August 23, 2010
Dear everyone,
I'm so sorry to hear about Lucy. My mind hasn't really processed the fact that she died yet; being away from home for so long kind of makes stuff like this seem even more surreal. It sounds like the nucleus folks back home (especially Sam) have really been mourning
her loss. My heart goes out to you guys. I wish there was something I could do to comfort you, but I only know how to think in terms of gospel doctrine now, and I don't know if the Plan of Salvation applies to animals. Too soon?
This week was pretty nuts, kind of. That guy who went to church last week, Manoel, was really the entire focus of our work for this week. It turns out that he's kind of a genius; that is, he knows a ton about the Bible and has seriously investigated five or six other churches before. He is also working on his doctorate degree in human genetics or something equally insane. Anyway, we have been teaching him every day since we met him, and things are going pretty well. He read all of 1 Nephi in one day, and then reread it the next day. And in spite of his biblical knowledge, he is really open to everything we're teaching him.
Our biggest challenge has been to help him start investigating the Church instead of just studying it. He seems really afraid to keep commitments and live the commandments and all that. Oh, and my companion invited him to allow us to prepare him to be baptized, and he sort of freaked out. He used to go to a church and then fell away because people were discriminative against him (he's black) and treated him poorly. And he says that he doesn't want to join another church only to fall away again, even if for other reasons.
He has a lot of baggage like that, you know? But he's easily one of the smartest people I have taught on my whole mission.
We didn't have much else going on this week because my companion got sick for a day and a half. We figured out that in 36 hours, his face was in his pillow for 24. He slept like a rock through Thursday, so we didn't get much else done. We're also having some minor problems with discouragement and low morale. Last night we had a sleepover with the other Americans in our zone, and we're having a barbecue today with everyone. I think stuff like this has been good for both of us. It really helps to get out of your area every once and a while and talk to new people, even if you get along well with your companion.
And my comp is having some complicated girl problems that would take too long to explain here. They aren't helping with the discouragement, though.
Anyway, concerning the work: I'm just trying to learn what the Lord wants me to learn from all this. This area has been so hard; we have worked like crazy and exhausted every idea we can think of to find new people who are ready to accept the gospel, and nothing has worked (yet). I'm not giving up or anything, but it would be nice to figure out what I'm supposed to figure out from what has (and hasn't) happened here in the last eleven weeks. I dunno.
Transfers are coming up next Monday, so who knows where the heck I'll be when I write you guys next week!
I hope you guys don't think I'm depressed or anything. I went through a reeeeeeeeeeally diffcult couple of weeks here, but I'm doing fine now. I'm happy. I'm learning the importance of applying gospel principles into what we do and who we are instead of just memorizing what they are.
Anyway. I was going to close this email with a powerful scripture, but I couldn't think of one that would be just right. Just remember that we become disciples of Christ when we love others (John 13:34-35, I think); in fact, we are supposed to love them as we love ourselves (John...15? I think?). That means we have to love ourselves before we love others! So do everything you can to do both!
I love all of you so much.
luv
booga
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
I'm not a boy, I'm a big fat balloon
August 16, 2010
So, I turn eleven months old on the mission today. Does that blow your mind or what? I can hardly even remember what America is like.
This week was something of an endurance test. We had zone conference on Saturday, so my companion and I spent this entire week just trying to survive until then. Most of our time was spent trying to teach people who don't really care about what we have to offer, but we did make some progress with that girl who I mentioned last week. We taught her the third lesson, and everything is going well with her. I mean, she reads the Book of Mormon and has a testimony of it, and she understands what we teach her, and she has friends in the Church, and she really gets it, you know? Anyway, we still need to get her to go to church every Sunday and we need to convince her mom to let her be baptized. Mas faz parte, né?
Zone conference was pretty good. It was actually a special conference called Mission Tour, which is when a general authority comes to speak. This time it was Elder Tobias, a Brazilian Seventy who I had never heard of. I barely got any sleep the night before because my zone had to catch a bus to Ribeirão Preto at 3:30 AM, so I was pretty zombified throughout the whole thing. And conference lasted f-o-r-e-v-e-r. Other than that, it was great. Elder Tobias talked a lot about practical teaching techniques like making eye contact and showing interest in what people have to say and stuff like that. He had a lot of helpful counsel that I'm going to start applying to how I teach.
I got a letter from Ximmer at the end of conference. So he's really going on that mission, huh? I can't believe it. Speaking of which, has Adam Sayer gotten back yet? Anyone else leave or come back from their missions or get married or anything?
We had a pretty cool experience yesterday. My companion and I slept in a little bit (I'm so sorry it was because I had hardly slept at all in almost two days and I was so tired I'm so sorry), so we didn't have any time to go pick up any of the investigators that we don't have. As we started walking to church, we passed a guy on the street. We said good morning to him and kept going on our way. My companion hesitated for a moment, turned around, and invited the guy to church. He introduced us to him and asked if he'd like to make a visit to the church with us right now. And he said he would! And he did! He only stayed for sacrament meeting, but he actually was pretty good (meaning he isn't completely poisoned by all the apostate churches out here). We're going to go teach him tomorrow. It was crazy, though, because we talk to hundreds of people every week and teach them and invite them to church and bear our testimonies and EVERYTHING and people always just shrug everything off. But a simple invitation to go to church to this guy worked. I swear, I will never understand missionary work.
I'm going through a crazy time in my mission where the high ups and suuuuuuuuper low downs are coming at a daily pace. I'm trying to find a good emotional stability in here somewhere. Things are weird. I always feel better when I study the scriptures, pray, and teach, and I love hearing from you guys. I love all of you! The Church is true! Have a great week
luv
booga
So, I turn eleven months old on the mission today. Does that blow your mind or what? I can hardly even remember what America is like.
This week was something of an endurance test. We had zone conference on Saturday, so my companion and I spent this entire week just trying to survive until then. Most of our time was spent trying to teach people who don't really care about what we have to offer, but we did make some progress with that girl who I mentioned last week. We taught her the third lesson, and everything is going well with her. I mean, she reads the Book of Mormon and has a testimony of it, and she understands what we teach her, and she has friends in the Church, and she really gets it, you know? Anyway, we still need to get her to go to church every Sunday and we need to convince her mom to let her be baptized. Mas faz parte, né?
Zone conference was pretty good. It was actually a special conference called Mission Tour, which is when a general authority comes to speak. This time it was Elder Tobias, a Brazilian Seventy who I had never heard of. I barely got any sleep the night before because my zone had to catch a bus to Ribeirão Preto at 3:30 AM, so I was pretty zombified throughout the whole thing. And conference lasted f-o-r-e-v-e-r. Other than that, it was great. Elder Tobias talked a lot about practical teaching techniques like making eye contact and showing interest in what people have to say and stuff like that. He had a lot of helpful counsel that I'm going to start applying to how I teach.
