Parque Universitário 19-5-2014

Ei família!!! Como vocês estão? Estão trunky demais??? Eu estou bem, não muito trunky. As vezes bate, mas só de vez em quando.

Okay, so we finally were able to bring people to church today! Even though the car broke down after 50 feet and the battery died. We ended up waiting for the bishop to pick up his car and take the two to the chapel. It almost didnt happen, but we hung in there and it worked out! The bishop only had room for the investigators, so Lavosieux got his other car (a glorified, street legal go-kart. Actually its a dune buggy) and we went to church in that! It was a bit scary, cause there is zero accident protection, and the entire car weighs about 700 pouds. Just a guess.

Funny story time! by the way, this letter is going to be a monster.

So we have this canal that runs by our area, and it always has 4 or 5 inches of water passing in it, and it smells awful. This week it rained pretty good, and we took cover on the edge of said canal. It rained pretty good, and the river got pretty high, and all kinds of small garbage floated by. We talked about grabbing something to raft the river and rapids that appeared a hundred yards down. Suddenly, Elder Lessa calls my attention upriver, to a bright orange thing floating in the water. (no dead bodies Dad, sorry) The thing was a tattered broken capsized sofa floating down the river! It didnt drag on the ground or anything, just bobbed downriver. We got a good laugh out of that, but the best is yet to come! 10 or so minutes later, we see yet ANOTHER sofa! But this one is even better, right side up, and almost brand new! We laughed pretty hard, but I think you had to have been there to understand the complete irony.

The conference with Elder Andersen was absolutely spectacular!!! They combined the missions Fortaleza and Fortaleza East, and we took pictures with Elder Andersen. Hes been an Apostle for 5 years, and he talked a lot about sharing the Atonement with our investigators. He didnt outright say it, but I learned that the key to real conversion is in the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He also touched on and confirmed various ideas that Ive had throughout the mission on how to do the work, and this was one of them. He also said that we shouldnt baptize too soon, wait a bit to baptize. There has to be a change of heart to be baptized. Not complete, but it has to start for the time to be right.

During his talk/training, he invited the presidents of both missions to offer a 3 minute comment on Elder Bednar's talk from last conference about Loads and Progression. When President Souza talked, the Spirit went through the roof!

The entire atmosphere was amazing. Right when Elder Andersen walked in, a peace filled the room, and just looking at him, you know that he represents the Lord. Theres just a big feeling of calm.

Mom, you would absolutely love talking with his wife. She participated too, sharing testimonies and experiences. I dont know who she reminds me of, but I know you would really like chatting with her. :)

Elder Andersen talked mostly in Portuguese, a bit broken with a few words in spanish and french, and a noticable french pronunciation on the Rs. But I think everybody understood, the Spirit speaks only one language.

Dad, the idolatry pictures are quite hilarious! I got a good kick out of them. I actually do have a bit of an interest how the garden is coming along. Thanks for sending pictures, its looking very nice!

Pablo conveniently forgot to mention the Semi truck. I think he thought I would worry too much, but if everything is okay, then Im not worried. The gouge in the car looks pretty knarly!

In answer to your question, I miss Mexican food quite terribly. Almost, in the beginning I did, but Ive gotten used to not having it. I will most definitely love having it back. :D

Thanks for your uplifting words Dad. Only 8 more weeks! :P I cant believe its ending already! It kind of eats my soul knowing that soon I have to leave all this behind. Im pretty sure Im going to cry when my nametag comes off. Did you cry when you were released?

Dad, I sent Pablos documents to be translated to you guys. He gave me money to put in my account, which you will take out to pay for the translation, but I dont know how to make a deposit in Brasil. Im pretty sure I remember my account number (not a good idea to say it here) Theres a Citibank in Aldeota that might work.

Mom, Im sorry I didnt write hardly anything to you. :( But know that I love and miss you very much! :D Just one month and 20 days! (says Elder Gonçalves)

Love you all! Enjoy the monster letter and the stories! :) I'll be home for Christmas....kinda! :) Tchauuuuuuuuu!

~Elder Wille

Parque Universitário 5-5-2014

Uau família! Como o tempo voa!!! No tacos here, they dont even have tortillas! D: I cant make myself a dang quessadilla! :O

Quick trunky update! I can count the number of weeks left on my fingers... D:

Dad, how many seconds are left? :D hahaha. We are thinking that Elder Dos Santos, his companion, and Elder Lessa are going to be the ones to kill me, that I will finish my mission here. Elder Parkhurst will probably be transferred beforehand.

