Letter #38

5/28/12

Dear Family,

 

Well 1st off happy belated birthday and Happy Memorial weekend to all of you guys too. Let Grandma and Grandpa Mangum I got their letter and I really enjoyed it. Glad to have your guys support too, it has been a hard transfer but only one more week and I have made it through. So glad to hear everyone will basically be busy during the Summer, espescially Spencer lol. And dad keep practicing the Portugues you will remember it all again. Actually this kid that is sitting next to me stareted speaking to me and I understood it and spoke back and he didn´t laugh at mine and he understood mine too. So it was really weird but yet so natural. English still has its bumps and Anderson keeps that in mind lol. Anyways he is doing better, had a rough time with Melo but I think we all learned to love him in some way. We also made gaggys like ever week ,so i AM OUT OF PEANUT BUTTER BUT IT WAS WOrth it just to get through the transfer. Anderson is having a lot of 1st on the mission, 1st break up, 1st dying and really fubecka missionary, and he is still here. He wants to go home but at the same time he doesn´t. I am at the point where I don´t think I am ever going home so just accept the fact I could be killing missionaries for my entire mission. Get ready for some fun Spencer lol, but always remember you can pray and read the scriptures, they help pass the time and reall strengthen you.

So Elder Wilson and I have an investigator who has already recieved an answer, a dream even, and still doesn´t feel ready to be baptized. We don´t know how to help understand that she needs to be because she wants to just wants to wait. And we explained to her already the importance of baptism, she has friends in the church, and even church talked about doing things based off the spirit now not later. So... I guess this week is to really push a date and hopefully this satureday and be confirmed sunday. So ya wish me luck and lots of prayes too.

I am really grateful for your guys emails and letters. They are very important too me and love it when you guys put humor and stories and it really brightens my week. Thank you dad for the little updates on sports, gives me a smile, and Mom your stories of the family are the best. I am currently in Alma chapter 9 and should be and chapter 11 or 12 tonight. I am a little behind becasue I had the cold or flu or something, but I am gettting better I don´t know why I keep getting sick. I try to drink lots of water and those vitamin pills and more fruits and vegitables but ya... maybe teaching me humlity and ask more blessing in my life and rely on others. I don´t do tha a lot. I really try to only rely on myself but Anderson has really taught me to rely on my leaders whenever possible because if I don´t want to keep killing missionaries they will help me ´´move up´´ in the mission. So hopefully I will be doing something else than killing on the mission.

Oh so I bought a coupe of nice futebol shirst and a hammock. So I am finally starting on my collection of stuff lol. So ya I guess I need a bigger suit case I won´t be able to bring 3 pillows whereever I go. You have to sacrifice so much on the mission like a pillow or two just to have some really cool stuff lol. Well I will let you guys know next week where I will be and who will be my new companion. Almost 9 months ( Elder Anderson does a good job counting lol he is kinda trunky cause of all the dying missionaries in the zone 7 or 8 missionaries will be dying... it is so exciting.)

Se amo

Elder Searle

Letter #37

5/21/12

Dear Family,

So I am doing great amd I will be working a lot more with Elder Anderson. Basically Elder Wilson has thrown in the towel and doesn´t want to work anymore because we got one baptism. So ya Elder Anderson and I will be getting a few more before the transfer ends.

I will try to download a ton of pictures too in the next couple weeks but the internet here is too slow ( won´t even allow me to see picture that I have already downloaded). So maybe if I go to central or somewhere else with better internet.

Ya dengue can be pretty serious. basically if you get it once the chance of you getting it again is higher and you could get the more serious one too. Even some American mission presidents send you home if you get it twice. And I try to use insect repelent before I sleep and duringthe harder days but is is really hard to avoid being bitten when you use to live next to a tire shop and the just let the old tires stack up next to our stair way. But I am trying to be better. Fans really help too.

Awesome that school is almost done and you guys are ready to sleep in lol. I can´t wait in a year and 4 months lol.

