Learning and Improving

August 12, 2013

Oiiiii minha Familia!!!!

Wow this week is crazy!  I have a looooot to write!  But first of all, I'm in the Boulder Springs Ward!  Oh and what ward is Uncle Jimmy in, in Hendersen?? just curious.

I got the pics from mom! So pretty!!! Awwwww I love it!! haha. So cute! And the story of the snails and fertilizer for your plants and stuff haha!  Well when I get back I want a home grown feast! hehe. from all the plants and stuff you got back there! :) yummmmm!

We got some pics coming in soon from the Temple. WE GOT TO GO ON FRI!!! sooooooo great!  It will probably be the last time for my mission unless I'm here another couple of months. I'm so sad there's no temple in Teresina. but I do hope I can get there soon!!! :)) I wanna be able to speak Portuguese with people!!! I miss it!): but I'm keeping it up. saying all my prayers in Portuguese and songs during companion study.

This area is pretty strange now that I've learned more about it!  It's got about 30,000 people in this town, but like 8 wards or something!  Crazy!  The members here barely know anyone outside of church!  How sad! They like to keep within their bubble so finding is hard here.  We're trying to get people to meet their neighbors and parents from school and stuff...  It's a work in progress.  We need creative ways to find... goal of this transfer.

So a lot of the people here are pretty nice and will a little less harshly reject us, but the other day we acutally ran into a lady who was pretty crazy.  She was watching us and sitting in her garage so after a while we went over and before we said anything she asks us how many husbands we have. and we were like uhhh none. We're missionaries and were explaining what we do but she kept cutting in with stuff like don't lie!  You have 10 husbands!  And some other pretty vulgar things I can't say  haha.  She basically cussed us out and ran us off the driveway.   It was a very interesting encounter.  It got more bizarre when her neighbor, who we briefuly talked to before, saw and started yelling at her to leave us alone and then they started scream fighting as we quickly walked away awkwardly.... Oh my. what an advcenture.   We felt so bad that they started fighting.  We were down the street and turning and could still hear them fighting :(  sooooo we stay away from that house now.

I got the letters and packages! WOW mom!talk about inspired! that talk haha! and now I have it in portuguese too!! Thanks dad!!  It's super good!  I got the alpha smart thing! so coool!!! Is there a place to connect it to the usb? I couldnt find it, but I didn't look really hard yet.  That's super cool though.  I think it'll definitely be handy in Brazil maybe.  The Ensigns! im so excited to read them!  They're sooooo interesting already! One's about Jesus Christ and the other about the Book of Mormon, if anything its good for me to use as reference to some of the most common questions in missionary work. plus language study material!! Thank youuu!!!  I was starting to run out of material haha.

I talked to the elder from my MTC district who's in brazil already. he said the language comes so quickly now.  I'm so happy for him, cause he had such a hard time with it in the MTC.  But I'm also pretty jealous haha! I can't wait to head over there and really use this language!!  I can/t wait to see the people of Teresina!!!   They sound soooo nice and humble and genuine, already! :)

Well, with the companion, things are going well.  I think much better now.  Man, the thing about missions is you get to see who you reallllyyyy are and sometimes---most times--its not what you thought before.  And for me, it wasnt good news.  I really start to see things about myself.  I would just hide and push away.  Now I'm forced to see them and not only that, but change them.  Which is really the super hard part.  I never realized just how prideful  I really am.  I have a hard time LOVING people instead of just tolerating them. and that's what I really have to do with this companion. I'm also a very closed off person. I don't like opening up to ANYone unless I really know/ like/trust them.  This is super hard for me cause esp with my companion, its essential to be able to open up to her.  I really don't want to cause I like to kinda do things on my own and with Heavenly Father's help.   But that's whats so amazing about the Atonement, it allows me to lean on Him as well as others who He provides me with to help me. I just gotta really learn to use that.  I hate it, but it's gotta be done haha! and I know I will be thankful for it in the long run.  Once I had a real talk with my companion I feel like it went better.  We talked about how she kinda had the same problems when she first came out.  Her comp was a super bubbly friendly lets hug 24/7 girl and they didn't get along at all. but I only saw them at the end of the transfers where they were super close.  So of course I felt like everyone gets along like that from the start and it was just me who couldn't make things work.  It was definitely comforting seeing that I'm not the only one who has to change in order for things to work. haha. oh, that pride.

