Week 6: Hello from Victoria da Conquista

 My area is great and so are the people in it.  Ive enjoyed every time we visit and teach people, even though i cant understand half of what they are saying (sometimes even less than half haha)
My companion Elder Brito is awesome! im thankful to have his as a companion because i knowl that he is a good missionary. He is hardworking and fun at the same time and we have a lot in common. He always has a good attitude and he helps me when i need it.
My testimony has grown while ive been in my area.  I know that this gospel does truly change and bless lives. I know that Joseph Smith restored this gospel and we have current prophets that continue to lead and guide us today.
.   I love that we get to walk a lot and be outside! its a nice change from the CTM. Here in  Victoria da Conquista it is a lot different than what i saw in Salvador. Salvador is the 3rd largest city in all of Brazil and Conquista is definately not that. Here it isnt humid or very hot.I love the weather here because it isnt much different.  During the day it is very similar to Idaho. Even though its winter, its warm here. it isnt super hot, but it is warm and during the evenings and nights it gets pretty chilly but nothing that im not used to. the food is great. generally it includes rice, beans, meat, pasta of some sort, lettuce, and dessert. its actually really good and i havent had a meal that i havent like yet or that has grossed me out!

here´s a quick summary of my week.:

    On wednesday morning after i arrived in Victoria da conquista on an overnight bus, we dropped my luggage off at the house and went to the store to buy bread and meat for breakfast. after we went home and got ready for a service project. We got there and there was a huge and i mean huge pile of the kind of brick that they build houses with here. We moved the bricks from the pile outside to a new spot inside the walls of their property. There were 3,663 bricks! We didnt have time to move all of them but we got a big chunck done. Afterwards we had lunch at their house and it started to dump rain. After we shared a message and i beared my testimony and i felt the spirit so strong even though my portuguese isnt very good.
   We also teach a man named Alexandre. He is a big guy and he is really funny and nice. He has a huge scar on his left leg and no toes at all on the same foot.
Thurday and friday we continued to teach people and walk long distances. it  was great!
  On saturday we walked super far to teach an investigator. on the way we found a random horse that was tied up but got loose. we took the rope and walked it around a bit then kept walking.  just before we got there a lady from a different house yelled at us and motioned us to come over. Honestly i was a little scared because this place was already sketchy and there was a scary looking guy standing outside on the sidewalk leaning against a lightpole smoking a cigarette right in front of her house. She told us to come in so we did and it smelled really bad of cigarette smoke. but long story short she showed us some photos of when she was baptized a year of two ago. Then she showed us a picture of her son and she started crying. She said he went to jail today. We invited to come another day and share a message with her, set an appointment, then we left. Finally we got to the house of the investigator that we originally walked all the way there for and ...... she wasnt home!! elder brito misunderstood her when she called and said she was at her moms house not her own. So we walked all the way over there and she wasnt home, but i think we were supposed to make that mistake so we could talk to that elderly lady that obviously needed help in her life right now.
   Sunday was a good day too and church was great, but obviously not the same. I still could hardly understand anything. During sacrament i got to speak for about 4 or 5 minutes at the pulpit about myself, my family, and share a scripture and bear my testimony. After sacrament we went to a Gospel Principle class and i didnt understand anything. I only understood when i heard the word ´´gringo´´ then everyone chuckling and laughing. i just laughed along even though its a little annoying hahaha.  In priesthood they showd a 10 minute video, and during it a special needs man moved up and sat next to me. He scooted over on his chair closer to me so his whole side was against mine...that was a bit weird but i didnt think too much of it until he rested his head on my shoulder. Now it was a bit more awkward haha. He also put his hand on my knee and would always talk and say random nonsense stuff at the most inconvient times haha. After church we set a time to go talk to a pastor of a different church. Elder brito, the bishop, another man, and i are going to talk with him, because this pastor had been trash talking about our LDS church and the bishop. so we are going to talk to him this tuesday. Im pretty excited because i bet it will be interesting.
    So many other things have happened that i want to share but i dont have time to. I just want to say that im grateful to finally be here in my mission area and be teaching people  and learning everyday.

I love you all!

