Well, this week was just a normal week.
For my birthday a member threw a little party for me. It was just 4 members and us missionaries with a little cake. It's crazy to think that I'm 21. Dang, I'm getting old. The members know that usually when an American elder makes 21 years old he is about to go home. So I have been getting a lot of the question, "So how much time do you have left on the mission?" and "When do you go home?" I just say "A year and a few months." or something like that, or my companion will just respond "Yup, he is going home next month." haha But it's all good. I'm glad I have a newby, he keeps me working hard and focused on the mission and helping others.
The area I'm in is Gloria. It is where the factory of chocolate is. The mark of chocolate is called GAROTO. It's pretty good. Today we are going to do a tour in the factory to see how everything is made. Yup, it's right next to us. And basically it's a 5 or 10 min walk and then we are on the beach. The ward has a lot of beach bums (in the membership) haha It's cool, they are all good members. It's just funny when the 1st Counselor has dreadlocks and goes to church in a suit and flip flops. haha So ya, basically I'm on the beach again. The ward is the best ward I have been in so far on the mission. The ward is really focused on the work and that is always good because it takes a little stress off my shoulders. We will have a baptism coming up next week. It is of Cássia, she is a girl of 15 years old and is an amazing little girl. She basically marked her own date (for baptism) and so she will be baptised on Saturday. I'm excited because I'm hoping that this will help my comp' really see how the mission is and that baptisms are normal and they really bring joy. We also have a hand full of people that are progressing, so we should be baptising weekly here in a little.
It's crazy to see that spring break has already come and gone. My companion is counting the days for me, and I think I'm down to like 7 weeks or something like that. I kind of had a little bit of a hard time yesterday when the member who gave us lunch asked me what I'm gonna do when I go home. I have so many ideas but I just need to relax. haha
Other than that, the week was a normal week with a lot of teaching and a lot of sweat. The rain comes and goes so you can never tell when it's going to rain.
All is well with me.
Just know that the Church is true and that Heavenly Father loves us. :)
Elder Manis
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
D&C 135:3
O velho??
Yup, this week I make 21 years old. Not gonna lie, I feel the same and nothing special. I think if anything, this year (my birthday) it will be just like last year with a bowl or cereal with candles in it. But what can I do? I'm a poor missionary and have work to do. The members are wanting to throw a party, but we will see about that. I didn't have one last year so maybe I'll let them have one for me this year.
Meu filho (my son) is doing well. He has gotten a lot better. I let him write his letters and stuff at night because I'm thinking; "if I go all commando on him, the whole "DO THIS DO THAT" thing, I'm gonna make him hate the mission." I remember how it was to have a pooey companion. But he is getting a lot better, he is a lot more outgoing. "Coming out of his shell" you can say. He has a fiancé or however you say that. So he talks about marriage a lot. I just laugh and say, "If you're getting excited now for your marriage, your mission is going to go by so slow." haha He is pretty crazy about her. He was wanting to go out today and buy a dress for her and send it home. When he told me I couldn't believe it. I basically put my foot down on that one and just said forget it. Let's baptize 4 people and then we can talk. haha
This week has been pretty crazy. We have had some pretty bad tropical storms. Typhoon like weather so there has been a lot of flooding and that always slows the work down. I don't think that I have ever seen so much rain and water. Sometimes it's a little scary because all of the poo rivers overflow and get everyone sick and polluted and stuff. So we have been having to walk around a lot because half of our area is under poo water. But it's all good. The rain has got to stop sometime.
Today I was studying and I came across D&C 135:3. Before you guys go and read this I want you to ask yourself "Who is Joseph Smith?" Bam! This scripture will blow your mind. It's basically the most powerful scripture that talks about Joseph Smith that I have ever seen or found, it's amazing.
I just want to let all you guys know that I know that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God. Just as Jesus Christ did, he shed his innocent blood in defense of the truth.
Love you all,
Elder Manis
Yup, this week I make 21 years old. Not gonna lie, I feel the same and nothing special. I think if anything, this year (my birthday) it will be just like last year with a bowl or cereal with candles in it. But what can I do? I'm a poor missionary and have work to do. The members are wanting to throw a party, but we will see about that. I didn't have one last year so maybe I'll let them have one for me this year.
