Week 9

I've got a small package here I'm putting together to try and make it home for Christmas. It's got something small for everyone including Stephanie, and some extra small things from Brasil that we don't have at home. It's quite small. I'm trying to keep it cheap because the shipping will be the worste part. Also, I assume you guys finally sent that package. I'm not sure if CTR Clothing will send stuff straight to me, but I'm gonna need more of that Crystalux deoderant they have in about 3 months. I used it a lot before the mission.

I always forget to say happy birthday the week before. Thanks to Stephanie's calendar, I always know when one is coming up. Before the calendar, I had no idea when anyone's birthday was. I'm gonna need a new one soon.

It's summer here, and I thought I was gonna die, but it's been the best weather yet. Cloudy, and lots of rain. I've been using my sweet $300 rainjacket a lot. I love the rain because it keeps all the concrete cool and the air fresh... kinda.

As for my only 2 converts, they are solid. It's like 2 Stephanie conversions here. They both found the Gospel and grabbed on really tight. Ana, the mom, had just gone through a tough divorce she hadn't wanted, and she was always very quiet and looked so sad all the time. Now they seem so much more happy now and just looke brighter. Also, we just talked with her at church yesterday and she mentioned she wants to be married in the temple. I hope so much that she can find someone that she can do that with.

We just had a meeting with our ward missionary leader at this little lunchonette on Saturday. We figured it would be to check up, but really it was to teach us and help us make goals. It was really good. Then, afterward, he had us contact this older couple eating on the other side of the room, and they were very receptive and happy to talk with us. We scheduled to teach them this weekend.

My companion is obsessed with the song 创Love Story`` by Taylor Swift right now. He printed off the lyrics and guitar chords. He doesn't speak English very well and his accent is really thick and kinda nasally, so when he sings... it's not so good. I constantly help him get the rythm of the lyrics down, but he forgets quick and is fairly tone deaf. He reminds me a lot of our old neighbor, Daniel the way he pronounces his English; it's just that he's 19, not 10.

I havne't had many good exciting stories this week. I have noticed, though, that on the bus, if I'm standing up, most of the people's eyes are looking at me. I stick out a lot more than I thought I did. It's just that in the United States, any race is pretty normal, so everyone here looks normal to me (except for the black asian people, that's new).

Next door live the Zone Leaders. We have new ones. Elder Fagundes is hilarious. He speaks English well, and he loves to work out. We work out in the mornings a lot, and we've been taking weekly pictures on his camera to show the progress. There isn't much. My arms are a little bigger though, but usually we keep it simple so we're not too sore to work the rest of the day.

Anyway, I hope I answered everyone's questions this time. Have a good week. Get lots of stuff done. Pass your driver's tests if you have them. Don't do drugs.

Elder Candland