-Elder Hilton

Elder Brito (from Sao Paulo)

Just walking the streets

Flying from the CTM in Sao Paulo in to Salvador

Our kitchen

Our laundry room

Our closet.  Mine is the one in the suitcases

3,663 bricks

trying to exercise

I'm allergic to THAT!

these kids were super excited when elder brito told them i was from america. they would shout. Ele de Estados Unidos!! and they would throw me their basketball and have me shoot it into the garbage baskets across the street haha

 

getting picked up by the mission president and his wife

President and Sister Bangerter

my bedroom

a view from my apartment

Week 5: Último e-mail no CTM (last email in the CTM)

So first off I, (Ashley) have to tell you a funny story.....when McKay arrived to Brazil and he unpacked he couldn't find his suit coat.  That's why he is without one in all the pictures.  His mission doesn't require one but we sent him with one anyways.  When he unpacked he noticed his vacuumed sealed bags had been opened and gone through.  There was a sticker inside that read "official inspection".  Needless to say McKay figured his suit coat was stolen. Well this week I received a picture with him wearing his suit coat!  When I asked him where he found it, this was his reply......"it was in my shorts drawer!!!! i was so surprised and a ´´funny angry´´ when i found it.  it was folded up in my drawer just how i took it out. i thought they were my eddie bauer shorts because i have shorts the exact same material and the exacyt same color. yeterday night for sports i was changing and decided to wear my ´´eddie bauer shorts´´ cause i havent worn them once yet. i pick it up and said´´´ are you kidding me?!?`` this whole time for 5 1/2 weeks i had them in my dresser and i didnt know it:?!?!?! i had another typical Mckay moment. hahahaha. elder mafi and elder lloyd thought it was hilarious. but at least i had my jacket for my last temple trip!"  I am so happy he found it even though he will never wear it again when he gets to Salvador on Tuesday!  Haha.  Yes, Mckay is still an airhead and we can all chuckle at this! Here is his email this week:

My time here is almost up. Only 3 more days then tuesday morning i head out to to Salvador. I cant wait to leave the CTM after being here for 6 weeks! The days felt like weeks and the weeks felt like days. My experience has been great. ive learned a lot, made lots of new awesome friends, and have grown closer to the Savior while here. I cannot wait to help Heavenly Gathers children see their divine potential. Ive truly come to know that jesus christ  loves his people and suffered for each one of his people individually. ive seen Gods hand bless my life in abundance throughout my life and i cant wait to share those blessings with the people in Salvador. I know that God has prepared specific people that only I can share his Gospel with, and i know that as i open my mouth and trust in God he will manifest himself through the Holy Ghost and will pierce the hearts of those i share the Gospel with. I know that i have been called of god, through a prophet to bear witness of His divine plan, which is to live with him again. 

       I know that through my sweat, extra sweat, and more sweat ( cuz its hotter than where Satan lives... <---- inspired words by Elder Mafi), and hopefully not too much blood and tears, i will help the people of Salvador hear the Savior´s call to ´´Come follow me``. I know that as they hear the Savior´s call, their lives will change as they hearken unto his call. I know that this is true because ive followed Christs footsteps and have had to rely on Him.
    Salvador here i come!!

   some quick cool things about my mission in salvador south.. i met an elder whose father was the mission president a few years back. he said Salvador south is less poor than Salvador north mission. he also said, there are thugs!! but there are rarely problems because the thugs are friends with the missionarites because they respect missionaries!! i thought that was cool. he also said ill see mostly´´preto povo´´ (black people) and they are suupper nice!
     

