[I ran into an elder in our building today who is waiting for his visa to go to Brazil. Poor guy. At least he isn't in South Dakota in the winter. I don't remember the name of the mission he was headed to; it started with a T and I'd never heard of it before.] What building? Where you work? He is going to Teresina, which is right next to me and was part of my mission. It split a year and a half ago. That's probably why you didn't hear about it. :) It's hot there, super hot. Good luck for him :)
[I have to admit you're making me a little nervous with the TB/hepatitis story....] His TB isn't spreadable because it's not in his lungs, and I have a vaccine for Hepatitis so I'm immune right? ;) They don't know if he has hepatitis, they just think he does. All the Brazilians have TB vaccines from birth, so just the americans can get it.
[Wow, you actually have air conditioning somewhere? I only remember having that in one Church building in Central America.] We have air conditioning in all the church buildings, but just in the sacrament room. They are the kind you put up on the wall and they spray cold air out, along with water. They don't know how to use it though, they just crank it up until everyone dies. It rains in the morning and then gets sunny and muggy then either rains for the rest of the day, or is sunny. There have been 2 days when it rained all day and I didn't see sun, that's when I get cold :) From March-December it's straight sun and it's nice. I'm sure I will have cancer after the mission.
This week has been a good week. We as missionaries are baptizers, but we also help marry people so we can baptize them :) This week we went downtown to do the paperwork for a part-member family. The husband is inactive and the wife has never heard about the gospel. They have a chunky, cute little kid with a chili-bowl haircut. They are a great family and like the article you shared, the dormant inactive member's testimony is beginning to emerge again. He is excited for his wife and helps her learn and read the Book of Mormon. This week we also had a miracle baptism. We had taught this kid last transfer, but he was mole (molé in spanish I think, like the sauce) as they say here...he didn't want to read, go to church, etc. So we cut him and hoped than someday he would change, which he did. This last week he came to church and said, "I told you I would come someday." He found some friends that were recently baptized and now he is coming to church. So he was able to be baptized this weekend. This story teaches me that friends are very important. We can be lazy and mole without good friends, but with good friends, good examples, we can change our lives!
Eu sei que a Igreja de Jesus Cristo dos Santos dos Últimos Dias é a igreja verdadeira aqui nesta terra. Por meio da fé nós podemos mudar as vidas dos amigos, parentes, vizinhos, qualquer pessoa. Nós estamos aqui para ajudar as pessoas perdidas. Eu sei que Joseph Smith viu Jesus Cristo e Nosso Pai Celestial, e ai ele restaurou a igreja para que nós tenhamos a autoridade para batizar, curar, e fazer milagres. Eu sou grato pela família que eu tenho, Pai, Mãe, Sean, Michael, Lauren, toda minha família. Atravez do evangelho e as ordenanças no templo nós possames ter uma família eterna. Sou muito grato para servir uma missão porque Deus me deu muitas coisas e é minha responsibilidade a revolver as bençãos que recebi. Em nome de Jesus Cristo, amém.
Eu te amo, fique firme e sempre lembre o que Deus te deu.
Elder Hawkes
Monday, January 31, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
24 Jan 2011 - Alvorada Area (Mom)
My week was okay, but it wasn't great. This was a rainy week so it was less exciting to walk around all day. Plus I am sick again because of the constant wetness I assume. I'm not that sick, just a cold. Other than that we had a miracle of an investigator. She had been going to church for 3 weeks already (you have to go at least 2 times before you can be baptized) and she sought us out to be baptized so we taught her right quick. Sadly, Satan got to her and she didn't show up on Sunday and lied her butt off to us :) Which is always what happens, I guess we always look dumb and gullible. So that wasn't good.
[Response to a trial Lauren went through recently with someone treating her unkindly.] I think back at the dumb stuff that I did. You don't realize that parents/adults are smart until you actually grow up :) I am rather deeply pained that this happened to Lauren. Leaving your house makes you realize how much you love your family. I don't like to see my little sister sad :( I wish they had medicine here, and I wish I had money to buy it :) You just have to tough out the diseases here. There is an Elder in my district that got TB and then he got hepatitis from the medicine to get rid of the TB...oops. [Um....]