I got a letter from Ximmer at the end of conference. So he's really going on that mission, huh? I can't believe it. Speaking of which, has Adam Sayer gotten back yet? Anyone else leave or come back from their missions or get married or anything?
We had a pretty cool experience yesterday. My companion and I slept in a little bit (I'm so sorry it was because I had hardly slept at all in almost two days and I was so tired I'm so sorry), so we didn't have any time to go pick up any of the investigators that we don't have. As we started walking to church, we passed a guy on the street. We said good morning to him and kept going on our way. My companion hesitated for a moment, turned around, and invited the guy to church. He introduced us to him and asked if he'd like to make a visit to the church with us right now. And he said he would! And he did! He only stayed for sacrament meeting, but he actually was pretty good (meaning he isn't completely poisoned by all the apostate churches out here). We're going to go teach him tomorrow. It was crazy, though, because we talk to hundreds of people every week and teach them and invite them to church and bear our testimonies and EVERYTHING and people always just shrug everything off. But a simple invitation to go to church to this guy worked. I swear, I will never understand missionary work.
I'm going through a crazy time in my mission where the high ups and suuuuuuuuper low downs are coming at a daily pace. I'm trying to find a good emotional stability in here somewhere. Things are weird. I always feel better when I study the scriptures, pray, and teach, and I love hearing from you guys. I love all of you! The Church is true! Have a great week
luv
booga
Friday, August 13, 2010
You may say I'm a dreamer
August 9, 2010
My dearest family,
E aí! Como vai, gente, beleza!
This week went pretty well. From Wednesday to Sunday, my companion and I had our district leader working with us. He hasn't had a companion for about a week and a half or something, so he has been hopping around from ward to ward so he has someone to work with. It was actually a pretty good experience to have him here with us. Something that I learned in the MTC is that missionary work and trios don't really mix with each other, but we managed just fine.
We had a couple people drop us this week. That's always a bummer, but I've kind of gotten used to it. One of our best investigators is living with our ward mission leader's daughter, who is an inactive member. He really took to heart our challenge to read: he read all the chapters we marked for him in the Book of Mormon, and then he started from the beginning and made it to 1 Nephi 11! We were all pretty blown away by that. Anyway, he told us the other day that he still hasn't felt anything while reading or praying. And he hasn't gone to church yet. And he told us that he's pretty uninterested now. So...
We taught another twentysomething dude last week who was really good. We read in the Book of Mormon with him and he said right there that he felt the influence of the Spirit as we read. And then he said that he wanted to read the entire Book of Mormon before even making a visit to the church (which I think is a little preposterous, but wutevs). That would be fine, but we passed by his house the other night and he still hasn't read a single verse yet. And he told us that he's kind of uninterested right now, too. So...
BUT,
We taught a super elect girl this week. A young woman who is a friend and neighbor of a great member family went to church last week. She also went to a fireside, ward activity, and children's choir event thing. Apparently she has really been liking the Church a lot. We taught her for the first time this week in that member family's apartment. WOW, guys. It was so great. We taught the message of the Restoration up until Joseph Smith, and then we watched The Restoration (the film) and taught about the Book of Mormon. And, like, she got it. No one ever gets it, guys. But she did! And she's excited about everything and she has a lot of friends in the church and her mom has already given permission for her to be baptized which means that they have talked about baptism and man I'm excited! She didn't go to church yesterday because she was staying at her aunt's house, but we're going to have a family home evening there tonight and teach her the GOSPEL and she's going to LOVE IT and it's going to be wonderful.
Other than that, our week was pretty normal. I'm getting a little tired of talking to people who don't care about what we have to offer them, and I'm reeeeeeally tired of hearing people's excuses. I'm also pretty tired of all the apostate churches down here, but fazer o que, né? Então. Anyway, things are going well. My companion and I get along and we've become good friends. We work hard and obey the mission rules. I'm still doing my best.
I love you guys. For real. Good luck with all the traveling and moving and all that.
Let me know how you're doing!
luv
elder wiggins
E aí! Como vai, gente, beleza!
This week went pretty well. From Wednesday to Sunday, my companion and I had our district leader working with us. He hasn't had a companion for about a week and a half or something, so he has been hopping around from ward to ward so he has someone to work with. It was actually a pretty good experience to have him here with us. Something that I learned in the MTC is that missionary work and trios don't really mix with each other, but we managed just fine.
We had a couple people drop us this week. That's always a bummer, but I've kind of gotten used to it. One of our best investigators is living with our ward mission leader's daughter, who is an inactive member. He really took to heart our challenge to read: he read all the chapters we marked for him in the Book of Mormon, and then he started from the beginning and made it to 1 Nephi 11! We were all pretty blown away by that. Anyway, he told us the other day that he still hasn't felt anything while reading or praying. And he hasn't gone to church yet. And he told us that he's pretty uninterested now. So...
We taught another twentysomething dude last week who was really good. We read in the Book of Mormon with him and he said right there that he felt the influence of the Spirit as we read. And then he said that he wanted to read the entire Book of Mormon before even making a visit to the church (which I think is a little preposterous, but wutevs). That would be fine, but we passed by his house the other night and he still hasn't read a single verse yet. And he told us that he's kind of uninterested right now, too. So...
BUT,
We taught a super elect girl this week. A young woman who is a friend and neighbor of a great member family went to church last week. She also went to a fireside, ward activity, and children's choir event thing. Apparently she has really been liking the Church a lot. We taught her for the first time this week in that member family's apartment. WOW, guys. It was so great. We taught the message of the Restoration up until Joseph Smith, and then we watched The Restoration (the film) and taught about the Book of Mormon. And, like, she got it. No one ever gets it, guys. But she did! And she's excited about everything and she has a lot of friends in the church and her mom has already given permission for her to be baptized which means that they have talked about baptism and man I'm excited! She didn't go to church yesterday because she was staying at her aunt's house, but we're going to have a family home evening there tonight and teach her the GOSPEL and she's going to LOVE IT and it's going to be wonderful.
Other than that, our week was pretty normal. I'm getting a little tired of talking to people who don't care about what we have to offer them, and I'm reeeeeeally tired of hearing people's excuses. I'm also pretty tired of all the apostate churches down here, but fazer o que, né? Então. Anyway, things are going well. My companion and I get along and we've become good friends. We work hard and obey the mission rules. I'm still doing my best.
I love you guys. For real. Good luck with all the traveling and moving and all that.
Let me know how you're doing!
luv
elder wiggins
August of next year, before the leaves disappear
August 2, 2010
I can't believe it's August already.
So I'm in a LAN house at a giant bus station in scenic São Carlos, Brasil (with an "s") with a bunch of other missionaries. One of our chapels is close by, so we all came down to play soccer together. Big surprise: I still suck at soccer. It was fun, though.
