Monday, September 21, 2015

Jose Walter, Brazil - It's a scorching

Is that even a word? I´m sure it´s spelled wrong even if it is. Also, I apologize for my spelling errors. Every word I type is underlined in red haha so I don´t have auto correct to help me here! But yeah, it´s hot here! The other day someone said, "We have two seasons here. Hot, and very hot!" Haha and it´s true!
I forgot to mention in my email last week that we had Stake Conference the day before (so not last Sunday but the one before that)! President and Sister Fusco came (my mission president and his wife) and both talked. President Fusco basically told the members to stop feeding us so much and making us fat hahaha. He said that when we go home, we won´t get married if they continue to do so!! Haha so as usual, we usually have some members who just give us money, but two times this past week we had lunches fall through! So we kept blaming them on President Fusco hahaha but don´t worry, we didn´t go hungry!
So there´s this street in our area that is filled with a bunch of kids who are recent converts. They´re my favorites! This past week I had the idea instead of reading them a scripture (that they would shortly forget) we should see if they knew the articles of faith! They didn´t know them so some of them have started to memorize them! We write them down on paper and if they memorize 3, we buy them chocolate! We have this one adorable girl, Raissa, who is now on number 6! She´s so cute! Every time we see her she runs up to us and starts quoting the one she´s currently memorizing! Also the other day we were passing by and (side note - here in schools they call teachers Tia or Tio like how we say Mr or Ms) they started calling to us "Tia! Tia!" and they draggged us into one of the girl´s homes and there´s a cat on her couch cleaning her newborn baby! We then witnessed the birth of another kitten haha they were all freaking out ahahaha but I was too ;)
This week we met an awesome new investigator, Junior. He´s 15 and already has so much faith! He had an older brother who was baptized when he was a kid but passed away. But he told us experiences he´s had where his prayers were answered and Heavenly Father was really looking out for him. We invited him to be baptized but he said not right now because he doesn´t want to mess up again! We QUICKLY informed him that none of us are perfect and we still make mistakes every day, so hopefully he´ll come around! He´s an awesome kid though!
This week we also met an awesome 19-year-old guy named Zach! We were talking in the street with one of our former investigators (she didn´t want to quit smoking and drinking) and this guy on a motorcycle totally turns around and comes up to us asking about our church, our doctrine, and we´re like woooah woah take it easy! Lol not really, but we asked him his name, his age, and gave him a pamphlet, but he took off before we could get his address! Then, the other day we´re walking down the street and lo and behold, who drives up next to us?! Zach! He had more questions so we stepped off to the side in the shade and talked a bit and asked where he lived so that we could come and share our message that will answer all his questions! Buuuut he wouldn´t give it to us! He was a little wary haha but we we were like, "hey, we´re not stalkers! If you tell us you don´t want us to come by, we won´t!" But he still didn´t give it to us. So we invited him to the English class we were having that night and he said he´d come! Well, 7 pm rolls around (it now starts at 6 and ends at 7) and he shows up with a friend hahaha so he sat in for the end. Then the Elders talked to him a bit about the class; then they left. But when we walked out of the chapel with the Elders, they were there again and they asked when we have church! So the Elders told them about their sacrament meeting (I think he lives in their area) and on Sunday he and his friend were at church! Not our ward and I´m guessing not in our area, but I hope he starts taking the lessons with his friend! 
Gahh running out of time but this week I´was just so happy and so grateful for this time I have to be a missionary! This week I hit my 6 month mark and I found myself sad about that! Which is awesome! Haha the mission is hard, but it´s full of blessings! I have met so many amazing people here as well as in Provo. I´m so grateful for the chance I had to wait for my visa in the Provo Mission. I will always cherish those people and that mission in my heart! I´m grateful for my family and I really missed you all this week but I´m grateful for the knowledge we have that families are eternal! I love you all so much, I love my Savior and I know that this church is true! I´m grateful to be His missionary and to help do His work among these wonderful Brazilians!

Have an awesome week and eu amo voces!!!!!!!
- Sister Parks

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