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May 31, 2010
I don´t know how it is for you, but here time just flies by. We got to baptize Igor yesterday! But the baptism has a very interesting story. Elder Lima and I drained the font so we could clean it, because here, they don´t drain it after each use. So we drain the font only to find out that for some reason, the church has no water!!! So the font remains empty and the church has no water as I type this. So you are probably wondering how we baptized Igor with no water? Swimming pool! The bishop of the neighboring ward´s father owns a school or runs a school with a pool that we used for the baptism! And guess who got to do the baptizing??? ME! So I had to climb in the little pool and stuff! I did it perfectly in Português the first time, and he was completely under so it took only one try! So my first baptism was Igor de Souza Nascimento. (sp)
The second Sunday was just more walking, more than normal though. The sweat is just kind of a normal thing now. haha. But I am getting my tan! I am using my hair gel because it’s always windy here so my hair kind of goes all over the place. It has rained here pretty much every night for the last week and a half and today I had my first thunderstorm. It lasted from like 8:30-12. And of course, I do quite honestly think the conditions here are not as bad as that one lady from your work said. I have probably seen less cockroaches here than at the CTM. Mom, I have so, so much time on my P-Days. Sometimes I have to find stuff to do, so I have plenty of time for letters! Plus, I have not received a letter in like 1 month? not really sure. And before I forget!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOGAN!!! I will make sure I celebrate tomorrow by buying some ice cream!!!
The only thing I have to say to you dad about the ward and stuff, is make sure your ward missionaries are working, and that you have a good home and visiting teaching program. Also make sure all converts have home teachers. Without being wrong and saying bad things, the ward here does not have good programs which is hurting Elder Lima and I´s work. Also you should feed the missionaries sometime! Quite honestly the baptism was the biggest event of the week. Everyday consists of heat and work and walking! As you may have noticed, we did not accomplish our goal of 6 baptisms this past week, that´s because our other 5 failed for unseen reasons... However, we set our goal at 6 again for this week. So we shall see how that goes. Elder Lima and I may actually be getting the apartment to ourselves and Elder Cooper and Elder L. Lima may move to an apartment in the building next to us. But we are still waiting for the ok from Presidente Batt.
Well I miss you all, but time here is just flying by. Only four more weeks and I may be somewhere new. Sorry if there are many errors, this keyboard I am using barely works, I have to pound on it and like hit keys multiple times just to get the desired letter. Miss you all! Talk to you again next week!!!!!
Monday, May 31, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
May 24, 2010
Hey!!! So my p-days are now Monday. And I now have an hour to email.
So I am currently in Guadalajara, Fortaleza, Ceara. My trainer is Elder Lima, a Brazilian from Sao Paulo. He is the district leader. We live in a small apartment with two other Elders, Elder Cooper and Elder L. Lima. When I arrived, the apartment was a dump, almost unlivable. But after many prayers on my part, God inspired the other Elders to clean. So we spent the whole morning cleaning. I spent 1-2 hours in our tiny bathroom scrubbing everything from top to bottom. It is very, very warm here... I have sweat more in the last week than I ever have before in my life. The nights are nice though, I just lay there. No blankets, no sheets, and a fan! haha. I have met a lot of people, and just like everywhere in the world, some better than others. The ward is a little small because retention is not the greatest. It’s kinda weird to adjust to the culture due to the heat. Almost all the men here just go shirtless at home. The women wear about as little clothing as they can. I mean it is not horrible, but definitely different, and then all kids (little kids) just wear underwear. So basically everyone wears about as little as they can. The best time to work is at night though, because it is cooler. My first night here, we put my luggage in the apartment, I showered, changed into my other clothes, and we went out and taught a lesson.
Tonight, or in an hour or so, we are going to play volleyball with some people, because that is what they do on Monday´s or something. Only thing is, it’s outside, so it will be hot, but I will just have to deal with it. I have slowly developed or am developing a tan. I wear sunscreen every day, so I am sort of working into it.