Meu filho (my son) is doing well. He has gotten a lot better. I let him write his letters and stuff at night because I'm thinking; "if I go all commando on him, the whole "DO THIS DO THAT" thing, I'm gonna make him hate the mission." I remember how it was to have a pooey companion. But he is getting a lot better, he is a lot more outgoing. "Coming out of his shell" you can say. He has a fiancé or however you say that. So he talks about marriage a lot. I just laugh and say, "If you're getting excited now for your marriage, your mission is going to go by so slow." haha He is pretty crazy about her. He was wanting to go out today and buy a dress for her and send it home. When he told me I couldn't believe it. I basically put my foot down on that one and just said forget it. Let's baptize 4 people and then we can talk. haha
This week has been pretty crazy. We have had some pretty bad tropical storms. Typhoon like weather so there has been a lot of flooding and that always slows the work down. I don't think that I have ever seen so much rain and water. Sometimes it's a little scary because all of the poo rivers overflow and get everyone sick and polluted and stuff. So we have been having to walk around a lot because half of our area is under poo water. But it's all good. The rain has got to stop sometime.
Today I was studying and I came across D&C 135:3. Before you guys go and read this I want you to ask yourself "Who is Joseph Smith?" Bam! This scripture will blow your mind. It's basically the most powerful scripture that talks about Joseph Smith that I have ever seen or found, it's amazing.
I just want to let all you guys know that I know that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God. Just as Jesus Christ did, he shed his innocent blood in defense of the truth.
Love you all,
Elder Manis
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Garoto Chocolate
Hey Mom and Family,
Well yup, my filho (son) Elder Pinhiero got here on Tuesday. Let me tell you, the man is homesick. haha I mean, I was homesick when I got into the field, but this man is amazingly homesick. He is from Sao Paulo and has a year and 7 months in the church. He doesn't know much about doctrine and stuff, so I'm helping him out with all that. He is a good kid but all he talks about is Mother's Day and the post office. Like I said, I was homesick, but this man takes the cake. I'm helping him with it so it actually has gotten a lot better. He is a hard worker and I love him to death. He really has the will to be a good missionary. We are in Vilia Velhia Gloria to be exact. We live right next to the biggest chocolate factory in Brazil. It's the GAROTO chocolate factory. Look it up on-line. We smell chocolate all the time and mint and all that jazz. The members here are really loving and they treat us like there own
children. The ward is amazing with a frequency of 150 people, and last week I had the best lunch I have ever had in Brazil. It was just simply amazing.
Sorry, I'm typing so fast because I don't have much time left. But all is well and all is going great. We already have a baptism coming up, so I'm really excited to get this kid on his feet and baptising fast, so he knows what it's like.
All is well, I love you guys and sorry for the short e-mail I'll try to come back and write more later. :)
Love you,
Elder Manis
Well yup, my filho (son) Elder Pinhiero got here on Tuesday. Let me tell you, the man is homesick. haha I mean, I was homesick when I got into the field, but this man is amazingly homesick. He is from Sao Paulo and has a year and 7 months in the church. He doesn't know much about doctrine and stuff, so I'm helping him out with all that. He is a good kid but all he talks about is Mother's Day and the post office. Like I said, I was homesick, but this man takes the cake. I'm helping him with it so it actually has gotten a lot better. He is a hard worker and I love him to death. He really has the will to be a good missionary. We are in Vilia Velhia Gloria to be exact. We live right next to the biggest chocolate factory in Brazil. It's the GAROTO chocolate factory. Look it up on-line. We smell chocolate all the time and mint and all that jazz. The members here are really loving and they treat us like there own
children. The ward is amazing with a frequency of 150 people, and last week I had the best lunch I have ever had in Brazil. It was just simply amazing.
Sorry, I'm typing so fast because I don't have much time left. But all is well and all is going great. We already have a baptism coming up, so I'm really excited to get this kid on his feet and baptising fast, so he knows what it's like.
All is well, I love you guys and sorry for the short e-mail I'll try to come back and write more later. :)
Love you,
Elder Manis
Make the Days Count
Oi.. Alguma coisa nova? [Hi.. something new?]
I'll start be responding to all the questions you asked. The zone is going great and we are baptising a lot. I think that we are just running around and after these Elders to get them ready. Our investigators are doing great. We have 7 baptisms lined up for the month of March. So they are going great.