Okay, so we had an interesting week. We FINALLY got solidly working in Bela Vista, and its going pretty good! We taught the Plan of Salvation to a lady, who lost her mom some time ago, and started crying in the lesson. She accepted Elder Lessa's invite to be baptized, and to get married first to her husband!

We also found a youth named [name redacted] (16 years old) and he is awesome! Frequently we ask questions for people to reflect on and apply the principle, and 95 percent of the time the answer is "I dunno," but [he] understood and responded really well!

Until now, we have only had one baptism, [name redacted]. Hes 63, lives alone, but accepted the gospel really well. The other two baptisms are from Elder Dos Santos and Parkhurst, and they are [names redacted]. Dad, Im not sure which picture they posted. Nazareno is a pretty beefy guy, and Francisco is smaller than me, and [name redacted] was the other companionship's.

Elder Lessa is pretty cool! He talks a lot more to Elder Dos Santos, them being from the same state and all. But hes a really good missionary, has a Japanese girlfriend, and yeah! I think I already said that hes the only church member in his family. It just kind of hit me now how little I know about him. I think another week and we will be conversing quite a bit, and I will know more about him. :) I ask questions and all about him, his family, etc. and he answers, but doesnt continue the conversation. Itll all go good this week. :)

Mom and Dad, I think you will be happy to know that I played the hymns in Sacrament Meeting yesterday! (simplified to melody and chords) Do What is Right, Jesus Once of Humble Birth, and Redeemer of Israel were the selected hymns. I practiced for about an hour, and it was the first time I played in front of people except the 15 seconds in [names redacted]'s baptism (which was just a one handed melody)

I LOVED the photos! Rock of Ages is very pretty, and Kami turned purple? Minha nossa!

Sorry for the confusion about work Dad. My idea is that during the summer after the semester of Snow I can work for Jordan. I dont know the details, so its not a superb judgment call. Im thinking that maybe not working during the semester and keeping the two scholarships plus Top Job during the summer is what Id like to do. Unless Snow has a summer semester, then I have to rethink things. What's your opinion?

The Snow scholarship frees me from tuition, and the Regents is a small bonus for books and stuff. Regents only gives the extra $1,000 the first payment, so Im aware that the amount will be smaller this time around.

About calling Elder Damásio, I dont think it would be such a good idea. President Souza is already pretty vehement about keeping calls strictly to our leaders, no parallel calls especially outside the zone. Theres been quite a few problems, so I dont think it would be a good idea. Im sending him an email though. :)

Today we watched The Croods in Portuguese, and then I watched a clip in English and I have to say, the voice of Grug is much better in Portuguese... >.> Does anyone know of a place or website that I can get movies voiced over in Brazilian Portuguese?

I sent off the long-awaited package to you guys! I kinda combined some Christmas and birthday presents, I hope you like them! I got something for Hayden too. It should leave today, and arrive in 15 to 18 useful days/business days. Dias úteis? It came to 132 Reais for shipping. Theres a really awesome fruit that you have to try here. I couldnt send the fruit itself or the pulp, so I had an awesome idea of how to send it to you. Youll find out when it gets there! One fruit thing for everyone!

Well, this letter is getting pretty big, I think I better send it off! When you get trunky, just sing an altered version of Santa Clause is coming to Town, but put Elder Wille instead of Santa Clause. ;) guarenteed to help!

Inspiration that I learned this week. In a position of leadership, we need to be real friends with our counselors, not just someone to turn to when we cant do something. It really helps the work go forward. :) Okay, times up, until next time! Bye!

~Elder Wille

Parque Universitário 28-4-2014

Hello everyone! Yep, I stayed here in Antônio Bezerra and Elder Damásio went off to Ala Cidade Oeste (West City Ward) in Litoral stake. I passed in the neighboring area long ago, remember Boatan? Its been a year since I was there, how strange!

Trunky update: I can almost count the weeks on my hands! This transfer is only 5 weeks, and the next is regular 6.

I have some important news! Elder Savaryn and Elder Tamanho were made Zone Leaders today, and Elder Tenney is now a District leader! My kids and companions are all growing up...

My current companion is Elder Lessa, from the São Paulo state as well as São Paulo the capital city. He lives in the South Zone, and is the only member of his family who is a member of the church. Elder Benitez stayed a night in the same house, (the Zone leaders live in 4 with them) and had some really favorable remarks about him. Im pretty excited to be working with him.

