week 23: Last week of this transfer

  This is the last week of my 4th transfer! I dont know if i´ll stay here in Ilheus one more transfer or not. this morning at 6:00 am. it dumped rain. really hard, it sounded like i was in a empty concert hall with a tin roof, raining marbles! it was incredible how much it rained! Today we went to the  centro to get our money at the bank then returned and had lunch at home because we didnt want to walk out to Roberto´s house for lunch. we werent sure if we even had lunch there or if he even knew it so we just ate at home. Then we walked to Alcantara´s house for Elder Andrade to pick up his pants that he had re-contructed before we stopped at Josenilton and Andreza´s place. When we arrived a friend of Andreza (Danielle) greeted us and let us in. We gave them all Book of Mormons, but didnt get to teach anything because josenilton and andreza had to leave to take Danielle home. But before they left, we had good discussions, introduced ourselves to Danielle, and invited everyone to church. Danielle is a 19 year old girl, daughter of an Assembleian pastor, and she was interested in what we had to say and wants to make a visit in our church. Let´s hope she comes. We also had a strange experiece with Beatriz. She was standing on the sidewalk with some of her friends and we stopped to talk for a minute. long story short we found out Beatriz is a snake when she told me to close my eyes so she can kiss me! of course i didnt, not even tempted one bit.
Wednesday:
    Today we didnt have district meeting because elder Andrade marked with the sisters earlier last week to have the district meeting at the centro in their building but he forgot and we arrived in our building at 9:00 am and no one was there. So i got to play the piano until we left for lunch. We had lunch at Neid´s house and afterwards we have her a priesthood blessing. Then we did a few verifications on Rua Nossa Senhora Aparecida. We taught Josenilton and Andreza and their mom about the Book of Mormon. Somthing really cool happened when we arrived. Upon arriving, we found everyone had their Books of Mormon opened up and had been reading! i was surprised and delighted by this and even more when Andreza said she has enjoyed it so far and recounted a few parts/stories. We set a goal/baptismal date and everyone accepted! only josenilton was a little skeptical. I really like teaching them. I´ll be sad if i have to leave them if i get transferred. We also stopped at Beatriz´s house and talked a little and set a date to teach, then i gave a prayer. After my prayer, Elder Andrade asked her if she understood my prayer and she responded saying,´´No i but just stared at his lips and understood a little bit.´´ She was staring at me during the whole prayer, and it was a little more awkward considering what she said to me yesterday.
Thursday:
    Today we filled out relatórios de progresso, during weekly planning. We had lunch with Joaquim and Ramile marked for 1:00 pm. and showed up on time, but didnt eat until 3:00! that was a little setback to our plans and even more when the youth we had marked with for divisions didnt show up. We waited and waited for almost an house and they didnt show up. We didnt end up doing divisions liked we hoped. Instead we did a few verifications and found a few families. We also stopped at a Gloria´s house and Shu Shu cooked us Farofa de Ovo, cebola, and arroz. This Sunday will be Stake Conference in Itabuna and we are hoping Carlos will be able to go. Only three more days until transfers and elder andrade and i are getting a little jittery about it. We dont know what´s going to happen.
 Friday:
    Lunch fell through but Jamile invited us to have lunch with her family. It turned out to be really convenient because we needed to go to the centro to help out the sisters in their work in the centro, and Jamile´s dad was headed to the centro afterwards too, so we were able to catch a ride with him. We helped the sister make novos for an hour. We made 6 new investigators for the sisters in just under an hour, and we also found two people that live in our area. It was a long cram-packed ônibus ride back home, and we stopped before Avenida Lotus to stop at Daniel´s house, but he wasnt home. Then we taught Josenilton and andreza, and their mom, The Gospel of Jesus Christ and Andreza prayed for the first time. She took a while to start and showed lots of bashfullness but she did it.
Saturday:
    We walked super long to the bairro where Jó lives in Nossa Senhora da Vitória. We taught her and her mom The Gospel of Jesus Christ, then descended down to Carlos´ house. Carlos´ mom bought us cake and guaraná again and Carlos´ dad showed up just as we were leaving. Tomorrow is Stake Conference!
Sunday:
   we woke up early at 5:45 to catch a ônibus to the centro at 7:00 then one more ônibus to Itabuna (a city about 45 minute drive). Stake conference was awesome and i actually felt like i understood a good 90 % of the portuguese that was being spoken. it was packed too! Tons of people were there, it was a cool sight! Carlos showed up as well! President Bangerter gave a talk about the power of the Restoration. Elder Carboni (member of the 70) gave an incredible talk. in one part he had all the missionaries come up to the front and had us sing ´´Called to Serve`´ with the congregation joining in for the chorus. it was really powerful and some missionaries were in tears by the end. After Stake Conference Pres. Bangerter informed me early that im going to be transferred to Salvador and Elder Andrade is staying in Ilheus! he didnt give me any other details and i didnt get a chance to ask. he was in a hurry. im going to SALVADOR!!!!!!!!! the CAPITAL of Bahia!!!!!!!!  its a long bus ride! like more than 7 hours, but im excited
      We had lunch with Maria da Paz in Nossa Senhora da Vitoria and afterwards we visited Carlos´ family again. Carlos´ dad let me trade for some of his money collection. he has a really big cool money collections with coins from all over the world, and he has lots of coins of olympic games in Brazil.
Then we had my last family night at Joaquim´s house.

