Hello out there!
So first you're probably all dying to know what happened with transfers...if you even remember that transfers were last week. So I may as well tell you, or the rest of this email will make no sense whatsoever. So Monday night, we were teaching Talita, our investigator who is a reference of Mauro, and a lawyer. She rocks. She will be baptized, I think. Anyway, after we wrapped up there, we were just leaving her office, when the call came from our LD. Anyway...Sister Frame was to stay in Vila Industrial for a fourth transfer, and I was being shipped off to the middle of nowhere, to a place called Vista Verde, with Sister Sodré as my comp. We would be opening the area. FREAK. Anyway, then I found out that Elder Lopes, our friend who was in the office, is in my zone. And my good friend Elder Nóbrega is my Zone Leader! So, that's how it went down.
Tuesday was transfers. After running around Monday night trying to visit and say goodbye to a ton of people, Tuesday I left the city. Literally. Here I am in the middle of nowhere with cows and horses, and grass and ocassional trees, and dirt roads and empty spaces, and chickens and all kinds of farm animals and nothingness. And I love it! I love being out of the city! This is an answer to a prayer.
But it gets even better. So the Elders were ET-ed out of this area about 3 weeks before transfers, so we were opening the area from an area of Elders. Our house was in a lovely state of disarray when we arrived, so we had to deal with that mess, as well as the lack of information in the area book. So we're in a way starting all from scratch. I'm excited to be here, with this new responsibility. And so is the ward. Holy cow, this ward is SO HAPPY to have us here! The bishop told us we are answers to his prayers. Also, we are the first sisters to ever be in this area, and yesterday at testimony meeting, everyone bore testimony of missionary work and how the ward is going to split now with sisters here working harder than ever. They have really high hopes for us, and I really want to live up to them. We were greeted last Tuesday a bunch of times by visitors stopping at our house, people from the ward who'd heard that we'd arrived. It's a blessing to have the ward so supportive of the missionary work, because it will go forward at a rapid pace with this kind of support.
We also discovered that there are a bunch of inactive recent converts, which makes it appear as though the baptisms in this area were just numbers for some people. So, in effect, we are cleaning up a mess left behind. Again, thank heavens for the support from the ward. It's so great. I love this area already, and the people are wonderful. The work will move forward, and this ward will split...at least, that's my goal. They have specific plans and numbers they need to achieve for this to happen, which helps us a lot. This area is ENORMOUS...like 3 times the size of Vila Industrial. No shade, so the sun gets really hot. I have no idea how I'm going to deal with summer here, but I'm taking it one day at a time.
And it gets EVEN BETTER....remember our investigator, Mauro, back in Vila Industrial, and how we were waiting for his baptism? Well, Elder Shaw, the exectuve secretary, called me this week to let me know that hes going to be baptized! I got so excited! I am so sad I won't be there to see it (and there's no way for me to get there...I'm practically at the other end of the mission), but so happy that he's finally going to be baptized! WOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Other things of note....there's a girl in this ward, Silvinha, who is 19 years old and reminds me of myself at the same age. She loves missionary work, wants to be a missionary, and loves the missionaries. She taught with us all day on Saturday, which was great. She's really enthusiastic, which is fantastic. 2 years from now, she'll be a great missionary! Also, we have a coca-cola factory in our area. Cool, huh! And we are like heros to the kids of the ward; it's really cute.
So, I know this email is lacking a ton of detail, but just know that I am really happy. Change is good, and this transfer has already brought with it a ton of answered prayers. I know the Lord truly knows us, and knows what we need, and He always is there to help us. When He asks us to do something, He always gives us a way to do it....for example, I speak Portuguese (mais ou menos). I was thinking about this this week as I was talking with Elder Pickett, one of our Zone Leaders, and Elder G. Silva, our District Leader....both of them, and other missionaries too, have asked how I am speaking so well for only having 5 months in the mission. First of all, I don't feel like I speak all that well, and I could be a lot better. But I am learning patience with myself. Anyway, I was thinking about that, and realized that I can't in any way credit myself with this. It is only because of the Lord, and the gift of tongues, that I am doing this. So yep...the Lord truly knows us. Never doubt anything with Him, because He is all-powerful and literally will help you do something that may seem impossible.
Hey, so other random things. Cockroaches here are enormous. :) And yet I'm still alive.....though not a fan of our house at night. We've found and smashed 3 roaches already, yesterday and Saturday night. What fun. Yuck. Also, our toilet is broken. Hahaha, we took like 2 days to clean the house, because it was so ridiculous. There was food still on the stove and table, as well as trash and junk all over the place. Our trash heap on Saturday was enormous, but now our house is clean, livable, and the Spirit is there again. :) Now, it's a Sisters' house. :)
Well, time to wrap things up.
Love you!