Week 4

This week i read mosiah 3:19. the phrase that stuck out to me was ´´ Willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him,...´´ . What stood out to me was inflict upon  him. Usually we dont see the word ´´inflict´´ as a happy positive word, but after deeper thought, i came up with this analogy. When i was younger i remember taking piano lessons and strongly dislilking it. I remember trying to be dishonest on how long i practiced during the week so i didnt have to be on the piano as much, but as always, moms know the truth. i remember having to sit at the piano with a stubborn attitude, late at night to finish my practicing that i didnt do. i sometimes shed tears because i wanted to quit.
   Looking back on those experiences im grateful for parents who pushed me, and ´´inflicted´´ this upon me in my younger years, because now i love to play the piano more than anything else. i look back and realize how gratefull i am for my parents .that they paid and sacrificed for my piano lessons.
    Life is just like this experience. Throughout life we have have many things ´´inflicted upon us and times get hard but in the end we can look back and be happy with our achievements, what weve learned, and how we´ve grown.  but there is one person who we need to remember. someone paid and sacrificed to make this life possible and joyous. Jesus Christ paid this price, he paid it  with a life full of service and ultimately his life as he suffered in Gethsemane and was lifted and nailed to a cross. and because he did, we can live this life with more joy. Christ made the Plan of Happiness possible for us and created a way for us to return to him and our loving heavenly father. He paid for our lives so we can be here, and because of that we can be happy and we know we can live with him again. Through his gospel we know where we were before this life, what our purpose is here on earth, and where we go to LIVE after we die. Just as im grateful for my earthly parents paying and sacrificing so i can take piano lessons and play the piano well, im grateful for my Heavenly Parents for loving me enough to send their only begotten son jesus Christ to this Earth to pay and sacrifice so I can have eternal life with my family.
   This is why i love being a missionary: so i can serve gods people. ´´Because i have been given much, i too must give.´´ I heard a poem that relates to this and i loved it so much i wrote it down in my PMG. it goes like this:

``Christ Has No Hands But Our Hands``

Christ has no hands but our hands
To do his work today.
He has no feet but our feet
To lead men in his way.
He has no tongue but our tongues
To tell men how he died.
He has no help but our help
To lead men to his side.
What if our hands are busy
With other work than His?
What if our feet are walking
Where sins allurement is?
What if our tongues are speaking
Of things his lips would spurn?
How can we hope to help Him
Or hasten his return?

  I know Christ lives and we are his hands to help lead people to his side. Im thankful for all i have been given and im grateful for this opportunity to serve the people of  Brazil. Only 11 more days til im in SALVADOR!!!

Week 3

3 1/2 weeks! Bam!! over halfway done with the CTM. After being in the same building for almost 4 weeks im ready to change things up. Even with how much of me loves it here, I cant wait to get our in the field. In Salvador!! Only 2 1/2 more weeks and ill be there. I'm still working hard and learning a  lot. Portuguese is coming along pretty well. we went proselyting  last Saturday and i gave 4 books of mormon to 4 different people. I was able to greet them, discuss the Book of Mormon, and invite them to take a book, and bear my testimony to them. One man named Enrique was very interested. We talked to him for 15 minutes and he gave us his phone number, address, etc and he wanted to have the missionaries visit him. It was super fun talking to him and testifying of the BOM truthfulness and how i know it will bless his life.
   On Thursday, Elder Aidukaitis from the quorum of the 70 came to the CTM and spoke at a devotional. he talked about missionary work. he was suuuper funny! Something that stuck out to me that he said was, ´´People can tell with a first impression whether you're happy or sad. ALWAYS BE HAPPY!! He also said it is not a curse to be on a mission. it is a PRIVELIGE! I know that is true. It really is a privilege and a once in a lifetime opportunity to be here on a mish, especially in Brazil :)  And whether on a mission or not we can be happy! God has given us so much. We can recognize that through many things like our families, and friends. One of the biggest testimonies that shows god loves us is this beautiful world that he has given us to live on. Take time to admire it and enjoy the outdoors and nature. And more importantly, love the people who are in this world. Love your parents and your siblings. Give them a hug. Tease your dog (Roz, give Gizmo a poochie smoochie for me). Even though he is just a little silly dog, i miss that little stinker. hahahaha. And most importantly, talk to your heavenly father. he is always there to help and he does answer prayers.
   I love you all and I love hearing from you!! Send me an email and ill do my best to respond.

views of Sao Paulo

There's nothing wrong with a little craziness!

driving to the MTC from the airport from our arrival

Mr. Cheney's cookies where I go to pick up treats my

mom sends me! (cinnamon rolls, cookies, and pizza!)

I got "the best photographer" cookie from Sister Toone's mom at Mr. Cheney's!!!!