Brazil 1st Area: Week 1

This week has been really exciting. We left the MTC for the airport around 5 am, and took a van to the airport. It was me and I think 9 other missionaries. They were mostly Brazilians, but there were some people from Mexico, and Chile that knew Portuguese really well. I was the only one that couldn´t really speak it. We got to the mission office and had inverviews with Pres Cuvelier, who is really awesome. I met 5 other American missionaries, one is the executive secretary for the President, and a lot of Brazilian missionaries. President Cuvelier is really awesome. My interview was completely in English which was really nice. I found out that he is really good friends with the Hakes which was really cool. He is totally supportive and kind. He encouraged me to use magic tricks to get investigators.

In my mission we get up at 7:30 most days and return to our apartment at 10pm with 30 mins to prep for sleep. I have 90 min to email so that is a lot more time than the MTC. I don´t know about any other rules that he has. My companion said that he doesn´t have any others, but with my little Portuguese, meanings can come across differently. Anyway, we went to the President´s house for lunch, which was really good. While we were there, one of the Brazilians who made the meal said that he knew a Brazilian (I think) that had the same last name as mine. That is pretty weird.

After dinner we had a training and orientation. President Cuvelier explained everything that I had questions about afterwards. Then we did this activity to receive our companions. They had us write down 3 things about ourselves then they had us guess who our companions were. Nobody guessed right. Afterwards, President Cuvelier told the trainers one by one who their companions were, and they went and gave them a pillow. That was a fun activity. My new companion is Elder R Santos (Santos is a really common name here, along with a few others). He is Brazilian, and is a year out on his mission. He can't speak any English. I am the third missionary that he has trained, so when one of us transfers away he will have 6 months in this area. He is fun, and I like him. He is also an amazing missionary. His scriptures are marked so much, and he can turn to scriptures that he needs instantaneously. His bag is one that he has to carry, not a shoulder bag, and he doesn´t have a lot of money. We have a lot of investigators, and we have taught the restoration a bunch. We invited people to be baptized and no one has said no yet, but we haven´t made dates yet. I got to know a bunch of the recent converts, investigators, and members, but I haven´t even met all of our investigators. It doesn´t help that I can barely understand some of the things that they say, if I can at all, but I can feel the spirit, so that is what matters. Our area is almost completely hills, and we do a lot of walking. Also our area has three different parts, the one where we live, the one where the church is, and some in between parts. Our district is us, and 2 sisters. Sister Wilcox, and the other sister whose name I cannot remember. They are really helpful as well.

My testimony has grown so much here, and I am glad for everything that the Lord has given me. I remember asking for a Brazilian companion in the MTC before my mission, and I am regretting that because I have a companion in the field who can´t understand me. I am very glad that I did not have that in the MTC. 

I love hearing from all of you, and I hope that you are doing well.

--- Elder Pettingill