Merry Christmas Adam

 (Sister Cummings)

Hey howdy y'all!!

Merry late Christmas!! These last two weeks have actually been the most bizarre weeks of my whole mission. Like no joke. But it's been SO GOOD!

Here are some highlights:

- I flew on A PLANE for about 4 hours with the rest of the missionary music group all the way up to Darwin (the most north part of our mission)! I actually thought the next time I would be on a plane would be when I finished my mission but I guess not!

- We got DOS zone conferences this transfer because we got to piggyback on the zone conference in Darwin. I feel super spiritually sauced up right now!

- I got to see and catch up with my mission mom! I love you Sister Woodbury!

- I met a bunch of elders I didn't know even existed because they've been serving up north the whole time I've been here. It was really strange. They're really strange... because they obviously haven't had much interaction with sisters since they left the MTC...

- We performed our Christmas music devotional TWICE and both times I felt the spirit so hard. Sister Walters and Sister Starr did such a great job! I love them! They're beautiful!

- We celebrated Christmas Adam! One of my favorite holidays in the world! If you didn't know, Christmas Adam is celebrated the day before Christmas Eve (because Adam came before Eve obvi) and you celebrate Christmas Adam by having a rib dinner to bring in Christmas Eve. It the best thing ever and our fav members hosted it and ahh I just love them! It made me feel like I was a bit more connected to my family because I knew they would be celebrating Christmas Adam too!

- We had the BEST Christmas day ever which started off with having a sleepover with my favorites (Sister Forrey and Sister Cundiff. Love them) and then we spent the WHOLE day with other missionaries. It was literally the dream! I love how all these people I serve around have because legitimately as close as family. It's amazing!

- I can't think of more but I know more happened

- I love my companion Sister West! She's so tall and special to me!

Here's my spiritual thought, it's reason behind why we celebrate Christmas Adam:

In our increasingly secular society, it is as uncommon as it is unfashionable to speak of Adam and Eve or the Garden of Eden or of a “fortunate fall” into mortality. Nevertheless, the simple truth is that we cannot fully comprehend the Atonement and Resurrection of Christ and we will not adequately appreciate the unique purpose of His birth or His death—in other words, there is no way to truly celebrate Christmas or Easter—without understanding that there was an actual Adam and Eve who fell from an actual Eden, with all the consequences that fall carried with it

- Elder Holland from his talk where Justice, Love, and Mercy Meet.

Anyways, I hope this thought makes you want to celebrate Christmas Adam next year and eat some ribs!

I love y'all!

Sister Cummings

in a big city, they just dropped me off

 (Elder Mackrory)

Boa Tarde Meus amados familiares e amigos! Valeu Natalino!!!

Primeiramente, vamos falar dos fuscas. Só vi 13 essa semana, levando o total para 1194. Mas é por causa de uma mudança aqui na missão. Estão prontos?

This week I was transferred! That’s why I didn’t see too many fuscas. On pday we just packed bags and made cookies. That night, however, we had been invited to play soccer with some local kids who thought it would be the coolest thing to play soccer with some gringos. When we arrived at the field, there wasn’t anybody there. So we hung out at the next door park until more people arrived. There were two 8-9 year old at the park who started talking to us and asking us a bunch of questions. Normal questions that we get: How old are you? Where are you from? Is it cold there? Do you eat rice and beans there? Do you have a dollar? What kind of phone do you have? Wait. We don’t normally get asked what kind of phone we have. I thought it was strange, but we just kept chatting. After a few more boring standard gringo questions, they asked again, “What kind of phones do you guys have?” At this point I’m a little bit worried because its dark and were kinda far from the center of the town where the police has jurisdiction. So now my guard goes way up. The kids go home to “grab a ball” and I heard one of them say, “My phone arrived”. And so, Elder Hernandez and I left. We were expecting some good exercise playing soccer, and so we decided to run home. So that was a close one.

On Tuesday we went around and did member visits and I said goodbye to everyone. It was super sad to leave these members that I love so much, even though I only passed two transfers there. The branch is small, and you get really close to the members. We delivered the cookies to everyone, and some were left over, so that was pretty cool.