Karen
So first you're probably all dying to know what happened with transfers...if you even remember that transfers were last week. So I may as well tell you, or the rest of this email will make no sense whatsoever. So Monday night, we were teaching Talita, our investigator who is a reference of Mauro, and a lawyer. She rocks. She will be baptized, I think. Anyway, after we wrapped up there, we were just leaving her office, when the call came from our LD. Anyway...Sister Frame was to stay in Vila Industrial for a fourth transfer, and I was being shipped off to the middle of nowhere, to a place called Vista Verde, with Sister Sodré as my comp. We would be opening the area. FREAK. Anyway, then I found out that Elder Lopes, our friend who was in the office, is in my zone. And my good friend Elder Nóbrega is my Zone Leader! So, that's how it went down.
Tuesday was transfers. After running around Monday night trying to visit and say goodbye to a ton of people, Tuesday I left the city. Literally. Here I am in the middle of nowhere with cows and horses, and grass and ocassional trees, and dirt roads and empty spaces, and chickens and all kinds of farm animals and nothingness. And I love it! I love being out of the city! This is an answer to a prayer.
But it gets even better. So the Elders were ET-ed out of this area about 3 weeks before transfers, so we were opening the area from an area of Elders. Our house was in a lovely state of disarray when we arrived, so we had to deal with that mess, as well as the lack of information in the area book. So we're in a way starting all from scratch. I'm excited to be here, with this new responsibility. And so is the ward. Holy cow, this ward is SO HAPPY to have us here! The bishop told us we are answers to his prayers. Also, we are the first sisters to ever be in this area, and yesterday at testimony meeting, everyone bore testimony of missionary work and how the ward is going to split now with sisters here working harder than ever. They have really high hopes for us, and I really want to live up to them. We were greeted last Tuesday a bunch of times by visitors stopping at our house, people from the ward who'd heard that we'd arrived. It's a blessing to have the ward so supportive of the missionary work, because it will go forward at a rapid pace with this kind of support.
We also discovered that there are a bunch of inactive recent converts, which makes it appear as though the baptisms in this area were just numbers for some people. So, in effect, we are cleaning up a mess left behind. Again, thank heavens for the support from the ward. It's so great. I love this area already, and the people are wonderful. The work will move forward, and this ward will split...at least, that's my goal. They have specific plans and numbers they need to achieve for this to happen, which helps us a lot. This area is ENORMOUS...like 3 times the size of Vila Industrial. No shade, so the sun gets really hot. I have no idea how I'm going to deal with summer here, but I'm taking it one day at a time.
And it gets EVEN BETTER....remember our investigator, Mauro, back in Vila Industrial, and how we were waiting for his baptism? Well, Elder Shaw, the exectuve secretary, called me this week to let me know that hes going to be baptized! I got so excited! I am so sad I won't be there to see it (and there's no way for me to get there...I'm practically at the other end of the mission), but so happy that he's finally going to be baptized! WOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Other things of note....there's a girl in this ward, Silvinha, who is 19 years old and reminds me of myself at the same age. She loves missionary work, wants to be a missionary, and loves the missionaries. She taught with us all day on Saturday, which was great. She's really enthusiastic, which is fantastic. 2 years from now, she'll be a great missionary! Also, we have a coca-cola factory in our area. Cool, huh! And we are like heros to the kids of the ward; it's really cute.
So, I know this email is lacking a ton of detail, but just know that I am really happy. Change is good, and this transfer has already brought with it a ton of answered prayers. I know the Lord truly knows us, and knows what we need, and He always is there to help us. When He asks us to do something, He always gives us a way to do it....for example, I speak Portuguese (mais ou menos). I was thinking about this this week as I was talking with Elder Pickett, one of our Zone Leaders, and Elder G. Silva, our District Leader....both of them, and other missionaries too, have asked how I am speaking so well for only having 5 months in the mission. First of all, I don't feel like I speak all that well, and I could be a lot better. But I am learning patience with myself. Anyway, I was thinking about that, and realized that I can't in any way credit myself with this. It is only because of the Lord, and the gift of tongues, that I am doing this. So yep...the Lord truly knows us. Never doubt anything with Him, because He is all-powerful and literally will help you do something that may seem impossible.
Hey, so other random things. Cockroaches here are enormous. :) And yet I'm still alive.....though not a fan of our house at night. We've found and smashed 3 roaches already, yesterday and Saturday night. What fun. Yuck. Also, our toilet is broken. Hahaha, we took like 2 days to clean the house, because it was so ridiculous. There was food still on the stove and table, as well as trash and junk all over the place. Our trash heap on Saturday was enormous, but now our house is clean, livable, and the Spirit is there again. :) Now, it's a Sisters' house. :)
Well, time to wrap things up.
Love you!
Karen
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