TEOTONIA VILELA

Hey family,

Wow so it was a week!  Where i´m at is called Teotonia Vilela it is ghetto!  I feel like i´m living in Genese or Potlatch.  But its a pretty good area to work or at least these few days were good.  When I got here is was so so cold!  I almost died.  I wasn´t sleeping well because i was freezing and would walk around the house with all my clothes and shoes on because i was dying haha funny how our bodies get used to stuff after time.  My new companion is Brazilian.  He is pretty cool or at least for this week he was.  The house is good and dry.  But the shower broke and there is only cold water.  We have to buy another shower head we should get one tomorrow or the owner is getting one.  It was about 8 hours by bus here.  I´m hoping that its a good area.

Sounds like there will be a lot of awesome food when I get home.  I love barbecue.  And i´m tired of beans and rice so it will be a great change.  I used to be fat for ever but in these last 2 months i´ve lost around 10 pounds.  I´m like at my normal weight now.  I feel better as well.  I just need to get back into shape now.  And with the smoker you can make jerky!  So that would be awesome.  

Well next week i´ll try to load pictures.  It seems like the internet is pretty good here in this lan house so we will see.  

Mom....can you send me a photo of the family...one that´s really good and would look good on the wall.  Also if there is one...one of the guys  Dad, Ryan and I or Dad and I or something like that.  Thanks.

   

So I got my flight plans i´ll send you them.  I`m going into Spokane.  I not sure why.  If you think it´d be better I can see what I can do to get it into Lewiston.  But i´m not sure.

Well I love and miss you all,

Garrett 

YEAH FOR TRANSFERS!

Hey Family!

So it was a crazy week!  We were running around trying to get a lot of people ready for baptism.  In the end only 1 or 6 were baptised.  A lot of them didn´t feel quite ready to make that step in their life.  But i feel that this next Saturday they will be baptised.  Sad thing is I wont be here to see it.  But i´m happy to leave as well.  I´m going to Ilheus!  Its in the interior of Bahia.  Its next to the beach like it is here so that should be sweet.  I´m hoping that its cool there.  I´ve been so ready for a change.  It has been rough with my companion for 4.5 months!  I´m not sure how I got through it....well actually I do it was the people in my house that saved me.  But it should be a good change.  The only part that i´m not happy about it the bus.  I really don´t want to have to be on a bus all night.  Its the worst.  

It is crazy to see the change in people when they just accept.  We have been working with a family for a while and they are just so much happier now that they are living the commandments more closely.  Its a night and day difference.  That is one of the things that i´ll miss after the mission.  Is see the gospel really change people.  I wont be able to see that on the same level anymore after the mission.  A less active just told us the other day how much she is grateful that we found her.  I remember the day I knocked into her house when I was doing a division.  She wasn´t all that happy and didn´t want a whole lot to do with the church.  But we just started to teach her and know she is so happy and has a calling in the church.  The change is crazy!

So the weather is getting cold again here.  It´s feels a lot colder than it really is.  Its in like the 70´s but it actually feels cold.   Its crazy how your body does get used to the heat after time.  I do love the cold though.  It makes me think of hockey.  The worst part though is its been raining so much that they are having mud slides and the roads are all messed up.  Our house was completely wet inside as well.  The roofs here suck.  They have the stupid tile that is good for nothing.  So all of my stuff is wet and i´m leaving for a new area tomorrow.  Hopefully my new house will be good. 

Well i´m hoping the new area is sweet and that i´ll like it.  It could easily be my last area since i only have these 2 transfers left on my mission!  We will see.

I love and miss you all,

Garrett

Mother's Day Call

This was a short entry. We got to Skype with Garrett for Mother's Day on Sunday. It was great to see him and visit with him!


 Hey family,

It was so great to talk to you all!  I loved it.  I was thinking though I don´t think that I even said Happy Mothers Day.  I feel horrible so i´ll say it now.  But I hope it was great.  The next time i´ll be talking to you all in person!  

