to hear back.

Love Elder Butler

5-9-2011

Well people, this week was pretty interesting. The highlight was definitely mothers day being able to talk to the fam on Skype. Besides that the week was up and down. Tuesday was mostly tracting and Wednesday Elder McGrath wasn't feeling good. Thursday was actually a pretty good day. We Did some tracting and we found a new investigator. His name is Do*. He apparently was baptized like a year ago into some kind of born-again church. But we explained how he needed to be baptized by someone who holds the authority of God. So he took a Book of Mormon and stuff. He ended up not coming to church yesterday so we'll see what happens. He was making really lame commitments and didn't seem super sincere. Friday was pretty decent. We did some more tracting and stuff. Saturday we were gunna go do service for someone but when we got there no one was home. So we went back to our members house and helped him grind some stumps out of the ground. It was nice to be outside in the sun doing some service. The downside though was that it totally drained me of energy and I started to get a headache. We did some tracting on Saturday and ran into the anti-mormon guy who I really wanted to punch in the face but being a missionary I decided that wouldn't be the best action.

That was pretty much it for this week. And apparently they changed transfers to the day before so now its on Tuesday the 17th like it used to be. So if anyone would like a personal letter to them all you have to do is write me one. Send all letters to 4090 Center Park Dr Colorado Springs, CO 80916. And also a reminder that my birthday is coming up in the next few weeks. I'll be 20 which is weird to me. I'll no longer be a teenager. I'm still trying to decided whether that's a good thing or not. Anyways I miss you all and can't wait to hear from you.

Love Elder Butler

5-2-2011

Hello everyone!

This week has kinda been slow. We were only able to teach like 4 lessons this week. We just don't have any good investigators. They're all super hard to get a hold of. So we have little to no contact with them. We have been working with this one family who the Dad is less active so we go over there quite a bit to visit with them. Other then that we have been doing a lot of tracting.

But I'm doing well and having fun. I try not to get too frustrated. I have some funny pictures and after I get them printed off and get my other memory card back ill send you this one.

I got a letter from Neal and it sounds like his trainer is kinda a slacker. He said that he goes home in August and has already kinda "checked out". But he sounds like he's doing good. Oh and by the way Mom and Dad. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!! I was thinking about you guys yesterday. You are so lucky to get all this stuff piled on all at the same time. It was Sean's birthday also yesterday. I sent him a letter. So this morning a guy that Elder McGrath knows from an old area took us out to lunch and told us all about how they killed Osama Bin Ladin. And everyone has been talking about how great the royal wedding was. I hope you guys didn't stay up to watch it. Ha ha.

The weather here has been pretty crappy this last week. Its been rainy and snowy almost the whole time. It looks like its supposed to warm up though this week. I can finally start wearing short sleeves on a regular basis. So remember those sunglasses that I got in New York City? Yeah they broke. So I tried taping them back together with some electrical tape but they're just not the same.

Have you had any luck finding the warranty for my watch? It was in this like can thing. I'm pretty sure I gave it to Dad before I left. Transfers are in two weeks. And on transfer day, it will be my 9 month mark. I haven't heard really how Amy and Sterling are doing. Whats going on with them? Anyways. That's all I got for now. Can't wait to talk to you on Sunday!

Love, Elder Butler

4-25-2011

So I found out the reason why I hadn't been getting mail recently. When we moved into the members house the mail man didn't know we did. So he saw mail coming in to the house of people he thought didn't live there so he said that some of it may have been returned to the senders. And on top of that the mission office had the wrong address for us too. But I did get the Easter package which was awesome. Ive run out of room on both of my tie racks so I'm gunna have to start hanging the extra ties on regular hangers.

Your Easter weekend sounds like it was a lot of fun. This week was uneventful. We haven't been able to contact any of our investigators. We been mostly tracting throughout the week. Saturday night we went over to a less active families house to visit with them and they were dying Easter eggs so they let us do a few. On Easter the members we live with gave us a little bit of candy and we had Easter dinner at this other families house and had family night with them.

On Friday the ward had a talent show thing and Jim played guitar at it. The dumb part was that he came late and left early. But overall it was pretty good. I've been super tired lately and I've been getting enough sleep (or rather the allotted amount).

Earlier in the week on Thursday, it was in the 70's. The day after that it was like in the low 60's. Then on Saturday it was cold and it snowed. Sunday was still cold and it rained about half the day. Today it isn't as cold but is still pretty chilly. Sorry that this email is so short but it just wasn't a very good week. We don't really have anyone to teach and when we find someone we cant ever get a hold of them again. But... the good news is that the 8th is mothers day! Apparently Skype is approved but the mission president kinda looks down on it and says that its too distracting. So I'll be able to call and talk to you so let me know what number to call and where you'll be and what time to call. The morning would prolly be best cuz I have church at 1:30 mountain time and we usually get there at 1. So any time before that would be awesome. Anyways Hope you all are doing good. I Miss you!!

