Well. That's that.

Its strange to think that its really all over. I hardly can comprehend it most days. Today was my homecoming talk in church. As most talks usually go, I didnt say anything how I had planned it. I think I was searching for some way to sum up the last year and a half.
An impossible feat. How can I explain why the past year and a half were the best time Ive ever had, or how its opened my eyes to so many things! How can I explain the feeling of watching a person pray for the first time? Or feeling the Lords protection 24/7 in the way that I did. How can I explain the beauty of Brasil? Or Brasilian culture? Or why it was so amazing to work with brasilian people? How can I capture the thrill of meeting new people everyday, and giving them that which has most value to me. The source of all my happiness? Or the satisfaction of putting your heart into the message and having someone accept it. Or seeing lives CHANGE. Seeing the glow in a person's face as they tell you about praying to know if the Book of Mormon is true.
Or the fun of getting to know each new area, ward and companion. The smells of the bakery on the corner. The sight of the incredible sunsets of Janauba!!! Ha, or even kissing everyone (well all the girls that is) on the cheek to say hello and goodbye. Bringing investigators to church, and conferences!!! And just learning something priceless from every single person and every single experience!
There arent words to capture all that!
It seems like a dream most days. Ive wanted to serve a mission practically my whole life. I remember when I was about 5 years old, and thinking about all the reasons I wanted and needed to serve a mission. It wasnt anything I thought it'd be. It was WAY better- in that I learned SO much more than I ever imagined I'd learn.
Plus I learned portuguese- proooooooooobably the most beautiful language ever..
I was SO sad at the thought of leaving the mission, brasil, everyone I had grown to love, the culture I had acustomed to, and the incredible feeling of knowing youre doing something right. Getting on the bus to go to the airport I just couldnt comprehend it. I was seriously in denile! I kept saying, " I think its just a transfer guys.. yeah, Im pretty sure Im just getting transferred.. "
Ha, or when I wasnt trying to convince myself I was getting transferred, I kept saying "They can't just kick me out of brasil! They can't just send ME home! Thats ridiculous!" haha, oh my..
Anyway, getting off the plane and walking into the airport in SLC was probably the biggest adrenaline rush Ive ever had. I wanted to bottle that feeling and/or moment.

So here I am. Im excited for life, but still missing the one I just left. They say thats normal.
Im so happy though. On the list of the millions of things I learned on the mission, is how to be happier than I have ever been.

sou grata para sempre.

Hugging my mom for the first time in a year and a half!!
*awww.. sniffle*
matando as saudades do irmaozinho
sooo much happy all in one place..

My welcome home cupcakes! Yes, that IS batman, thank you very much!!! XD

Hiya!

Well!!! This week was an adventure!! I got a phone call on monday saying that I had to be in Belo Horizonte on tuesday at 8am... hmmSo, we made all the (SuDDEN) arrangements, and headed to BH.The cool part was, that I got permission from the Pres. to sleep at the sisters house in Alvorada- which was my first area on the mission!!! I only saw a couple streets because we got off the bus, went to their house, slept, then got back on the bus- but still, it was REALLy cool to see my first area. A LOT of memories came rushing to my mind, and I realized I´ve come a long way. If anything, just in the language (haha)!
Then I went to renew my visa, and I got to see a couple of the elders that were in my district in the MTC! Seriously, this week has been a never ending memory lane! But in a good way.Monday as well I had an interview with the President, and I learned a LOT of important things from him. Though hard to really sit down and explain them all, suffice it to say, Im grateful for inspired leaders.
So I was sitting waiting at the federal office for the rest of the elders who were renewing their visas, and an elder turned to me and was like "so, youre going home huh." I was like "I guess" and he was like, "how many days do you have left?" and I was like "I dont know." But he didnt believe me that I didnt know- and I honestly didnt!!!! But he- being seriously trunky, decided to count FOR me. T.TBut I didnt let it get to me. Im working hard to make the very most of every single day- the end will come when it comes, but for now, I just want to work.Anyway, things are going really well though, here in Divinopolis! It rained yesterday XD delicious...And today being pday is nice- but I have a million things to do, SO I´m going to run. :)
I love you all!!! Thanks for all the love and support!Danny I got your letter, but if I sent a letter back, it would get home after me so.. I´ll respond via telephone? or if youre in utah I´ll just see you.Okey dokey! Até mais! -sb

bloggy blog golb

Hey! Well, what a week! First off the weather has been a rollar coaster of extreme cold and heat. It rains, and is freezing, then its super humid and hot. Fun huh? I know..
This week we´ve been trying to figure out how to work in just ONE neighborhood, because otherwise we waste a lot of time walking or taking the bus to places way too far. Its been fun. Since Luciene was baptized we don´t have to go over there EVERY day (we visit her, just not DAILY like it was.) so we´ve decided to work in a neighborhood called Mangabeiras. We have some cool people over there.
We also found a cool girl in Catalão. The crappy thing is that catalão and mangabeiras arent ANYWHERE near each other.. T.T oh well.

