Week 8 October 7, 2009

Hello Family!!!!! I can't even believe that I have only have six more days here!! Time really has flown bye!! We leave on Tuesday and yes I do fly with everyone you saw in the airport!! We have a 4 hour plane ride and a 5 hour bus ride so its pretty far away!!

So what an amazing week we have been able to have!! Here the prophets and the apostles and church leaders words!! Wasn’t it absolutely amazing!! But before I start talking about that and proselyting I need to say a couple things…..

Gosh seriously where do I start! Let start with proselyting on Friday!! It was so much fun!! Imagine 12 boys in shirts and ties jumping out of a van in literally downtown Sao Paulo with black name tags on that was pretty funny cause we all had to get out way fast cause it was rush hour! But now to explain, it kinda reminded me of Barcelona Spain!! Super busy, I swear there was like a million people there, all trying to sell stuff then when the cops came they would run and stuff it was funny! So we got there and they kinda just left us it was weird.. but fun! So we went to this park and started to proselyting and it was amazing!! We got shut down a lot more times then we did at the ctm but I was expecting that and we only had like 3 minutes (walking and talking) with them because they were all trying to get back to work cause we went right after lunch! So we talked to a bunch of people and gave out like 5 Books if Mormon and it was an amazing experience! I'll tell you about one in particular!... So I saw some guy prob like 21 just sitting on some bench and so we went over there and started to talk to him (in our still pretty bad Portuguese)! We can talk about the gospel but when they start talking to us about anything else other then that I get way lost ha ha! So anyways, we teach him and he was way excited to get the Book of Mormon and then we went on our way! I looked back and he started readying and I was like “alright! At least he just didn’t stick it in his bag haha” and we went on teaching more people in the park! Then I glanced back prob like 45 minutes later and he was still reading, I was super surprised then I looked back like an hour and a half later and he was still reading!! It was amazing! He then came up to us after cause we saw him leave a phone booth and he had called the missionaries and has his first appointment. on Wednesday (today!!!) crazy huh!! Its crazy to think that a couple missionaries not knowing much Portuguese could change someones life buy bearing our testimonies and letting the holy ghost work through our simple words! Gosh I love this work! And I'm so excited to leave in a couple days! Oh and we go got to go to McDonald's after! and we have almost died on the bus like a thousand times!! Drivers here are crazy! But good… I guess. So anyways that was proselyting but lets talk about conference!! I got to sit by Craig every meeting so that was SO nice!! But wow is all I can say!! Ten hours of hearing people talk hasn’t ever gone by so fast!! It was crazy! I loved hearing everything and I really hope that you all watched the Saturday conference cause it was just as amazing as Sunday if not better…. And priesthood was ABSOLUTELY amazing!!! I can't really tell you who I liked the most cause I love them all but it was that pretty much the entire Saturday conference was one “love” and that “the godhead is true and they really do live” there were some amazing talks and these are just a few things that I got out of it!! And I hope that I say these somewhat close to exactly how they said it! I forgot my book to tell you exactly but here's a try… haha

Starting right off with Elder Scott on Saturday was SO good!! And one thing he said really stuck to me!! That was “trying to feel the spirit while doing sin is like eating a jalapeno and trying to taste a grape” so true haha And then that whole “arrow” thing or “aim high” by Russell Osguthorpe was good! Elder Bednar! And this was a way powerful talk!! This talk about family and love was amazing!! I love it so much!! And the bush stroke to picture analogy was amazing too! Jorge F Zebollas saying that “Gods would not request more then we can personally give but he will not accept anything less then our best!!” Elder Uchtdorf!! And he had a couple amazing talks! Oh gosh!! Talking about what us as members need to be known as it was so good!! I really wish I could go through all of them but I don’t have that much time!!! And ending Saturday conference with Elder Packer!!! He said one thing that really stuck out to me!!! He said “prayer is a personal door/key to heaven and the lock is on our side of the Vail” wow amazing!! Now priesthood!! I was SO sad not to be there with you dad, it was super hard!! Elder Packers was amazing!!! And Uchtdorf!!! Then Sunday it was amazing too!! Gosh Elder Erying always does an amazing job!! And then the afternoon on Sunday! Elder Holland!!! Oh my gosh wasn’t his testimony of the Book of Mormon amazing and how what he said about Joseph and Hyrum! It was seriously amazing!! Read it again! Maybe listen to it on the Internet, we have for the past two days and it never gets old to here him talk!! Of course Pres Monson was amazing as usual!!! His talk on service was amazing!! We found out some crazy things and sad and the other kinda scary and the other really cool So sad……….. Richard G Scott is coming to the CTM here in 2 weeks SO we just miss him kinda bumbed!! Crazy!!............. Santa Maria right now they say is the most dangerous city in Brazil at the moment!! I guess that it is raining off the hook and there are floods and houses are falling over and there have been like 4 tornado's which haven’t happen in 30 years so our teacher pulled us to the side and pretty much said be careful and that we are gong there for a purpose and stuff!! They don’t expect it to get much better….. Our mission pres. Pres Myrrha I here is just so tight!! He takes us paint balling and stuff and goes on hicks and stuff I here its crazy!!! I forgot to mention that we got to go to the temple again today!! Amazing as usual but kinda said it’s the last time we will be able to go for about 20 months they say!! Kinda sad!!! And no, the new temple in Brazil Fortaleza and that is all the way in the opposite direction haha So that’s all!! Ill write you all little things now! So I love you all and I hope that everything is just amazing!!! Love you!!! Hugs to all!! Next time you here from me I'll be in Santa Maria!!! Love you all!!!!!!