On Saturday night, we were supposed to have a baptism of a 9 year old boy named Igor. On Saturday morning we did a division and Elder Cooper and I went to his appointment and Elder L. Lima and Elder Lima (funny, huh) went and interviewed Igor. Then Elder Lima and I walked all over our area getting ready for the baptism. We did not have a key to the font so it was going to be a really difficult and funny baptism. So, I was supposed to be the one to perform the baptism, so all week I had been preparing and practicing the baptism prayer in Português. We had the font ready, because they apparently do not drain the font every time, but Igor and I were going to have to climb over the railing into the font to do the baptism. Anyhow, I had all my clothes and towel and everything in my backpack and we went to get Igor and his mother, and we met up with a woman who I think was his aunt on the way to their house and she said that Igor’s father had just gotten home from like traveling and that the baptism was off for the night or something. So, no baptism. Haha,. But I got a lot of good exercise. We are hoping to get 6 baptisms this week! So we shall see what happens.
About two weeks ago I got a letter from Ashley Hamilton, one of my most favorite letters I have received yet. Anyhow I had not been able to reply until the plane ride, and then I could not mail it till today, so let her know it is on the way. I also sent a letter to Rick´s family. P-Days in the field are so much better, you have time to actually do things, and get things done. It is fantastic. Which reminds me, before I forget. The address you have is for the old mission homes address. So here is the new one…
Elder Jordan Wahl
Missão Brasil Fortaleza
Av. Santos Dumont 1789 Sala 1612
Ed. Potenza, Aldeota
Fortaleza-Ce
60150-160
Everything should be sent there, because the mail system here in Brasil is very, very unpredictable, so I could end up transfering before I ever even got mail. So send everything to the mission home. This means you need to update the blog, because it has the wrong address.
I am so excited to hear where everyone is going!!! I will hopefully do pictures in the next two weeks. But we shall see. It can get a little spendy sending things to the U.S., but it is definitely do-able. Hey, you should all watch some of the world cup that is coming up in June! Logan, If you want to know what a big deal is here, it is all about this upcoming world cup. If Brasil wins it, it will be time number 6, the most out of any country. Apparently everything is going to just come to a stop... so we will see how the missionary work turns out. Since the world cup only happens every 4 years, none of the missionaries or mission presidents were here last time, so we aren’t sure what to expect.
Well I miss you all! Hope you are all doing well. I have to spend a little time now emailing President Batt. Love you!!!
Hey!!! So my p-days are now Monday. And I now have an hour to email.
So I am currently in Guadalajara, Fortaleza, Ceara. My trainer is Elder Lima, a Brazilian from Sao Paulo. He is the district leader. We live in a small apartment with two other Elders, Elder Cooper and Elder L. Lima. When I arrived, the apartment was a dump, almost unlivable. But after many prayers on my part, God inspired the other Elders to clean. So we spent the whole morning cleaning. I spent 1-2 hours in our tiny bathroom scrubbing everything from top to bottom. It is very, very warm here... I have sweat more in the last week than I ever have before in my life. The nights are nice though, I just lay there. No blankets, no sheets, and a fan! haha. I have met a lot of people, and just like everywhere in the world, some better than others. The ward is a little small because retention is not the greatest. It’s kinda weird to adjust to the culture due to the heat. Almost all the men here just go shirtless at home. The women wear about as little clothing as they can. I mean it is not horrible, but definitely different, and then all kids (little kids) just wear underwear. So basically everyone wears about as little as they can. The best time to work is at night though, because it is cooler. My first night here, we put my luggage in the apartment, I showered, changed into my other clothes, and we went out and taught a lesson.
Tonight, or in an hour or so, we are going to play volleyball with some people, because that is what they do on Monday´s or something. Only thing is, it’s outside, so it will be hot, but I will just have to deal with it. I have slowly developed or am developing a tan. I wear sunscreen every day, so I am sort of working into it.
On Saturday night, we were supposed to have a baptism of a 9 year old boy named Igor. On Saturday morning we did a division and Elder Cooper and I went to his appointment and Elder L. Lima and Elder Lima (funny, huh) went and interviewed Igor. Then Elder Lima and I walked all over our area getting ready for the baptism. We did not have a key to the font so it was going to be a really difficult and funny baptism. So, I was supposed to be the one to perform the baptism, so all week I had been preparing and practicing the baptism prayer in Português. We had the font ready, because they apparently do not drain the font every time, but Igor and I were going to have to climb over the railing into the font to do the baptism. Anyhow, I had all my clothes and towel and everything in my backpack and we went to get Igor and his mother, and we met up with a woman who I think was his aunt on the way to their house and she said that Igor’s father had just gotten home from like traveling and that the baptism was off for the night or something. So, no baptism. Haha,. But I got a lot of good exercise. We are hoping to get 6 baptisms this week! So we shall see what happens.