So the mission president decided that he doesnt want 4 missionaries living together anywhere. So, my companion and I have to find a new apartment. Yesterday we looked at a couple places, and being that I love looking at houses and apartments and things like that, I enjoyed it (she hated it) and we found an adorable little apartment in JUST the perfect place, and the perfect price! perfect size, perfect lighting.. everything perfect! Except it doesnt have an elevator and it has FIVE flights of stairs. Ok, that may not seem like a big deal to you, but at the end of the day, when you´re DYING and you can barely make it to the door- and then you have FIVE FLIGHTS OF STAIRS?!?!? Ninguem merece! Haha, so we´re searching for something better.. but we´ll probably end up moving there sometime this week. Bah! lame. I dont want to leave sis. Smith and sis. Morais :( Oh well. eu irei e cumprirei as ordens do Senhor..
Anyway, so yeah. Things are going well. Aside from the fact that I lost the key to our house.. bummer..
ok, well I love and miss you all tons. Meg, I already sent a response (snailmail) to the AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS and GIANT manila envelope of goodness you sent me, but I just wanted to let you know I got it. Thank youthankyou.. yesyesyes.
And Becky- mexican it IS my friend!
Michelle- Thank you for Sis. and Pres. Frei´s talks!!!! That was awesome! I love you!

Alrighty then, well, if you (yes you, who is reading this right now!) havent said a prayer today- do that. Right now.
Samething goes with your scriptures! I´m serious people, just like the primary colors are essential to make anything- the primary answers are essential to make salvation.

:) love love love love

blogggggggggggggg

Well helllooooo !!!
Another week gone by, and another bundle of miracles witnessed! After more than of a month of working with her, LUCIENE was baptized!!!!!
I LOVE this girl!!! And her baptism was so spiritual! She´s so fantastic! She´s one of my best friends!
Here are some pics.
This week has been adventurous. At one point this week my comp and I found ourselves in the middle of a field, trying to get across a river to make it to an appointment.. the river itself wasnt huge, but it was down in a little valley like thing. It was like 7-8ft down. I wanted to jump across, but she was like "Nem pense em pular. Eu não vou pular não.." (Don´t even think about jumping, I´m not going to jump that..)
so we found a little jimmy-rigged bridge and I started my way across it, but it was about as strong as a piece of cardboard.. so I jumped over (almost faceplanted it too, I might add...) then tried to help her across.
She made it as well, but she was like "THAT was your help? Your little pull wouldnt have done anything if that bridge had broken! The two of us wouldve fallen down into the river!" We laughed SO hard.
oh the adventures of being a missionary..

Anyway I´m going to go, but things are going really well. Here are some pics to make up for the lack of words here.. xoxo
Id explain, but I cant remember what number is which, so.. suffice it to say there was a zone conference, and it was full of friends. :)

Lucas 6:31--- you sent me pictures, I´m sending some back!!!

flávia´s baptism last week. er week before last? yeah. Anyway. It was a good day. After the stress stopped...

me and the girls in the elevator TODAY on the way to the internet cafe








me, shepherd (my companion a year ago, she came to visit us. She´s been home from the mission like 10 months now I think) reis (my current comp

myspace moment.

Suzie's arrival

Suzie leaves Brazil on September 30 and arrives in Salt Lake on October 1st.

