Were you standing in the hallway with a big cake?

 (Elder Mackrory)

Essa semana me deixou com um pouquinho de raiva. Eu vi apenas UM fusca. Não acridto. Só. Nem 2. O total agora é 1227.

Last pday was pretty cool. We started off right at 8am with a jog. We jogged to Sugarloaf mountain to meet our recent convert at the base of the mountain. When we got there, he was waiting for us and so we started the hike right away. We went up this hill in like 25 minutes. Bro is a professional hiker. So he’s leading the way, and were behind him pretending to not be out of breath. Got some good photos on the way up and the view was incredible. We just hung out one the first summit and then went back down. Next time we go to sugarloaf mountain we’ll go all the way up. Anyway we start going down the hill, again with Vinicius leading the way. So he starts literally running. I’m glad my comp is from the backwoods of Brasil, because getting good footing was difficult at the speed we were going despite years of playing night games in the woods. So 10 minutes later we are at the bottom of the hill again, pretending not to be out of breath. Afterwards we went home and took showers and then headed straight to Copacabana. Elder Oliveira (the one I did a division with last transfer) has served in this area before, so he gave me a recommendation for a place to go to get a new filtered straw for terere. So we got off at the wrong bus stop and had to walk a bit, but we got the straw.

On Sunday we went to church, and had lots of people there! Marcel, his mother Carla, Tia Vera, and Rafael. Vinicius came as well, this time in a suit, which was pretty chic. After church we had lunch at the house of a family from São Paulo. Their accents were super weird. One of the kids licked my shoulder, which was also weird. But the food was good. We then went out to work in 120 degree heat. It wasn't as bad as it sounds, because was only 90% humidity.

On Monday we had our weekly planning meeting with president and everyone in the office. Just that, we always start by talking about houses and finances and my part of tech gets left for last. This time Presidente caught me off guard and said we’re starting with me. We had tapioca for lunch and it was really good. We met with Tia Vera that night and marked a baptism date with her. She was super excited ready.

On Tuesday, we made chicken stew. Only with one small twist: we used chicken feet as part of the meat. I kinda liked it. You bite on the knuckle and spit out the bone after you eat the skin and ligaments. There’s a small amount of fatty meat. The palm of the foot (is that a word??) is the best part.

On Wednesday I had my weekly meeting with the Media Specialists. This time around we had tons of participation from them and it was great. The other meetings were just me talking, and I would rather write an email and send it out if that’s how it’s gonna be. But everyone participated and it was really productive. That night we talked with Tia Vera and talked about the Word of Wisdom. She showed lots of faith and even said she would tell everyone about it.

On Thursday we did weekly planning, and it was pretty productive. Weekly planning is something that I will continue doing after the mission. We then went to a plaza to meet up with someone, but they didn’t show up. So we got lunch and headed back to the office. Pretty normal day.

On Friday we started the day with a lesson our recent convert Viinicius. Right when we were about to start, President and his wife walk in with a big cake for Elder Ribeiro, who’s birthday is today (Saturday). So, we ate cake and talked about the plan of salvation. Super cool lesson. We made hamburgers for lunch, and I, using Worcestershire sauce, made a big fire in the pan and it was super cool. As well, we spoke with Isaque, who’s a famous soap opera actor and singer from Brasil. He is being taught by the other Elderes, so we had a transition lesson with all four of us and it was pretty cool. He speaks English really well, so we had the lesson in a mix of Portuguese and English. That afternoon I also found a super fancy microphone for recording voice. I’ll definitely be having fun with that.

Anyway, that’s all that happened. Y’all are in for some good fotos next week.

Tender Mercy: Last week, the other Elders were almost robbed coming home from their area. Problem is, we go home taking that road almost every day. Not always at the time, but still pretty dangerous. This week we have not failed to say a prayer as we leave the office. Now, I can’t say if we would have been robbed had we not prayed. But what I can say, is that we have also been blessed with calm as we go home. I don’t feel the lightest bit worried about what would happen.