This week went pretty well. My companion and I are still working our butts off. We're still teaching the first lesson to a TON of people, almost all of them being married couples or at least adults, in their houses, sometimes with members. We still haven't found any investigators who really want to progress. But wotevah.
Actually, we had a pretty strange experience this week. We came into contact with a family who lives in some government-funded apartments a few weeks ago. We had been looking for a less active member when we were led to this apartment. We met a woman named (take a guess) Maria, we went into her house and said a prayer, and we marked a follow-up appointment where we could teach everyone. We went back a while later and taught the first lesson. Maria's husband, Natalino, was a bit of a character. He'd talk really loud and interrupt us at times and just had an aggressive air about him. We challenged them to read and pray.
The next time we went there, we showed up a little late, so we didn't have time to teach them. But they said they had read and prayed and everything.
So we go back this week. We asked Natalino how the reading went. And he kind of exploded. He freaked out because the Book of Mormon doesn't say anything about the god of riches and wealth. He said he has searched in multiple churches to try to find out how he can get rich, and he still hasn't had any luck. I thought he was joking, so I didn't really respond seriously to his questions. But we started teaching the Plan of Salvation, and it became clear that he was being serious. We couldn't even make it past our life on earth before he insisted again about the god of riches. And he brought up Nossa Senhora Aparecida (Catholicism, Mary statues, all of that) when we were talking about Adam and Eve. We were kind of at a loss for words.
My companion just decided to have each of us kneel right there and pray, asking if the Book of Mormon is true. My comp prayed. And then I did. And then Natalino asked God for riches and wealth, which is what he truly desires. Dude's nuts, guys.
So that story took way too long to tell. I guess it's just because I don't have much else to say this week.
Actually, I thought I received a package this week because the mission secretary called and said that the postal service had taken another one of my packages, and that I'd have to pay to get it out. So I went through all the hassles of taking money out of the bank and giving it to someone who was going to Ribeirão Preto, only to find out in the end that the package was actually addressed to a different elder. I guess my name popped into the secretary's head when he found out about the package, so he thought it was for me. Buuuuuut it wasn't. Oh well.
This email has turned out really underwhelming for all of us, so I'll end it with a little treat. Everyone who reads this should go on Youtube right now and look up some Brazilian music. Restart (you say it kind of like "Heh-starch") is all the rage these days with the scenesters. They have a song called "Recomeçar," which, oddly enough, means "restart" in Portuguese, that you guys need to hear. And there's another super-scenester band called Cine that has a song called "Garota Radical" ("Radical Girl") that you also have to check out. Emo pop + auto-tune! Give me a break, gente!
Anyway, I'm doing great. I love all of you and hope you're doing well. The Church is true!
booga
I can't believe it's August already.
So I'm in a LAN house at a giant bus station in scenic São Carlos, Brasil (with an "s") with a bunch of other missionaries. One of our chapels is close by, so we all came down to play soccer together. Big surprise: I still suck at soccer. It was fun, though.
This week went pretty well. My companion and I are still working our butts off. We're still teaching the first lesson to a TON of people, almost all of them being married couples or at least adults, in their houses, sometimes with members. We still haven't found any investigators who really want to progress. But wotevah.
Actually, we had a pretty strange experience this week. We came into contact with a family who lives in some government-funded apartments a few weeks ago. We had been looking for a less active member when we were led to this apartment. We met a woman named (take a guess) Maria, we went into her house and said a prayer, and we marked a follow-up appointment where we could teach everyone. We went back a while later and taught the first lesson. Maria's husband, Natalino, was a bit of a character. He'd talk really loud and interrupt us at times and just had an aggressive air about him. We challenged them to read and pray.
The next time we went there, we showed up a little late, so we didn't have time to teach them. But they said they had read and prayed and everything.
So we go back this week. We asked Natalino how the reading went. And he kind of exploded. He freaked out because the Book of Mormon doesn't say anything about the god of riches and wealth. He said he has searched in multiple churches to try to find out how he can get rich, and he still hasn't had any luck. I thought he was joking, so I didn't really respond seriously to his questions. But we started teaching the Plan of Salvation, and it became clear that he was being serious. We couldn't even make it past our life on earth before he insisted again about the god of riches. And he brought up Nossa Senhora Aparecida (Catholicism, Mary statues, all of that) when we were talking about Adam and Eve. We were kind of at a loss for words.
My companion just decided to have each of us kneel right there and pray, asking if the Book of Mormon is true. My comp prayed. And then I did. And then Natalino asked God for riches and wealth, which is what he truly desires. Dude's nuts, guys.
So that story took way too long to tell. I guess it's just because I don't have much else to say this week.
Actually, I thought I received a package this week because the mission secretary called and said that the postal service had taken another one of my packages, and that I'd have to pay to get it out. So I went through all the hassles of taking money out of the bank and giving it to someone who was going to Ribeirão Preto, only to find out in the end that the package was actually addressed to a different elder. I guess my name popped into the secretary's head when he found out about the package, so he thought it was for me. Buuuuuut it wasn't. Oh well.
This email has turned out really underwhelming for all of us, so I'll end it with a little treat. Everyone who reads this should go on Youtube right now and look up some Brazilian music. Restart (you say it kind of like "Heh-starch") is all the rage these days with the scenesters. They have a song called "Recomeçar," which, oddly enough, means "restart" in Portuguese, that you guys need to hear. And there's another super-scenester band called Cine that has a song called "Garota Radical" ("Radical Girl") that you also have to check out. Emo pop + auto-tune! Give me a break, gente!
Anyway, I'm doing great. I love all of you and hope you're doing well. The Church is true!
booga
I never thought I would come of age, let alone on the moldy page
July 26, 2010
E aí, família! Como vai?
Hey guys. I'm writing you after one more week in beautiful São Carlos! That's in Brazil, which is also where I happen to be! Who knew that some city in Brazil that no one's ever heard of and I would be in the same place at the same time, huh? Que coincidência!
Anyway, this week went really well, but it also kind of sucked a little bit. My comp and I are both pretty much dead now because of all the walking and teaching we've been doing. Unlike the first few weeks that I spent in this area, we have been teaching like crazy. I don't even know how many times we taught the first lesson this week, but I do know that I feel completely drained mentally and physically. It was really great that we were able to mark so many appointments and get into so many people's houses to teach them, especially considering the lack of success that we had been experiencing in the past.
But then nobody went to church, even though we went to their houses before the meetings started. In all my ten months (!) in the Holy Land, I have never been able to get very many people to church. For some reason people just don't want to get up in time for a nine o'clock sacrament meeting on Sunday mornings. And yet all the crazy garage churches that just have "pastors" yelling into microphones with bad PA systems are always full to bursting. I guess people just like taking the easier path.