On Wednesday we left early for the mission office. We arrived there a little late because of holiday traffic and the meeting had already started, or was just starting. I don’t know. Anyway, during the meeting, President introduces the new trainees to their trainers and instructs everyone else to find their new companions. That’s awkward, because my new companion is already in his area. So president gave me permission to travel ALONE to my new area. So I took the elevator upstairs and arrived in my new area. Yeah. That’s right. I’m the new technology secretary for the mission. So I’m writing this email in Microsoft word and it is so refreshing to get off of google docs. Google docs for some reason would randomly capitalize words. I don’t know if you guys noticed that. But it was so annoying. And now I have a computer.

On Thursday it was só correria. So freaking busy. For one, the church system had a bug and all area boundaries reverted to the ward boundaries, which is fine if you're the only missionaries in the ward, but for more areas in the mission, this is a problem. The worst part of this is that to fix it we had to call a number to report the problem. The problem was Brasil wide, and so practically every mission was calling that number, so I didn't actually get to report the problem because the number was busy. It's fine. We also had the mission leadership meeting which was super spiritually uplifting and I learned a lot about becoming more like the Savior.

Guys, I'll be honest the days are blurring together because of office work, but it's so much fun. I contact like 60-100 media references per day, help out my companion, Elder Ribeiro, with his tasks since he's overworked during this time in the transfer, and much more. I do remember one time I was calling this lady who was interested in the Book of Mormon, and I said "É noix que faz a entrega" without even thinking. For those who don't speak Portuguese, this is probably the most informal way to say "were the ones who do the delivery". The people who say it like that are all gangsters or wannabes. And its almost exclusive to Rio. Anyway, that was super embarrassing for me and super funny for my comp who burst out laughing when I said it.

On Sunday, we showed up early to be in a trio with a missionary who was going home the next day. He and I were both asked to give testimonies in sacrament meetings. For some reason, that day some 3 American families showed up to the meeting including the family of one Elder Shumway, a general authority seventy. So naturally he presided at the meeting and, through the translating help of another missionary, spoke briefly at the end. It was all super edifying. At the end, as we spoke the American visitors. Sister Shumway came up to me and said "Are you nervous to go home tomorrow" and I said "Huh?" "Yeah, my husband said you're going home tomorrow." At that point I had forgotten that the other Elder who was going home the next day also spoke. For a split second I thought the general authority seventy came exactly to send me home. I was so confused and a little scared that I did something without realizing. Turns out Sister Shumway just mixed us up. Pretty funny in the end.

On Monday, we did not have pday because here in the office we have pday on Saturdays. So for the next 4-6 months my emails will come in on Saturday. But our pdays are kinda confusing right now because of Christmas and New years being pdays. So next pday is this Saturday, and then new years day is pday as well, and then we have a week and a half until the Saturday the 11th. Kinda weird, but it's fine. We had to prepare tons of stuff for zone conferences that are happening this week.

On Christmas eve, we went over to a members house for dinner and it was really cool. Really good food and some cool memories. I got full really early on and only got to eat one of the three dessert courses. It was really funny, because sassy grandma and not-having-it aunt were both there. Grandma would say things like "Nobody loves me. I'm so horribly treated here" followed by a "Shut up mom". It was really hard not to laugh. But don't worry this is all in good humor.

Other highlights:

-Sugarloaf mountain is in our ward boundaries

-There's a good view of the Christ the Redeemer statue right outside the church

-Copacabana is in the neighboring ward.

-My bedroom has AC

Tender Mercy:

When Elder Shumway was going around shaking hands with everyone, he would always take the persons hand and give it a little tug and pull them into a hug. He did this with every single person. So I learned a simple truth. Jesus is a hugger.

Spiritual Thought:

I have a new favorite Christmas scripture: John 18:37 "To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice." Let us not only remember the reason for the season, but also the reason for the reason for the season. It's not enough to remember that Jesus was born, but for what reason was he born? To redeem us from death and sin. If we follow the example of Christ, we have so much more reason to celebrate Christmas.