bloggy goodness

Well! Yes, here they are, transfers again. Fun huh?So, last transfer my district consisted of:Sisters; smith, morais, reis and IElders; santos and martins.Now, with the changes of the transfer, my district consists of................sissssters: smith, morais, reis and I!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THats right! Not only was I not transfered, but no one in my house was either!!! WOOO!And elder Martins was transfered. Now its elder santos and elder araujo.I dont know him, but I´m sure hes a nice kid.When we sisters found out no one was getting transfered we all started jumping up and down screaming and hugging, and then our neighbors starting screaming with us.. haha it was funny. Not like "hey shut up!" but like "whooo hooo!" Our neighbors are funny. I dont actually know them too well, just from what they yell frm the stairway..anyway..This week was fantastic! Our wonderful, elect, amazing Flávia was baptized!! She seriously is amazing. She had a dream about sister Reis and I, as well as getting baptized. SO, she then asked a member (who is a friend of hers) to send her the missionaries. We went there, she accepted EVERYTHING, and was baptized! Its incredible how the Lord prepares people! I love her SO much! She´s so much fun. She´s a tiny tiny little girl. She was showing us all of her michael jackson stuff yesterday. She´s apparently a pretty big fan.So now sister Reis and I are on the hunt for new people to teach! We´ve met a few cool people, but after Flávia everyone seems uninterested and without progress... mostly because she was IDEAL.Anyway, things are going well.I gave a talk on sunday. It wasnt ANYTHING I had prepared. Funny how that always happens. Its funny, I can remember crystal clear all the talks I gave BEFORE the mission (there were 2..) but I´ve given so many here on the mission, theyre starting to all blend into one.Maybe thats because theyre ALL about the SAME thing.. a obra missionária.. haha. Pois é..Anyway, thats about all for this week.We´re still teaching Luciene- who I LOVE. She reminds me a lot of wendee, but I can´t put my finger on why. Her son is an absolute hellian, but I still love him..ok well, until next week!

for the blog!!!!!!!!!!

OOOOOOOOOOH my gosh!! I forgot to wish happy birthday to those who have had their birthdays over the past couple weeks! Ive been so bad at that, I´m sorry!But yes:
Jenn!!! I love you! Happy birthday! I´m so glad you´re in my eternal family! You´re amazing, and every time I see bob marly stuff I remember you and smile.
Lucas!!!Holy crap!! You are OLD!!! my mind breaks a little at the thought! I love love love you. You had BETTER be in the country when I get back- cause we have good times ahead of us! I have to catch up on your photography and amazing philosophies on life! Not to mention, I need to be re-introduced to the media, and who better than yourself to show me the movie-musicy-goodness that I have been missing out on?? Se Prepare.Ethan! How tall are you? I miss you so much! Listen, SOMEONE needs to teach me to cook, ok? Prepare yourself my little friend. my future familys meals are in your hands.. hahaBut seriously, I love you! Happy birthday!Eli:How are you!! Eli I miss you so much!!! I dont even KNOW what you are up to these days! but I love and miss you so much! Dont forget you love me k? Hey, are you still a vegitarian? Are you still playing tennis? or piano? luv youuuu..
And my deepest apologies if I didnt give a shout out to anyone who had a birthday these days..love love

liberdade e felicidade

oi!Well this week was awesome! The members of divinopolis II are FANTASTIC! They gave us a reference, and she is incredible! The two main people that we are teaching are:Luciene. She´s a single mom who lives SOOO far away. But she´s rad. There is a member here who taught her the first lesson while they were on a break (I love members who think theyre missionaries, they are the best.) and then invited her to go to church! she´s REALLY smart, and has a hellian of a child. But she´s been struggling a little this week, and we´re working hard to help her stay strong. We were teaching her and we asked her if she would get baptized, and she was like " I know I should, but I just worry that I won´t follow through with every thing." and then after a few more things explained she said "I know I can make it. I will. I´ll get baptized." It was so rad! She has been trying to quit smoking, and that same day she told us she had broken all of her smokes because she is done smoking! it was lovely.The other isFlaviaFlavia has a heart of GOLD. She just LOVES helping people. She says she will go anywhere to help someone in need. When she prays she prays for all of the people in the hospitals and people in need. Every prayer.She always says "if someone is hurting, I take that pain!!" She´s so sweet. And she has been accepting the gospel SO well. She is seriously a GEM to teach. She´s having her baptismal interview tonight. I´m so stoked.This week has been rad. I´m still enjoing thuroughly, living with the amazing sisters smith and morias, not to mention my amazing comp- REIS! love love love.Anyway, we went bowling last week. Yup, I still suck.alrighty then, até mais!love and miss you all. sb