It was probably just as well that they didn't go yesterday because there was a ton of noise going on outside the chapel during the first forty minutes or so of church. I still don't know exactly why, but it sounded like every single car that drove by the church was blasting its horn nonstop. It was impossible to maintain any kind of reverence during the meeting. Coincidentally, I gave a talk yesterday about patience. It turned out to be an appropriate topic. I just sort of blabbered on until I was told to stop and the noise was really distracting, so who knows if anyone actually took anything from what I said. I'm all like wotevah about it, though.
I'm starting the Book of Mormon over again this week and I'm going to read it before this transfer is over in five weeks. I'm reading it in English this time because I want to fly through it, but I'll probably do a speed reading thing like this in Portuguese at some point in my mission. I've only read the first twenty-ish pages so far, but I've already learned some new things and felt my testimony grow!
Mas pois é, gente.
I'm doing well and I love my companion and I love the people and I'm doing my best to be obedient. We're still not BAPTIZING THE WORLD like our leaders want us to (that's not to say that I don't want to, though), but I'm learning every day and having important experiences, I think. I'm learning about compromise and patience and things of that nature. Still working on trying not to be shy or too self-critical.
Anyway. I love you guys! The Church is true! Sorry I can't write back to all of your individual emails every week! I hope we can still be friends, guys!
luv
booooooga
Hey guys. I'm writing you after one more week in beautiful São Carlos! That's in Brazil, which is also where I happen to be! Who knew that some city in Brazil that no one's ever heard of and I would be in the same place at the same time, huh? Que coincidência!
Anyway, this week went really well, but it also kind of sucked a little bit. My comp and I are both pretty much dead now because of all the walking and teaching we've been doing. Unlike the first few weeks that I spent in this area, we have been teaching like crazy. I don't even know how many times we taught the first lesson this week, but I do know that I feel completely drained mentally and physically. It was really great that we were able to mark so many appointments and get into so many people's houses to teach them, especially considering the lack of success that we had been experiencing in the past.
But then nobody went to church, even though we went to their houses before the meetings started. In all my ten months (!) in the Holy Land, I have never been able to get very many people to church. For some reason people just don't want to get up in time for a nine o'clock sacrament meeting on Sunday mornings. And yet all the crazy garage churches that just have "pastors" yelling into microphones with bad PA systems are always full to bursting. I guess people just like taking the easier path.
It was probably just as well that they didn't go yesterday because there was a ton of noise going on outside the chapel during the first forty minutes or so of church. I still don't know exactly why, but it sounded like every single car that drove by the church was blasting its horn nonstop. It was impossible to maintain any kind of reverence during the meeting. Coincidentally, I gave a talk yesterday about patience. It turned out to be an appropriate topic. I just sort of blabbered on until I was told to stop and the noise was really distracting, so who knows if anyone actually took anything from what I said. I'm all like wotevah about it, though.
I'm starting the Book of Mormon over again this week and I'm going to read it before this transfer is over in five weeks. I'm reading it in English this time because I want to fly through it, but I'll probably do a speed reading thing like this in Portuguese at some point in my mission. I've only read the first twenty-ish pages so far, but I've already learned some new things and felt my testimony grow!
Mas pois é, gente.
I'm doing well and I love my companion and I love the people and I'm doing my best to be obedient. We're still not BAPTIZING THE WORLD like our leaders want us to (that's not to say that I don't want to, though), but I'm learning every day and having important experiences, I think. I'm learning about compromise and patience and things of that nature. Still working on trying not to be shy or too self-critical.
Anyway. I love you guys! The Church is true! Sorry I can't write back to all of your individual emails every week! I hope we can still be friends, guys!
luv
booooooga
Because if you throw a light on something magical, it disappears
July 19, 2010
Transfers, transfers, transfers! New mission president! Everything is changing!
Actually, my companion and I are both staying here for this transfer. In fact, we're the only missionaries in the entire city right now. Everyone in our zone, including our zone leaders, was transferred except for a sister and one other elder. We're going to meet all the new folks at the bus station this afternoon. I hope I get some mail!
I'm excited about this transfer. I am blessed (I really mean that) to have an obedient, hardworking companion, and even though we have had plenty of difficulties in this area, we're in a good place. We know the area now, which helps. And all the basics are taken care of here: we have a good house, the members are very nice, the ward leadership is the strongest I've seen on my whole mission, the chapel is nice, and we don't have to spend a lot of money on buses or anything.
We still don't have much of a teaching pool, though. Our best investigator, Fernanda, is perdida (lost) now. We went to visit her and she told us that she wanted to stop "studying" with us for now. People just don't get it. Anyway, my tender little heart was broken again. Hopefully one day she comes around someday.
Since we lost all of our progressing investigators (although they were more like "progressing" investigators), my companion and I pretty much started over this week. We're launching a concentrated attack on the less active members of the ward, of which there are A LOT. We got a list from the bishop of all the members of the ward, with the active members highlighted. We created a little numbering system for all the people we planned on visiting and located them on the big city map that is hung up on our wall. We stuck little pins into the map to plan our visits. We turned our study room into WAR ROOM! We have been going to all the people's houses, with mixed results. Most people have moved or weren't at home, a lot of them were too ashamed to come talk to us, and some of them were genuinely cool people who just stopped going to church for one reason or another. Now we're going to try to reactivate them and teach their nonmember siblings and relatives and neighbors and the whole world!!
That's pretty much all that's going on. I'm going a little bit crazy because of our lack of success and all that, but I'm all like wutevs about it. We're working hard and I'm learning a lot and growing up and being an adult and speaking Portuguese! I love you guys! The Church is true!
Abraço,
Elder Bwoggins
P.S. Have there been any marriages or deaths or births or crazy happenings back home? Or abroad, I guess? Just curious.
Actually, my companion and I are both staying here for this transfer. In fact, we're the only missionaries in the entire city right now. Everyone in our zone, including our zone leaders, was transferred except for a sister and one other elder. We're going to meet all the new folks at the bus station this afternoon. I hope I get some mail!
I'm excited about this transfer. I am blessed (I really mean that) to have an obedient, hardworking companion, and even though we have had plenty of difficulties in this area, we're in a good place. We know the area now, which helps. And all the basics are taken care of here: we have a good house, the members are very nice, the ward leadership is the strongest I've seen on my whole mission, the chapel is nice, and we don't have to spend a lot of money on buses or anything.
We still don't have much of a teaching pool, though. Our best investigator, Fernanda, is perdida (lost) now. We went to visit her and she told us that she wanted to stop "studying" with us for now. People just don't get it. Anyway, my tender little heart was broken again. Hopefully one day she comes around someday.
Since we lost all of our progressing investigators (although they were more like "progressing" investigators), my companion and I pretty much started over this week. We're launching a concentrated attack on the less active members of the ward, of which there are A LOT. We got a list from the bishop of all the members of the ward, with the active members highlighted. We created a little numbering system for all the people we planned on visiting and located them on the big city map that is hung up on our wall. We stuck little pins into the map to plan our visits. We turned our study room into WAR ROOM! We have been going to all the people's houses, with mixed results. Most people have moved or weren't at home, a lot of them were too ashamed to come talk to us, and some of them were genuinely cool people who just stopped going to church for one reason or another. Now we're going to try to reactivate them and teach their nonmember siblings and relatives and neighbors and the whole world!!
