This week was SOOOO
crazy. So much change!!!! I got transfered to a new area called Vila
Prudente in the BIG CITY of São Paulo as the senior companion. My new
companion is Sister Lima from Recife, Brazil. I think President put us
together because of our size. haha. both short short short... I´m so
excited to be here because I had an experience in the MTC where I met a
girl from Brazil thats studying at BYU that was participating in TRC
where we teach actual people and try to learn about them and what they
do and what not. Anyways she wrote down the names and addresses of her
family when I told her I was going to serve in Sao Paulo. She didnt even
know what mission of Sao Paulo they lived in, but she told me if I
served in the ward of Vila Prudente to go visit them and try to help
them join the church and be baptized. I had completely forgot about her,
but the week before transfers I found the paper that she had written
down everything and where else does her family live but Vila
Prudente?!?!?!?!?! I´m excited to go visit them and try to help Samanta
and her family!!!!!!!
This week was so busy and crazy.
Being in the city is A LOT different that São Jose dos Campos because
their is SOOO many people and so many cars and so much pollution and so
much business and craziness. The ward here in Vila Prudente is HUGE and
has a lot a lot of people really rich and affluent in the church. One
member just got called to be a mission president in a new mission that´s
going to be opened in July here in Brazil. Another member is a professional piano player and he plays in sacrament meeting with all
sorts of cool and beautiful renditions of the hymns. I´ve never heard a
piano player as good as him!!! It's awesome!!!!! Our Area is HUGE. It
includes a lot of really rich neighborhoods, but also includes a lot of
really really poor neighborhoods. It was an interesting experience
because for the first time I entered something that they call a Favela.
Kind of like the projects, but its like little streets with a bunch of
huts piled together with a bunch of people living in small spaces.
Look it up on Google!!!!!
A lot happened in the short week
that I´ve been here. A lot of really GREAT things!!!! We had a wedding
on Saturday and baptism on Sunday which was cool because the sisters
have been working with this couple for about 6 months now so that they
could divorce from their other spouses to get married to baptize Fabio
(samanta already is a member) Just like Adriana and Donizete in Morumbi.
Fabio is so AWESOME and I know he is going to be a great leader in the
Church. The Wedding was BEAUTIFUL. Samanta looked like a princess and
Fabio looked like a prince. The Baptism was also really really special.
The members here love him!!!!! I felt the spirit more strongly than I
had in a really really long time!!!!!!
Another miracle that happened this
week is that we had worked so hard the day of the wedding and heard 5
people repeatedly say to us: look, we really think you guys are really
nice and we like you but we already have our own religion. But.... we
kept going strong without getting discouraged and on our way to the
wedding someone called: SISTERS!!! It was a member that lives in our
area, but goes to a different ward. She was with her nieces and nephew
that haven´t been baptized and she explained that they had been going to
church in the different ward, but that they had been wanting to take
the missionary discussions and be baptized!!!! and the next day they all
came to our ward and we´re going to start teaching them this week.
Heavenly Father really prepares people and puts them exactly in our
path. WOAHHHHHH!!!!!!!
I miss MORUMBI a lot more than I
thought I would. It was hard to leave my first area I cried a lot
because I love the members and my recent converts SOOO much and I´m sad
to miss Adriana and Donizetes wedding and baptism, but I´m really really
happy to be here in Vila Prudente and even though its a lot of work and
more stress than I´ve ever felt in my life I know that it´s exactly
where I´m supposed to be and I know that I have a lot of work to do
here!!!! I LOVE YOU ALL
Desi