I really love that you have a testimony of prayer, in fact it is becasue of pray I have had very special experinces in my life before the mission as well as during. I really wish I have these experinces after the mission too. And Dad thank you about D&C 84. It basically explains why there are missionaries, members, leaders and the need of only one trye church. Funny thing is I taught a class on the people of the convant of the Lord. ( not sure if I translated it correctly but it is basically about the new and everlasting covenant.) It was really hard to teach cause I am not very fulent in the language yet and scared to death too, but many members helo the lesson go pretty smoothly. I explained that we needed these convenants in oder to continue in this life and return to HIm in the next. And with the priesthood we could make these covenants with the Lord in order to be saved and recieve help and guidance. It was really cool to teach (vey hard) but rewarding at the same time.

The reason I gave Spencer that comitment is becasue a profeta of the Lord has given that promise to everyone and I believe and know that if we follow the counsel of the profeta we can recieve those promissed blessings. Sometimes we sit back and want to see what happens to others but we usually end up thinking ``oh that was nice`` instead of really understanding the power of following the profeta. I know a lot of times I think oh that would be cool or awesome but I don´t do anything about it until it is almost too late and then I am trying to catch up rather than move forward and even lead. Too many of us like to sit back and watch and then if it works out follow the group. So Spencer do it now and you will be some what ahead. I mean it is very hard to be prepared for the field but you can always have a good start and somethime that can make the biggest difference in a race. So Good luck and go strong from the begging.

I love you all. Hope finals go well, hope everyone is getting along. Hope you guys don´t sleep in too much. Treyson hope camps go well, don´t get lazy lol. Hannah miss ya. Love you MOM and DAD.

Se amo

Elder Searle

Letter #36

5/14/12

Dear FAmily,

 

So it was awesome talking toall of you. I have a question what happened to al l the pictures I downloaded to the website last time. I don´t want to download moe if some how they all disapeared. Um... well the thing with ELder Wilson is he is n´t really good at speaking portugues, I mean he can let other know what he is trying to say but he has a very heavey american accent and sometimes other people understand me a whole lot better than him. I think he knows that but I don´t know, lately he stated throwing out stences and words at me ], you know inorder to bring me down and he does weird random stuff and if I don´t follow him then it is my fault. so ya I don´t know I just stayed queit for a long time and then one day he started to do it in front of an investigator, and I actually really got pissed at him and one day I just yellded at him and he yelled back but he pushed me and I was ready to throw a jaab at his throat but I didn´t ( I was super pissed too and I don´t know how I stopped myself but I did) basically elder wilson is a lot like me before the mission aand ya I think he really has a hard time talking to people in general. DBut now we are good. not tight but good, I think he is just ready to die. Anyways I think I will go on more splits with Anderson anyways just to make sure there is a buffer on somedays with wilson because HE doesn´t really look happy to be with me lol.

They have tons of apples here and pharmacies that is also basically on every corner too. So I should be good. I am not too bad besides the fact we walked in the rain back home for almost two hours lol so much for dit being hot and getting better. But I will be alright, drugged my self up today.

Well I am glad tom has taken my place at home aand still acting like a boy ( sorry mom). and I hope mothers day was amazing. Spencer don´t forget to raad the BOM in JApanesse. Uhm.. I don´t know what else to write ,I might go buy a hamock today or some futebol shirts or something.

Se amo

Elder Searle

Letter #35

5/7/12

Dear Family,

 

I will be able to talk to you on skype. I will call you guys after you guys get home from church. So be ready.

Sounds like everyone is slowing down for the summers and is going good. Wow lots of people getting married this year, that is pretty crazy. Wish them luck from me.

Thank you for the scriptures mom and yes I did get my package, well kinda. it is sitting at the zone leaders house so I haven´t gotten to open yet but I will.

So elder Wilson and I are doing alright. I think he thinks he speasks good portugues, but sometimes it is worse than mine. Like I am no pro at it yet but he doesn´t really do what he claims he has done in the past. So I think he is trying to go off what feels natural rather than practice grammer more often. I still have tons to learn as well as how to speak to people here how they speak. It is really complicaded. Anyways it is coming, I am starting to be able to read faster and know more words in one day ( I hope that sentence made sense). I am almost into alma, the biggest book than after that it should be a breeze to finish it.