 

He was sunshine, I was midnight rain

 (Elder Mackrory)

Boa tarde Amigos e famíliares!

Essa semana foi muito boa. Vi 26 fuscas, e teria sido mais, só que tenho quase todas as placas de licença memorizadas. Então vi mais do que isso, mas eles não contam porque já os vi. O total chegou aos 1181.

Hey you all, this week was a blast. It flew by, and I can't believe it's the end of the transfer already. Last pday we went back to the beach in Cavaleiros again, and this time we got Calebito's, my favorite ice cream place. But this time I did vary the flavors instead of three balls of Frutas Vermelhas. I did still get frutas vermelhas however.

This week had too many things happening, so I won't go day by day.

We almost got stampeded. Walking home from the farthest area we watched some cows on the side of the road get kinda spooked and walk kinda fast away from us. Some seconds later they returned with two or three bulls getting up on their hind legs and snorting loudly. So naturally I made myself look real big, yelled and approached them. Just kidding. We just avoided eye contact and kept walking (slightly faster). They herd followed us along the fence line until we got beyond their pasture and then it was all clear. Tip: Running can encourage chasing, don't run from bulls. You'll lose every time.

I got really wet because I forgot my umbrella on a rainy day. The next day I was looking for my umbrella, and found that it had been in my bag the whole time. Good one Elder Mackrory. Elder Hernandez stayed dry though.

We had a movie night at the chapel as an activity and it was a super success! We had turmeric seasoned popcorn (so bomb) that a sister in the ward made. We're bringing her cookies tonight to thank her.

We played the primary program on Sunday and Elder Hernandez and I switched turns playing. It went really well.

On Saturday there was supposed to be another activity at 7, for which they needed us to open the chapel. Due to bad planning and a lack of communication, the activity actually started at 8:45. So the activity was basically talking about what the activity was supposed to be about and eating cake.

My phone updated finally and I got Meta AI on messenger. My Language studies have been insane lately because all my weird and specific language nuance questions are all answered really thoroughly.

We had a family night with an inactive member who said I sounded like I was from Rio. So that was a big win.

When walking back from a really far neighborhood In our area at night, we were a little worried about which path we should take because the neighborhood is a little dangerous and so we wanted to make sure were taking the safest route. We asked some people who pointed us to take the main road. We were already going to do that, but she gave us a good tip of when we should get off the main road to get where we were going. As we took the safer route, there was a car then stopped a bit ahead of us and let out two guys who walked into the forest. The car then took off. We witnessed all of this. As we passed the spot where they were, I glanced over (without turning my head) and they were both crouched over in the grass staring at us. So anyway we just continued on and didn't look back.

We got transfer news today! But you all won't find about that until next week.

Tender Mercy: During that encounter with the two guys who I solemnly swear were up to no good, I wasn't scared. I knew the Lord would protect us because we had done our part in choosing the safest path, even if the options weren't great. We kept our course and safely ended up at home. The Lord provides us with all we need when we provide Him with all He needs. And all He needs is our best.

Spiritual Thought:

I think a lot about the future. I don't swell on it, but instead, I let it shape my present. How do I want to be by next transfer? OK, let's work towards that this transfer. I think a lot about what I will say in my coming-home talk in church. In a way, it's sort of like a last hurrah. What I say has to encompass my learning and experience on the mission. I imagine the same is true for all people. President Monson, shortly before passing away, gave a talk that has really left an impact on me. Being the prophet, he may have had some notion that it was his last talk. Who knows. But what he chose to speak about was something so simple. His talk reflected well the Come Follow Me lesson this week about Charity. I'll attach the link below and I Invite all of you to watch, listen, or read the short talk and ponder on the importance of such important principles. They certainly have impacted and changed me. I hope they do the same for you.

Kindness, Charity, and Love

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2017/04/kindness-charity-and-love?lang=eng

Still no roos!

 (Sister Cummings)

Hey howdy y'all!!

Here I am back with y'all's biweekly email! It's been a heck of a two weeks! As always, SO many miracles and, SO MANY funny silly moments!

