Vale la Pena :)

Kristen with a jackhammer (facebook link)

Hermana Tuft brushing her teeth atop Cerra la Cruz 6 Jan 2014. She and her Dad climb to the top of the highest mountain and brush their teeth.

Hermana Tuft with her District on top of Cerra la Cruz

Hermana Kami Severtson and Hermana Kristen Tuft

Hello all!!

It's been an absolutely great week to start off the new year! Things have FLOWN by is all, but life is great and we're still alive in this awful heat. Por lo menos. :P But I am also super happy to hear you're all alive and surviving the freezing cold! Everyone here has been talking about how awful it's been in los Estados cold-wise the past week or so... Wish I could say the same honestly. :) But we are so happy! Because guess whaattt!

We found an absolutely amazing investigator this past week and she is getting baptized in a couple weeks! Her name is Isabel (she's the lady that we will be renting our house from) and she is just fantastic. She has had a really, really hard life, especially the past year or so with lots of family trials. She lives alone, and as we went over last Monday to do our contract stuff for the new pension, she asked us what we did and what we taught. It kind of took us a little off guard, because we were planning on having a quick lesson with her after, but she asked us as we were filling out the papers. We taught the first lesson and she started to cry. She was just so happy and felt that peace and love that she has been looking for. She accepted the baptism invitation and was just beaming. She came to church yesterday, loved it, and come to find out she knows quite a few ward members already from just living here in Copiapó her whole life. It was just such a beautiful miracle that we were blessed with this past week. I have been so excited (haha since last Monday night... :P) to share her story. Obviously it's only just begun, but we felt so very blessed to be a part of that beginning.

In other news, we have been working a LOT this past week with less actives and their families. It's been incredible to see the change that the less actives have made to make it possible for their families as well to receive this gospel. We still have a long way to go, but families truly are forever, and that's what we are here for, as missionaries, to help others become families for time and all eternity. I feel so deeply blessed to be sealed to my family and that I can live with them forever. How incredible it is that we live in this, the fulness of times, with the fulness of the gospel here upon the earth.

For New Year's Eve, we ate with a family here in the ward, the 4 of us missionaries. They are a great family! Hermana Maria Lydia and her husband, Claudio, have been on a mission and are getting ready to go again soon. They are such wonderful helps to us as missionaries, and are wonderful examples as well to the ward. We ate dinner with them, and then headed back to the pension. Hermana Severtson and I were up until just a few minutes after midnight in order to see the fun fireworks. New Year's day was just a normal day. :) We did change our district meeting again for this last week to Wednesday, so that was helpful, knowing that everyone was sleeping. :) (Our neighbors even went to bed, so we did actually get a great night's sleep! :P)

I'd better be running this week, but I just wanted to share my testimony that I know that this church is absolutely true. There is no doubt in my mind, and the gospel has brought such light and happiness into my life, and the life of those that I have had the oportunity to share it with. Sometimes the road might seem hard, but His yoke is easy and His burden is light, all we need to do is put our trust and faith in Him. He suffered for us all, but He also knows the things that bring us happiness and joy, and is just waiting for us to accept Him as our Lord and Savior. Christ lives and loves us. I know that to be absolutely true.

All my love,
Hermana Tuft
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Hello Mom and Dad!

Crazy stuff!! I think my "blizzard package" might be here! I'll get it tomorrow if it is and then I'll let you know next week... :P We have transfers again on Saturday! Crazy!!! (Kristen and I went back and forth on email talking a bit this morning so I added in a few of the things we talked about. I told her I had a hunch Hna Severtson may be going because she's been there longer but that I thought there would be changes in their lives coming soon.) We've been thinking that too, ESPECIALLY because we just found out eight hermanas will be coming.... Our daily guess changes, but today it's that we're both training and that I'll stay and she'll train and open a sector.... So we shall see!  Our guess changes daily... :P  I've LOVED having these 3 months with her though.  She is WONDERFUL. :)  Hahaha tell Lindsay to hang in there with all that catching up on homework before the end of the term.  We've all done it. :P  BUT I love her enthusiasm. :)

Thank you for your letters and spiritual thoughts this week! I loved reading through that beautiful primary song and reading the couple thoughts from the Priesthood session of conference. I remember singing that song in Primary, and reading back through it brought back some of those memories and also had more meaning these days. I couldn't help but tie the 2 thoughts together, about Dad saying Christ is always there to help us get back up, with his hand outstretched and saying, "You can do it now!" Our invitation every day is to "Live like His Son," and we can only do that as we accept His loving hand to help us get back up. The Atonement of Jesus Christ continues to bring more and more meaning into my life. Although I will never fully comprehend it, I can learn so much and apply His sacrifice daily. So thank you for your thoughts!! Every week they help me more and more. :)

I'm so happy to hear that all went well with the New Year, that you stayed up late and had a great time with the family. :) That's what it's all about, right? :) Little Audrey is just growing up so very fast!! Tell Lindsay and Spencer too, to just relax a little, and enjoy the ride. Not to get lazy, but just to be happy DURING, not just AFTER the work is done. :) Any new news with the mission papers, Spencer?? I'd better run cause I want to get a few pictures sent too, but I love you both so very much. Thank you for all the love, support, and patience with your little Chilena. :) You are both the very best. Pero enserio. :) 

Thank you for all the pictures!  I loved them lotttsss. :)  It's also great to have an update of the friends :D  I am SO excited for Megan Marchbanks!! FUN!!!  Both the Megans are in Washington....hahaha :)

To the sun, the moon, the stars, and back,
Kristen

P.S. I just thought we could both keep a little check up on each other, as you all are memorizing the Articles of Faith, I'll keep asking you if you'll keep asking me... Just a little bit of motivation for the both of us... :) I'm hoping to do at least 1 through 3 memorized this week... :) LOVE YOU!!!