Dallin's Michigan Mission Blog: Week 42

Well, this week didn´t go as well as I had hoped. I´ll start from the beginning. During the week, all of our appointments that we marked fell through. Stupid winter break. Everyone was too busy or not even home for the days we marked. Then there were the people who were kind enogh to say that they couldn´t mark anything because they didn´t know if they would have time. Well, that makes it just as hard. You pretty much have to pass every day, several times per day if you want to catch anyone here in São Paulo. We also had big plans for Sunday, but as we started working that night, Elder Arichichu got sick. Again. So we had to stop for the night, and we didn't get to do hardly anything that day. The temple dedication of Manaus was really cool. We also got to watch the cultural celebration on Saturday night, which was also very cool. So as for the celebration, I saw the celebration that had here in São Paulo a few years ago with President Hinckley and James E. Faust for the rededication of the São Paulo Temple. It was an incredible show with lots of different performances. The people of Manaus are a poorer people, so their show was rather small, but there was still a huge difference. The people here in São Paulo were celebrating a rededication, so it was fairly exciting for them, but the people in Manaus never had a temple nearby. They would travel 5 days by boat and bus to get to the São Paulo temple, most of them having to sell furniture and many other things in order to afford the trip. You could definitely see the difference in gratitude when the people in Manaus were celebrating this temple. At the dedication itself, President Uchtdorf dedicated the temple. When they went out to set the corner stone, he started off placing the mortar, he was absolutely hilarious. He sounded very satisfied with the mortar, almost as if someone was scratching a part of his back he couldn´t reach. Then he started passing on the spatula for everyone else to try and he seemed very excited for them all to try out the mortar. He called up some Brasilian kids as well and helped them out. Anyway, Elder Aricichu got sick and we had to call Sister Martins. He was having stomache pains, and she called the head of health over the Brasil Missions, and he ended up calling us. This guy diagnosed Elder Arichichu with really bad constipation... oh boy. So we went to the drugstore and bought some milk of magnesia and a ready-to-go enema. I handed him the enema, told him how to use it, sent him into the bathroom, and sat as far from the door as possible, dreading the words "Elder, I need help." Thank goodness he figured it out on his own.

This whole week rained really hard. On Wednesday, we were at the Stake Presdient´s house for lunch. Right after we left the message, the sky started falling outside, so the Stake President and his wife told us that we needed to stay just until the rain let up a little. While we were waiting, they had me tune their guitars, and then President Kutomi grabbed his clarinet and we played a few hymns together. I suppose it´s only kind of funny since you don´t know President Kutomi. He´s Japanese (with that name, clearly) and his personality is really different from most other people in Brasil. He´s just a funny guy.

Too bad about the minister at the baccalaureate. It sounds like he´s a little ignorant. Anyone who understands anything about our church understands that we are Christian. First off the name. The Book of Mormon´s cover says "Another Testament of Jesus Christ." And then there´s just the basic principle that all of our church is based around Christ and his Atonement. Maybe it´s the definition of Christians. D&C 131:6 - It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance. Many people here that I see are ignorant because they fear what they´ll have to change if they know the truth.

Well, that´s about all for this week. At least there were a few stories this time. I´ve got just a couple photos this week I´ll be sending now.

Here´s just a picture that Lawignia took of my face while we were at their house the other day.