Bloggy goodness

Hey, so I decided that I need to involve people more in the whole mission experience, so this week, I´m going to give an overview of the week. Fun? Maybe. ... but only maybe. Don´t judge me if its boring..
Since I write every wednesday, I´ll start from thursday:
Quinta:Was a relatively normal day. We got up, studied, and then ate lunch... at a restaurant (the members here live sooooooooo far away that usually they just give us money to eat at a local restaurant. Its fun. Less fun than at members, but there is usually more salad at the restaurant.. ??)We taught: Erica, some drunks in the street (??) and FABRICIA, who is one of my favorites, and Evandro. And a bunch of others just in the street. Fabricia is a cool story, she used to a CRAZY drug addict, and then lost EVERYTHING she owned, and realized that her kids lives were going to hell.. so she quit. Now she´s clean, but still is in the process of rebuilding her life. Its a sloooooooooow process but she´s receiving the gospel well. I´m pleased.SExtA:We taught wilson, rosalha (who really doesnt want anything..) and fernanda (who also, really isnt interested) Cristiane (she´s awesome) alex, and drunks in the street (faz parte)We´re teaching a cool girl named Luciene (SHE IS AMAZING!) who lives forever away, so we have to call her to accompany her. thats nice.SabaDo:Moniessssss for lunch again. We live in a good sized city though, so the restaurants are pretty good. $2,50, none the less..We taught EVERYONE about keeping the sabbath day holy (in other words GO TO CHURCH TOMORROW!!!) it turned out well.DOMingO:We have church at 3pm and so we have to eat lunch and then go to church . its weird. I like it, but this WHOLE time I´ve had this mindset of wake up at the crack of dawn to go get our investigators. I´m personally a fan of the current situation..It was good though, Luciene came, and I love her. Her son, however, is somewhat of a hellian, but I love him too. he is 4.SeguNdA:We had our weekly planning (which I love) and then all four of us went to the the bakery under our house to buy garbage, and then the whole way back up to our house we all said (while eating cake and other goodness) "I´m on a diet.. can you tell?" hahaAnyway, I´m noticing this actually isnt fun. SO I´m going to say, my week was great. I just now remembered that I had to do divisions with the other sisters THREE times, because FIRST sister Smith fell out of a mango tree and sprained her ankle, so I went with her comp to accompany their investigators, then she got better and HER comp fell in the street, twisting her ankle, so I had to go with smith 2 times. It was really fun actually. I love them both!It is sad, but pretty funny that the TWO of them sprained their ankles in the same week... hahaAnyway things are goo, I heard a cool phrase: Don´t keep the faith- SPREAD IT! haha and it has apicture of butter being spread on bread.. muahaha.Anyway, I´m in love with this area. I´m happy as can be! I love love love you all- sb

Life After Transfers goes on

Hello!well so much has happened, I dont know where to begin!! Transfers were last week, and those are always fun. I was transfered from Nova Cidade, Sete lagoas to Divinopolis, Divinopolis!Its funny, Nova cidade was like a forth of the size of salem- and Divinopolis is probably about the size of 2 or 3 salem´s put together.. its HUGE.I love it though! Its a city! Like, a real city!! (*have I been city deprived for the past year? I think so..) Its so fun! The contacts are harder because people are always in a hurry in big cities, but still. Fun. A new dynamic.ALSO! We have a new Mission President, so with him, a whole bunch of new rules. So far I´m not a huge FAN of the new rules, but I completely trust the Lord,and I trust that he was called of God. So, I accept these new rules. Again, change is part of the journey!Just before I left Nova Cidade, we had a miracle happen! I was getting sad because we were having a lot of trouble getting people to PROGRESS. And I started to feel like there wasnt ANY one in that area who wanted to hear the gospel! So I prayed fervently and fasted. I remember that one day in one of my prayers I said "Lord, where aRE Thy children who are READY to hear the gospel? Where??" and the next day at church, a kid showed up and said "I like how I feel here, and this is the only church for me. I know its true. I want to get baptized."Wow! So, we taught him (and had a few problems with authorizing him to baptize because of a crazy aunt of his, who actually didnt have anything to do with signing the baptismal form, but somehow managed to mess everything up.. just a little though.) and then *after all that with his aunt* he was baptized!!! It was so rad! And then he bore his testimony in sacrament meeting the next day! It was so simple and beautiful. I´m grateful for the opportunity to see God´s answers to our prayers.
Right now I live in an apartment with another pair of sisters!!! My companion, sis. Reis and I have the lower half of the city, and Sis. Smith (my former companion, whom I adore!) and her comp (and DAUGHTER, cause she´s training her!) Sis. Morais have the upper half- but we all live together. It is AWESOME. I love it. Sis. Smith is still insane, and it is lovely. She´s so much fun. We all sing all morning long!
I was reading an article this morning in the ensign that my amazingly awesome mother sent me (thaaaaaaaaaaaank you, it was the envy of every american, I´ll have you know) this morning and found this part particularly interesting:
"Our challanges, including those we create by our own decisions, ar part of our test in mortality. Let me assure youthat your situation is NOT beyond the reach of our Savior. Through Him, every struggle can be for our experience and our good. Each temptation we overcome is to strengthen us, NOT to destroy us. The Lord will never allow us to sufferbeyond what we can endure." -Rober D. Hales ("becoming provident providers temporally and spiritually")
I loved that part "each temptation we overcome is to STRENGTHEN us, not to destroy us!" our experiences can be what creates us, if we let it! IF we trust in the Lord. He knows how to use our experiences for our good! He knows how to illuminate our minds to make trials and challenges appear as the character-building opportunities that they are (or potentially could be.)I´m trying to put this all into practice in my life. Easier said than done, eh?But yeah, life is good right now. I´m loving every minute! Soaking in the present is how life is meant to be lived. The good and the bad have something of worth to offer. If only the exhilerating experience of feeling alive. I´m still, and continually impressed by the scripture in 2 nephi 2:26 that explains to us clearly that WE are free to choose. Our lives are ours to live- but the consiquences are what we need to be careful of! understanding the CONSIQUENCES of our actions is true freedom. God´s commandments are for exactly that. To teach us how to have the CONSIQUENCES that we want. Peace, security, wisdom, health, love- everything that we are all searching for in one way or another.Anyway, thats all for now, I love and miss you all tons.Até mais- com amor- sb