Love Elder Butler

4-18-2011

Hey peoples

That's awesome that Kristin and the baby are doing good! That's crazy she had her 2 weeks early. This week has been pretty awesome but tough. Tuesday we spent the morning cleaning the new apartment. It really stinks having to clean up after who knows how many sets of missionaries. We had to fill in all the holes in the walls from thumbtacks and clean the oven which was disgusting and wash the walls and everything. It was nuts. Tuesday we also taught this less active family that just moved in. Were teaching them again tonight. were gunna watch The Testaments with them. Also on Tuesday we went and taught Ji* who was a guy that we were teaching for a while. He seemed to be pretty solid that he agreed with almost everything we taught him and believed the Book of Mormon was true, but he wouldn't accept baptism yet. So were gunna put him on the back burner for now.

Wednesday we had to teach seminary. We were planning on watching the Joseph Smith movie but the TV wasn't in the room and we don't have a key to the library or anything. So we had to teach the regular lesson which was on section 107 which is about the priesthood and stuff and everyone already knew what was in there so we ended up just playing hangman. The rest of Wednesday was planning and tracting.

Thursday morning we had interviews. That was really good talking with president alone and role playing with the zone leaders and the AP's. After interviews we went and did some service for this old guy. Then we tried to see some people but none of them were there and did some tracting. We got one return appointment which was cool.

Friday we taught seminary again and then had district meeting. We went to the appointment that we set up the previous day and committed her to baptism on the 1st. Her name is Co* and she has a lot of health problems. Then we did a little bit of more tracting and stuff.

Saturday was cool. We tracted more in the morning and found this girl named Rory. We taught her on her doorstep and committed her to be baptized on the 1st. Later on in the day we went by a potential from the area book and committed him to baptism too! His name is Ta*. Then we did some tracting and finished off the day.

Sunday was frustrating. No one came to church so they all lost their dates. I got a flat tire on the way to dinner. And Elder McGrath was having problems with his bike too. But after dinner we went by this family's house that lives just around the corner from the members that we live with. They are the Wa* family. And I found out on Sunday that they lived in the Ridgeview ward while Amy was serving there. So when sister Wa* mentioned that she lived in Ridgeview ward back in 2006 or so I asked her if she knew Amy because I cant remember the actual time that Amy served. So that was crazy that she knows her. Sister Wa* was inactive for a little while but recently she has been coming back and is becoming really strong. Her husband is inactive and he smokes and stuff but is in the process of quitting.

So that was pretty much it for this week. So what is everybody planning on doing for Easter? I can't believe its this Sunday. Oh and i just realized that today is my 8th month mark. At the end of this transfer I'll have been out for 9 months. Time is just flying by. I haven't really heard from anyone in a couple weeks. That picture from my bike wreck was actually my heavy coat not my suit thankfully. But speaking of suits I need to get mine dry cleaned cuz i have yet to do that ever. Its nuts that everything is happening all at the same time. Rachel coming back, Kristin's baby, Jeff moving, Easter. That's outta control.

Hope everyone continues to do well and I cant wait to hear from each one of you.

Love Elder Butler

4-5-2011

Hey peoples

So I just found out that both me and Elder McGrath will be staying in the sixth ward for another 6 weeks. We also found out that we will be moving in with some members on Thursday. The mission will no longer be leasing the apartment so we have to clean it all out and pack everything up. I have a package that I'm gunna be sending home for myself that has some stuff that I don't have room to lug around the rest of my mission. So don't open it. just put it in my room or at grandma and grandpa's house. It just has some letters people have sent and just some little things and stuff.

The past week has been pretty decent. On Tuesday we helped what is now a former investigator move to another part of springs. It took a lot longer then we were planning. We also had dinner with a less active family. Wednesday we had planning and did some tracting. We also had a lesson with this guy who seems really interested. Thursday we did more tracting and then helped someone else move with a bunch of people in the ward. The funny thing about Thursday was that elder McGrath crashed his bike.

So there are these paths that run in between some neighborhoods. We use them on our bikes all the time cuz they cut down on travel time. There is this one part of the path that goes pretty steep downhill to a tunnel that runs under the road. We were going down this part of the path. The stupid thing is that right before the tunnel is a tree. So the path makes a sharp turn that goes around the tree into the tunnel. And on both sides of the path are a fence. We're cruising the path and I'm in front and I realize I'm going a little too fast. So I start to slow down Elder McGrath is behind me and his breaks aren't working and he hits the wooden fence, flips over his handle bars and hits the ground pretty hard. It wasn't funny at the time but it sure is now.

The rest of the week was pretty much the same as everyone else. We were at conference pretty much all weekend. We had an investigator come to Saturday afternoon session so that was pretty exciting. Saturday the weather here was in the 80's. Unfortunately we spent most of the time inside. Then Sunday came and it snowed. So the temp dropped 50+ degrees in less then 24 hours.

Anyways that's all I can think of. Hope everything is going good with everyone.

Love Elder Butler