Well i´m not sure what to say.  I miss you all a lot and love you all.

Love,

Garrett

P.S  I got the photos thanks!

Hey Family,

 

Well it´s been another week.  Today we went to the Barra.  Its along the beach front.  It was pretty fun.  Got some pretty cool photos there.  I´ve been doing a lot with my old comp thats here in Salvador.  Its been really fun to meet up again and see the sites here in Salvador.  A good break from my companion as well. 

So this week we had some good success finding news.  We are teaching the rest of the family of our recent convert.  We did a family night in there house and it went super well.  Everyone liked it and wanted to learn more.  So it was a huge success.  We are hopefully going to baptise 2 of them this week because they´ve already been to church with us before and then the other 4 next week.  But we will see what happens. 

So I got my glasses done here and the other day they fell and cracked up near the frame.  I brought them in to get checked out and the guy was like i wont know the answer until tomorrow. So i guess i´ll be using contacts for another day.  Oh well.  But hopefully they´ll replace the lense.  It isn´t too bad because it cracked in a spot thats not in the direct line of sight.  But its still annoying.  But we will see.

 I´m excited to talk to you all Sunday!  It will be an awesome present for the end of the week.

 

I love and miss you all,

Garrett

Hey family,

So it was a crazy week.  I´m glad that the week ended and that we are on a new week.  It was super stressful but had some really good parts.  We were finally able to comfirm our baptism that was baptised 4 weeks ago.  What a relief.  

So Elder Clayton, his wife and Elder Carmargo talked to us in person.  We combined with the other mission but only the elders in Salvador got to see it.  It was so good!  He talked a lot about how we need to baptise more people but people that will stay firm in the church not the once that will enter and leave in 2 weeks.  He also talked about the importances to reactivate people.  One of the things he talked about it if we ask them to do harder things they will be better investigators.  He was like ask them to ask God if the BOM is true in the first prayer/first lesson.  He also talked about planning for the future.  Seems like there are a lot of missionaries that have been going home and don´t know what to do.  He was like make something of your life have a plan.  If you are poor its because you didn´t try to make something of your life...or about that.  He said that this was what the Brethen had told him to say..everything he taught.  It was super good i liked it.

So we used his advice and are asking péople to ask if the BOM is true in the first visit.  It has paid off.  Rafaela and Aline can be baptised any day but their parents wont give them permission to be.  In our lesson with them we had Rafaela pray and ask if the BOM was true.  She was praying fast and then asked God if the Bom was true.  The spirit was so strong that she stopped praying for like 10-20 seconds.  It was one of the strongest times i´ve felt the spirit on the mission.  What a great experience it was for me.

So I guess the members like me here.  I got another B-day cake!  This Sunday we had lunch with a super cool member.  And she made me B-day cake.  She was sorry its late but its for your b-day.  I was happy and super appreciative.  

So I´m planning on calling home around 7:00pm sunday. 

In our house we have 3 Americans and 1 Brazilian.  Also the kids that I`ll be going to Vegas with are from St. George.  Or one of them is and the other is from Boise area. 

 

Well I´m glad to hear that all is well and things are getting better for everyone.  Today we went to the Levador a tourist area.  We toured a lot of catholic church´s.  I´ve got some crazy photos i´ll show you all when I get home.  It was super fun though.  Went with my old comp from Eunapolis.

Well love and miss you all,

Love,

Garrett

Hey Family!

So guess what i´m still......in the same area.  Haha.  I think President forgot about me here.  Oh well also i´m with the same companion.  Things are getting better though with him so thats good.  I´m sad though because my friend one of the zone leaders that lived in our house got transfered.  It kind of sucks.  He saved me....we helped each other out because we both had bad companions for a long time.  But his companion misses him as well.  But we´ve already planned before he left after the mission we are going to go to Vegas together us 3.  So that will be fun.  Go to some concerts!  Anyways.

