Patience

Hey Dad!

This week started out a little rough because I was way too hard on myself. When I left the MTC I thought I knew everything there was to know about missionary work. But come to find out, I actually knew very little, and I'm definitely still learning. My first day in my area was very interesting. We rode a bus out here from the mission home. When we got here I was expecting to have time to unpack and get situated, but my trainer had me grab my teaching materials and we went straight to a lesson. We taught a lesson to a 16 year old kid named Joao Vitor, and I had absolutely no idea what he was saying. I was able to teach the parts that I was supposed to, but I couldn't respond to his questions because he was using slang and had a completely different accent from the people the people in Sao Paulo. When we got back to our apartment I was pretty frustrated. Then, we had a lunch appointment with a member (lunch is the primary meal here) and she was pretty old. And the old people are nearly impossible to understand because they mumble and use a different dialect. I couldn't understand what she was saying and I was pretty quiet. At one point in the meal she asked me, and I don't know why I understood this part, when I was going home because I can't speak Portuguese. Needless to say, I was pretty frustrated. I was like were my last six weeks in the Sao Paulo MTC for nothing? But the next day, in my personal study, I read a talk by Gordon B. Hinckley about losing yourself in the work.  Over the next few days I committed myself to talk to everyone that I came across, which has helped me learn how people speak here and I'm learning so much day by day. I've honestly learned more Portuguese in one week in the field than I did in the MTC, so it's only onward and upward from here! 

My area is a very interesting place. Its called Jordao Alto. The living conditions are very poor, but it could be worse. Its made me very, very grateful to have grown up in the place that I did. Its very hot, and I already got a tan line from my garments through my white shirt lol. There's lots of hills (hence the name alto) and we do a lot of walking, but that's okay! It keeps me in good shape. The people are generally very nice and very religious. They love to hear about God and Jesus Christ, so its always easy to make new contacts on the street. As of right now we have 10 investigators, and they keep us very busy. I absolutely love the fact that I continue to grow every day in my ability to serve the people!

My companions name is Elder Villarroel. He's from Bolivia and doesn't speak any English, which is great because I'm always learning new words and bettering my Portuguese. He's an amazing guy. He's probably the hardest working kid I've ever met, which pushes me to work harder and be a better missionary as well. However, I can tell that he's not used to having very much. He only has 4 white shirts and 2 pairs of pants and almost never eats. The only time he eats is when we have appointments with the members, so most days he only has one meal. I always make sure to at least have a little something to eat before we leave the house and I always offer, but he never takes any. He's a great example to me and if he can do the work on an empty stomach, I can do it too.

I love you guys! I hope you have a good week. These pics are from the day before I left the MTC.  I will send more next week!

Elder Larkin

Mais Quatro Dias!!

Hey everyone!! I really don't have anything to report on this week. We learned a lot more Portuguese and we've been getting ready to leave for the field! For the rest of the week my district is only speaking in Portuguese. It's amazing to see the progress we have made from the beginning of our time here until now!

The spiritual thought for this week is found in D&C 121. President Terry taught about this chapter in a devotional. He taught that we all have challenges. But, we are all on earth to learn and grow, and our challenges are for our good. It might not seem like it in the midst of our challenges, but they will always bring us closer to Christ.

Sorry mom, I don't have any pics. Nothing new really happened, I'll have more pics when I get to the field!

Amo Voces!! Tem um boa semana!

Elder Larkin

Acai, O Livro De Mormon, Uruguay, And Everything In Between

This past week was so much fun! This week we got to try actual Brazilian acai! I'm sorry, but the acai I tried with the Shelley's doesn't even compare to the stuff in brazil lol. Our district is convinced it's the fruit from the tree of life hahaha. I don't think I've ever had anything quite like it and it was amazing!

On Saturday went proselyting. They took us to a giant square in the middle of Sao Paulo and simply told us to get as many referrals as possible. I was pretty nervous going into it, but as soon as my comp and I got going that all went away. I was able to understand everything the people were saying and we were able to share a message with most of the people we encountered. In total, we got 12 referrals in an hour and a half! That isn't even the biggest miracle that happened though. Just before we were about to head back, we found a Dad with his son, his son was maybe 8 yrs old. As soon as we told him that our message would bless his family, he gave us his undivided attention and the spirit was super strong. He had questions about the Book of Mormon, and I happened to have my Portuguese copy with me. I gave it to him and he immediately started reading, asking questions about the different books, the introduction, etc. I wasn't able to answer all of his questions because we simply didn't have the time, but I told him we would get him in contact with other missionaries! It was amazing how prepared this guy was to hear our message and all it took was having a conversation with a stranger. 

It's amazing how receptive all of the Brazilians are of the gospel. They are all Christians for the most part and believe in Jesus Christ, so that makes it easy lol. While we were proselytizing, we also ran into a couple from Uruguay. We started to talk to them in Portuguese, and after about a minute or two I could tell that they couldn't understand what I was saying. Then all of a sudden, the guy says in pretty broken English, "I don't speak English or Portuguese! Nice to meet you!" It was all I could do to not crack up in front of him hahahaha. You can't win them all I guess.

You all probably heard about the shooting, and it was probably more dramatized than what happened, lol. All that happened was a crazy Brazilian guy who wanted to talk to the mtc president was stopped by the church security here. The security called the police and when the police got here, the Brazilian guy attacked the police, and the police shot him 8 times, which was kind of overkill. The police are like stormtroopers lol. The most amazing part about the whole deal was the devotional after the fact. President Terry called everyone together after it was all over and gave everyone a personal priesthood blessing all at once. He had all of the missionaries bow our heads, close our eyes and fold our arms, and by the power of the priesthood, he gave a blessing of comfort and safety to our families and us. He also said that as long as we are on the Lord's errand and keeping his commandments, we don't have anything to worry about. As long as we are living faithfully, we will always have His protection.

I also CANT WAIT to get to the field. I love all of the people here, but doing the same thing everyday gets pretty old haha. 

I love you all! I hope you all have a good week!

Elder Larkin