blogger stuff

Oh my! Time is such a crazy thing! We, as a district always set goals and things, and this week we were able to reach a bunch of our goals! Which sounds like such a little thing, but it was so rad! The most exciting was reaching our goal in baptisms! Its been so cool to see people so excited to receive the gospel.Things are changing quick around here. Next week our new mission president arrives, and our mission combines with a neighboring mission. Change is such a trip. There is always that internal battle- leave what you love to gain more? Or keep what you love and never see what else there is to offer?The mission really shows the importance of progression. Everyone loves the newly born phase of babies- but imagine if they REALLY did stay there forever! Someone was saying the other day that they saw on the news a girl whose body didnt progress at all. She was 28 years old and still had the body of a baby- but also only had the mentality of about a 4 year old. But yeah, i dont know if I believe it- it was a good source, but still, thats madness...Anyway, the point is, more often than not we have to leave our comfort zone to progress. Emotionally, Physically or Spiritually.Spiritually especially, because for instance:Someone who has never heard of the church and never had a habit of reading and praying and going to church is going to have to stretch themselves to do their best to .. cumprir.. these things! But as time goes by that person will have to work HARDER to still STRETCH themselves to reach a higher point of spirituality. Its a continuing progression.I lost my voice this week. The thought never crossed my mind that leaving something like my VOICE behind could help me PROGRESS! But in actuality, it has! Because its forced me to shut my mouth more, and forced my comp to open her´s more- so Ive learned a lot, and I think she has too! Its funny how we learn new things from the adventures of life. Anyway things are good. I miss you all!Happy Fathers day last sunday! I didnt realize it was until I got Christina´s blog.. so sorry I didnt send out those good wishes sooner! But I´m going to bite christina´s style and o shout out to: MY dad! Whom I love and adore! Thanks for being so wonderful Papi, you´ve really been such a big support to me. You´ve shown your love for me in a million ways, and it means so much to me! I miss you like mad!!!Also, to Russ! An amazingly patient and good man! thanks for being someone I can trust and confide in. I appreciate your sincerity and genuine concern for everyone around you. Your example has taught me so much!And MICHAEL! I´m so proud to have you as my brother- and when I see you playing with blake and taking care of your family, it inspires me to be a better person. Keep up the good work!Not to mention the upcoming dad IVAN! You´re going to be an awesome dad, I´m excited to see it all unfold!
As well as amazing father´s Ive had the opportunity to see in my lifeRick Rush!! I love your guts!!! You know you mean the world to me! Thanks for always being there when I needed you!As well as Ed liebing! Thanks for always making me feel like part of the family! You´ve been a great example to me as well.And Richard Dutcher! I miss seeing you be the amazing dad that you are to your kids! Watching the impact you had on your kids was such a rad and priceless experience, and I never will forget it!
I appreciate each and every single one of you!!!! Thanks for making the world a better place! Keep up the good work!!!
ok, until next week- though next week is the zone pday, so I dont know how much time i´ll have to write..
KLOVEYOUBYE

Hi!

