Ola from Sister Sperry !
So I need to start off by saying that I
don't have much time, but so much to say. First, this week Elder Wood in our
District is SO funny. I really don't think i've met a funnier human being
outside of our family, really. Okay, maybe not, but in the mission everything is
funny. He was saying how he talks in his sleep and he's afraid one of the
Brazilheiro roommates in his room will freak out because he doesn't know how to
tell them "I talk in my sleep so don't be alarmed." haha! And then I told him
about how one time my dad was at this camp where this guy totally freaked out in
the middle of the night, talking in his sleep saying "what's happening, what's
happening!!!" hahahahaha we were all laughing so hard and I could barely get the
words out! My district was crying....we were laughing so hard. I didn't do the
story as well as dad normally does, but i gave it my all, hand motions and
everything!
Also, because they feed us so much here,
they also have us exercise mostly every day. So we play volleyball, run on the
track, basketball, lift weights (well, everyone else lifts weights :) ) etc. And
i just have to say....the other day we played knockout with our District and it
was down to just me and the best Elder in knockout! Talk about stressful! I
definitely have not experienced loss of oxygen like that in awhile :) and
then...I WON! it was quite the accomplilshment.
Time is so strange here. Saturday's
don't really exist....and every day really does feel like a week and the weeks
feel like days. But honestly, time is FLYING. I cannot believe we have been here
two weeks....eeek!
Good news is, we had a solid dessert yesterday. I'm knocking on wood right
now that we continue to have them. I'm tired of slurping my desserts off of a
spoon! It was a really good pastel with caramel sauce in the middle...we saw
that and thought, "oh my gosh...did we just skip all this and go straight to
heaven?" haha
Okay, here they eat Halls cough drops like candy. Weird? Yes. Extremely
weird for us Americanos. One girl in my district has a cold so she has a huge
bag of cherry halls, and one day our brazillian instructor comes in and after he
sees that, says, "oohhh! Candies!" we were like, what?? and he explained to us
that they eat halls like candy here. We told him that in estados unidos they are
definitely medicine, and he laughed right in our faces! We even showed him the
medication instructions on the package, and he thinks for a minute, then says,
"well, in Brazil, we don't print that on the package." We still laugh about
that. This would also explain why last sunday, the Brazilheiro girl next to me
handed me a halls out of her purse randomly. Now I get it! She was giving me a
candy! OH the good times at the CTM,.
We have two new sisters and one new elder from the Provo MTC who just came
in a week ago. They are adjusting i think. They definitely think that we are
weirdos! They say the food is better here...i told them "that may be, but just
wait until you have some mystery meat and jello that looks like relish every
day. then you might think differently." :)
I feel sort of like a dog here, on a schedule. Let me explain. They feed us
at exactly 4 hour intervals, and I find myself getting hungry right when we are
supposed to be fed! At home, i could go all day and just forget that i'm
supposed to eat. But oh, not here. They even feed us a snack at 9 pm of bread, juice, cheese, and
fruit. EVERY.DAY. My district and I decided we are all going to gain 5 pounds a
week here, so we can sweat it all off in the summer.
We have something here called TRC. It's where you teach an investigator,
member, or inactive member a short lesson. This week we had an inactive member.
We got to know him and then asked about what his beliefs were. He was really
uncertain about going to church, and hadn't been in 5 years. I asked him if he
would pray then with us to feel God's love and peace in his life. He was
hesitant, but he agreed. His prayer was humble and sincere. I was so thankful
for that. He agreed to come to church on sunday, and then asked when he could
see us again! How cool is that? At the end he said, "Sisters, I have never felt
the spirit like that. Thank you thank you for teaching me today and being my
friend. and your portuguese is really good!" What a humbling experience. It
really helps me to know that we have the Lord's help here in the mission.
Sometimes I take a step back and think about what we are accomplishing:
teaching the gospel in another language that we don't know. Both new things, and
I am already speaking really decent Portuguese and get compliments wherever I
go. I am so grateful for the Lord's help. None of this would be possible without
Him.
A quote that my companion shared with me that helped me lots: "There are
events in the future, and not very far ahead, that will require all our faith,
all our energy, all our confidence, and all our trust in God, to enable us to
withstand the influences that will be brought to bear against us... We cannot
trust in our intelligence; we cannot trust in our wealth; we cannot trust any
surrounding circumstances with which we are enveloped; we must trust alone in
the living God to guide us, direct us, to lead us, to teach us, and to instruct
us" - John Taylor
I love you all more than I can say. Have a fantastic week!
Love,
Sister Sperry
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