Andy's Mission Scripture

Andy's Mission Scripture:

"I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy."

~Alma 29:9


Monday, April 11, 2011

Second email from Brazil! Andy showering in the Rain!

First Sacrament Meeting, Crazy Thunderstorms, showers and lots of heat!

Ola todo mundo!

gosh i always have this problem! i always dont even know where to begin and i really wish i had more time to write! but i will try my best to fill you in as much as i can possibly do!

Its super hot here, probably the hottest place i have ever been to, always sweating, i wish i had a thermometer to tell you how hot it was. I love this place! and especially the people! Mossoro is a very interesting place for me! Cobblestone streets pretty much everywhere, also motorcycles probably out number the people in ratio. Never thought i would see pigs and horses just roaming around at their free will in the neighborhoods. oh and there are cats and dogs everywhere! mostly cats! its crazy! i think the term its raining cats and dogs was invented here becuase when it rains here its like golfballs sized raindrops! its awesome! the weather is very bipolar here at times. it will be very sunny and then suddenly a monsoon comes in! oh something really funny but also kind of sad, some men here when it rains will go outside and just start showering! you will see a ton of guys just out there with shampoo and everthing outside washing themselves! im pretty sure those guys dont have showers in their houses so thats why its sad. we are so fortunate to have showers in our homes! One thing im really grateful for is, that those men atleast wear pants when they shower! haha Our last P-day it started to rain like crazy so i decided to try it out. It was pretty fun! I have pictures! The town here is a big mixture of very rural areas and rundown areas to pretty urban and industrialized, this place has an awesome sense of charm and culture though! I love it and i cant tell how awesome the people are, i cant wait to be able to get to know them better and express myself better when i can speak better portugues so i can tell them how important and how much the gospel can bless their lives. Be so grateful for what the Lord has blessed you with like showers! We ran out of water in our house for like a couple days so i learned to really running water and showers. i didnt rain during those days! So during those days we had some stored water that i had to use to fill up a bucket and use a like a pail to shower myself, also to use our toilet we had to walk back and forth with a big bucket of water to fill the toilet so it was able to flush! so yeah appreciate the little blessings in life! My typical day so far im getting up at 6 o clock every morning to study portugues until seven. then an hour of personal study like reading the Livro de Mormon until 8. then estudo companhero until 9. i really love my companion! he is hilarious. even though we cant really commicate to each other very well i feel like we are the bestest of freinds. and we are guys right, who needs to talk haha. He was baptized into the church when he was 12 years old and only his dad in his family of 7 are members. I really admire his decision to serve also another elder named elder Julio dos santos, who lives with us with elder Morriero, is the only member in his family and he decided to serve. I really admire commitment and thier desire to be an example. from 10 o clock til 12 is tracting! then almoƧo or lunch which is usually always with a member! I have given a couple spitritual thoughts! then after lunch starting from 2 and on is more Tracting! We are teaching so many people and handing out a lot of book of Mormons, but big problem that i have found here is. the people are nice yes, but they say yes to do something just to be polite, so its really hard to know whether or not they will actually follow through on thier commitments. We need to express more in our lives on how the gospel can bless their lives and they need to act on their faith. people here have a lot of faith, but they dont do anything about it....anyways we are always praying to be able to teach with the spirit more so they can be touched and realize what they need to do. I really love it here and am looking forward to teaching more! I miss you guys a lot and wish you all the best! Always be grateful! love, Elder Howell

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