Spiritual thought: Most of the time, I just read my scriptures with the purpose of learning. This week, I was reminded of a quote by Elder Eyring that talks about that he studies with the thought “what does God want me to learn or feel?” The part of “feel” stood out to me and I decided to focus more on that. Guys, there is so much peace in this. Read with the focus of feeling what God wants that you feel.

It was one drink after another

 (Elder Mackrory)

Bom dia meus fechamentos. Como vai?

Essa semana vi 8 fuscas, mas tudo bem porque nem faz uma semana.

Last pday we did some cool things. As I woke up, I drank like a liter of water. About half an hour later I did the same. And so on it went until like 9h30. So I’m going to the bathroom all the time now, but it's worth it. You’ll see. First we went to get haircuts, and the guy did an ok job, but he did it super fast. It took like 10 minutes. Then we went to a store to grab our things and I got some R$5,00 juice that I like to freeze and then l make it into a slushy. After that we had to book it to the other side of the pond from president’s house to meet him, his wife, the senior couple Butters, and the rest of our district at Rio Brasa. For those of you who don’t know what it is, it's the kind of restaurant that is all you can eat, and they bring around all sorts of the best meats. That’s why all the water. I needed my stomach stretched out without filling it. So after about 8 times in the bathroom, I’m ready to eat. I don’t have meat vocabulary so they just said gibberish as I nodded yes with a full mouth. Good times. I tried caviar, its pretty bad. I would much rather let the fish grow up and then fry it. We were nearing the end of the course, so Brother Butters was a goat and asked to bring around grilled pineapple. And they did. But not just any grilled pineapple, this one was glazed with cinnamon sugar. Easily the best pineapple I’ve ever tasted. The caramel sugar with soft and sweet pineapple. And its finished off by a slight cinnamon taste. So freaking good. Then we went to the office and I finished up my email and sent it out. Good pday. But still second to the temple pday this transfer. I also factory reset my phone because it was glitching so much.

On Tuesday, we had district council, and I did training on testimony bearing. Super good. Learned a lot from my companion. Afterwards we had our round table meeting with President and Sister Dutson, the Butters, and the other secretaries. They really liked my updated white board that I drew last week. After that we had interviews and President and I talked about sanctification and his PHD dissertation. Really fun conversation. I did some references and unfortunately there were tons that arrived this weekend and the number got to 106, but I managed to get it back down to a reasonable number. I don’t remember what it was. But then we went to dinner and had Cuzcuz, goated.

On Wednesday, we went to buy blank SIM cards. In my manual it says we have to go to the Rio Sul Mall, like 20 minutes away, but we asked around and it turns out the same phone store exists in the mall like two minutes away. After lunch, Elder Ribeiro’s mouse simply stopped working. So we went to like 4 different stores to find a new one. Barely made it back to the office for the weekly Social Media meeting. That night we taught Marcel who came to church last Sunday. He’s progressing nicely.

On Thursday, we made tacos for lunch, they turned out really good. Then, out of nowhere, President Dutson’s first counselor showed up with a car full of old material from the church. As he was delivering air conditioning to the houses, he also was cleaning them out, taking old, torn up books that no-one will ever use, and lots of other things. If there was any need for these things in another place, he would save it. So all we got was the leftovers. Really trashed material.

Friday was a stellar day. The day was pretty normal during the office hours, but when 18h rolled around, we left for the temple. We didn’t need to switch our pday since it was Vinicius’ first time. He got a ride with the Elders quorum president, and we went in an uber with a member of the bishopric. During the uber ride, we got talking with the driver because he was curious about the missionaries. But then the conversation switched around and we basically taught the entire restoration and invited him to take a tour of the outside of the temple with us. It was a long shot, but he accepted. We showed him around the next door church building and then we brought him into the waiting room. He was absolutely amazed by all of it, and we then gave him a Book of Mormon and he was just overcome with excitement. Then he left and we were able to go in and do some baptisms for some of Vinicus’ grandparents. Super cool experience all around. We called another uber home, this time with Vinicius. Since we were coming home at night, we got to see the super cool lights of Rocinha (the biggest slum in all of Brasil). It looked like the fullest night sky. Super pretty from outside. Not so pretty inside.