This week i read a part of a Liahona that talked about what can the Book of Mormon teach of about happiness? it gave seven principles from only 2 chapters of Nephi´s experiences in the Book of Mormon that can teach us what it takes to be truly happy. i wont go into detail because i am short on time but the 7 principles are: 1. Aligning actions with beliefs, 2. Maintaining uplifting associations 3. Sharing what we have 4. Focusing on the Temple  5. Accomplishing hard work 6. Being a peacemaker, and 7. Belonging to a family.
   I know that these are all things that will truly bring more happiness in our lives. i know the book of mormon contains principles of happiness. these 7 principles are found in just 2 chapters of the book of mormon. What could we find in the rest of the book?
    ´´It would be wise to begin our own personal search of the Book of Mormon for even moreguidelines to a happier life. President Ezra Taft Benson promised the Saints: “The moment you begin a serious study of the Book of Mormon … you will find life in greater andgreater abundance.”9 The Lord has given us this incredible tool.We can learn to use it to bless our own lives and the lives of those we love.
  I know that these things are true and that the Book of Mormon is meant for us to learn in our day. everything in the book of mormon is meant for our learning and benefit. i like to learn from other people´s experiences in the B. of M. and let it strengthen my testimony. i invited everyone to start reading the Book of Mormon, or continue reading. it  will bless your life.

With love,

-Elder Hilton

My last family night at Joaquim's house

Saying goodbye to a recent convert

Saying goodbye to lots of friends and fellow missionaries

ônibus ride home from stake conference and saying bye to some families

Saying goodbye to Carlo's family  and the cows

 

 

on the way to the ônibus 

The following is excerpts from Mckay when he was able to email me when he arrived in Salvador.  It was a 7 hour bus ride.  He was super excited to get there and meet his new companion and see his new area.  

"we are fairly close to a ton of tourist points and the ocean, and the escritorio;where packages arrive!

we already stopped at the escritorio today!  escitorio is the mision office, where the secretaries work."

my first lunch today in Salvador was awesome! not so much the meal but the apartment! i walked in and WHAT IN THE NAME OF HOWDEEDOO!!! there was a real glossy black piano. I already love this family. unfortunately they arent in my area, but the area of the zone leader we were with. my companion is the district leader. This girl is 25 years old and study music and plays like a boss! she has tons and tons of music in her house and even knows the piano guys!  i got to play a little bit and we even played together; me right hand and her left, with my comp. recording! 

i am super pumped to meet our branch, and to go out and see things on p-days!  our area is really poor. and our branch has like 40 or less people.

mom, our house is new for missionaries living in it. this is the first transfer that missionaries lived in this house. well missionaries moved into it the last week of last transfer so its only been inhabited by missionaries for one week! it is super nice compared to other houses ive been in and other missionaries houses that ive passed in, but there is nothing really in it. we have nothing! no broom, nothing,. tomorrow we will buy lots and lots of stuff for the house. 

okay we are leaving. i will send you pics of the house then we have to go

it was nice talking with yáll for a litle bit! i miss you! i will have a good week! i love you guys! have a great thanksgiving!!!

Walking to our lunch in SALVADOR! 

There are tons of steep hills, up and down, up and down! Lots of staris and steep roads.