So I got the birthday package today.  It got sent to El Salvador first...so it just got here.  Its crazy how good the mail system is.  Oh well.  Thanks so much.  I loved the picture book and man granola bars.  I forgot all about those but they were delicious and the other candy as well.  

Oh my glasses.  I´m not a fan of them.  I don´t think they know how to do things here in Brazil.  They are alright but the quality is just so much crappier than my other ones.  I´m want to get another exam when I get back.  I´m pretty sure the exam was paid for by the mission and then i bought the lenses with some reserve that I had so i´ll just get better stuff on the plan when i get home.  They should hold up for the rest of the time that i´ve got here, or at least I hppe so.  

So this week we found 2 really cool investigators.  One of them Tacio and man had bought a book of mormon.  We were like well we give them for free so you bought it from a non member.  But he hadn´t really ever read it because people said bad things about it.  When we explained what the book of mormon was he got super excited.  He was like a book that compliments the Bible!  I love the bible and to have more knowledge...who wouldn´t want that!?  I was like that is a good question but many people don´t want it unfortunately.  But he´s super stoked to read.  Only problem he goes to college in another city and is only here every other weekend.  Other investigator Robson.  He is great as well.  We explained the book of mormon to him and gave him some homework to do.  He did it and the next lesson was awesome.  He was like I know that its true and i´m working towards baptism!  So we are stoked about that.  They are blessings for sure.  Hopefully we can find more people like them.  

This week should be awesome....well at least Thursday.  An Apostle is coming to talk to us.  He is in the presidency of the 70!  There will be 2 zones from our mission and 2 from the other mission here in Salvador that will get to watch it.  I love hearing and learning from these things!  

So crazy story.  This week we were walking and some guy starting asking us a question.  He was like are you guys from the same church as Mitt Romney?  I didn´t understand how he was saying Mitt Romney at first but then I got it and was like yeah.  He was like awesome I hope he wins!  I love the USA and its great that they have someone running that puts God first.  We also got a return appointment to talk to him.  I´ll talk to anyone that loves the USA....haaha..jk but its a plus.  But its crazy how Mitt Romney running is making the church´s name get out not just in the USA but in the World.  Great news.

I love and miss you all,

love,

Garrett

Hey family,

 

Wow so it was a week and a half.  I think everyone is just stressed out in the Branch here.  We get burned every week fro something or other.  But at least we have a majority of the people on our side now.  We will just have to work to get the rest on our side. 

This week I was able to go on a division with my comp from Eunàpolis!  It was awesome.  Great to talk about the old times and our old investigators.  Also today we were together all day because I´m getting my glasses.  They´ll be done here in a bit.  Hopefully it will be a lot better.

So i´m not sure if the packages came yet.  I think the other Elders passed by the office today to get some stuff.  But I got cake for my birthday and today i´m going to a party for my birthday!  Should be fun.  I´ll get another party or at least cake if i stay here in this area as well at another members house.  So thats nice to know that at least they like me enough to make me cake...haha. 

So this week the other Elders baptised 3 people and one of them we know pretty good.  He is 9 and we´ve helped them out a little with him.  He is super smart and always talks about going on a mission.  But the other sunday he was in our ward and i was sitting by him.  He was like why did you cut your hair like you did.  I was trying to explain that I didn´t like the way they cut my hair because no one knows how to cut hair here but he was like it makes you look super old!  But if you did a Mohawk it would look super tight....why don´t you do a mohawk and he was trying to stick my hair in a mohawk in the middle of sacrament.  I had to laugh...he´s s funny kid.  The first time he saw my companion he asked him if he was from Mars.  My comp was like why....because you have the face of E.T.  It was a little funny.  The little kid is burning the older people.  But at their baptisms the church ran out of water, so we had to bucket water in from the sisterns out side of the church.  It was crazy.  But they got baptised in the end.

 

Well I love and miss you all. 

Love,

Garrett