Here are some highlights:

- Sister West and I went to the Zoo to finally see the Kangaroos and guess what, THE ROOS WERENT THERE. Oh well

- Had an interview with Presi (President Standley) and he told me that I'll know my future eternal comp based on how good and established his morning routine is... cool. We talked about other things too, it was good.

- We did service in 100+ degree weather and the spirit gave us strength to keep going!

- Sister West and I do not have the spiritual gift of remembering to drink water...or even to bring water

- We sang as a choir at a live nativity AT THE TEMPLE and they mic-ed us up so I didn't make a SINGLE sound because I was laughing too hard. It was yeehaw!

- This last Wednesday we went caroling at the city mall to help advertise our Christmas Eve music devotional. It was crazyy and SO MUCH FUN. I played my violin so that I didn't have to sing (hallelujah) and it was heaps of fun!

- On Thursday Sister West and I biked ALL DAY in 100 degree weather. It was sort of awesome! We also made 2 friends that day! Blessings and miracles!

- I love my mission!

Here's my spiritual thought:

14) And they did humble themselves even in the depths of humility; and they did cry mightily to God; yea, even all the day long did they cry unto their God that he would deliver them out of their afflictions.

15) And now the Lord was slow to hear their cry because of their iniquities; nevertheless the Lord did hear their cries, and began to soften the hearts of the Lamanites that they began to ease their burdens; yet the Lord did not see fit to deliver them out of bondage.

16) And it came to pass that they began to prosper by degrees in the land, and began to raise grain more abundantly, and flocks, and herds, that they did not suffer with hunger.

Okay so for some context, this is when the Nephites of the people of Limhi finally remember their God after a long period of iniquity and denial. I think the way God handles their return can be related so easily to how he handles our returns in this day. Sometimes the Lord takes His time to hear our cries so that we truly decide and act in faith and continue in that faith as we pray and pray and pray. But, what matters is that He always always answers our prayers and helps us but, He rarely ever fixes our problems right away. Instead, He helps us grow and "prosper by degrees". Which I think is so beautiful and really prompts us to be patient to the will of God.

Anyways, I love y'all! I hope y'all have a yeehaw week!

Sister Cummings

And you cant wait to move out someday

 (Elder Mackrory)

Fala aí rapaziada

Como é que vocês estão? Esse semana vimos 28 fuscas, totalizando 1155.

This week was really good, lots of fun and work. Last pday we went down to Cavaleiros beach and had lots of fun playing ball and then we went to the mall to eat. At the mall I saw a family from my first area and we caught up. When we had lunch at their house way back when, I used to sit down and draw with their 7ish year old son. When I saw him he was at least 4 inches taller and resembled his father a lot more. It was kind of a wakeup call for me that I've been on the mission for a bit.

On Tuesday we had district council and we gave the training. Every day I see Elder Hernandez speaking more and better, and he absolutely killed it. Then we went to a play performance of a member who's goated at giving us references. After the performance we went and talked to her and met the whole cast and we were kinda celebrities. They got super stoked about the Christmas party. went around and did some visits, all of our planned ones falling through. Good thing the visits God planned all worked out. We met a super old and ornery old lady named Dinah (pronounced Jeana) who has some strong opinions about sin. She gave quite the sermon. That night we had rehearsal for the Christmas party again and it was great.

On Wednesday we met a yapper. We'll actually we met her when we were in division last week, but thus week we passed by her house again. She's called Larissa, and she's so cool. What really frightened me is that she said she's been married for 6 years. That's not weird in and of itself, it's just that she's like 8 months older than me. So yeah. Anyway she also got super stoked about the Christmas party this Friday so that was a win. We accidentally talked for two hours.

On Thursday we had more rehearsal for the Christmas presentation and had a great lesson on the resurrection with Maria.

Friday was a big day. In the morning we helped Cleiton and his family move. Then we went home, showered, ate, and went back to help him unpack. Then we went home, showered again and went to the Christmas party. Larissa lost her dog like an hour before the party and she said she might not take it. But she sent her husband to watch the presentation. His name is Patrik. They didn't end up finding the dog, but she came anyway and it was so fun.