My new companion on the left, Elder Bastos.  He is from Sao Paulo

Salvador is a beautiful city!!

I love my missionary nametag!

Elder BOB!!!!!!  look at his nametag!

 my first lunch appointment in Salvador!  She had a real piano and she played really good!  I was able to play it for a while!  She had tons of music!  What a blast!

Pictures of my new apartment in the city!  WAAAYY nicer than my old apartment!  Hopefully their will be less bug bites and rats!

Week 22: Barril Dobrado (Trump and Rats)

Last P-day:
      Luana drove us and the sister missionaries to a cool spot in our area to take photos. I had already been there last transfer but it was fun to return and take different photos. After hanging out and taking pictures for a while we all ate a little ´´dinner´´ (ham and cheese sandwiches) in the back of Luana´s pick-up truck and recorded us singing Happy Birthday in Portuguese to Rozlyn! Happy Late Birthday Roz!!! Then we went to the sister´s area in the centro and met a few of their investigators.

Tuesday:
      Elder andrade finally got his in-grown toenail fixed, but we lost a lot of time. A friend of Antonia (that 73 year old investigator of ours) did it for Elder Andrade for free in Antonia´s house. and after he didn't feel like walking very much so we just stayed in her house for a while. that was a pretty big set-back for our day. that afternoon we taught the Restoration to Josenilton, Andreza and their mom. the lesson was good even though it didn't go very smooth and organized as i would have liked it.  Then we went to the church and talked to the bishop and also celebrated Luana´s birthday. Before we returned home i found out that Donald Trump was up 51 %  and Hilary was sitting at 46%. I was pretty excited to find out who won the next morning

Wednesday:
    Trump trumped the elections! i don't really know what to think of it. Honestly i was surprised, but i try not to worry about what he will do as president. besides, i´m in Brazil and wont have to worry about having Trump as president until 2018 when i return home. hahaha. Until then Trump will be reining in the White House, hopefully not wreaking too much havoc.
      We had a rough time finding the houses we needed to on Rua Lirio, and we ended up asking two women on the road for directions. they were sitting on the curb, smoking and drinking and Elder Andrade taught them lots of things about our chruch including the Word of Wisdom. They were actually really receptive and we got their addresses and invited them to church.

Thursday:
    Today we found quite a few people who have been inactive for a while. We talked to them for a while and invited them to church. Next was Cristina.  She hasnt met any of her goals, hasn't gone to church since last transfer, and isn't really progressing. On the way to teach Josenilton and Andreza we stopped a woman to make a contact and invite her to church. it was totally random and unplanned, but thats just what we do. we talk to everyone. She gained our trust and told us her husband died super recently and she was walking to a friends house to talk and have some company to not feel so lonely. We shared the pamphlet ´´the plan of salvation´´ with her and got her address to return another day. her name is Celeste, and she lives on the same road as the church so she said she will definitlely make a visit. We parted and went to teach the Word of wisdom  to Josenilton and Andreza.

Friday:
   The good news for Friday was that we made 3 new investigators and taught the Plan of Salvation to Josenilton and Andreza ( and their mom, but i forgot her name). We went to the church afterwards in hopes to find the bishop, but he wasnt there. but we did find a seminary party upstairs and ate hamburgers and soda.

Saturday:
      in the morning we totally cleaned and re-arranged our kitchen (the fridge, microwave, stove-top, and food cabinet) and it is tons better. We ended up invited a bunch of people and potential investigators to church.  When we finally arrived home Elder Andrade was putting his stuff away in the spare bedroom on top of the spare beds (since we still don't have our wardrobes) when he heard a squeaking noise and something run out from his pile of clothes. RAT IN THE HOUSE!!! It ran into my room and hid under a broken wardrobe. We moved it to find the rat, then wacked it to death with a broom (breaking the broom in half in the process). then Elder Andrade finished him off by kicking him across the room, SMACK!! against the wall! During the frenzy Elder Andrade slammed the door shut so the rat wouldnt escape. this door has never been closed all the way because it doesnt have a door handle and if it gets shut it will not open. So we got locked in and had to enter in and out through the window until we got the door fixed.... fixed as in Elder Andrade kicking it down. Elder andrade is a little crazy.