That's pretty much all that's going on. I'm going a little bit crazy because of our lack of success and all that, but I'm all like wutevs about it. We're working hard and I'm learning a lot and growing up and being an adult and speaking Portuguese! I love you guys! The Church is true!
Abraço,
Elder Bwoggins
P.S. Have there been any marriages or deaths or births or crazy happenings back home? Or abroad, I guess? Just curious.
Our bodies get bigger but our hearts get torn up
July 12, 2010
I'm actually not discouraged, though, even if it might sound like I am. I know that everything will happen in due time, and that it isn't for us to decide when people will be ready to accept the gospel and that no work is wasted and all that. It's just hard. It's like, I just want to find the people who already are ready, and then teach them and baptize them. I'm tired of hearing people's excuses of why we can't teach them.
I really am doing fine, though. This is the last week of the transfer, and my guess is that my comp and I will both stay here for at least one more. I've been really fortunate there, actually -- Elder Gillespie has been a great example for me, and he's a hard worker. And the members here are great; the ward leadership is the best that I've seen on my whole mission, and the people here really do have testimonies of the gospel. It has just been tough getting their friends to church.
Anyway, that's pretty much it. I discovered the other day that I had eaten liver on my mission without realizing it. It was pretty nasty.
All is well out here. I love you guys! The Church is true!
-- Elder Bworggins
Oi, family! How are you guys doing?
This week was pretty insane -- not because it was really eventful or anything, but because my companion and I are working like crazy and not seeing any results from our efforts. For five weeks we have been talking to as many people as possible and trying to be smart and effective in our planning. But nothing is happening! I guess this transfer is supposed to be the one where I learn patience, because I'm definitely not learning how to bring people to church or baptize them.
On Saturday my companion and I went to somewhere between 16 and 20 houses to try to teach people. We didn't get into a single one. Either no one is home or they're too busy to let us in. This week we made 180 contacts and only got 35 addresses (the mission standard is 160 contacts with 40 addresses per week). People just don't want to talk to us! And they don't want to go to church, either. We've been fasting and praying and studying and being obedient and working and working and working, and nothing's happening. This week was pretty rough.
I'm actually not discouraged, though, even if it might sound like I am. I know that everything will happen in due time, and that it isn't for us to decide when people will be ready to accept the gospel and that no work is wasted and all that. It's just hard. It's like, I just want to find the people who already are ready, and then teach them and baptize them. I'm tired of hearing people's excuses of why we can't teach them.
I really am doing fine, though. This is the last week of the transfer, and my guess is that my comp and I will both stay here for at least one more. I've been really fortunate there, actually -- Elder Gillespie has been a great example for me, and he's a hard worker. And the members here are great; the ward leadership is the best that I've seen on my whole mission, and the people here really do have testimonies of the gospel. It has just been tough getting their friends to church.
Anyway, that's pretty much it. I discovered the other day that I had eaten liver on my mission without realizing it. It was pretty nasty.
All is well out here. I love you guys! The Church is true!
-- Elder Bworggins
I heard a voice calling from down inside the well
July 5, 2010
My companion contacted a super elect lady named Fernanda last week, and we started teaching her on Tuesday. The first lesson was so great! Sometimes you can really tell for real (really) when an investigator understands what you're teaching. I mean, sometimes they get it, and you know that they have felt the Spirit testify to them of the truthfulness of what you're saying. That's how it was with Fernanda. We taught her, her two daughters and her son-in-law, and it was like a nice little family home evening. When we suggested that we say a prayer after the lesson, Fernanda herself offered to pray. It was nuts, guys. She thanked the Lord for sending us to her house to bring a renewed hope into her life that had previously been lost. We marked a chapter for her to read, which she did. We took her to the other ward's baptism the next day, and she loved it. She became pretty emotional, and obviously was getting an answer to her prayers. And since then she has been acting really weird and trying to avoid us and stuff. She didn't go to church yesterday. It seems like someone said something bad about the Church to her or something. We're going to send the Sisters over there tonight to try to rescue her. I hope she comes around because she has been easily our best investigator so far.
Cleber is a thirty-something year old guy who was really receptive to the lesson until we invited him to read the Book of Mormon. It wasn't until then that he told us that he goes to another church and just wants to read the Bible and blah blah blah. People just don't get it, I guess. If I had a flux capacitor, maybe I would go back in time and teach him differently. Or I'd go back in time to when I could eat at In-N-Out whenever I wanted.
Great Scott!
Anyway, we taught a middle-aged couple named Silvana and Luiz, as well as their son Ivan. The parents hardly even paid attention to the lesson, and Ivan was recently baptized in one of the many apostate churches down here, and he's pretty dang firm there. But we found out that he read in the Book of Mormon, so maybe he'll come around. I'm kind of scared to go back there, though, because Ivan looks like a big German dude who wants to beat me up and we told him indirectly that his church is false. Hey-o!
Madalena is a really sweet old-ish lady who I contacted last week. We found out that she had been an active member of the Church for three years before she fell away for I-can't-remember-how-long. It sounds like she still doesn't really know why she fell away in the first place. Anyway, we went over there last week and taught her the first lesson, which went really well. She didn't go to church last week or answer the door at all when we passed by during the week, so we thought she had given up on us. As it turns out, she had just been away from home since last Saturday. We spoke to her yesterday morning, and she went to church yesterday! She only stayed for sacrament meeting because she had to go to a funeral or something, but at least she went to something! That's a little bit of progress, right?
So, we've been finding people to teach. Right now we're trying to find the people who will progress and be baptized and everything. My companion and I are still working our hardest and not getting discouraged (kind of) and everything. The work has been going slow, but it's going. I'm slowly going insane, and the mission has been the hardest thing I've ever done in my life, but I am doing well. I am happy. The Church is true!
Hey everyone!
So, Brazil was eliminated from the Cup by the stupid Netherlands this week. It was fun while it lasted.
We started seeing some results this week from all the work that my companion and I have been doing since we got here. We managed to get into some people's houses to teach them and invite them to read, pray and go to church. Unfortunately, even after you teach someone the message of the Restoration, they still get kind of wishy-washy and try to wriggle out of any commitment.