Saturday we walked all around Macabu visiting members and updating our missionary app since it has some (kinda) nee features that make it possible for us to keep records up to date. Met tons of inactive members who were all very kind and we will be working to bring them back to church and to personal conversion.

On Sunday we got to church and there wasn't any bread for sacrament. But no one said anything until 2 minutes before the meeting started, and so we booked it home and grabbed some of ours. Good thing it's a 3 minute walk to the chapel. We played the hymns and had good classes. I was inspired by the phrase “Privileged to serve the Lord”. It truly is a privilege to be on the Lord's errand.

Tender Mercy: After weeks of visiting Vanessa, a member we've been focusing on, I was beginning to lose hope. Sunday morning, however, as we left the apartment to go to church, we bumped into her! On her way to church! My heart was partying and just loving life. And then, everyone at church was so happy to see her too. Cherry on top.

Spiritual Thought: President Spencer W. Kimball taught: “We do believe in setting goals. We live by goals. … [One] important goal is to bring the gospel to all people. … Our goal is to achieve eternal life. That is the greatest goal in the world”

This week was great. As I now track my goals, it's easy to see how I'm doing. With exception to one, I met all my goals. I see myself striving not only to meet the goals, but to become a more dedicated disciple of Jesus Christ. This is the point of goals. When we make goals, we are able to understand better our purpose in life, because we can see it step by step. Even when we don't meet our goals, because we strived, we did better than how we would have done had we not planned. My invitation to you all is to make, register, and strive towards goals. Make Christlike goals and change them as you develop. It brings immense joy.

1. Blocked from WhatsApp!

2. New Christmas album on its way

3. The best movers in Macabu

4. It's summer year round

5. Hills

6. The theater

7. The hills and I

8. Nuggets and burger slaps

What a rainy ending given to a perfect day

 (Elder Mackrory)

 

Fala galera!

Essa semana foi rápido demais, e só vimos 16 fuscas. 1127 agora é o total.

This week was so fast, I hardly remember anything. Last pday we hung out at home because we were really tired. At night we had a sick lesson with a dude who was super interested in the Book of Mormon. We then went to teach some recent converts, but they weren't home, so we went and got burgers instead.

On Tuesday we left early for district council and accidentally got off at the wrong bus stop. But we had plenty of time to spare, so we walked. We then went to visit some people, some were home, most weren't, and then we had primary program rehearsal. I love primary hymns.

On Wednesday we taught Antônio and Patrícia about what happens after we die. Antônio is bald, so I made a good use of Alma 11:44 and everyone (including him) had a good laugh and understood the principles. Tomorrow, they will hear the restoration.

On Thursday I had a division with Elder Oliveira. He's got slightly more time than me on the mission, and it was great to be able to learn from him. We had an exhausting (good) day and made some acerola juice. He gave me some goated training tips which I will use extensively, and I taught him that adding a bit of lime in any juice makes it hit the spot.

Also Thursday was interviews with president. He gave me some really cool new insights to our work in small towns. We also geeked out a little to my spreadsheet (which he said was better than his!!!). If the compliment wasn't enough, he then asked me for a copy of it. It's a pretty nice feeling when a professor who taught an excel class thinks your spreadsheet is really cool and asks for a copy. Anyway, this might mean that next transfer ill be a secretary. Elder Kjar is outa the office next transfer, so they will be needing a new tech sec.

Friday we ended the division and had a dope family night with Cleiton, his family, and Thiago. We had hot dogs, and they gave us the leftovers. Members are awesome.

Saturday we ate those leftovers and went to visit Selma, the less active member who came to church last week after 12 years. We were planning on just stopping by real quick and asking her how she was, asking how she felt about church this week, and re-extend the invite. Then it started raining. The thing is that the forecast didn't predict rain, so we didn't bring umbrellas. She begged us to stay until the rain stopped, so we settled to do a reading of the Book of Mormon. She randomly flipped to a page and said “let's start here.” Guys I've never seen anyone flip to a more goated chapter than the one she flipped to. Mosiah 24. We read it, talked about it, she loved it, we loved it, it stopped raining, she said she'd be at church, and we left. Mission accomplished thanks to the rain God gave us.

