3/4/19 - From the Jungle to the Concrete Jungle

It's Carnaval and no one wears clothes. 

Ok people wear clothing but just not ENOUGH clothing you feel? Also, everyone is drunk. Everyone walks on the streets in crazy costumes a lot like Halloween. There's a samba studio on the street we live and that's been fun to watch. 

I hit 11 months this week. Whoot!

Before I got the transfer call I prayed for a few things. I prayed for 1) An area where the members are excited about missionary work and ready to help  and 2) A companion who was also excited. Father in Heaven always answers our prayers!

We picked up our "flihos" on Tueday and I get to train Sister Matias. She's a convert of 4 years and the rest of her family is inactive. She's amazing and seriously stops EVERYONE on the street to make a contact. She's amazing and I love her. The only way I can think to describe her is by comparing her to a fluffy little bunny rabbit. She's the cutest thing and her smile is contagious.

I've learned this week that the principle "I'll go where you want me to go" not only applies for when you get your mission call, but transfer to transfer too.

We're opening Santana. It's right in the heart of the capital. It's beautiful in it's own way. We're pretty much trying to build a teaching pool from the bottom up, but with a lot of prayer I know it'll all work out. It's mentally exausting and I'm counting on the spirit a lot this transfer to help us get it all together. Everyone says the area you open is the area you know the best.

This is the mission president's ward and all the members are so willing to help us, we just need to find people to teach so that the memebrs CAN help us. haha. We've gotten a few refrences but none of them are truly interested. We're shooting for the Padrão de excelência this next week which is finding 30 new people to teach, marking 20 baptismal dates and bringing 12 people to sacerment meeting. Fun fact: Santna is one of the oldest wards in Brazil. 

We live in the support house of the mission with 2 other companionships. It's huge and super fun. It reminds me a lot of being back at college except I'm the only white chick and everyone speaks Português. One of the sisters living here was serving in Santana before we arrived, so we had a split with her and she introuduced me to some people. That helped. 

All my compaions almost have hard attacks during their time with me because I'm always tripping everywhere. I blame São Paulo streets because you're not just walking up and down hills but along them as well so all the streets are like this / and not like this _. My legs are dying but that's ok. Sister Matias is a trouper. I think one of the funniest things that happend this week was when we were looking for an address in the middle of the rain and I biffed it hard. (This is why Bernardo nicknamed me Crashlander, ah saudades dela).  Not even 10 minutes later my closed umbrella decided to open on its own and hit me hard in the mouth. Cut my lip super deep and we thought I was going to need stiches. It was super swollen for a few days and making street contacts looking like I got out of the boxing ring was funny. I was laughing so hard and it was really embarassing but tudo bem. Just to top this all off I'm sick. Just a usual cold but as everyone knows, working while you're sick is the worst. 

BUTTTTT as I've seen many times thought my mission Pai Celestial has a plan in all things and If we include him in what we're doing he'll help us work it all out. This whole experience has been super humbling. I came across a scripture this week that I loved! Jacob 4:7 "Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things."

Through Christ's grace we'll have the power to do whatever he asks of us. He'll magnify our efforts if we're humble and prayerful in all things.

That's it for this week folks! Hope you're all fine and dandy!

Com amor sempre,

Sister Barbie

1) The suprise reveal of who we we're training

2) Us with President and Sister Ribeiro

3) Sister Larsen, her filha, Sister Matias and I

4) Sisters

5) I'm super embarassed to send this pic but I'll send it any way kkkkk