Well, this was short, so I think I’ll refrain from writing a SummaRio.

Terna Misericórdia:

This week, the number of media referrals that we are receiving went up a lot. So I asked in the mission group if there was anyone who was not receiving many referrals that would be willing to help carry some of the load. Guys, so many people sent me messages. We were able to handle the new referrals to the point that there weren't enough referrals to go around.

Pensamento Espiritual:

Obadiah 1:21 “And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.”. At first glance, we might think “saviourS? isn’t there only one Savior?” And yes, you’re right to a certain degree. The Lord has permitted us to perform a work that others cannot do for themselves, but that is necessary for their salvation. Is that not what the Savior did for us? In the temple we have the opportunity to perform ordinances for those who cannot do them for themselves. In the temple (mount Zion), we can be saviors for our ancestors and others who are needing their work done. Go to the temple and serve those who can’t serve themselves.

It was all by design

 (Elder Mackrory)

Bom dia pessoal! Fala a boa

Essa semana foi um pouquinho difícil em relação aos fuscas. Nos 12 dias que vou relatar, eu vi apenas 11. O total agora é 1217.

Preface: I made the goal at the beginning of the year to be more detailed in my emails. Until now, however, I didn’t have a plan to do so. And, as I always say, A goal without a plan is just an idea. So this and the next emails will be longer ones. but I will begin again to include a brief summary of events and the end for those who don't have much time. This email will be especially long because it covers 12 days instead of 7, so don't get too scared.

The first few days of the year were pretty good. I don’t really remember what happened though. We met some pretty cool people, including Marcel, with whom we were able to mark a baptism date on the first contact (Thanks for the tip Elder Owen).

Sunday (the fifth) was a very special experience for me in so many ways. First of all, it was Vinicius’ baptism. Vinicius is a very special person. He is one of the most knowledgeable people I know, and yet he does act like it. He possesses the gift of humility. He was always receptive to our message and readily accepted it when he found out it was true. Since I met him on day one I was amazed by his character and desire to become like the Savior. Anyway, we got to church early for ward council, which was great, and we went right into reception. There are always many visitors in Botofogo ward, especially during this time of year. There was one old lady that walked in and did not speak one lick of Portuguese. I felt impressed to ask if she would like someone to translate for her. Now, there are plenty of people in the ward who are capable of translating. I had more or less spoken that, meaning I would find someone to help her. But then she said (in a Jamaican accent), “Yes thank you, come sit down with me”. And we sat down for the meeting to start. So I started translating. At first my brain glitched a lot and I ended up saying things like “uhhhh.. something about prayer.” or “I forgot how to say that”. So I said a silent prayer that I would be able to translate for this sister. From then on, things started getting easier and I began to see myself succeeding. It's just that I really like when I sound fluent. So I started getting too confident and started glitching again. I’m working on my humility. It’s actually quite humiliating. Anyway, then things got better and I felt the Lord helping me and making me able. Then she said she wanted to get up. So we made our way to the front and sat down on the pulpit. After one or two testimonies, it was her turn. She got up and spoke of how she’s on vacation with her son, and she doesn’t speak any Portuguese, but she knew she had to be in two places here in Rio. She had to be at church and she had to go to the templo. She bore strong witness to how dedication to covenants brings blessing. Then it was my turn. I had planned to speak about my recent study of the Book of Mormon and its impact on me, but I decided instead to speak about the very experience of translating for sister Perkins. After the meeting, we had Sunday school, which was somewhat difficult to translate because I could barely hear who was making comments, but it was a really nice time. Afterwards we went up and got our last minute prep done for the baptism and I again translated the meeting. The baptism was amazing and Vinicius bore a strong testimony of the power he felt as he was baptized and the strength he received as he was being taught. After the baptism, sister Perkins said “I have spent my day well”. She then told me that she had prayed for someone to translate for her. It was such a tender mercy to be the answer to her prayer.  Shortly after the baptism service, as people were leaving the room, another sister in the ward thanked me for my testimony. I didn’t think the testimony I shared was the strongest testimony I've ever born, but it was also a big tender mercy to say the things that one sister in the ward needed to hear.