Elder Anderson and Melo are having issues and part of it is Elder melo and the other par t is Elder Anderson learning how to work with it but he is not really use to a dying companion ( his 1st one). I am trying to help him stay psitive but some days I feel their companionship affecting me and ELder Wilson. It is one 4 more weeks so not a lot of time.

Hope you guys are doing great, nothing really new to tell here. Still trying to get 6 baptism for Elder Wilson (his goal) and they keep on falling. Looks like we just need to start over againg and find brand new people. I am sure it will work out. I have learned a lot on the mission and Spencer I really do encouarge you to read the BOM in your mission language before you go because there is a promise that comes by reading it in whatever language, you will become fluent in that language. I know it would be somewhat of a pain but read it out loud and if you can´t read all of it try and read it untill you get to the feild. I have seen many elders simple just read the BOM and they speak better afterwards. It is helping me alot. Love you all. ( Dad you should read it in portugues to remeber how to speak portugues again) and hope life goes well.

se amo

Elder Searle

Letter #34

4/30/12

Dear Family,

I am doing good. Elder Wilson loves to run in the morning so I do a lot of that. He also works but he admits if I didn´t keep a good tab on it he would enjoy sleepying in a chair and drink tereré. But he does want to end it well he just needs the motivation to keep going. We have a few possiblilties this coming week and then the next one but that is if they go to church, so we´ll see. I am learning a lot of words and grammer again, forgot some or didn´t practice them very well with Elder Farley but I am back up to speed for the most part. I am also in Mosiahs and been reading the BOM in portugues. What else... played futebol today that was fun and ya been working a lot.

So I hear there is a lot of juggling at home. Well i have learned one thing here on the mission is reading scriptures at night and in the morning really helps with that, don´t really know why but I am able to do a lot more in the day when I study. But keep the good work and good things will come out of it. And don´t stress out about the little things enjoy the little things instead. They are a lot harder to enjoy sometimes but they can really make the difference in the day. For example numbers. Numbers here on the mission suck and number of baptism is different but number of peole you teach and how many you teach and really can make a difference. You could teach 20 lessons a week but that doesn´t matter if you are not teaching like 10 people becasuse a lot of people will deline but they more you teach the more people you can find ready to be baptized. So they do count but they can be annoying and really hard to juggle.

Well I do hope finals come out alright and they will if you guys are trying your best . Hope mom you are doing well and not stressing out and juggling too much yourself. THat is cool to hear about the new class dad will be taking, might learn a few things when I get back. Brasilians don´t know how to budget money so it is always funny to hear them say where did you get that money? Oh Dad what is your team from brazil and have you ever tried tereré?

Se amo

Elder Searle

Letter #33

04/23/12

Dear Family,

So we got one more baptism and it was an 8 year old girl how wanted to be baptized very badly. Her brother was baptized but stop going to church and the mom is going to be dificult cause she lives alone and works on the weekends. But it was nice to end Elder Farley´s misson on a bang. I got to baptise the little girl so that was cool.

My new companion will be ... an american also lol. And he too will be dying. His name is ELder Wilson and I kinda know him. I know he is super trunky so it maybe harder to get him to work but you never know. I will be the only one staying in the house. I was living with 3 other missionaries. Elder oliveria got his call to São Paulo, he was doing a little traing thing here in Pedra 90. Elder lira, his companion, will be following him back home to rondonoplis. So ya I will probably have to show we everything is, yay... Anyways I am doing well, I was super sick but doing a lot better. Sad to see elder Farely leave. HE was the best companion I ever had andI learned tons from him. HE also helped me get a ton of very most likely baptism nthis week too, as well as , Elder LIra and Oliveira.

Hope you all are doing well. Should get my package today if it came and I am super excited for it. Oh ELder Anderson and I will be living in the same house, he was my 1st companion in the MTC. So that is awesome. He too will be killing someone. So ya I stil have the most kills like HAlo. lol THat last part was for Spencer And Treyson. Let me know when Spencer willl be going to the MTC so I can send him some letters and pics.

Love you all.

Elder Searle.