I LOVE Having Sister Dickson Here!
April 11, 2012 email
[She just read my email where I told her that there is a gift certificate waiting for her at Mr. Cheney Cookies.
She needs to go pick it up today and SPEND IT!]
WOWZY! Mumzy, you rocketh. Tight like unto a dish! Can you please send my gray Sister Missionary skirt with Agenor? The one I have right now is borderline short, and I’m trying my hardest to be obedient.
Go to missionties.com to place an order for any missionary in Brazil, and they will ship the order within Brazil. While in the CTM, the missionaries go directly across the street to pick it up in person.
Izabel, the sweet manager at Mr. Cheney Cookies, took these pictures from today and emailed them. |
Stress here is totally different than the Provo MTC—less intense. But even when you want to get mad, you don’t. It’s so hard to explain. I have realized that my stress indicators are all out of whack here.
There have been some wonderful experiences. I shared a personal experience in Portuguese in our last lesson. It was ridiculously hard because I can’t conjugate in the present tense, let alone the past tense or imperfect, etc. I didn’t feel like I helped the investigator much with the experience; but afterward, my teacher thanked me for sharing it. She explained that it helped her in her real life and was an answer to her prayers. The food here is getting better and better!!!!!! Yummmmmzy! Last week, we had some kind of ice cream… hehehe… interesting is what it was. Tasted like eggnog and banana. We had PANCAKES and awesome stuff for General Conference and Easter. The cooks try to appease the Americans; but when they are serving up our food, they look like the crankiest people in the world. Even when they are cranks, I can’t say no to them. Sad face. I’s gonna get so fat. The “manna” oatmeal is deeeeelish. It’s some kind of rice bits with really sweet creamy stuff. LOVE it! But the most common breakfast here is a slice of cheese and ham on a roll that is cooked Panini-style. It’s good, but I usually wolf down the oatmeal or occasional frosted flakes. I’m gonna MISS the “sheltered” food here in the CTM. I LOVE THE TEMPLE!!!! It was so difficult to seeee when we were taking pics, though. I can’t remember if I talked about it or not. If not, I’m going to write it in my journal that I’m almost done with. Do you think Agenor would take it home for me? I have two more journals left for the rest of my mission. Hahaha, do you think I can do it? The temple trip today was AWESOME. We met “real” missionary sisters on the temple grounds. One was an American from Utah and had been out a year. Her Portuguese was great, and she was talking really fast. It was SOOO fun to talk with them. More and more, I am a believer of the hand of God in the minutest details of our lives. I don’t know how He does it, but He does. He loves us. His work and glory is to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life. I didn’t think it was possible that He could give us so many miracles and set up so many tender mercies in one day. Yet, as I have always believed, there is no such thing as a coincidence; and now I can testify of it because my eyes have been opened to the daily blessings in my life. If I were left to my own strength, I would be a poor miserable fellow indeed. Having a belief that happy days aren’t of my own doing or in my own power, but bad days are when I’m left in my own strength, I KNOW just how much God loves me. I have all things as a witness unto me that God lives, and He loves all His children. Do you know what? Even if you think I’m silly for believing in a god, as a coping mechanism, and you go on calling me names and thinking I’m stupid, I don’t care. I will always be more filled with joy because of what I believe, and THAT’S what this world needs. What are you doing to contribute? Nevertheless, I have unshaken faith that there is a God. He lives, and He loves me. He even loves those who hate Him and curse His name daily. We are His children and are thus bound to Him with that intangible, immeasurable, inexplicable love that only comes from being part of a family. God is real, and I will not deny it. I know because He can speak to me in a way that every particle of my being is enlightened with love, knowledge, and direction. He knows ME. In fact, He knows me better than I know myself! This I can testify with boldness because even as I write these words laboriously with this finicky keyboard, I feel the third member of the Godhead—the Holy Ghost—testify to me that what I am writing is true. |
I love being on a mission because now I get to put to words the things I have always known to be true. I shout them from the rooftops, I profess them in my prayers, I engraven them in my countenance, and I grow them in my heart. I invite all within the sound of my words to come unto Christ and be perfected in Him and deny yourselves of all ungodliness. And if ye deny yourselves of all ungodliness and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then is His grace sufficient for you that by His grace, ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. Don’t deny Him. For your sakes, don’t ever deny Him your love and faith. Fight a good fight. Finish your course. Keep the faith.