More big news! We can use skype on Mothers day Sunday this time!!!! But we have to do it in the chapel on the computer, and that means using someone elses internet. >.> I will have more details later as to what time and stuff later. :)

Elder Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve is coming to Fortaleza on May 19th! And we get to participate! Its going to be so awesome, and they are doing a combined Fortaleza and Fortaleza east missions!

Dad, I think Im okay with missing my first day of class. The assignments are usually light on that day. Im honestly a bit relieved that it isnt Mr Platt. Hes a good person and really smart, but his teaching technique is a bit confusing. Thanks for your efforts in getting my schedule together, its good to stay out of trouble. Im okay with not working during the semester, cause Jordan will probably want me back at Top Job asap.

My name appears on my passport is that same spelling, but in all caps. Id like to spend most of the time seeing the places that I couldnt before. Be sure to include some time to browse the downtown, cause the girls are going to love shopping.

Mom, my package did arrive! without a ransom note too! :) Im going to pick it up today, and we shall feast! :) I dont have any requests for the last one, cause I will be coming home very shortly after. I think I can stand two weeks. :)

We are having quite a bit of rain that I forgot to mention in the last 4 weeks. Just about every day it rains for a bit, but usually stops before we go and work. I think the rain has missed only 3 or 4 days. It seems a bit cooler, but its extremely humid and stuffy. :) Oh yeah, the best!

There isnt a Walmart in Fortaleza, but there is a Sams Club that I think I talked about. Its in the other mission, so we cant go. :(

I got to see Frozen all the way through and it was AWESOME!!! And today we watched Turbo, which was cool. It got my blood racing a bit (no pun intended) but the engine layout when he gets zapped by the NOS is grossly inaccurate. :D

Well, I gotta get this sent off! Thanks everyone for your support, kindness, and best wishes! Im just around the corner!
Com amor,

~Elder Wille

Parque Universitário 21-4-2014

Oi família! como vocês estão??

tenho vontade de escrever em português, mas acho que vou trocar de línguas umas vezes.

Nós tivemos mais notícias esta vez! Uma irmã pediu uma bênção de saúde, e foi muito especial. As coisas para falar vieram tão claro na minha mente, e apesar de ela ser mulher, ela nos abraçou depois. Foi muito especial, e depois nós demos uma bênção em outro irmão.

Estamos conquistando a confiança dos membros numa ala que também tem problemas de gostar de Élderes. Pouco a pouco, um por um, as pessoas estão confiando em nós quatro.

I watched the first part of Frozen last week, but we had to leave early. We got everything ready this time, and today Im going to watch the whole thing! Im super stoked, cause I absolutely LOVED the part that I saw! The duet with Ana and Elsa in the Ice Castle was absolutely beautiful! And we ended right around the giant snow monster. I repeat, Im super stoked!!!

Dad, thanks for your input and counsel. If its meant to happen, it will happen. Ive written a letter to at least break the ice and gain a new friend, no harm in that. :) thanks again!

That photography class sounds awesome! Ive been seriously considering selling some of my stuff that I dont use, and buying an SLR camera. An Elder here has one, and I used it a bit, plus Teri has one and makes a small portion off of it. I thought about maybe doing the same thing, and a photography class would be really fun! (I enjoyed the one in High school)

Mom, did you know that they have nutella here? :O yup! They even have a Walmart in Curitiba! Elder Damásio almost dies when he sees american food. Im sure that President and Sister Souza will love whatever you send to them. I dont know their plans during conference, I just know that they are going to the October sessions.

And I made an error about Goianean cheese. Its the best in Brasil, not the world. Sorry about that!

Brownies, I think I can wait a month or two. I also have a recipe here in the star wars cookbook. :)

About Mr. Platt, he was my math teacher last year. Im just curious if its him again, cause he teaches Calc 1 and 2.

Palhaçada is a clown act, the goofs that they do.

Well, I gotta close this letter! Hope everything is well with you guys! Have a great day!

~Elder Wille

Ipanema 14-4-2014

Hello family! How is everyone doing?

Trunky update. Give or take an hour or two, I will be boarding the plane in exactly 3 months from now. :S Its all ending! Yet there is still a lot to be done, and a good amount of time to do it.

This week we baptized Francisco! Hes 63 years old, and I had to do it twice, but thats okay! I know numbers arent what count, but I think have 29 or 30 baptisms total. Its a bit low for Fortaleza average, but I dont mind in the slightest. My mission here isnt being a batizador, and Im fine with that.