My companion contacted a super elect lady named Fernanda last week, and we started teaching her on Tuesday. The first lesson was so great! Sometimes you can really tell for real (really) when an investigator understands what you're teaching. I mean, sometimes they get it, and you know that they have felt the Spirit testify to them of the truthfulness of what you're saying. That's how it was with Fernanda. We taught her, her two daughters and her son-in-law, and it was like a nice little family home evening. When we suggested that we say a prayer after the lesson, Fernanda herself offered to pray. It was nuts, guys. She thanked the Lord for sending us to her house to bring a renewed hope into her life that had previously been lost. We marked a chapter for her to read, which she did. We took her to the other ward's baptism the next day, and she loved it. She became pretty emotional, and obviously was getting an answer to her prayers. And since then she has been acting really weird and trying to avoid us and stuff. She didn't go to church yesterday. It seems like someone said something bad about the Church to her or something. We're going to send the Sisters over there tonight to try to rescue her. I hope she comes around because she has been easily our best investigator so far.
Cleber is a thirty-something year old guy who was really receptive to the lesson until we invited him to read the Book of Mormon. It wasn't until then that he told us that he goes to another church and just wants to read the Bible and blah blah blah. People just don't get it, I guess. If I had a flux capacitor, maybe I would go back in time and teach him differently. Or I'd go back in time to when I could eat at In-N-Out whenever I wanted.
Great Scott!
Anyway, we taught a middle-aged couple named Silvana and Luiz, as well as their son Ivan. The parents hardly even paid attention to the lesson, and Ivan was recently baptized in one of the many apostate churches down here, and he's pretty dang firm there. But we found out that he read in the Book of Mormon, so maybe he'll come around. I'm kind of scared to go back there, though, because Ivan looks like a big German dude who wants to beat me up and we told him indirectly that his church is false. Hey-o!
Madalena is a really sweet old-ish lady who I contacted last week. We found out that she had been an active member of the Church for three years before she fell away for I-can't-remember-how-long. It sounds like she still doesn't really know why she fell away in the first place. Anyway, we went over there last week and taught her the first lesson, which went really well. She didn't go to church last week or answer the door at all when we passed by during the week, so we thought she had given up on us. As it turns out, she had just been away from home since last Saturday. We spoke to her yesterday morning, and she went to church yesterday! She only stayed for sacrament meeting because she had to go to a funeral or something, but at least she went to something! That's a little bit of progress, right?
So, we've been finding people to teach. Right now we're trying to find the people who will progress and be baptized and everything. My companion and I are still working our hardest and not getting discouraged (kind of) and everything. The work has been going slow, but it's going. I'm slowly going insane, and the mission has been the hardest thing I've ever done in my life, but I am doing well. I am happy. The Church is true!
I love all of you very much.
luv
booga
luv
booga
That's more than a dress; it's a Grace Kelly movie
June 28, 2010
Sorry that I'm getting to my email so late. I'm doing a division with one of my zone leaders, and we just finished watching Brazil play in the Cup. They beat Chile 3-0!! Everyone's going crazy! Vamos lá Brasil!!
Sorry that I'm getting to my email so late. I'm doing a division with one of my zone leaders, and we just finished watching Brazil play in the Cup. They beat Chile 3-0!! Everyone's going crazy! Vamos lá Brasil!!
This week was a little crazy. With zone conference on Wednesday, the Brazil-Portugal game on Friday, and this division going from last night to today, we didn't have tons of time to work. And before you think I'm a slacker for not working during the Brazil World Cup games, you have to understand what it's like down here. I guess the closest thing to it back home is when you're in a college town on the day of a big football game. Except it's crazier down here. And it's like that across the country. Everyone watches every Brazil game, and no one is in the streets. Plus, we're allowed to watch the games.
Anyway.
Zone conference was pretty crazy this week because it was my mission president's last one. I'm pretty sure the new president is getting here on Wednesday. Everyone, including yours truly, cried like a baby when it was time to say goodbye to President Vieira. I'm sure the new president will be great, but it's going to be weird having to adjust to how things change. I'll let you know how that goes.
Oh, so I guess my package got here. My companion went with the other zone leader to Ribeirão Preto because my LZ had to go to the doctor. While they were there, they got my package from the post office because, once again, the Brazilian government robbed me. This time I got to pay R$175 (about 85 dollars) to get my package out of their claws. We're going to meet up with my comp again soon, and I'm stoked to see what you guys sent me!
Our work in this area is moving reeeeeeeeeeally slow, but it's moving. We're doing our best to find good people, but so far we haven't seen any results. I mean, we don't have any progressing investigators at the moment. It has been pretty hard not to get discouraged. But whatever, we're working diligently and being obedient and all that. I know that the results will come, even if I'm not here to see them.
I'm going to have to end this. Sorry for making it so short this week. I love you guys! The Church is true!
luv
booga
Hey! Your old man should know when you see a shadow, there's something there
June 21, 2010
Hey guys.
There isn't a whole lot to report from this week. My companion and I are still working our butts off trying to find people to teach. We were able to get a few new investigators this week, but none of them went to church. I swear, people never have time to do anything but work (at least, that's what they tell us).
We did have a somewhat interesting experience. We were making contacts one night in a bairro (neighborhood) that has been mostly untouched by missionaries. My companion started talking to a middle-aged man at his house, who then invited us in. He asked us a TON of questions about the Church, from priesthood authority to church organization to baptism to everything else. We were happy to answer his questions, and we kind of turned the conversation into the first lesson. We taught him about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon and invited him to read and pray. That's when things got kind of weird. He started asking pointed questions about our message that were obviously intended to make us say something that he could attack. His daughter, who had been kind of listening from the other room the whole time, came into the living room and started asking other questions. They said they were from the Congregação Cristã do Brasil, which is a pretty huge church down here. The man, whose name turned out to be something like Deus Décimo (which means something like "God Ten" in English), proposed that it was enough to just believe what we were telling us and not read the Book of Mormon. And then they basically quoted 2 Nephi 29 when they talked about how they already have the Bible and how they don't need another Bible and then they started talking about their church's beliefs like how women can't cut their hair and they have to wear skirts because it says so in 1 Corinthians 11 but it doesn't really say that and blah blah blah blah blah.
I just bore my testimony in as simple and straightforward language as I could, and my companion explained some other things and we got out of there. All you have to do is get them to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it, because it answers everything. Anyway, it was a pretty crazy night. We went back there on Saturday and agreed to go to their church if they would come to ours. And we were all ready to set up a time to go with them, and then the daughter said she wouldn't go to ours.
Actually, immediately after that appointment, I had the most absurd experience of my entire mission. I don't know if I'll be able to do it justice here.
We were walking away from Deus Décimo and his daughter's house in the general direction of our house. I saw a thin old man of about sixty years walking towards us, so I started making a contact with him. I shook his hand and started introducing us. As I was talking, my companion shook the guy's hand as well. As soon as their hands separated, something crazy happened. The old man shouted "Oh!" at the top of his lungs. My companion and I immediately stepped back and through our hands up in surprise.
"What do you guys want?" the man shouted, "Do you want to fight?!"