Yeah, sorry about last week. We had some miscommunication with the girls (aka the other sisters in the zone) and somehow ended up not having enough time to email. I was really sad, but here I am still alive, so I guess it wasnt such a big deal.
So things are going as they go! My new comp is from Forteleza, and apparently they have pretty beaches there. That has nothing to do with anything, but i thought Id mention it. Tomorrow is zone conference and i´m stoked about that, theyre always good. and it´ll be the last with pres. frie, so that should be interesting.
I was studying about faith the other day and found a really cool phrase:
"True faith cannot exist without obedience. In the same way, true obedience doesnt exist without faith."
So, upon pondering this, I realized that striving to be more and more obedient is how one develops faith.
Sometimes we do the right thing for the wrong motive- but like it says in Alma 32, sometimes it starts out with just the DESIRE to know. Just the desire to do right. The desire to have the motive.
But the Lord is merciful and gives us everything we need. He gives us the very best. But it is VERY dependent on us doing our part. He is JUST. Perfectly just. something Ive learned here on the mission is that the Lord´s mercy ISNT Him MAGICALLY giving us what we don´t deserve- it´s Him giving us the tools and opportunities TO deserve that which we want and need. His perfection is incredible.
Anyway, things are going well here. The weather has been perfect. Slightly cold. Its fantastic. Everyone laughs at me when I´m wrapped up in my sweater and shivering because they all know that where I come from COLD is an entirely different story. But I´ve already adapted, so what can y´do?
oh, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Matthew this week!! And it looks like Chloe Dutcher had a birthday too! Oh my goodness she must be so big! Gwen! I miss your family, send me some pictures!!! xoxoxo
(lucas, i swear if i dont get a letter from you soon...)
Anyway, so yeah, life is good. I miss you all.
Até mais! -sb

aaaaaaaaaaaah transfers!

SO I have like 10 seconds to write this email, but yeah, so TRANSFERS were today! I´m still here in Sete Lagoas, Nova Cidade, but my amazing, incredible, lovable daughter was transferred. :( I miss her so bad already! But she´s like a 10 minute jog away, so im going to see her as much as possible.. muahahaThis transfer is going to be nuts though, because my current president is leaving at the end of this one, and the new one is going to come and visit and get to know everyone DURING this transfer. So we have a bunch of meetings and stuff. Its going to be crazy. Im excited though. Sad to see my mission president go though. He´s been such a help to me in my personal progression here on the mission.But yeah, so now everything is different because all my leaders in my zone changed. So that will be interesting to see. Not to mention my new companion, Sis. Alves! I´m stoked about that though, she seems like a really rad girl (from the 3 hours we´ve had together thus far..)So yeah. I have to run, but know that I love you all!! I´m really happy. REALLY really happy to be here. And SO grateful for the gospel in my life. Christ lives.-sb

Hey There

Okay, so this transfer is ending. Its such a trip how time can pass SOOOOOO fast and SOOOO slow all at the same time.This transfer has been amazing. I love my companion (and daughter) Sis. Aguiar. She´s ALWAYS happy. Always laughing.So the work is VERY enjoyable. We´ve had some struggles with the work these past couple weeks though, and have been trying to help the people that we love progress the way they want and need to.Today in my studies I found a BILLION things I wanted to share, but now I can´t remember them all. One thing was D&C 88:33. I dont remember why, but please do read it.Oh, but I was learning about virtue. I learned that the latin root of the word virtue is "Virtus" which means strength.There is an unexplicable strength in being virtuous. Its a real power and force against hard times and dificulties.
So yeah, I thought that was cool.My week has been a little crazy, I´m apparently still allergic to dust..But its been a good week too.OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH HEEEEEEEEEEEEYHappy birthday to Randy yesterday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOO!!! I hope you got my card and love.loveyouAnyway, so things are going well. My district and I have gotten into the kick of throwing leaves at each other when at all possible, but consiquently we are finding a TON of leaves in EVERYTHING we own. But it got me thinking about how much i love nature. Not that its great being covered in itchy leaves,but every once in a while its nice to appreciate nature. So there. Go. Appreciate nature. Summer is jumping out of spring, and there is much to be appreciated. Meg, if you didnt take pictures of the green on april 30th- go now. I want to see some green.Well, I´m not sure what else there is to tell. I love and miss you all. This church is true. I know it with all of my soul.- sb