This week was a really fun hard working week. To be honest, I didn't really know what we should do. But for some reason I kept thinking about some old investigators(that we had dropped). They kept popping up in my head, so I was like, "What the heck, let's just go visit them." Just to get it off my mind. Well it turns out that the Lord had been preparing them in between the last time that we had seen them. They are the baptisms that we have planned for March. It's funny how the Lord can guide you and you don't really know that your being guided until that you receive a witness or an answer to what you have been looking for. We have all these baptisms lined up, but guess who got transferred? Yup, I did. And I'm going to be training a Brazilian. I don't know him yet, but I'm excited to see what's going to happen.
This is what President wrote:
"As you now know, you will be training a new elder. I am extremely excited to see the two of you as a dupla. I believe you will be awesome!! Though I have not met this new elder, through inspiration, I know that you are going to have an incredible influence on this great young man!! Congratulations. This is the highest calling in any mission."
I'm really excited to see how things are going to be. I'm really excited to see what's going to happen and where I'm going to go. I had the feeling that I was going to get released as a zone leader. I can't count the blessings and the things I have learned from being a zone leader. I can say that they were the best 9 months of my mission. But now I have a new calling and a new job to do. I'm going to do the same thing that Elder Hale did to me. He made me love the mission and just love being a missionary. :) I'm really excited to have a new adventure. I'll probably be going to my "COFFIN" as they call it. It will be my last area. It's kinda crazy to think about how my mission is coming quickly to an end, so I try not to think about it.
I came up with a little phrase that has helped me, it's "DON'T COUNT THE DAYS...MAKE THE DAYS COUNT!!!"
I thank my Heavenly Father for every second I still have here because I just love my mission and I love Brazil :) I'm soaking it all up and making every last moment count. :)
It's crazy to hear how cold it is there. I wish that that was the same here. It is so hot and sticky, getting all the sticky sea salt off of my face is what I have gotten tired of over the past years. haha But it's all good.
As for Wyatt, he is a good kid, he has always liked to be a little on his own. If you want him to get a spiritual experience send him out with the missionaries or have him teach dad. :)
Gotta grow up some day.
Love you guys,
Elder Manis
I'll start be responding to all the questions you asked. The zone is going great and we are baptising a lot. I think that we are just running around and after these Elders to get them ready. Our investigators are doing great. We have 7 baptisms lined up for the month of March. So they are going great.
This week was a really fun hard working week. To be honest, I didn't really know what we should do. But for some reason I kept thinking about some old investigators(that we had dropped). They kept popping up in my head, so I was like, "What the heck, let's just go visit them." Just to get it off my mind. Well it turns out that the Lord had been preparing them in between the last time that we had seen them. They are the baptisms that we have planned for March. It's funny how the Lord can guide you and you don't really know that your being guided until that you receive a witness or an answer to what you have been looking for. We have all these baptisms lined up, but guess who got transferred? Yup, I did. And I'm going to be training a Brazilian. I don't know him yet, but I'm excited to see what's going to happen.
This is what President wrote:
"As you now know, you will be training a new elder. I am extremely excited to see the two of you as a dupla. I believe you will be awesome!! Though I have not met this new elder, through inspiration, I know that you are going to have an incredible influence on this great young man!! Congratulations. This is the highest calling in any mission."
I'm really excited to see how things are going to be. I'm really excited to see what's going to happen and where I'm going to go. I had the feeling that I was going to get released as a zone leader. I can't count the blessings and the things I have learned from being a zone leader. I can say that they were the best 9 months of my mission. But now I have a new calling and a new job to do. I'm going to do the same thing that Elder Hale did to me. He made me love the mission and just love being a missionary. :) I'm really excited to have a new adventure. I'll probably be going to my "COFFIN" as they call it. It will be my last area. It's kinda crazy to think about how my mission is coming quickly to an end, so I try not to think about it.
I came up with a little phrase that has helped me, it's "DON'T COUNT THE DAYS...MAKE THE DAYS COUNT!!!"
I thank my Heavenly Father for every second I still have here because I just love my mission and I love Brazil :) I'm soaking it all up and making every last moment count. :)
It's crazy to hear how cold it is there. I wish that that was the same here. It is so hot and sticky, getting all the sticky sea salt off of my face is what I have gotten tired of over the past years. haha But it's all good.
As for Wyatt, he is a good kid, he has always liked to be a little on his own. If you want him to get a spiritual experience send him out with the missionaries or have him teach dad. :)
Gotta grow up some day.