As he was screaming, he quickly moved back and forth in a fighting stance, and he almost kicked my companion. AND THEN, guys, he shouts "Oh!" again, and does a full cartwheel in the middle of the street, just as a motorcycle flies by and almost barrels through him. After that, he turned around and slowly walked away. My comp and I continued on our way, completely shocked. We looked back after only a few seconds, and the scrawny old ninja had disappeared into the darkness.
I still can't believe that that actually happened to me.
Anyway, I'm doing really well still. We're working hard and talking to everyone, which kind of makes me feel like a salesman. But every time we get into someone's house to teach, it gives me a little boost to keep going. My area is awesome, as is my comp. I'm doing my best and learning a lot. And I'm happy! I hope you guys are, too.
luv
booga
Hey guys.
There isn't a whole lot to report from this week. My companion and I are still working our butts off trying to find people to teach. We were able to get a few new investigators this week, but none of them went to church. I swear, people never have time to do anything but work (at least, that's what they tell us).
We did have a somewhat interesting experience. We were making contacts one night in a bairro (neighborhood) that has been mostly untouched by missionaries. My companion started talking to a middle-aged man at his house, who then invited us in. He asked us a TON of questions about the Church, from priesthood authority to church organization to baptism to everything else. We were happy to answer his questions, and we kind of turned the conversation into the first lesson. We taught him about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon and invited him to read and pray. That's when things got kind of weird. He started asking pointed questions about our message that were obviously intended to make us say something that he could attack. His daughter, who had been kind of listening from the other room the whole time, came into the living room and started asking other questions. They said they were from the Congregação Cristã do Brasil, which is a pretty huge church down here. The man, whose name turned out to be something like Deus Décimo (which means something like "God Ten" in English), proposed that it was enough to just believe what we were telling us and not read the Book of Mormon. And then they basically quoted 2 Nephi 29 when they talked about how they already have the Bible and how they don't need another Bible and then they started talking about their church's beliefs like how women can't cut their hair and they have to wear skirts because it says so in 1 Corinthians 11 but it doesn't really say that and blah blah blah blah blah.
I just bore my testimony in as simple and straightforward language as I could, and my companion explained some other things and we got out of there. All you have to do is get them to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it, because it answers everything. Anyway, it was a pretty crazy night. We went back there on Saturday and agreed to go to their church if they would come to ours. And we were all ready to set up a time to go with them, and then the daughter said she wouldn't go to ours.
Actually, immediately after that appointment, I had the most absurd experience of my entire mission. I don't know if I'll be able to do it justice here.
We were walking away from Deus Décimo and his daughter's house in the general direction of our house. I saw a thin old man of about sixty years walking towards us, so I started making a contact with him. I shook his hand and started introducing us. As I was talking, my companion shook the guy's hand as well. As soon as their hands separated, something crazy happened. The old man shouted "Oh!" at the top of his lungs. My companion and I immediately stepped back and through our hands up in surprise.
"What do you guys want?" the man shouted, "Do you want to fight?!"
As he was screaming, he quickly moved back and forth in a fighting stance, and he almost kicked my companion. AND THEN, guys, he shouts "Oh!" again, and does a full cartwheel in the middle of the street, just as a motorcycle flies by and almost barrels through him. After that, he turned around and slowly walked away. My comp and I continued on our way, completely shocked. We looked back after only a few seconds, and the scrawny old ninja had disappeared into the darkness.
I still can't believe that that actually happened to me.
Anyway, I'm doing really well still. We're working hard and talking to everyone, which kind of makes me feel like a salesman. But every time we get into someone's house to teach, it gives me a little boost to keep going. My area is awesome, as is my comp. I'm doing my best and learning a lot. And I'm happy! I hope you guys are, too.
luv
booga
It's for your own good! It's for the neighborhood!
June 14, 2010
Guys! Hello from beautiful São Carlos, São Paulo, BRASIL (with an s instead of a z)!!
This week was so good. Guys, it was so good. It doesn't seem like it should have been -- our numbers were horrible, and if you only looked on the surface, it would seem like we didn't get anything accomplished.
But that's only because the elders who were here before us didn't really leave us with anything. There's a really small part of town called Gonzaga, which is apparently the only place where the last elders worked. Gonzaga is, with all due respect, a dump. It's a horribly impoverished area replete with drug dealing and prostitution. I guess the last elders were going there a lot and bringing kids to church. Sometimes missionaries like working with kids because, as horrible as it sounds, it's easier to get them to believe you. Therefore, it's easier to baptize them. Or at least that's what people think. I think it's almost always creepy and evil, whether or not you baptize them. Anyway, at every single lunch appointment this week, the members politely advised us not to even work in Gonzaga because it was causing a lot of problems. Our area isn't huge, but the members want us to expand our vision of where we can work beyond that one little section. Fine by me.
The only problem that it creates is that we are starting from scratch here. It's been four months since there has been a baptism in our ward. But I'm not discouraged! The members here are actually really cool, and things seem to be well-organized. I've even started kind of coming out of my shell and being more friendly with them. I'm not quite sure what changed, but there you go.
We're going to have to work like crazy to find people to teach. And we are working! And it feels great! I kind of feel like, even though my last two companions were all right, they were both kind of dead. And I've figured out that I work best when I have someone else who wants to work at least as much as me. My comp now is awesome in that respect. So far we've been getting along really well together and working really hard and everything is going well.
São Carlos is cold, guys. I mean, it still gets hot during the day, but I actually feel cold at night. I even have to wear my sweater when we're out working! It's nice to finally have winter come around after a straight year of summer.
My companion and I found a great, cheap pizza place nearby. I think we only went without pizza for one night this week. Soooo good.
Oh, have any of you been paying attention to the World Cup? People are going nuts about it out here. We're allowed to watch the Brazil games in the bishop's house, and the first game is going to be tomorrow. I'm so excited. I've been able to catch glimpses of games here and there before and after lunch or whatever, and I've been a little surprised at how much I want to watch soccer. Tomorrow's going to be a blast. Root for Brazil!!
Anyway, everything is going great. My companion is awesome, as are my area, the house, the members, everything. I'm doing really well, and I hope all of you are, too!
luv
booga
Guys! Hello from beautiful São Carlos, São Paulo, BRASIL (with an s instead of a z)!!
This week was so good. Guys, it was so good. It doesn't seem like it should have been -- our numbers were horrible, and if you only looked on the surface, it would seem like we didn't get anything accomplished.
But that's only because the elders who were here before us didn't really leave us with anything. There's a really small part of town called Gonzaga, which is apparently the only place where the last elders worked. Gonzaga is, with all due respect, a dump. It's a horribly impoverished area replete with drug dealing and prostitution. I guess the last elders were going there a lot and bringing kids to church. Sometimes missionaries like working with kids because, as horrible as it sounds, it's easier to get them to believe you. Therefore, it's easier to baptize them. Or at least that's what people think. I think it's almost always creepy and evil, whether or not you baptize them. Anyway, at every single lunch appointment this week, the members politely advised us not to even work in Gonzaga because it was causing a lot of problems. Our area isn't huge, but the members want us to expand our vision of where we can work beyond that one little section. Fine by me.
