The Week After Thanksgiving

December 3, 2010

Hello! Well, it's probably a good thing that you're getting two emails this week since this past week hasn't been too exciting. Plus I just used up a fifth of my time getting the email from last week sent! :) Anyway, enjoy:

Well, since the last time I wrote we've taught twice in Portuguese! Last Friday we had a makeshift TRC and taught members of our own District. It was quite good. I really enjoyed it. In fact, I was actually feeling pretty confident about our Portuguese skills...until yesterday when we taught in the actual TRC. First of all, we had to go contact people in a store. We had three investigators who spoke very quickly and with Brazilian accents. And they wouldn't stop talking! This would have been great except I didn't understand anything they were saying! I think I did buy a nice saia preta and got some free guarda-chuvas. Anyway. Then when we actually “tried” to teach them the first lesson, we found out they didn't believe in God or Christ and one was Buddhist. Phoo. So we spent the whole time trying to explain why we believed in Christ. At one point I was trying to get across the need for the atonement and I said we were subject to both sickness and sin in this life. Well! The woman had told us she was a little sick so when I said "doenca," I pointed to her. So, then I said "pecado" and, without thinking, pointed to the man sitting next to her. That’s when we just started laughing. It was kind of a disaster, but pretty funny. Anyway. Just be happy I'm still here. :) I have a lot of work to do.

Okay. Outras coisas. We had a great Fireside from Bro. Allen, who spoke to us our first Sunday here. He spoke about replacing fear with faith, which is something I really need to work on. He also stressed the importance of loving and serving others. He quoted someone saying that for many of us, our greatest test and challenge in this life will just be learning how to love others. I know that is most definitely something I'm striving for. Along those lines, Irmão Owen gave a sweet lesson on Enoch and his people. We focused on how Enoch sees Christ weeping for the wicked. At first Enoch can't understand it, but we see that our Savior really does love all of His brothers and sisters and Heavenly Father loves all His children. It reminded me of when Christ says that the whole have no need of a physician, but the sick do. Christ did so much for us, but He truly atoned for our sins and He desperately wants each of us (sinners) to come unto Him. I love this gospel.

Sister Beck spoke at the Tuesday Devotional! They announced it while we were at choir practice and all the sisters started freaking out. Que vergonha. It was an awesome talk though. She shared a lot of experiences about when she was growing up in Brazil, since her dad was a mission president. She really focused on just how much she loves missionary work. She told a cute story about how they would 'play missionary' and go contact the missionaries in the mission home. She said her father had to put a stop to it when her brothers tried to baptize her two-year-old sister in the font. :)

At the Devotional we sang “O Love that Glorifies the Son.” It was beautiful. I think it's hymn #295 in English.

Oh! We started singing Christmas hymns! Hinos de Natal! I love it. Portuguese is awesome and it's so fun singing in Portuguese. Though if you take a dozen young men and women who don't sing so wonderfully to begin with and ask them to sing in a different language...well, let's just say we close our door when we sing. Jota-cao.

Um...I've actually been running! We're allowed to get up half an hour early and go to the gym, so I've been getting up and running a few miles on the square; 10 lap equals a mile track. Not the most fun I've ever had, but hopefully it will keep me from getting (too) fat.

Everyone thinks I'm obsessed with floss. I lost my 18-month supply of floss (I think it was stolen from me!) so I made a little sign, which I will probably be sending home to you, in order to find it. Anyway, it didn't show up. But the other day, Sister Thayer came in with a present for me: a little container of floss. It totally made my day. Maybe I am obsessed with floss.

I'm sorry to hear the cold season is in full swing. It happens about every three weeks here. Luckily I haven't been sick since my second week. But I still have a couple more weeks for round two to begin.

Speaking of only having a little over two weeks left in the MTC (!), I would suggest that any who love me, send me some letters. :) Especially since it's cheaper and easier now.

Oh. I've really started to be glad that we'll be "Sisters" in Cabo Verde because when our teachers use "Irma" for us, it totally throws me off, since, when said quickly, Irma sounds similar to Emma. And I always look to see if they're talking to me.

I think that's about it. I love this work. I know it is God's work, and we're going out to find and teach God's children about the truth and gospel of God's Son Jesus Christ. I know that if we do His work in His way, we cannot fail! I love that! I'm really trying to put all my faith and trust in Him. He's done it all before and I know I can succeed with His help.

I love you all so much! I'm so grateful for you! Have a fantastic week!

Geronimo!

-Sister Brooks

PS Also, the place where we like to study has four pictures of some of the Whites’ sons. Awesome! Sis. Laimana and I are determined to have a picture of us in Cape Verde up on those walls!