I noticed something when you were talking about fasting. That you fasted for to know what you should do with Lauren. Good job mom :) That's just what to do, ask the Lord for help. That's what every good parent should do. You really have done so much for me and Lauren, Michael, and Sean. Nobody says it enough but you and Dad are good parents. My patriarchal blessing says that I owe so much to you and Dad and I should be immensely grateful. Maybe I haven't fully understood it, but I am grateful :)
[Response to a trial Lauren went through recently with someone treating her unkindly.] I think back at the dumb stuff that I did. You don't realize that parents/adults are smart until you actually grow up :) I am rather deeply pained that this happened to Lauren. Leaving your house makes you realize how much you love your family. I don't like to see my little sister sad :( I wish they had medicine here, and I wish I had money to buy it :) You just have to tough out the diseases here. There is an Elder in my district that got TB and then he got hepatitis from the medicine to get rid of the TB...oops. [Um....]
I noticed something when you were talking about fasting. That you fasted for to know what you should do with Lauren. Good job mom :) That's just what to do, ask the Lord for help. That's what every good parent should do. You really have done so much for me and Lauren, Michael, and Sean. Nobody says it enough but you and Dad are good parents. My patriarchal blessing says that I owe so much to you and Dad and I should be immensely grateful. Maybe I haven't fully understood it, but I am grateful :)
24 Jan 2011 - Alvorada Area (Dad)
Today started the new transfers, my new companion is Elder Ojopi. He is from somewhere in Brazil. He has 1 year and 4 months. I knew him from another district and he is cool. I'm still in the same area. 2 areas, 4 companions in 5 months. This week it has been raining a lot and I have realized that I don't like rain as a missionary. Right now I am soaking wet because a car soaked us with water as he drove past us and the air conditioning is blasting here. Nothing dries because the life-giving sun remains hidden from my sad eyes :) and it's humid.
[I referred Jeffrey to a video on lds.org featuring Tyler Haws of the BYU basketball team (now serving as a missionary in the Philippines). Here's the video: https://lds.org/youth/video/a-work-in-progress?lang=eng.] I saw Tyler Haws at the MTC in Provo. That makes me almost famous. His "friend" serves here. I don't really know if he is really a friend of Tyler Haws or just claims he is. I also couldn't find it on the website but it was in Portuguese so maybe it's different. That's all I have to say this week. Say hello to my adoring fans and devoted readers ;)
[I referred Jeffrey to a video on lds.org featuring Tyler Haws of the BYU basketball team (now serving as a missionary in the Philippines). Here's the video: https://lds.org/youth/video/a-work-in-progress?lang=eng.] I saw Tyler Haws at the MTC in Provo. That makes me almost famous. His "friend" serves here. I don't really know if he is really a friend of Tyler Haws or just claims he is. I also couldn't find it on the website but it was in Portuguese so maybe it's different. That's all I have to say this week. Say hello to my adoring fans and devoted readers ;)
Monday, January 17, 2011
16 Jan 2011 - Alvorada Area (Mom)
I got your Christmas package too so you shouldn't spread the mail fear to all my potential package senders :) I am grateful for the stuff, the T-shirts, the christmas tree in a box that is a little too late now :) I liked the gravy and stuffing but I don't have a pot here in my house so I will have to wait and cook it some other time. The tic tacs are good and even have flavoring from a fruit here in Brazil.
[Comments about it being cold.] Yeah cold is no good at all, maybe you should move down to Costa Rica with all the oldies. You will be rich there, here in Brazil you will have almost twice the amount of money too. [I'd still rather live somewhere where it snows in winter than move to sunny Florida and join the millions of other oldie people.] How will you get warm by moving to a place that snows and is cold all the time. It's weird because the ghetto apartments that I lived in [at BYU-Idaho] were always warm and we didn't even have a heater. But the house is cold in Texas psshhh.
I remember when Sister somebody was talking about how the pioneers sacrificed more than we do right now and how you had a "battle" with her :) The prophets say that today is more of a sacrifice but a different kind of sacrifice. These days are a lot harder those of the pioneers too. Satan has a lot more power in these days. That makes us stronger and more faithful than the pioneers eh? :) I was going to say né because that's what they say down here at the end of sentences, like the word no. "You like apples no?" I will probably still say it when I get back from the mission.
