August 27, 2014
Oiiiiiii tudo bem? [Hi!
How are you?]
Meus queridos! [My dear ones] It seriously looks like Hawaii here. I will take pictures one day. but it’s really
difficult because it’s so sketchy and poor here and there’s like assaults and muggings
every day so I have to be sneaky with photos. -------------but don’t worry, Mom,
it’s super safe, we’re like invisible here. ------
I’m sooooo incredibly excited for Kevin
Lu!!! and Matthew Larson! Wow! I seriously
was soooooooo happy reading Kevin’s letter!
I want to write a letter to him, but I’d have to send it like now
because he leaves the MTC in October right?
Okay, I’ll see if I can send it ASAP! or I’ll email it to you and you
can send it to him for me? Yay! Technology!
So I read this week about your
hike! How exciting! Sounds suuuuuper intense but super pretty and
fun. We’ll have to go again when I get
back! :) okay? Perfect! In the ice water during winter haha.
Also, tenho perguntas! [I have questions] How is Cami doing??? Is Emily liking school? And also, are Uncle Chucky
and Aunty Megumi still meeting with the missionaries? How’s that going? :)
This week I have been unofficially put
in charge of our zone t-shirt! So it’s
been a little stressful and busy, but it’s been super awesome because I
felt more at ease with this kind of stress and responsibility … Finally, I am
able to release some creative energy … haha.
I’ll send a pic when it’s done.
It should be done this week. :) I’m
excited! It’s modeled after the soda of
Maranhao -- Guarana Jesus. It’s like
only here in Maranhao. It’s really weird
like tutti fruitti flavor but it grows on you and agora [now] I like it
aloooot. haha.
But also, best of all, this area is
finally looking up! This ward is one of
the most struggling wards in this mission.
I see why even the active members are very fluctuante—translation ...
[back and forth] ---- They are still learning
and growing, but some really struggle. Really it’s just the returned missionaries and
their families. The rest come sometimes, and sometimes not. It’s really tough. I was talking with the other sisters about it
and really what it comes down to is that Heavenly Father won’t trust this ward
with more baptisms and more of his children who are truly looking, if this ward
won’t take care of them. I know I said
this before, but it’s really starting to show.
This ward has trouble taking care of its own. We’re plannning like crazy for activities
and ideas to reach out to the menos ativos. [less actives] I’m super excited! I love this ward, but it is sooo tough when
many are so worried about the wrong things.
We had an investigator named José.
He suffers from real bad depression, and I know it’s like clinical because it
seriously comes in waves and he’s been battling this for 3 years. It has gotten so bad that he’s turned into
this dark, pessimistic, kind of person who gets drunk every single day. He is more like an adolescent with a dark
look at everything. It is sooooo
incredibly sad because we try to talk and testify and teach but I’ve just never
seen someone so incredibly in disbelief.
I read in the Book of Mormon sobre [about] the people in disbelief and I
never truly understood some parts until now.
For exemplo, [example] the last time we talked with him. I almost
cried.... I testified and promised that if he just went to church one time, he
would feel better. Not completely
everything would change, but if he went just once, I promised that he would
FEEL something and find hope again. He said no, it won’t work, there’s no hope
for me, there’s no way. I said you don’t
know that! It is worth at least a try! And he said no, it won’t work. In my
mind the story of Moises [Moses] and the golden serpent came to mind and I
asked him about it. I compared it to him
and he thought a minute and said no, it’s different with me. It wont work.
I tried again to compare but he cut me off and said, “It’s different for
me. It won’t. work.” And he walked away with such a cloud of
despair and hopelessness. I just stood
there looking at him trudge off and I felt the most overwhelming sadness. I knew for even just a second how our Heavenly
Father feels with each child He loses to our own agency...
I just thought there for a minute how
heartbreaking it must have been for Moises [Moses] to see his people, his
family, and friends, dying there on the ground with not even enough faith
to look up at the serpent. In pain they’re
there as Moises [Moses] was just begging them to look up and they would be
cured and saved! But how many of them
were dying there thinking, “Its different for me. It won’t work for me.” This is the definition of disbelief. Sometimes, I doubt my faith or have some
reservations, but then I think if I can just muster enough faith to just act and
to just TRY Him, just TEST this promise in the scriptures, I can see the
miracles and grow my faith .. but this disbelief that kills miracles, is simply
the lack of even trying. Faith truly is
dead without works. How incredibly
heartbreaking it is to see some without even that amount of faith and they are dying
spiritually.
On the other hand, we have an
amazing family -- Ruy and Brena. They
are soooo super young but they are truly progressing! They aren’t married yet legally but we set a
date and this Friday we are re-uniting at the cartorio [notary or justice of
the peace] ---place to marry-- and vamos [we will] set the marriage and baptism
for this day! At first they were very
nonchalant with it all, It was kind of
like “Sure, whatever works, we’ll go with it.
Maybe we’ll marry maybe not for another 10 years or so.” But now the real miracle is that they’re
super excited because they never thought about an Eternal family before. With this new vision, they truly are ready to
do anything to attain their potential como [as] spouses, and future
parents. It is amazing how the truth and
the spirit really opens and changes people for the better. I’m super excited for them!!!!! Also, we’ve been finding more and more families
and individuals with real potential. They are really looking for the truth and
for something more. I’m so
excited!!! I know that with our work
with the ward, the elects will be coming out ready to accept the complete
evangelho [gospel] and truth restored.
I looooove this work. There is an incredible joy that comes from
serving the lord and constantly being immersed in His spirit and learning and
growing through challenges and trials.
This is my mission and MY conversion story and I wouldn’t trade it for
the world. Talvez [perhaps] it’s just
another mission in Brasil, same stories and same experiences, but to me it is
unico [unique]. I love my mission! Wow. I
am so grateful for everything I learn every single day.
Amo voces demaisssss!! [I love you, too]
Have a great week! I love you allllllllll!
-Sister Yoshimoto
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