About two weeks ago I got a letter from Ashley Hamilton, one of my most favorite letters I have received yet. Anyhow I had not been able to reply until the plane ride, and then I could not mail it till today, so let her know it is on the way. I also sent a letter to Rick´s family. P-Days in the field are so much better, you have time to actually do things, and get things done. It is fantastic. Which reminds me, before I forget. The address you have is for the old mission homes address. So here is the new one…
Elder Jordan Wahl
Missão Brasil Fortaleza
Av. Santos Dumont 1789 Sala 1612
Ed. Potenza, Aldeota
Fortaleza-Ce
60150-160
Everything should be sent there, because the mail system here in Brasil is very, very unpredictable, so I could end up transfering before I ever even got mail. So send everything to the mission home. This means you need to update the blog, because it has the wrong address.
I am so excited to hear where everyone is going!!! I will hopefully do pictures in the next two weeks. But we shall see. It can get a little spendy sending things to the U.S., but it is definitely do-able. Hey, you should all watch some of the world cup that is coming up in June! Logan, If you want to know what a big deal is here, it is all about this upcoming world cup. If Brasil wins it, it will be time number 6, the most out of any country. Apparently everything is going to just come to a stop... so we will see how the missionary work turns out. Since the world cup only happens every 4 years, none of the missionaries or mission presidents were here last time, so we aren’t sure what to expect.
Well I miss you all! Hope you are all doing well. I have to spend a little time now emailing President Batt. Love you!!!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
So just to let you know real quickly. My P-Day is now Monday, so it will be a little before I can actually email again. But I have made it to Fortaleza. I had no issues, all my luggage was under weight so it was good! We have eaten and are just waiting for an orientation meeting and to get assigned. Three of us will apparently be taking another 8-9 hour bus ride to the interior, I believe, so we just have to wait and see! Love you all! Talk to you all in a bit!!!
Elder Jordan R. Wahl
Elder Jordan R. Wahl
Sunday, May 16, 2010
May 11, 2010
Well, today was my last time going through the temple for the next two years, since I leave next Tuesday for Fortaleza. And I can’t remember if I have mentioned that my mission, Fortaleza, is for real the best baptizing mission, or at least it´s at the top. I will tell you real numbers in a week or so but everyone says we will basically stand in the font and just baptize. haha. We shall see. I have a lot to say about my recent proselyting experience this past Friday so I will send it in a mission ties. I know I still have to write Rick´s familia back, so no, I have not forgotten but I will most likely do that when I am in the field and have some real time to actually write them. Just another reminder to check my bank account and make sure it is ok because I have needed to use it so just make sure it is ok. I actually am supposed to teach my Brazilian companions English because without Ingles they can’t go very far here. So much depends on where I start serving next week but from what we understand we will all be fairly close to the mission home, so we shall see. TAKE CARE OF MY TROMBONE!!! Someone please care for it!!! When does Logan plan to get his Patriarichal (sp) Blessing? And you will only have to wait a little bit longer for pictures!!!! I love you so much!!! Thank you all for all the prayers! Hope to hear from you soon!! Miss ya!!!