Sunday:

     We passed by a bunch of people´s houses to walk with them to church, but had little success. it was disappointing because we had a minimum of 7 or 8 people that seemed like for sure they would come. they committed and everything but when we arrived a lot of people weren't awake. it was also raining so they probably didn't want to leave the house. Only Andreza (sister of josenilton) ended up walking with us to church.
    Family Night at Joaquim and Ramile´s house was special because it was Flora´s birthday! She turned 1 year old!!! there were more friends and family and it was great!!

   Today i want to send out a better spiritual thought since these last few weeks i haven't been able to write as much spiritually things as i would like.
    I was reading in an old Liahona (church published magazine)  and came across an article that talked about our mission in life and i learned how we can ´´be still´´ and experience peace. i reflected on my life and thought a lot about how in life before my mission, I spent a lot of time wondering about my future. Mission, marriage, education, career. all of these were open questions, and I didn’t feel like i had many answers. Two passages in this article i read last night really stood out to me. ´´ During our young adult years, physical and mental energy are at their peak. We can make the most of them by determining to trust in the Lord and act “as for years.”Then these years can become a consecrated period of extraordinary productivity, growth, learning, and service.´´

After reading this I realized that my mission in life isn't waiting for me in the vague and distant future. It is daily and ongoing. Also this isn't just for people living in their ´´young adult years´´ i know this applies to everyone. Later in the article says this,

President Brigham Young  explained: “There is neither man nor woman in this Church who is not on a mission. That mission will last as long as they live.”

In other words, our mission in life has already started. We don't so much need to find it as to recognize it. The article goes on to talk about three elements that we can utilize to fulfill our mission in life. i found it to be very powerful and make a lot of sense.

 ´´one way to recognize it is by understanding three elements that are already parts of our lives:


1.)A unique set of personal gifts.

2.)A unique set of personal challenges.

3.) Specific needs in the world that the Lord wants me to respond to.

Simply put, we fulfill our mission whenever these three elements intersect and we choose to act.

I really liked this simple idea and realized that we need not feel lost or without a purpose or mission in this life. Yes, life is filled with crucial decisions and some inherent uncertainty and stress. But i know greater confidence comes when we learn to rely on the Lord´s ability to bring about his purposes for our lives-day by day. I know with this knowledge we are better able to ´´be still´´ and experience more peace and true satisfaction. I testify that God has a mission for all of us to fulfill and he has given us the tools to do just that. i am grateful for the personal gifts, and challenges that i have in my life and for the specific needs in the world that have been presented to me that the Lord wants me to respond to. It hasn't always been easy, but it will always be worth it. I am grateful for the good examples in my life and especially for my family. I know that God has a plan for families and families have the potential to be forever. Im grateful that my grandparents were blessed to find the restored gospel and let it change their lives. Because of this, i have the family i have today, and the blessings i have. i encourage everyone to continue to learn more about this wonderful gospel and observe the miracles that will occur. Have a great week!

With Love,

Elder Hilton

  

Week 21: Feliz Dia Dos Finados (day of the dead)

Last P-day:
Here in Bahia no-one really celebrates Halloween, so it seemed just like another normal day, except that is P-DAY!! WooHOooo! it was a super good one too. We emailed in the morning and i got lots of emails from friends and family. it made me really happy. afterwards we went to the centro with the sisters and took photos at some cool places(especially the awesome look-out point , high above the city) you could see all the city and the ocean stretching out forever. Then we went inside that huge catholic cathedral and took more photos.  After p-day ended we went to Daniel (a recent convert) and he wasnt home. then set up an appointment with Roberta (who we still havent taught). We also stopped at supermercado Meira and bought food and cleaning supplies for our house and walked home.

Tuesday:
   We spent all morning until lunch cleaning the house. We deep cleaned, the stove/oven, our desks, up under our beds, we took everything out of our room and scrubbed down all the walls,  cleaned the ceiling fan, and the floor. Our room looks a lot better and it isnt as scary to enter it as it was. We had lunch with the owner of our house(they live on the first floor under us).
   Alefi didnt meet us when he said he would, so we left to Cristina´s. She had bought 3 packets of tobacco/smoke material and she looked terrible. she didnt let us take it so we ended up just talking a little and sharing a message. Then we taught Alberto (an Italian) in his house; it wasnt very smooth, then stopped @ Wesley´s house but he wasnt home. Next we went to Cinthia´s house and E. Andrade practically wasted time there casually talking. next we stopped at Fernanda´s home. she wasnt home because she was at a different church.