On Monday, we didn’t have pday. What? Ok, so pday has been kind of confusing since transfers with Christmas and the temple and new years and all. But usually the secretaries have pdays on Saturdays. This is for a few reasons, but one of them is that the church headquarters doesn't work on Saturdays, and we often need to get in contact with them. It's kinda a weird flow, and I still haven't really experienced it. But anyway on Monday we prepared the office for the senior couple we are receiving. The Butters are super cool. Elder Butters is a professor of finances and Sister Butters is a nurse. Elder Butters already speaks Portuguese since he served his full time mission in Fortaleza. Sister Butters is still getting the hang of it. I registered and updated some phone information for missionaries and had no less than three people ask me for an upgrade. I just ignored the request and said “valeu meu patrao”. Guys, all I have is A13’s, stop asking for A34’s. But I can’t get too mad about it because I once made the same request to Elder Kjar. When I got to the office on the 18th, the number of undesignated media referrals was 508. I finally got that down below half, at 236. There’s usually about 10-15 that arrive every day. My goal by the end of the week is to have that down to about 130. That means I will only have referrals from the last month in the system. I also updated some area limits, got a sweet deal at pizza hut and made some terrible dad jokes in Portuguese. They’re actually called Big Uncle jokes here. Everyone in the office agreed that I’m going to be a menacing dad.

On Tuesday we went early to the airport. Some missionaries are still working out some legal processes, so we had to go help them out. I got an Oreo shake and burger there. It was nice. I contacted a bazillion media references, the number is now down to 154. I basically did a lot of the same. At night we had a lesson with our friend (recent convert) Vinicius. We talked a lot about the temple and family history work. Mind blowing lesson. This guy smiles big, and I’ve never seen a bigger smile on his face than I did today. He's incredible. Right after, we said goodbye to Elder Eloi who is heading out to in-person MTC. Super gente boa.

On Wednesday we went a little early to the office so we could do district council. To my surprise, the assistants were in a division and so I got to see Elder Schmuhl again. First time we’ve been in district council together since my training. Afterwards we made some lunch. After lunch, Elder Butters says, “I think we need some ice cream, don't you guys agree?” And we all put on dumb faces and said “Well I don't know, do we?” and he said it was necessary and so we went and got ice cream. I managed to get my references down to 80, meaning I only have references from the last month, with a few exceptions. I also made a super cool video about humility. I’m probably the best at making videos. Afterwards, we walked home in the pouring rain because we didn’t look at the forecast. It's ok. Rain on the tag is good for ya ;).

On Thursday we had another super cool lesson with Vinicius, showing him around the FamilySearch app. More office work, I slimmed down the number of undesignated referrals a bit. Now that I’m getting the hang of it, I think the number will stabilize in the 40’s or 50’s.

On Friday I made a quizlet with all the phone area codes in Brasil. I get a lot of referrals from other states, so I have to send them away. The addresses are almost never precise, and so I have to do a little bit of searching, so knowing the area codes is super useful because I can narrow down my search radius by a lot. Turns out I know like half of them, but it would be ideal if I had them all memorized.

Saturday was kinda chaotic, but it was fun. One of our recent converts came to hang out and give us lunch, but she didn’t leave. So productivity went way down. Kinda annoying, but it was fun. I also found out that they sell Rooibos here, so that’s really nice. That night, the Bishop called and said that there was a complication with one of the speakers, and asked if I could speak for 15 minutes. So it’s a good thing I already had a talk prepared.