Well, today was my last time going through the temple for the next two years, since I leave next Tuesday for Fortaleza. And I can’t remember if I have mentioned that my mission, Fortaleza, is for real the best baptizing mission, or at least it´s at the top. I will tell you real numbers in a week or so but everyone says we will basically stand in the font and just baptize. haha. We shall see. I have a lot to say about my recent proselyting experience this past Friday so I will send it in a mission ties. I know I still have to write Rick´s familia back, so no, I have not forgotten but I will most likely do that when I am in the field and have some real time to actually write them. Just another reminder to check my bank account and make sure it is ok because I have needed to use it so just make sure it is ok. I actually am supposed to teach my Brazilian companions English because without Ingles they can’t go very far here. So much depends on where I start serving next week but from what we understand we will all be fairly close to the mission home, so we shall see. TAKE CARE OF MY TROMBONE!!! Someone please care for it!!! When does Logan plan to get his Patriarichal (sp) Blessing? And you will only have to wait a little bit longer for pictures!!!! I love you so much!!! Thank you all for all the prayers! Hope to hear from you soon!! Miss ya!!!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
It´s nice to hear from you!! You all need to actually use the mission ties you signed up for! I got the one letter from mom and that's it! And now that I said that watch there be one there tonight! I got the letters from Rick´s family but due to the number of people I have to write back in that family, I haven´t had time to write them all! And once I finish all the letters I will send it! So I bought a bible today with my card so just check to make sure I have money there and stuff. I leave on Maio 18, 2010 so make sure everyone knows that everything right now should be sent to the mission home address and not the CTM. Also, I’ve taken a bunch of pictures of the building for you all to see where I spend almost all my time! I can´t take my camera out of the compound so no pictures of the people or the streets. The language is starting to come a lot easier the last few days/week so that's good. I am still really worried about the fact that I will be on my own with a companion that may speak zero ingles in like less than two weeks! My best Brazilian friend left today for his mission here in Sao Paulo. The CTM is actually in his mission so his mission president picked him up here this morning. His name was Elder Melo. He was the funniest Brazilian I have met yet to date. I love him! So I have his contact info and pictures! Once I get to the field I will hopefully be able to send pictures home! I am like almost out of cash because I haven´t used my card yet, but I can´t go to a bank or anything so I´m glad I only have like one more P-Day to even need it. Today is a rather hot day. I won´t get to call on mother’s day because I´m at the CTM, but we all think our mission president may let us call once we get there because it´s like a week after but I don´t know. I had some really good food at this place up the street it was amazing! Tell Logan to write!!! So I may need you all to send me some stuff once I get to the mission field, but I am not totally sure on what I need so I want to make a better list before asking for it. One of our instructors came to the temple with us today with his wife and he brought his camera and he said he would email the picture home so hopefully you´ll get a picture! I will ask him about it more next time I see him. So have you finished Logan´s room??? haha I´m trying to use up some of the stuff in that one suitcase to make room for all the new stuff I have received in here! haha We get to go proselyting again this Friday but we head downtown this time, which we hear is much, much harder, but still easier to find people. I miss you all! Let everyone know I love them!!! Give everyone a hug! Be happy! Smile!
Sunday, May 2, 2010
It’s been raining a bit here for a while. Let’s see, we went proselyting this past Friday. We walked all over our area! I’m getting some really nice muscles. We were out for about three hours and we probably walked 3 or more miles! Our district as a whole placed 46 Books of Mormon. Elder Eyre and I placed 6 ourselves. So who knows how many of them will read and want to know more. We go again in two weeks but we will go downtown for that one. It started to rain for the last thirty minutes of it so we got really, really wet. It was a ton of fun! We placed five of our six in fifty minutes.
Elder Nelson also came last Thursday! It went well, we sounded good when we sang. We all had the opportunity to shake his hand before the meeting started. I have only like 3 weeks left here in the CTM. Time goes by so fast. I’m still making good progress reading through the Book of Mormon and the Bible.
I still have not received any mail since getting Kendra’s letter. Just thought I would let you know because Mom wants to know when I receive letters. Have you been posting my letters home on the blog? And thank you so much for Tristan’s email. I am going to email him today.
It’s hard to come up with exciting things to say while here in the CTM porque we do the same thing everyday. The most exciting thing to happen the last few days has been that the scriptures have been coming alive! It’s hard to actually know what to mark because everything is so important. I don’t know if I mentioned already that Elder Jones from our stake came down here a week or two ago so it was nice to see another familiar face! My clothes have been holding up really good. I haven’t had many issues if any. Well I am sorry it was short yet again, but in a few weeks things should really start to get exciting! I love you all!!! Give my love to all my friends and familia!
Elder Nelson also came last Thursday! It went well, we sounded good when we sang. We all had the opportunity to shake his hand before the meeting started. I have only like 3 weeks left here in the CTM. Time goes by so fast. I’m still making good progress reading through the Book of Mormon and the Bible.
I still have not received any mail since getting Kendra’s letter. Just thought I would let you know because Mom wants to know when I receive letters. Have you been posting my letters home on the blog? And thank you so much for Tristan’s email. I am going to email him today.
It’s hard to come up with exciting things to say while here in the CTM porque we do the same thing everyday. The most exciting thing to happen the last few days has been that the scriptures have been coming alive! It’s hard to actually know what to mark because everything is so important. I don’t know if I mentioned already that Elder Jones from our stake came down here a week or two ago so it was nice to see another familiar face! My clothes have been holding up really good. I haven’t had many issues if any. Well I am sorry it was short yet again, but in a few weeks things should really start to get exciting! I love you all!!! Give my love to all my friends and familia!
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