We want Details

But things are going well. Since I talked to you like yesterday, there aren't a whole lot of new things to tell you.My testimony has been strengthened in a lot of ways this week though. I feel I am on a constant struggle to really understand faith and my own capacity to really trust in the Lord- but OH my goodness it is SUCH a rad process. One of the most gratifying things about the mission is how my eyes are opened to the reality of God answering His childrens prayers.Anyway, so upon my complaint about your lack of details concerning the family and life, and the little things and bigger things, I realized that Luke 6:31 is so true.So today Im giving details. Forgive me if theyre boring, (which is why I usually DONT put them) but I figure you dont put details in because you think Ill think theyre boring. But I want more. So Im giving more.
Today:I woke up and made pancakes. I put delicious yogurt (that an investigator gave us yesterday) on the top, and was pretty sure I was in heaven for a good 10 minutes there...Anyway, I studied from 7 to 8 (personal study) Which was really good. I re-read the article Danny Wilkins sent me (cast therefore not, thou confidence by Jeffrey R. Holland- so good)And lots of other things. It was very edifying.Then I had companion study. It was delicious. Sis. Aguiar is such a fun person. But shes also very inspired.So then the elders came by our house and we all walked over to the chapel and hung out with the rest of the zone. They all play soccer, and my comp likes soccer, but since I got beaned in the face last week, I decided that I would stay OUT of the soccer court today. It turned out well for me. I wasnt injured in anyway. I call that a success.Then some friends called me, and that was fun. OH and sister aguiar and I played on some swings and a giant wall thing (that was descriptive, I know). It was fun. Ill get those pics to you at some point. But not now. Sorry.Anyway, so now Im here.Isnt that facinating? Its ok to be jealous. But REALLY actually- you could be, because today was amazingly fun. Im very happy.I love you.Thats all.-sb

fisheyed photos in your black and white dreams have me dancing on the moon's silver gleam

Well, here I am again. Kicking at the lan house here in Sete Lagoas.
Im pretty positive this is my favorite place ever. A large part of it is the leadership here is fantastic. It makes my life a lot easier. I feel VERY blessed to be here.
The past couple weeks we've had some fun activities! Last week was a zone pday! It was fantastic because I got to see the other sisters who are far away (sisters;smith, batista and stevens) And we played fun games and music. One game was just ridiculous. There were 3 white shirts, 3 pairs of pants , 3 ties, and 3 belts. 3 sisters had a contest of who could dress up as an elder the fastest. It was hilarious. Then we had to IMITATE one. That wasnt my strong point.. but it was still SO funny. NOT as funny as seeing 3 elders dress up as sisters was though..
They even had to put on lipgloss! ooooooooh my. Ill send pictures when I can.
The work is going really well here!! I looooooooooove love love my ward. The ward members are all my best friends. There is a kid named Jorge who is EXACTLY like Matthew (my brother). He has the same mannerisms, and is strangly tall and strong for his young 16 years. he even has the same size hands (Matthew sent me a letter the other day with a tracing of his hand, and jorges hand fit PERFECTLY) he even has a squigly pinky on his left hand! The only difference is hes brown and matthew is white. But seriously. I love this kid. If only for the fact that its like hanging out with matthew. Some times I forget he[s NOT my brother, and I half expect him to pick me up and carry me around the way matthew did. But obviously, that wouldnt ever happen.

Anwyay, right now we[re teaching a REALLY cool guy named Jeferson! I LOVE this guy! He has jumped into the church with both feet! And is super excited for his baptism this saturday. Im so stoked to see this guy receive baptism. He has been SO prepared by the Lord. We're also teaching his daughter (who is married and lives in another neighborhood) and the elders are teaching his son Jackson (and his wife and kids.)
Its sooooooooooooooooooooooooo sweet to see families being taught. Its the best thing in the world.
Its weird to see time fly to fast though. It seems like Ive been here in Sete Lagoas forever- and at the same time, like I just got here yesterday.
We are teaching this guy named Cristiano who is super rad too. (ridiculously stubborn, but super rad). He plays almost EVERY instrument. He used t ohave a a cello, but he sold it just before I started teaching him (have I already told you all this?) But he said he is going to borrow it from someone so we can play together. (him on the violin, me on the cello.) I keep trying to tell him its been a loooooooooong time since Ive played - but I really want to play, so Im not going to discourage him from getting it >D
Anyway, I cant remember what Ive told you all already and not.
I know last week I didnt write anything, but I dont remember what I wrote the week before that (or even what happened... my life is always the same routine, so its hard to separate the different weeks)
But the point is, Im so happy to be alive, and here. The Lord is exceptionally merciful to me, and I am seeing it more and more every single day. ( a cada dia.. oh sorenson, if youre reading this, you have to know people are STILL making fun of me for that!! And I wrote you a letter, but I havent had a chance to send it yet. I LOVE YOU!!)
Anyway, I miss you all. Send me pictures. And thannnnnnnnnnnnk you thank you to those who have sent me letters- Im sorry its taken a while to respond. Like I said, Ive been short for time lately.
I wish you could all see sete lagoas. Its such a lovely place.
Ok well thats all for now. Im happy to be alive.
-com amor,
sb

She wrote this week! Yay!