Come Sunday morning, my gospel library app wasn't working. Wouldn’t even open. I did all the things to trouble shoot and nothing worked. So I just carried my Portuguese quad to church and used it. It’s kinda cool to use paper scriptures on the pulpit. That afternoon, we went walking. We walked about 6 miles in total. Accidentally left the district, and went underneath a mountain. But then it all worked out. We saw a family that Elder Ribeiro had known in Macae. I also knew this family from when I did a division with Elder Levie on new years adam 2023. They are an extended family of the family I taught. The husband is an inactive member, and his wife hasn’t heard of the church. So we invited them to church and introduced them to the Book of Mormon. Good times.

SummaRio:

11 fuscas, 1217 in total

Marked a few baptism dates

On Sunday I had a special experience translating for a visiting member from Jamaica. It was also the baptism of Vinicius. I recommend you read that one in full.

On Monday I tackled a ton of references and more problems.

On Tuesday I tackled a ton of references and more problems. I also went to the airport to help Elder Ribeiro legalize some missionaries.

On Wednesday I tackled a ton of references, got ice cream, and made a sick video about humility. It’s probably better than any other video on humility.

On Thursday I tackled a ton of references and more problems. Super dope lesson with vinicius about family history work.

Friday I tackled a ton of references and more problems. Also made a quizlet to help me memorize all the area codes.

Saturday was chaotic because we had a recent convert come to just hang out. At night the Bishop called and asked me to speak the next day.

Sunday morning my gospel library app kept crashing and so I had to use my paper scriptures to speak. Cool experience. That night we talked to tons of people, including a family that Elder Ribeiro and I know from Macae.

Tender Mercy: During lunch on Saturday we were chatting about missionaries who have gone to the office before. Our recent convert asked me what I thought about one missionary who was my companion in my first area. As many of you know, my companions in that area were not the most obedient. I could have said a bunch of things against this missionary, but I decided that I would only talk about his positive points. As I did so, I felt the spirit of the conversation change. It wasn’t bad before, but it changed to be better. I also was surprised at how much good this missionary has in himself. It was a cool experience that changed my perspective on this missionary and helped me to understand, on a spiritual level, why gossip should be avoided.

Spiritual thought:

In 1 Nephi 1:1, Nephi related that he and his family have waded through “many afflictions”. Nevertheless, he also states that he and his family had been highly favored by the Lord. In the second chapter, sixteenth verse, he mentions that he had great desires to know the mysteries of God. In due time, this was given, as his diligently lived the gospel. His perspective changed. He went from a wealthy city boy to a poor desert nomad. This must have been very difficult for him. But his knowledge of the goodness of God and His plan made his afflictions bearable. Because he was faithful and relied on the Lord, his problems were bearable and he was even able to bear them with joy. In doing the same, we will find that life is not only bearable, but joyous as well.

 

I love to see the temple ... and kangaroos!

 (Sister Cummings)

Hey howdy y'all!!

I'm back again with an update for y'all! This one is a big one because I finally saw a Kangaroo!!!! Wahoooo!! Now I actualy believe they're real!

Here are some other updates:

- I got transfered to Modbury which is 15 minutes away from my last area but I still feel like I left my heart in Marden. I love everyone there! Shoutout to Charlotte and Sister West. I miss y'al heaps. (I also miss the rest of y'all too of course)

- I finally have a car! I haven't been in a car area since Sister Woodbury crashed our car during training :) (I love you Sister Woodbury)

- I LOVE my new district and companion! We're already besties!

- I accidentally messed up what was going to be really good steak fried rice because I mistook cinnamon for black pepper. #itsoktomakemistakes #theatonementisreal #sorrysisterbastedo

- I'm still training and my trainee is really awesome! Her name is Sister Bastedo and everyone says that we look like sisters

- we put two friends on date in the same day!! Please pray for Dyan and Robbeka that all goes well!

- We found 9 friends this week!! It was literally so miraculous! I'm excited to see what people and miracles we come across this week!