[Comments about it being cold.] Yeah cold is no good at all, maybe you should move down to Costa Rica with all the oldies. You will be rich there, here in Brazil you will have almost twice the amount of money too. [I'd still rather live somewhere where it snows in winter than move to sunny Florida and join the millions of other oldie people.] How will you get warm by moving to a place that snows and is cold all the time. It's weird because the ghetto apartments that I lived in [at BYU-Idaho] were always warm and we didn't even have a heater. But the house is cold in Texas psshhh.
I remember when Sister somebody was talking about how the pioneers sacrificed more than we do right now and how you had a "battle" with her :) The prophets say that today is more of a sacrifice but a different kind of sacrifice. These days are a lot harder those of the pioneers too. Satan has a lot more power in these days. That makes us stronger and more faithful than the pioneers eh? :) I was going to say né because that's what they say down here at the end of sentences, like the word no. "You like apples no?" I will probably still say it when I get back from the mission.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
16 Jan 2011 - Alvorada Area (Dad)
Grandma talked to me when I called to mark the time to call on Christmas and said she gave you $300 to put in my account :) Just kidding she just said $100 but you had some problems with the bank. I just need a soccer shirt of the Brazilian team, that's the expensive one though. I'll stock up on açaí and caju soda :)
[I mentioned Jimmer Fredette's amazing 40-foot swish at the end of the BYU-Utah basketball game. "He launched a running swish from 40 feet. The crowd went wild. Jimmer just turned around and walked off the court nonchalantly, kind of like I'd expect you would."] I might do that if I would score from that far. I do that when I score in soccer so I guess you guessed right. P.S. Phil Collins is playing right now on the loud speaker in the LAN house...weird Brazilians... :)
I saw a crazy guy that looked like a goblin in front of one of my investigator's house. I was kind of scared to pass him to talk to knock on the door. He was sitting on the hood of a car all goblin-like, you can imagine that right? :) He had like 10 hairs and they were super curly and one of his eyes was glazed over and the other one was looking off to the right, no doubt searching for hobbits or something, golden rings, or tattered clothes.... whatever goblins like. I was with another Elder that day and the Elder said hi and the goblin just said Ya! Ya!! The sad part is that I didn't have a camera to take a picture with him, which I will regret forever :) [Michael has a job now at BYU.] I came up with a good idea, Michael should work at the MTC as a teacher!!!!! Leave this manual labor behind and get a nice job at the MTC. I'm sure they don't have many Thai teachers there. [Way to hang in there with not going home when you were sick, at least since you did get better. And yes, recovering due to a blessing does make the story more epic.] I have an iron stomach and nothing has made me feel that bad, I thought I was giong to die one day for some reason when I got home. But guess what? I didn't...I was frying hot and then freezing cold etc. but it only lasted a few hours.
[I mentioned Jimmer Fredette's amazing 40-foot swish at the end of the BYU-Utah basketball game. "He launched a running swish from 40 feet. The crowd went wild. Jimmer just turned around and walked off the court nonchalantly, kind of like I'd expect you would."] I might do that if I would score from that far. I do that when I score in soccer so I guess you guessed right. P.S. Phil Collins is playing right now on the loud speaker in the LAN house...weird Brazilians... :)
I saw a crazy guy that looked like a goblin in front of one of my investigator's house. I was kind of scared to pass him to talk to knock on the door. He was sitting on the hood of a car all goblin-like, you can imagine that right? :) He had like 10 hairs and they were super curly and one of his eyes was glazed over and the other one was looking off to the right, no doubt searching for hobbits or something, golden rings, or tattered clothes.... whatever goblins like. I was with another Elder that day and the Elder said hi and the goblin just said Ya! Ya!! The sad part is that I didn't have a camera to take a picture with him, which I will regret forever :) [Michael has a job now at BYU.] I came up with a good idea, Michael should work at the MTC as a teacher!!!!! Leave this manual labor behind and get a nice job at the MTC. I'm sure they don't have many Thai teachers there. [Way to hang in there with not going home when you were sick, at least since you did get better. And yes, recovering due to a blessing does make the story more epic.] I have an iron stomach and nothing has made me feel that bad, I thought I was giong to die one day for some reason when I got home. But guess what? I didn't...I was frying hot and then freezing cold etc. but it only lasted a few hours.
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