Wednesday:
   Feliz Dia Dos Finados!! We arrived to zone meeting in Vilela late because of ônibus schedules. I GOT MY CHRISTMAS PACKAGES! but i cant open them until christmas ;) Im starting to get into the chrismas spirit already haha! Today´s work was honestly not the most productive.  Cristina didnt answer, we didnt even work in the Urbis like we had planned, and didnt do any verifications, but we did have a good conversation with gabriel´s mother and her friend about the gospel.  after we walked down the street and seemingly out of nowhere we saw a man approach a woman ( i think his daughter) and start yelling at her, pushed her, and started hitting her and slapping her in the face. we just walked right by and watched it happen  and couldnt do anything, but eventually people helped separate them. it made me sad that people do this and havent learned to respect women.

Thursday:
  weekly planning and divisions. after weekly planning and lunch we went on divisions. i was with Fernando ( a return missionary) we stopped at 9 different people´s houses and didnt find anybody. we had some bad luck. we returned to the church and i found Alefi there ( a inactive member) i talked to him about the sacrament. The last two weeks of this transfer im really hoping to work harder and see some good things happen, possibly miracles.

Friday:
 We stopped at Cristina´s and i made a 3 week goal calendar to help her stop smoking and be baptized!.  Her goal is november 19th to be baptized.

Saturday:
  My Sister´s birthday!!! HAPPY B-DAY ROZ!! We invited a bunch of people to church and made 7 new investigators! ( to make an investigator, we quickly  teach a gospel prinicple to someone and write down their address and mark a day to pass by again) A good few of them actually seemed genuinley interested! Oh! today I GOT POOPED ON BY A BIRD!! i was talking to an old dude and inviting him to church and down it came. right on my shoulder. a little splattered onto Elder Andrade too! haha. i got it washed up afterwards. we also saw two guys get arrested right in front of our house.

Sunday:
 in the hour of sacrament when people bare their testimonies, Antonia a 73 year old lady that we invited yesterday got up and hobbled to the microphone and ´´bore her testimony´´ she just said that she is grateful she was invited by us to attend church and that she feels at home here and likes what she has felt in our church. i was super impressed because this was the first time Antonia has ever been to the ´´mormon church´´ and she got up and spoke in front of everyone.  we gave her a book of mormon and she said she will read it because she is very interested in it and loves to read anyway. Today lunch fell through but Marcos Longo saved us. his wife made us lunch at their house and it was delicious. marcos longo ( a longtime member of our ward) gave me a small portuguse bible! he is really cool. they have been to the USA 4 times. they have various family and friends that live in idaho and utah. they have good friends who live in Nampa, Idaho and also Idaho Falls who they visit and they also have a son who married an american girl and they live in Utah! ogden i think! its so crazy all of these connections! its a small world. he  pulled out a big road map of western USA. Caldwell, meridian, boise, everything was on it. and i saw all the roads we´ve driven and all the cities and points of interest that i´ve already been to. tell me about homesickness! i felt super close to home in that moment! haha it was awesome

This week i realized what a beautiful world we live in. i love to take time to marvel at the wonder of The Creation and all of God´s beautiful things he has given us on this earth. and especially the gift of a family that god has given us. I also want to share a short part of my mother´s testimony that she recently shared with me. she said something that i really agreed with and caused to to stop and think. she wrote, ´´ Life isn't always easy but because I choose to follow the best I can my saviors example, I make it through the rough times with much ease and strength.  I never question the gospel even when I dont understand everything and I think my life has been blessed because of my simple faith.´´

I feel the same way that we dont have to know everything about life and about the gospel to have a strong faith in it. having simple faith is enough too. We just need to continue studying and praying with faith and we will be strengthened with peace  and calmness even when there are raging winds surrounding us. im so grateful to know this gospel and to be able to have the chance to share it with others!  Boa semana para todos!! (good week to everyone!)

-Elder Hilton

One of my favorite ties!  Thanks Larson Family!

Found spider nests under our mattresses

cleaning our apartment

Zone conference, packages from home!!!!!

s

my early Christmas present, PIANO MUSIC!

I get to wait until Christmas for these!

mosquito net!

guys getting arrested right out our door