4/1/19 - Parasites, One Year, Batismo!

Ok so I have a parasite. In the middle of November a weird red mark appeared on my wrist. I didn't think anything of it. I thought it was just an alergic reaction to my watch or something. It spread to my inner elbow and my companion at the time told me it was probably an alergic reaction to sun. (Insert that meme with the old lady calculating life) Like I'm alergic to the sun? How does that even make sense? But it didn't hurt so I just left it alone. One of our investigaors saw it this week and told me I needed to get it checked out. I don't know why I didn't think about that before. Duh. At this point it was on my wrist, arm, and base of my neck. (I'll spare you the pictures). What was crazy is that a similar red mark appeared on Sister Matias's wrist this week. Sister Ribeiro sent us to instacare and the doctor looked at my wrist and told me I had a parasite. WUT. She told me what probaby happened is that while I was in Aldeia I probably sat on some weird couch or in some place strange (super normal to sit in strange homes as a missionary here in Brasil), and a mosquito bit me and gave me this parasite. She said it's contagious and that's why Sister Matias has it too. So we're both taking a bunch of medice and using these crazy creams but it's getting a lot better and should be gone here in another 10ish days. Ayway, that's the story of how I got a parasite in Brasil.

I hit one year this week! What?! I was writing in my Journal and all of the sudden I hear all the girls we live with screaming their heads off and yelling for Sister Gamarano and I to come down. I thought for sure they found a rat or something but when we got down they all ran out of the room and attacked Gamarano and I blowing whistles and screaming. I hit one year and Sister Gamarano hit her 18 meses. We had a party. I love these sisters.

I've been studying Jesus the Christ and it practically follows the Come Follow Me program. That's been something cool that's enchanced my study. Just thought I'd share that idea for anyone who has the desire to study a little deeper. 

We recieved many miracles this week one of them was Tadeu's baptism! We found him usising the area book. He was dating the grandaughter of a member in Tucuruvi. He has a 3 year old son with her, but they've broken up and now he's living with his family and dating another girl. When we rang his doorbell he came down and told us the day before he was thinking it was time to come back to church. His dream is recieve the priesthood and baptise his son here in a few years. He's awesome. 

The members here are AMAZING! Usually as a missionary you're running around like a chicken with it's head cut off on Sunday organizing all the things for the baptism, taking care of your other investigators, talking to the Irmãs about the lunch calender and 5,000 other things. These memebers did everything for this baptism and fellowshiped Tadeu and our other investigators so well. We were grabbing my ukulele to sing at the baptism and when we turned around the members had planned a FHE with Tadeu and arranged for our investigators to watch general conferece in the houses of different memebers. Ah! I love serving in Santana. 

I think that's it for this week folks. Thanks for all your emails of support and love. You're the best! Get pumped for conference! I know that when we prayerfully listen to the prophet's words with specific questions in mind, the Lord opens the heavens and blesses us with the light of personal revelation. So please take advantage of that this week. Here's the like for my friends who get these emails and don't know how to participate but want to. https://www.lds.org/church/events/april-2019-general-conference?lang=por

Hebrews 6:10-12

Love you all,

Sister Barlow

1) This is a pic overlooking Avenida Paulista. It's like the Brasillian Broadway.

2) Tadeu's Baptism

3) Festa de um ano

4) Cristo Vive (Christ lives)