Okay, so I really dont have news again. The area is just kind of slow, we are reduced to knocking doors and taking heat from our Zone leaders. We are working hard, but our numbers dont show it. We are going to try and unite the members and get them excited about the gospel in general. (at least sacrament meeting is VERY quiet. :D)

The fad on the mission right now is tons of short lessons. A few companhionships are getting over 50 lessons a week, but with very few results. Im sad, cause this is number work, and they are always getting after me because I dont teach like that. Oh well, I just have to do what is right, and keep on working.

Mom, President and Sister Souza are leaving the last week of June, and they will be at the conference center in October. :) How cool is that?

Im so glad that you liked the music that I sent. I was just going to recommend it off-handedly, but then I felt that you would need it. :) And I dont know the translation of palhaçada yet, sorry! Im forgetting english again. :/

Dad, I would like to keep my scholarship. If I need more hours, I think I will take Intro to Engineering. I know its kind of unnecessary, but a few friends last year took it and liked it a lot. (Maybe its just because they play with those high-tech legos that I have...) In the afternoon once a week sounds better for me.

From my experience, Im much more interested in the physics stuff than chemistry or biology. My biggest thing is that from my experience at fold3 I want to be more involved in hands-on stuff, and less at a desk. I know that desk work is going to be part of it, I just dont want that to be the major thing most of the time. And that maybe wont be sufficient to keep the scholarship. I do want to keep it unless its majorly out of my way. Thank you so much for the time you are taking to help me out with this, I really appreciate it!

Is there a light culinary course that I could use to bump up my credits? Or maybe a music class? It may not be conducive to my rigorous major, or I could focus more on study now and work during the summer and during fall semester. Just some ideas.

Is my math teachers name Mr. Platt by chance?

Ah, sorry its another short email. :( Really, there isnt a whole lot happening. Our Joseph Smith lady is lying to avoid us. D: but the work goes on. Shall we not go on in so great a cause?

Com amor,

~Elder Wille

Ipanema 7-4-2014

Dear family,

This week was crazy, but also kind of slow. Weve been knocking doors in a more inspired way than just randomly, but so far its only slightly improved. We are going to work with the members more closely to help us, cause up to now we havent recieved any referrals. President Souza recommends to not exert ourselves in the group, because its not a great division, and its really far away for us. So we are working with Elder dos Santos and Elder Parkhurst. (from Taubaté, São Paulo and Oxford, Alabama respectively. E Parkhurst is the other elder in the foto with conference)

We succeeded in finding a complete family though! The lady is like a modern day Joseph Smith! She had all the same questions, same doubts, etc etc etc! Sadly she couldnt go to conference, so we are going to pass by today. She is most likely an elect of the Lord, I can feel it. I just hope that she holds to the promptings of the Spirit.

We have a baptism lined up for this week! He is an investigator from the Parque Universitário area, was being taught by the elders before us, and his name is Francisco José de Souza. Hes 63, and has quite a few worries. His wife died 4 months ago, and his financial situation isnt the best, but he is using  his faith that the gospel is the best path he can take.

Elder Damásio and I are doing well. He went with me to the hospital when i was sick. I apparently had an intestinal infection, and for that reason I couldnt consume dairy products. :/ and all the good stuff has milk or cheese in it, but Im better now! Completely backto normal.:)

Oh, back to Elder Damásio, he is really cool, and even though everybody says it, he is really funny. I think his favorite phrase (boa sorte esse ph, F é melhor :D) is que palhaçada é essa?

He loves and misses good cheese. The best cheese is made not in Wisconsin, but in Goiania, where he was born. :) Here, the cheese is pretty low quality, so nobody get some hopes up.

Okay, so he is the youngest missionary here or something, cause he turned 18 and then left the next month on the mission. Hes a really good friend, is dedicated, and is in love with Christina Aguilara.

Conference was really good! The intervals were killer though, cause we had to stay at the Parquelândia stake center. We didnt want to go home, only to turn around and ride the bus back. I learned and practiced more piano! After less than 48 total hours of pracitce, I can play a few hymns! (just melody on the right hand and chords on the left hand) but I can make it sound pretty good! :) Dad, I think you will be very impressed. Its really basic, but considering that I learned basically everything here, its a good start. I missed you a ton. In light of Elder Eyrings talk, I just wanted you to know that you are my hero! :)

Dad, Elder Damásio wanted me to send you a link to a site (in portuguese) that combines flights with hotels. Its another option to look at, so here it is. www.decolar.com (decolar means to take off)

And for anyone who is interested, I have developed a great love for church music. Mom and Dad, I encourage you to take a look (listen?) to the CD Tribute to the Prophet Joseph Smith. Its so uplifting and brings an incredible spirit! Also the EFY cd Courage to Stand Strong has a few songs that I absolutely love, and one from EFY 1999 called Perfect Love. Please especially listen to this last one Mom, I think you will like it a lot, and I get the feeling that the message it has will help you. I dont know in what, but I think it really will help.