Jesus Christ loves you!!

My spiritual thought this week is just an invitation:

Please make time to go to the temple soon if not this week. The prophet has asked us to go more often and he has promised that, "increased time in the temple will bless your life in ways nothing else can." So, please go and tell me how it blesses you!!

Here's the talk that came from:

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2022/10/58nelson?lang=eng

I love y'all!!

Sister Cummings

So it's gonna be forever

 (Elder Mackrory)

Boa tarde meus queridos! Como estão?

Essa semana deu uma caída em fuscas devido a minha nova área. Vimos 12, totalizando 1206.

My new area has significantly less fuscas, but the quality of fuscas has gone way up. There are some spanking nice bugs here. Anyway, this week was so packed, it feels like I haven't written in like two and a half weeks. Nonetheless, it was a super fun and spiritually uplifting week. Let's start with Christmas.

We just hung out Christmas morning in our house. But then there was a super goated member from the neighboring ward that invited the district to have lunch. This couple has lots of family living in the states, and so they gave us some twizzers, which I have missed. Afterwards we had a cool spiritual moment with them and we all shared 2-minute messages. Super awesome. We then went home and played some soccer as a district and played cards.

Thursday we were back in the races. We had zone conference which was super spritual. I got to sing (in four part harmony) "What child is this?" From the new hymnal with some awesome friends. We had a gift exchange with everyone and I got a super sick benjamin franklin tie from a Sister. Friday was more stuff. I probably contacted tons of referrals and registered some cell phones and sim cards. A bunch of the same fun on Friday.

Saturday was my favorite day of the week by far. We had pday again (don't ask, I don't know why either). And we went to the temple! Since I had been really far out in the mission, I didn't have this opportunity for a long time. About 213 days to be exact. It was so awesome. Go to the temple guys, it's so spritually uplifting and I truly feel at home there. But! We didn't just go to the temple. I was actually there to participate in the sealing of a recent convert to her husband from my first area! We were really close to this family and it was super special to be invited to the ceremony. What was also cool is that my old trainer Elder (not Elder anymore) Nascimento was also there, since he was the one who baptized her. Super incredible experience in every way. On the way home, I wasn't planning on sleeping, but before I realized I fell asleep, Elder Ribeiro tapped on my shoulder because we arrived home.

On Sunday we had church, and it was super cool. A nice 2nd hour about missionary work. We had a few friends come, including Vinicius, who has his baptism date next week. It's gonna be great. That night, we found out that another missionary would be staying with us for the week he's doing on-line MTC. He's from the neighboring stake, but his home doesn't have good wifi, so he's living with us. Elder Eloi is super cool.

On Monday we had more work in the office and some work in the streets. Nothing super interesting I don't think. On Tuesday we had some more, and we went home afterwards to do online work. We decided it would be best not to go pit in the streets on the night of new years eve. I also finished up version 2 of my goals spreadsheet and sent it to president saying "just in case you're interested". Later that night saw that he was messing around on it testing out all it's features. So that was pretty cool. Then I went to bed. Because of what happened last new years eve, I was not inclined to do anything. But then I was woken up because my roommates wanted to go up to the roof of the apartment building to watch the fireworks. I was already sleepy, so I was reluctant, and the fireworks were pretty impressive. We got to see Copacabana's show, but not super well since there was so much smoke it blocked our view. Then we went back down and I went to bed again. Much better than last year but you guys can be sure that ill be in bed at 10pm next new years.

Well, that's it this week. Happy new year.

Tender mercy: This week Elder Ribeiro was a little sick, which meant I had many opportunities to serve him! Little things like grabbing a cup of water or making a bed, but serving brought me and him joy. It was a win-win situation except for being sick.

Spritual thought: this week I started a new study of the Book of Mormon and it's been AMAZING. Funny thing is, I haven't gotten past the title page. I've found a love for writing my thoughts, and I've written about 4 pages about what I liked about the title page. I'll include a foto.