Love you guys,
Elder Manis
I Want Letters
It's good to hear that all is going well with you guys. It's good to see that Dad is giving the missionaries some dinner. Man, I would kill for a pizza! In Brazil it's crazy what they do with pizza. THEY THROW STUFF LIKE TUNA FISH AND CHICKEN AND PEAS and corn and stuff on top. It's pretty nasty. But the one thing I have learned to love is pizza with mayo spread on it. That's what they do here. You can get a fatty pizza with some mayo to go on top. It's probably not good for your heart but oh well.
Well, in less than a month it's going to be my birthday. Scary thought that I'll be 21. It's like I'm growing up. Ha ha, scary huh?
This week was a crazy fast week with a lot of zone meetings and divisions. This week I only worked 2 days in my actual area. Zone Conference was sweet, but as usual for Elder Manis, "no letters". Man, I'm getting famous for being known as the forgotten Elder. The the last letter I got was in November. But it's good to know that I should have some letters coming soon.
Well, for the little time that I worked in my area things are going great. We had a good 6 people at church and they are all progressing towards baptism.
I'm still having a little trouble getting over that wall like I was telling you earlier. But I feel like I'm almost over it. It's a little rough, but it's all smiles. :) Me and Elder Araújo are doing great. He could easily be one of my favorite comp's. He is a really hard worker and looks for results in the end and not just baptisms, just as I do. Things are going great between us except he thinks he is a good basketball player. But I destroy him every p-day. haha I destroy him at soccer as well. haha I just say, "Just stick to reading Conference talks on P-day Elder". But he just laughs. We found out who will be the Presidente of the Missão after President Pickett leaves. It will be President Araújo. He isn't related to my Comp' and I don't know much about him, so I guess you guys can look him up when you get the chance.
This week I have been studying Alma. You know what that means. "WAR" man. It's a lot of war, but it's amazing to see how the Nephite generals taught about everything. Everything that could possibly happen and all the little details. It's amazing that through all the trials, they trusted in the Savior that everything would work out. And then everything did work out. It's amazing how the Savior protects the righteous and destroys the wicked, and its amazing to see how the Lord loves perfection. It's cool to see how the generals looked for and sought after the will of God. If we were all like the generals of the Nephite armies, that as Alma says, "Satan would not have power over us."
It's amazing to soak up every moment on my mission. I love my mission and I love how it is helping me be a better son of God. :)
I love you guys and I hope to get some letters soon. :) Love ya :)
Elder Manis
Well, in less than a month it's going to be my birthday. Scary thought that I'll be 21. It's like I'm growing up. Ha ha, scary huh?
This week was a crazy fast week with a lot of zone meetings and divisions. This week I only worked 2 days in my actual area. Zone Conference was sweet, but as usual for Elder Manis, "no letters". Man, I'm getting famous for being known as the forgotten Elder. The the last letter I got was in November. But it's good to know that I should have some letters coming soon.
Well, for the little time that I worked in my area things are going great. We had a good 6 people at church and they are all progressing towards baptism.
I'm still having a little trouble getting over that wall like I was telling you earlier. But I feel like I'm almost over it. It's a little rough, but it's all smiles. :) Me and Elder Araújo are doing great. He could easily be one of my favorite comp's. He is a really hard worker and looks for results in the end and not just baptisms, just as I do. Things are going great between us except he thinks he is a good basketball player. But I destroy him every p-day. haha I destroy him at soccer as well. haha I just say, "Just stick to reading Conference talks on P-day Elder". But he just laughs. We found out who will be the Presidente of the Missão after President Pickett leaves. It will be President Araújo. He isn't related to my Comp' and I don't know much about him, so I guess you guys can look him up when you get the chance.
This week I have been studying Alma. You know what that means. "WAR" man. It's a lot of war, but it's amazing to see how the Nephite generals taught about everything. Everything that could possibly happen and all the little details. It's amazing that through all the trials, they trusted in the Savior that everything would work out. And then everything did work out. It's amazing how the Savior protects the righteous and destroys the wicked, and its amazing to see how the Lord loves perfection. It's cool to see how the generals looked for and sought after the will of God. If we were all like the generals of the Nephite armies, that as Alma says, "Satan would not have power over us."
It's amazing to soak up every moment on my mission. I love my mission and I love how it is helping me be a better son of God. :)
I love you guys and I hope to get some letters soon. :) Love ya :)
Elder Manis
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