On Sunday we were planning a million different visits. And none of them ended up working out. Not because they weren't in house, but because plans changed at the last minute. For whatever reason, the branch Christmas party is this Friday and no one told anyone. So we helped the primary president, the young women's president and the teachers quorum President organize the thing. And by the time we reached Conclusions, it was already time to go home. But it was good, well-spent time I think.

In other news, my trainee Elder Hernandez is learning the Carioca accent really well, since he isn't around any other Brazilian from anywhere else. It's started bleeding into his Inglish. He now says, “oopsh” Instead of “oops”.

Tender Mercy: In our Christmas presentation at the branch party, I'm singing “Quem é o menino” while Elder Hernandez goes wild on the piano. I think the song is so pretty, and it's on my favorite melody of all time: greensleeves. Anyway, as I sang it, I was reminded of the first time I felt that I knew Christ loves me. When I was like 10-12, I always went outside to take naps after church. I would always take my iPod (not the touchscreen kind; think older) with me and listen to music as I fell asleep. One of my favorites (year round) was Little Drummer Boy. One afternoon, as I listened to the song, my heart was struck at the climax of the song “Then He smiled at me”. In that unforgettable moment, I knew Christ was aware of me and loved me. And what was true then is true now and is true for everyone. Yesterday as I sang “What Child is This” I felt the same love and confirmation that His love for me is everlasting, and was the very reason He suffered for all of humanity, including me.

My spiritual thought today echoes my experience from yesterday: Christ was born into this world for a purpose planned long ago. He chose to come to Earth to save us from death and sin, to comfort us when we are sad, hurt, or alone. His birth means everything because His life changed everything. The penitent sinner saved, comforted, and loved by Him.

Yeehaw! life is good!

 (Sister Cummings)

Hey Howdy y'all!!!

Guess what? These past two weeks have been AMAZING! Sooo, let me tell you about them!

First off, transfers happened and sadly Sister Nybo and I are noar lunga companions. It's sad and I miss her but I also absolutely LOVE my new companion Sister West! This is her second transfer on the mission but her first transfer in Australia. She was visa waiting in the Texas, Austin Mission for a transfer so she knows all of my favorite things like Bucees! And Rudy's BBQ! AND HEB! So, we get along really well. Honestly, she seems like she's been a missionary for like a year already. She's just that goated!

Since the new transfer we have been giving SO MANY miracles from God! One of those miracles is more like 5 since we've made 5 new friends in these last two weeks! I know it doesn't sound very awesome but we've been averaging about 0.5 new friends a week but putting in the effort to get about 500 every week. So, the Lord does bless your efforts according to His timing!

Another Miracle is our friend Joseph! Joseph is a child of GOD (y'all are too by the way)! We met Joseph just over three weeks ago and started teaching him and then just last week he told us he wants to be baptized! Isn't that amazing??! His baptismal date is set for January 11 but during now and that date, he's going to be spending a month back in his home country where he doesn't have access to a church building or to missionaries. So please please please please pray for him!! We love him so much!!

Okay here's some funny things that happened this week:

- I got stung by a bee

- We heard multiple crazy conspiracy theories from people we thought were completely sane

- Sister West still can't do a pull up

- Sister Cummings can't do a backflip

- I got a nasty stomach bug at a dinner with a member and Joseph and still tried to teach in between trips to the bathroom #iykyk

- Sister West and I made a 5 minute stop at a cemetery to pray for the salvation of some souls and then just got back to biking. It was fun!

Anyways, I'm excited for this next week and I hope y'all are too! But, here's a real quick spiritual thought for y'all:

Lately, I've been trying to focus on following the spirit always! And not only does it take away a lot of the stress of missionary work, it makes it fun! It's so joyful! Because none of this work is in our hands, it's in the Lord's so as long as we follow His Holy Spirit everything will go according to as He would have it go. And, the same works in day to day life, not just missionary life. So, basically, y'all should do it too!!

I love y'all!!!

- Sister Cummings