The only problem that it creates is that we are starting from scratch here. It's been four months since there has been a baptism in our ward. But I'm not discouraged! The members here are actually really cool, and things seem to be well-organized. I've even started kind of coming out of my shell and being more friendly with them. I'm not quite sure what changed, but there you go.
We're going to have to work like crazy to find people to teach. And we are working! And it feels great! I kind of feel like, even though my last two companions were all right, they were both kind of dead. And I've figured out that I work best when I have someone else who wants to work at least as much as me. My comp now is awesome in that respect. So far we've been getting along really well together and working really hard and everything is going well.
São Carlos is cold, guys. I mean, it still gets hot during the day, but I actually feel cold at night. I even have to wear my sweater when we're out working! It's nice to finally have winter come around after a straight year of summer.
My companion and I found a great, cheap pizza place nearby. I think we only went without pizza for one night this week. Soooo good.
Oh, have any of you been paying attention to the World Cup? People are going nuts about it out here. We're allowed to watch the Brazil games in the bishop's house, and the first game is going to be tomorrow. I'm so excited. I've been able to catch glimpses of games here and there before and after lunch or whatever, and I've been a little surprised at how much I want to watch soccer. Tomorrow's going to be a blast. Root for Brazil!!
Anyway, everything is going great. My companion is awesome, as are my area, the house, the members, everything. I'm doing really well, and I hope all of you are, too!
luv
booga
Now the neighbors can't dance in the police disco lights
June 7, 2010
Big news, guys: I was transferred again. After spending only six weeks in São José do Rio Preto, I was shipped off to a new city called São Carlos. It's insane -- almost everyone in the whole mission was transferred. I think my mission president wants everyone to get into new ares so that when the new president gets here this transfer (!), he won't have to move too many people around. That's my theory, anyway.
I really liked my last area, but I'm not too upset about leaving. I still hadn't really found my groove there or whatever. I hadn't gotten to know the members or the area very well, so it wasn't too big a deal to leave. And I've wanted to come to São Carlos ever since my first transfer because everyone says good things about it. I'm really looking forward to this transfer.
My new companion is an American. He's from Tennessee, which means that he's not from Utah, which is cool. He actually went to BYU at the same time as me, and we figured out that we even lived in the same dorm building. I didn't ever get to know him while I was at BYU, but I recognized him when I first saw him. Weird. He's going to hit a year on the mission in a few weeks, and I'm his first junior companion. That's exactly how it was with my last American companion, except now I speak Portuguese a little better. Even though I learned and grew a ton with my last two companions (Brazilians), I am definitely excited to be with a gringo again.
Like I said, almost everyone in the mission was transferred, including my new companion. We both arrived in our new area a few hours ago, and we don't know anyone or anything yet. This will be an adventure, for sure. I'm a little apprehensive about everything (but I always get nervous at transfers), but I'm excited! We're both going to have to fight just to keep our heads above water, and it's going to be awesome! And hard!
We had a good end to the transfer yesterday. There was a special stake conference broadcast from Salt Lake to something like 96 stakes scattered throughout São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. We heard from Elder Mervyn B. Arnold and W. Craig Zwick of the Seventy; Julie B. Beck, Relief Society General President; and Elder Christofferson of the Twelve. I didn't even know that those guys spoke Portuguese! It was cool to hear some general authorities give counsel and training directly to members living in Brazil; sometimes it seems, at least to me, like the Church is really located in the States. It probably has something to do with all the Church headquarters being located in the States, I guess. And the Church is comparatively weak out here. Anyway. It was a good conference.
And now I'm here in a new place with a new person and with new experiences to be had! Transfers can be discouraging because I always kind of feel like I'm starting over, but it's a good opportunity to try one more time to fight against my little insecurities and try my best to serve the people and the Lord. This transfer is going to be good because it has to be!
I love all of you! I hope you're doing well! The Church is true!
luv
booga
ps Winter's just starting up out here. I hear it's supposed to get pretty cold in this city. I'm looking forward to it -- it kind of feels like summer hasn't ended since it began this time last year.
Big news, guys: I was transferred again. After spending only six weeks in São José do Rio Preto, I was shipped off to a new city called São Carlos. It's insane -- almost everyone in the whole mission was transferred. I think my mission president wants everyone to get into new ares so that when the new president gets here this transfer (!), he won't have to move too many people around. That's my theory, anyway.
I really liked my last area, but I'm not too upset about leaving. I still hadn't really found my groove there or whatever. I hadn't gotten to know the members or the area very well, so it wasn't too big a deal to leave. And I've wanted to come to São Carlos ever since my first transfer because everyone says good things about it. I'm really looking forward to this transfer.
My new companion is an American. He's from Tennessee, which means that he's not from Utah, which is cool. He actually went to BYU at the same time as me, and we figured out that we even lived in the same dorm building. I didn't ever get to know him while I was at BYU, but I recognized him when I first saw him. Weird. He's going to hit a year on the mission in a few weeks, and I'm his first junior companion. That's exactly how it was with my last American companion, except now I speak Portuguese a little better. Even though I learned and grew a ton with my last two companions (Brazilians), I am definitely excited to be with a gringo again.
Like I said, almost everyone in the mission was transferred, including my new companion. We both arrived in our new area a few hours ago, and we don't know anyone or anything yet. This will be an adventure, for sure. I'm a little apprehensive about everything (but I always get nervous at transfers), but I'm excited! We're both going to have to fight just to keep our heads above water, and it's going to be awesome! And hard!
We had a good end to the transfer yesterday. There was a special stake conference broadcast from Salt Lake to something like 96 stakes scattered throughout São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. We heard from Elder Mervyn B. Arnold and W. Craig Zwick of the Seventy; Julie B. Beck, Relief Society General President; and Elder Christofferson of the Twelve. I didn't even know that those guys spoke Portuguese! It was cool to hear some general authorities give counsel and training directly to members living in Brazil; sometimes it seems, at least to me, like the Church is really located in the States. It probably has something to do with all the Church headquarters being located in the States, I guess. And the Church is comparatively weak out here. Anyway. It was a good conference.
And now I'm here in a new place with a new person and with new experiences to be had! Transfers can be discouraging because I always kind of feel like I'm starting over, but it's a good opportunity to try one more time to fight against my little insecurities and try my best to serve the people and the Lord. This transfer is going to be good because it has to be!
I love all of you! I hope you're doing well! The Church is true!
luv
booga
ps Winter's just starting up out here. I hear it's supposed to get pretty cold in this city. I'm looking forward to it -- it kind of feels like summer hasn't ended since it began this time last year.
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