¡Hola Familia! 

First off... Happy Birthday Maddie!! I hope you have the greatest day ever, I love you! I hope y'all had a great week. This past week was amazing, we worked so hard and even got on the bikes. We were able to have some really cool experiences and disappointing ones as well! Also, transfers are tomorrow! Hermana Heil and I will be together for a third transfer, I am so excited! It's not super common in our mission for companions to be together longer than 2 transfers so I am so happy. I prayed we could have one more together, Hermana Heil is probably dying to get away from me haha! (; 

So we had some amazing lessons with Sister Dickerson this week. I wish y'all could meet her, you just walk in her house and the spirit is there. She is the sweetest person I have ever met. We had a really good lesson about callings and she is making some good progress. 

Tuesday we had a million names written down that we were going to see, it was the most inspired planning session I've had on my mission. And we were able to go to every single person's house we had written down. Most of them weren't home but when we were looking for one of our potentials we saw somebody sitting on their porch at the next house over so we talked to him. His name is Jose and he is incredible. We showed him the Mormon Message "A Book of Mormon Story" and he loved it and asked for a copy. We gave him one and set up another appointment with him. Well we went over yesterday and he explained to us that he was studying another church as well and wanted to be honest with us. But he was open to hearing the message. So we taught him the Restoration and the spirit was so strong! He had so many good questions and we were able to answer them all for him. And thanks to the gift of tongues Spanish was so easy for Hermana Heil and me during that lesson, we were able to communicate all that the spirit needed us to. He accepted a baptismal date and was even excited about it and it was such a powerful lesson. Well a couple hours later we received a text from him saying he didn't want to meet with us again and he wasn't interested. Ah! It was like somebody ripped my heart out of my chest and stepped on it. Stinking agency and Satan! I was so sad. 

Jose was the only person we really found this week that was solid. So it was so frustrating and sad to receive that text, but that's okay that's all part of being a missionary right? 

So we've really been working hard on the Hispanics in the ward, we really want to build up the Spanish group. There's like 30-40 Hispanics baptized and only two families and a couple other people show up to church. So in total it's like 8 people. We've been working a lot with Mauricio and Pedro, little stinkers. We didn't know what else to do for them so we tricked them into meeting us at the library and we had Bishop come. They were both surprised when they saw him but it ended up being a really good thing. Our bishop is awesome and he served his mission in Venezuela so he speaks Spanish too. He was able to establish a good relationship with them and I think it helped them a lot. 

After the lesson we got a message on Facebook from Pedro though and he said he didn't believe this church was true. Ah why is Satan so dumb?! But we were able to talk to him and we had another good lesson with Pedro and I think deep down he knows it's true. We're going to have to work a little harder and a little longer with him, but he'll get there. But Pedro and Mauricio came to general conference! It was the greatest thing ever! We may or may not have bribed them with brownies but the important thing is they came and they both enjoyed it! 

We've also been working with Ismael. He's another inactive in the ward, he breaks my heart. He's an alcoholic and every time I have met him he's been drunk, but let me tell you he is the nicest drunk person you will ever meet. We were able to find out a lot this week and really establish a good relationship with him. He never used to drink until his brother died about 4 years ago and it was really hard on him. Every time we meet with Ismael an overwhelming feeling of love for him comes over me. He's very special to our Heavenly Father. Ismael doesn't see his potential. He doesn't think he's worth anything or that he'll ever be able to give up his alcohol, it breaks my heart. But if I've learned anything on my mission it's that God is still a God of miracles and that Christ really does change men. 

We found Roberto, another inactive. Every time we meet with him I am always saying, "Hermano, excusas excusas." And then he just laughs. He's an awesome guy, he has a testimony, but he's just full of excuses and he knows it! He's a lot of fun though we always tease when we're over there. He had work this weekend but we're hoping to get him back to church soon. He can't read though, so we're thinking of different ways we can build his testimony! 

Maribel and her family are still doing amazing. Every time I go over there they have a tongue twister for me to do in Spanish or a riddle to solve, they're awesome. 

Okay General Conference. How amazing was that? The spirit that is there is just incredible and I love it so much. It's amazing how much revelation I was able to receive and how many prayers were answered. I am so grateful for my Heavenly Father. On Saturday during Elder Holland's talk we got a call from Carla, we had met her a few days prior. She had come to the church to watch General Conference! We were so excited! We have an appointment this week with her too so hopefully we'll be able to start working with her! 

But I hope you all had an amazing experience with General Conference. I am so grateful for our living Prophet, Thomas S. Monson and for the apostles. I know they are truly called of God and I am so grateful for their counsel. 

I love you all so very much and I hope you have a great week! Be happy because life is too short to be anything else! 

Con amor,

Hermana Swapp

PS: "Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments." -Helaman 10:4

General conference with Arsenia and her daughter and Mauricio!

 Pedro wouldn't take a picture so I snuck a selfie with him.

 The Hurt's had us over for dinner and they have some pretty cool snakes.

 Ismael giving Hermana Heil some advice haha!

Kentucky!