Alrighty, Friends and
Family!
So to
all those who were worrying about my toe, it is currently fine, toenail still attached
:) Funny story, when I went to go see the medic, my toe was legit purple, and
white around the hangnail. It was absolutely a mess. Everyone in the MTC told
me that it would definitely be coming off when I went to go see the doctor.
Anyways, after I finished up my letter last week, we went to go see the
doctor... he was closed on Fridays. So I hobbled around on my purple toe, in
very much pain. (Never had one that bad) So Saturday morning, I explained to
him on how it was very difficult to even sleep with my toe throbbing like that.
I took my sock off to reveal my horrendous toe. All he said was "well, it
looks like you have an ingrown toenail" I so wanted to say something like
"oh, really? I just thought it was a bug bite" but I didn’t. He told
me to just pull back the skin, lift up on the nail, and repeat, and when it was
as far separated as it was going to be, just to jam regular paper in between. I
had my suspicions, but I followed orders, and surely enough, the doodadd came
on out on its own. It was lodged a full centimeter in there, to give you an
idea... eww.
So anyways, a funny story that I forgot to tell y’all when I first got here,
when I was at the airport, I was expecting to have all these Brazilians en
route to Sao Paulo when I first got there, and I was ready to just start
talking to some Brazilians, and baptize everyone at the airport, haha jk.
Either way, I get there, and I see two people walk in, they looked like Brazilians,
and they were speaking a foreign language. So I try to eavesdrop very subtly on
their conversation, and I did not pick up a word. Not even a word. I was so
frustrated. I was like "gosh, all that time learning Portuguese, and I’ve
got a long way to go" while true I had a long way to go, I soon learned
that they were actually speaking Hebrew, so that relieved some stress.
So we go from not even recognizing what language someone is speaking... flash
forward to now. We went proselyting on Wednesday. Irma Deniz, one of our
instrutoras, (I’ve got a picture, just wait a bit) took us, and another
district, to a big centre of people and told us to start handing out Books of Mormon.
We were terrified. But it turns out, we were ready. We understood pretty much
everything everyone was saying, and worked our way through the hour of being
there. I even gave one to the guy sitting next to me on the bus! Anyways,
in an hour, the 8 companionships that were there handed out 53 copies of the
Book of Mormon. That’s pretty good for a bunch of Americans, an Englishman, and
a South African. :) I’m so excited to be speaking the language. It relieves a
lot of stress actually being able to talk to people. :)
BTDUBBS, I sent some letters last week, and I’ve sent a couple this week,
including a BIG one for home.
Other things I’ve neglected to mention - They’ve got Antarctica Guarana on tap
here at the MTC. It’s very nice :)
I gave a talk on Sunday in Portuguese. It went off very well. I sent the talk
home via mail today. BTDUBBS, I just heard that Missionties has a monthly fee.
I thought it was a one- time pay-and-done thing. It is probably not worth that
monthly fee. If you haven’t signed up, don’t worry about it. If you already
signed up, it could be very useful for the MTC, but after that, it’s not quite
worth it.
Okay. So on Monday, Elder L., one of beloved colleagues in our district,
announced that he was going to be sent home. This was the most bittersweet,
perhaps tender moments that I have ever witnessed. Under his own free will, he
confessed that he wasn’t ready to be out on a mission, and that he wanted to
change his life around. We were all proud of him for making that vital but very
difficult step of repentance. With consent of the Branch President, we gathered
around Elder L. to give him a Priesthood blessing of knowledge and guidance. A
very shaky and emotional District Leader, former companion of L., Elder Riddle was the voice. He only had one
other Priesthood blessing under his belt, and that was a blessing that I would
get over my cold. The blessing was probably the most beautiful thing I had ever
heard in my life. Not a dry eye was in the circle of the band of brothers,
sending Elder L home to begin his journey of utilizing the atonement. The words
uttered in the prayer were perhaps too sacred for this email, but it sufficeth
me to say it was unbelievable. We sent him off the very next day singing
"God be with you till we meet again" from our 6th story window, as Elder
L drove off to the airport.
On Wednesday, we got a new district member - Elder Burt. He spent 3 weeks in Provo,
got his Visa, and came over here. Let’s just say, I’m glad I’ve learned Portuguese
in Brazil. :) He’s got some work cut out for him, haha. He’s a great guy, and
like the rest of my district, very tall, very big. He’s a tight end.
Running out of time, but I will say one more thing - The Book of Mormon is
awesome. I am reading it as if I were eating Baked Steak. I read it every time
I have a chance. I can read it in Portuguese just as easily as in English. It
has enriched my life greatly. It is true. It is absolutely true. If you don’t
have one, get one and read it. It’s a good book.
Love Y’all! Until next week,
Elder Wassom.
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