I also found a quote that was really cool. While we try to see where the gospel fits in our lives, only Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ know how to fit our lives into the Gospel.

Mom, especially for you, I dont know how it went exactly, but its in the March Liahona/ensign on the inside cover. Motherhood is not a hobby, its not something we do if we have time to squeeze it in, but it is our calling, our privelege to care for Heavenly Fathers children. I thought especially of you when I saw this, I remembered your actions living this principle when you could have chosen to do something else to use your time. I know I added to the quote, but thats what I need to say.

Dad or mom, could you send me an attatched picture of Delicate Arch? Id like to draw it somewhere on my last few planners.

Dad, I did pass the AP Calc test, and took Calc 1 at snow. Which class is math 1210?

Well, my fingers are about falling off! :) jk, but time to end this beast. Hope you all like the music! I will write next week!

~Elder Wille

P.S. Did I write enough this time? I know there isnt a lot about the work, sorry about that. Theres just not a whole lot of action like my last areas.

And Mom, Ive been curious for a bit, and the video refereshed my curiosity. What did the priesthood blessing say when you were pregnant with me, from what you remember?

Parque Universitário - Ipanema 31-3-2014

Hello family and friends from all parts of the world!

Today it rained while we are writing, and it was kinda strong too, I got a bit worried that we would have to ride a rainy bus, but its okay.

Wow, lots has happened in the week. As some of you know, I got pretty sick. (surprise mom!) After almost exactly a year, I went to ye olde´ hospital again! three liters of soro! and the line got pinched in the hospital recliner, so the needle punctured the other wall of my vein and made a bubble of liquid next to my elbow. :D that was interesting. So I got a fever of 101.7F ish, and the next day it got up to 38.8C. (someone do the math for me?) Im okay now, the fever went away, Im working normally, just cant eat anything that has leite (milk) or milk products (cheese, butter, etc) for a week. And almost everything down here has powdered milk!!! >:(

My area really is two streets. And talking about that, its so small that I think President Souza is going to close it. :( but I dont believe it was because of my work, nor the 'demotion.' I figured I was rebaixado to let the rising generation get some experience. 80% of the mission has less than a year in the field. It is a bit weird, cause I was used to Elder Tenney and Elder Benitez, both a bit quiet with regards to planning and stuff, and now Im the first counselor, not the final decision maker. Not that its a bad thing, its just kind of weird not having the control of everything that goes on. It is a nice bit of a break.

Mom and Dad, I just want to say that the movie that Pablo put together was super special for me. :) It was a very huge and welcome surprise! thank you so very much for taking so much time with Pablo to put it together! Pablo prayed to be inspired on what to write, and he hit the nail on the head. What a stellar job! You guys have to see it sometime, Ive asked him how he can do that. I absolutely loved it!!!

Some less reverent comments:

I didnt know I was so fluffy when I was a kid! And I can see why the girls thought I was nerdy. :P hahaha.

Dad, you have changed so much! I didnt know you were just skin and bones when we were kids. All the yardwork and stuff has put some more meat on you. :) But no matter what, I miss you more than words can describe, and conference vai ser muito lonely, those Priesthood session dinners together are some of my fondest memories. Logo voltaremos a jantar novamente. :) Thank you for those stories about the missionaries, it helps me raise my vision a bit to more possibilities, even though it probably wont be a duplicate of these stories. I am having a tiny bit of difficuly in keeping motivated, do you have any suggestions?

I didnt see a lot of Mom in the pictures, just the clip at the end, but I have to say that in these short months, you too have changed a bit. And not just more tan. ;) but since I left, you have become more... Im not good at lots of words, but Id have to say you look even more majestic and graceful. Ive missed you a ton as well. Im sorry my picture makes you cry so you cant put it up. Im doing well. :) Yes, I did get those pictures and thought they were awesome! But not that skeelee ate my part... :( hahaha! Did you by chance put those in the package too, or did they arrive after? I completely forgot until just now. Dont worry if they didnt go in, it was just a curiosity.

Ah dang. Time ran out again. :( Love you all, see you soon!

~Elder Wille

P.S. Dad, that schedule looks just grand! Im okay with a class or two in the afternoon, I just didnt want the whole block to be there, especially cause Brazilians have a tendency to nod off after lunch. :)

P.S.S. Jordan Brown got called to Frankfurt Germany! she leaves July 30.