I LOVE having Sister Dickson here! She is my sanity; and her friend from Gig Harbor is my bff outside my district. It’s nice to have had an elder outside my district who appreciates me and understands my humor. Sister Dickson is a solo sister, and the poor girl is the best thing since peanut butter for those boys in her district. She’s the greatest mom ever. Pray for her. I, on the other hand, am very glad that I’m in a trio. If there were only 2 sisters in this district, we would be eaten alive. I do love our district elders. They are the most hilarious BUT spiritual-when-they-want-to-be elders. PLEASE! For the sake of the future sister missionaries, teenage boys, stand up and be men, according to Elder Jeffrey R. Holland hahaha. OR, according to President Uchtdorf, STOP IT. :) I love you all. |
Sorry things are so choppy today. I’m trying to get everything in, and my spelling and grammar are atrocious. Deal with it. It means I’m doing well in Portuguese. I LOVE THE FRANTIC TYPING sound all around me. We just love our families so much. RACHEL, thank you for your letter!!!! I lost it before I could read it, but I’ll find it today after I make my bed. I think it’s around there somewhere hahaha. I had NO time last night to read it because I was staying with Sister Dickson. She is a solo sister and doesn’t have any roommates right now. She is getting 3 Brazilian roommates tonight!!! Super jealous. She’s picking up the language really fast because she had a good background with Spanish. I’m very timid when speaking in Portuguese; and when I talk about spiritual things, I talk really quiet, which doesn’t help the matter. I had an English fast this past week all by myself, and IT WAS TOUGH!!!! Also, yesterday, we had an English fast as a district. I’m sorry to say… but I loved it because the elders, FOR ONCE, weren’t horsing around and talking about things that were distracting. They did kinda die at the end. However, I’ve made a goal with myself to have an English fast every other day. We’ll see how that helps. I’m not picking up the language, but I can’t wait to get in the field and drown in the sound of Portuguese. Don’t worry. I bought some flippers, some swimming floaties, and water wings. I’m ready. :) Aaaand, I’ve been praying for my poor trainer. The first sister to have completed the 6-week pilot program left last Monday. We’ll see how we guinea pigs go. FYI, I’m the only sister here who is going to Rio de Janeiro!! There are 7 Brazilian elders who are going and I think report the same day.
I have been playing the flute for Sunday firesides and devotionals. The sister in charge here is hilarious. She makes sure there is a prelude, postlude, and interlude number, AND everyone has to go to the choir. We sing in English, Spanish, and Portuguese; so it sounds like garbledygish. It’s fun. ELDER QUENTIN COOK IS COMING THE TUESDAY BEFORE WE LEAVE, and I get to play flute for him. :) I’m getting my flute legs back and have been grateful for the redemption from the last time I played in church hahaha. The flute here is open-holed, but all the buttons stick because of the nasty humidity here. I think I can survive Rio when it comes to heat. I can do hard things!
Also, Elder Cook will visit my mission when I report!!! I LOVE RIO!!!!!
Love lovel vlovel voel voe lvoe voevlle oveo
I have been playing the flute for Sunday firesides and devotionals. The sister in charge here is hilarious. She makes sure there is a prelude, postlude, and interlude number, AND everyone has to go to the choir. We sing in English, Spanish, and Portuguese; so it sounds like garbledygish. It’s fun. ELDER QUENTIN COOK IS COMING THE TUESDAY BEFORE WE LEAVE, and I get to play flute for him. :) I’m getting my flute legs back and have been grateful for the redemption from the last time I played in church hahaha. The flute here is open-holed, but all the buttons stick because of the nasty humidity here. I think I can survive Rio when it comes to heat. I can do hard things!
Also, Elder Cook will visit my mission when I report!!! I LOVE RIO!!!!!
Love lovel vlovel voel voe lvoe voevlle oveo