Wow! So pretty much this is the most amazing zone ever. Every one here is like best friends! We do something EVERY pday! Unfortunatly for you guys, that means I´ve been short on time to write.But here´s the low down: SOU MAMÃE!!!! (Aka, I´m training) Yeah, my daughter was born last week. Here name is Sis. Aguiar! She´s from Curitiba!It´s such a trip, because she watches me teach and then says "wow mommy, I wish I could teach like you..." And I listen to her teach with her flawless portuguese and respond the same "wow, I wish I could teach like you.." hahaIt´s been really cool though, because the zone has been doing a lot to really get everyone more focused, and dedicated. My zone leaders Elder Paiva and Elder Leme are amazing leaders, so everyone is always really excited. And somehow everyone always ends up screaming "50!!!" Its fun. Its rad because there are 3 sets of sisters in our zone. So we have sleepovers. Its so freaking cool. Last one we had though we were fasting. I dunno, but 7 girls in one house and NO ONE can eat chocolate?It was rough.But worth it.Our conference was about pride. Which is a very profound concept. One worth talking about. It interesting the different ways that pride can be manifested- its so subtle sometimes. Its really cool to realize where progress is is needed and how to do it. Thats why I love zone conferences. Anyway, I guess what I´m trying to say is everyone has pride, but getting over it is SO worth it. And actually a really cool experience. So.. Go there.
And I just want to say that Im sorry if there is a shortage in letters lately, I really haven´t had time to anything anything anything. But I love you. Love love love you. All of you.And I´m sending lots of love and hugs. :DI´m sorry this email was so boring. I was trying to find a way to describe how awesome my life is, and the amazing experiences that I´m having- but I just can´t seem to put it into words. I really am sorry. I´m really happy though. If that makes anyone feel better. Im really REALLY happy.I love this work. LOVE love love this work.But yeah, Ive got to go. TCHAu!-SB

Conference was Rad

Well! Like every year, I have to go through my post-conference depression upon the realization that I have to wait another 6 months for the next one. But I find great comfort in that I can read the ensigns and relive the goodness..Conference was fantastic wasn’t it? I was only able to see Sunday´s session because all of the investigators that we marked for Saturday didn´t end up going. It sucked.But Sunday was incredible! A cool treat was that they had a room that was showing it in ENGLISH! So I got to watch this conference in English. That was rad. I miss the Prophet´s voice when I watch it in Portuguese. But it was a VERY intense conference. Its pretty clear that things are going to get worse before they get better, but we´re going to have lots of opportunities to pass through the refiners fire, so really its not a bad thing. We´re here on this earth to learn- and that’s what we have in front of us- the opportunity to prove ourselves and learn. I´m grateful we have the Gospel´s guiding light to lead us through the tunnel of dark ahead of us. Don´t fear it- just embrace the experience. That was what I got from the message anyway. On the 6th the President had the whole mission kneel and pray at 6:00 to thank the Lord for the Birth and resurrection of Christ, and the restauração of the Gospel! It was a REALLY really cool experience for me. Probably one of the best prayers I have ever had in my life. I am also OBSESSED with my companion Sis. Smith. She´s SO much fun- but more than that, she´s teaching me A TON. Its funny, you´d think I´d be the one teaching, being that I turned senior- but no. no no, she´s teaching me SO much. We did a division yesterday- which was fun, I LOVE sis. Santos, but I missed sister smith. It was only a division of 11 hours.. usually they´re 24..Anyway, she reminds me a lot of Christina. She´s obsessed with Africans and humanitarian projects. She´s spunky and fearless. I´m trying to be her. I haven´t succeeded yet, but who knows, maybe the transition is just hard for me to see… haha
We´re teaching a lot of good families right now, but WOW satan is giving us plenty of work. There is this one lady who EVERY weekend there are a million things that go wrong. They are all FREAK accidents too, so it´s not like we can say “so next week, what are you going to do when this problem arises, so you can go to church??” Bah.But that just goes to show how amazing she will be in the church, because satan REALLY doesn’t want her there.
Anyway, so things are going well. Today we´re going to make chocolate easter eggs. I´m excited. I´m wearing a shirt that says “ I can´t. I´m Mormon.” Cool huh? I get a kick out of it.
Anyway, so I hope that everyone soaked in general conference. Truly modern day prophets are one of the greatest gifts we have- please don´t take them for naught. Soak in every word! And apply it to life. I know that every single talk was exactly what our Father in Heaven wanted us to hear. He spoke to us! Its amazing!! Anyway, I love and miss you all! ****Go read the conference talks again!!****TCHÃO! sb
Ps- if anyone could get me mark johnsons address, that would be rad. I miss him. Also, if someone could hug ashley walton for me, and give her a big kiss on the face, that would be appreciated as well.

Out of Time

Suzie said she was out of time this week, but she will e-mail for reals next week. She is well and loving life.