Well,  Helen is pretty much a dropped investigator):  She doesn't come out ever and we haven't seen her since the first time.  But we have other people who are progressing and even a family!!  How exciting!!  It's tough because each person has their own challenges and concerns that we need to address and only so much time to meet. B ut one couple we're teaching is Megan and Craig.  They're a couple and they have a 3 year old and are pregnant with another. but they're not married!  They want to get baptized, but we have to help them get married first.    Soooooo if it all goes well, we might be wedding planners this transfer!!!! wooooh!! hahah. how exciting!!!  I'm just so excited cause if they do and are baptized, Craig can get the priesthood and bless their new baby and baptize their 3yr old when she's 8! !!! oh mannn.... what blessings. It's hard during the days where there aren't a lot of appts or people cancel and every one rejects you, but then there's just that one lesson where it all goes right and you walk away and think what an amazing day! I love how that one person's progression makes everything else kinda not matter.  They don't even see how amazing this is for them yet, they know they want it, but they dont see just how amazing it is yet.  Then there are those who I wish I could just SHOW them what I see and be like OMG! LOOK WHAT YOU COULD HAVE!! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST READ AND PRAY!   but we can't...... so we gotta work WITH them haha. but I guess thats what missionary work is really about.

I'm so excited to hear about the mission plans back home!! Mini missions!!!  That's awwweeesome!!! I love how bold commitments are the best.  They really are hard to make but they are the ones that mean the most. or bring the most out of them.  The bolder we are, the stronger the spirit can testify!!! haha. its crazy cause I know how hard it is for members to really do their part. but I also know how important it is to do it. Missionaries cannot do this alone.  We are barely a fraction of the process. it's mostly up to members. and I always heard this but man, its true. when I go home, I'll be the BEST member msisionary ever hahahahha. just cause I know how frustrateing it is whne they don't help at all.  Here, we just teach the members that we really just need to invite.  Our job is to just GIVE people that chance to hear and accept the gospel.  They just need that chance.  and if we do our part to invite and fellowship, the rest is up to them. WE succeed when we invite.  I loooove how Mom is really going out there and inviting people! So cool!!  I love it! People don't realize the impact we have from just talking about the gospel in a casual conversation.  The gospel isn't some big scary secret!!  It's not something just for us! It's something we love so much we want others to have as well!   It's something that is literally a part of us so we can talk about it whenver we want! and if they happen to have questions about that part of us, we answer them! Mom's ideas of conversation  starters were so cute hahah.   Monday's are my fave day! why? cause my daughters on a mission and can write home now! hahaha.  Sneeeakyyy mom. hehe jk. but really, it's that simple. but that important.

On top of that, just living like we should is such a good missionary way.  Being examples.  People are watching us cause they know we're different. We can all be Mormons, but are we all Latter Day Saints?  We have to live as Latter-day Saints. Because that's what we are. and that can be the best way to invite others. :)

Well that's my spiel for the day.  Just a few quick updates:  We had sushi with that member who thinks I don't eat meat haha.  Cleared that one up. although the tofu he gave was awesome too hehe. and he gave me tamarind candy!  Sooo good! never heard of it before!  But he also gave me TONS of nori! WHAT A BLESSING!!!!! hahahah.

Blesssingssss!!!!  Well I gotta go soon but I just want to let everyone know how much I love you all!!  I love all the support and letters I get from home!! I miss you all and pray for you every night!!  I hope you're all doing better ... Especially mom and her shoulder!

Emily, how's your schedule!??! Teachers?  When you start?

DAD that trip sounds soooo intense!!   Is your shoulder okay now???  That is so hardcore haha

Kei!  So excited you're going to another ward now. funnnn!!!!!

Love you all!! I'll use the Alpha smart next week so maybe I'll have more time to write!! :)
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Sister Yoshimoto