Fire and Brimstone!!!

January 26, 2018

Week #4

This last week on Saturday we went out proselyting in the streets of Sao Paulo! It was pretty nuts to see the different culture between here and the United States. People here, if you come up to them in the streets they are interested in what you have to say and don't just blow you off so that was really cool! We got some contacts and I finally felt as if I planted a seed that can change someone's life forever! It felt like I got up on my soap box back in the 1800's and started preaching REPENT OR DIE! (not literally but that's how it felt)

For one of our devotionals this week I got to play the piano prelude music for one of the quorum of the 70 which was pretty cool!  I also got to sing with our district for a thing called Districtos Favoritos. We totally nailed the performance and got a whole bunch of compliments which was a super nice confidence booster for us cause we had just gone out and talked to people outside of the MTC for the first time and couldn't understand basically anything that was being said to us. But people were patient and helped us learn more Portuguese so it wasn't that bad! We also got 2 new people in our district which is pretty sweet! They were in the Provo MTC before they came here and they're fitting pretty well in! One is going to the same mission as me and is from Idaho too!

I can't wait to go to Natal and start preaching to the people that I have been called to serve! I am super excited to get my butt kicked by Portuguese out there in Brazil! I leave the 6th of February from the MTC and get to fly I think for 6 hours up to Natal! Super exciting work and I couldn't wish for a better experience!

Look at this stuff, isn't it neat? Wouldn't you say my missions complete (in 102 weeks but who's counting)?

January 19, 2018

Week #3

This week here we got so much new stuff as far as the church goes. A new mission president cause the other one just finished his mission of 2 years here, and a new prophet all in one week! How crazy is that, during my stay at the CTM the mission president changes and the president of the entire church changes! It was really cool being here for the change of both presidencies because we got to all meet in a huge room here and watch devotionals and do it all together with everyone in the CTM. Like I said in my last email the spirit here is amazing. 

Early this week we started doing a thing called TRC. TRC is when my companions and I go to a members "home" (which is really just another room in the CTM) and we talk with them about the gospel. It is wayyyyy easier than the fake investagators we have to teach lessons to. I can just about speak enough Portuguese to not need notes for the lessons anymore. My companions and I go into lessons with a list of scriptures and just go for it! Its crazy what the spirit can do for you. We also started splits which is when we get a Brazilian companion instead of our normal American ones which is really difficult cause they speak only portuguese and talk reallllllyyyy fast and I already can't speak the language so I struggle. But I CAN DO IT eventually.

Also I've been reading a book called Our Search for Happiness, if you haven't read it, LDS or not, it is a super good book about eplaining our beliefs in the church in a way that is easy to understand and for me was pretty fun to read. Anyways hope you all have had a good week and I'll talk more about my adventures here next week!

An (Un)expected journey

BEST DAY EVER FOR THIS MAMA!!!!!!! 

January 12, 2018

Week #2

Hey there everyone and welcome to my email spam where once a week I get 45 minutes to splurge all my thought onto a page to update everyone with everything I've learned and felt and experienced. Before I get going if you emailed me this week I'm going to respond next week cause I took a picture of your email and will be able to read it later but I don't have time to go through and read them in this 45 minutes. Also my spelling and grammar is going to be really bad cause all of this is set to Portuguese and not English so sorry in advance!

Everyday I get up at 630 and have to get ready to learn some Portuguese! I've been learning lots and learning fast. I've been here for about 10 days now and can have a somewhat decent conversation with someone, at least here in the CTM. My district is super awesome and we are only going to be here for 5 weeks instead of 6 because of our week delay and for me that's pretty exciting! There are 5 people in my district, we make jokes with our teachers all the time and we love them. Irmo Santiago came in and we were talking about girlfriends and he walks in and asks"Girlfriends what kind of Pokémon is that?" The best part is most the teachers don't know that much English here so hearing him say that was pretty funny. This morning we got to go to the Sao Paulo Temple and it was gorgeous but I swear we almost died like 50 times trying to get there. Brazilians driving is nuts. It was literally straight out of a movie swerving this 15 person bus in between cars. The car lanes here are like 2/3rds the sized of a US lane so we could basically lean out the window and kiss the driver next to us if we wanted. I'm in a trio companionship just and I'm not really sure why but its fine and we all get along so its not a big deal. all we eat here are rice and beans everyday all day except for breakfast then we eat ham and cheese sandwiches. The CTM is awesome we play volleyball almost everyday and everyone here goes nuts. Surprisingly not a whole lot of soccer here there isn't enough space for it so there is volleyball instead. Its super spiritual here and it is amazing to experience. 

When I first walked into the doors of the CTM there was a giant wave of one the spirit and two air conditioning. We walked in and basically one of the first things we did was choir practice. Everyone here is (forced) in choir and it was actually one of the best singing experiences I've had. It was all in Portuguese but I knew what it meant cause it was a hymn I've sung like a billion times I can't remember what it was but I just remember the feeling of love and everyone singing with their full heart. And I don't cry often but if I'm being honest one or two tears did fall. Elder Lawson, one of the people in my district, is a spiritual giant and also he knew one of my friends who served in his home town, Jonah Hansen. 

Anyways let me show off my sweet Portuguese skills here at the bottom good luck translating cause its all going to be grammatically terrible and spelled wrong so here it goes! Eu gostaria dar meu testimono que eu sei que esso é a igreja verdade. Sei que deus ama todos pessoas em o mundo e quire ajudar todos. Sei as escrituras é a palvara de Deus. Em e nome de Jesus Cristo Amem. Tchau! 

(I have no pictures cause we can't send them in the CTM sorry you'll have to wait for 4 weeks)

Your Missionary Has Arrived Safely!!!

January 5, 2018
The time is already flying by!!! WOW, this letter REALLY put my heart and mind at ease! LOL! Getting the short email from Coulsey gave me peace...THIS letter/email confirmed that Coulson will be LOVED and CARED for while he's gone...this mom's deepest wish  <3 We got a picture this time :D and a picture speaks a MILLION words!!!

Week #0, Day 3 

Dear Parents,

Sister Grahl and I are very happy to let you know that your missionary has arrived safely at the Brazil Missionary Training Center.  What a great joy and privilege it is to greet each missionary as they begin their missionary experiences with us! We will surely take good care of your missionary.                                                                                                     

The missionaries now have companions and are settled into their rooms.  They are assigned to a district with capable and caring instructors for language and lesson study.  Their branch presidents and wives will meet them this Sunday.  These wonderful couples are richly blessed as they work with, motivate, and interview the missionaries assigned to their branch.

The MTC has a physician to care for their health needs. We are also happy to report that the MTC food is plentiful, healthy and very good.

Your missionary will be able to e-mail home on Preparation Day after a morning at the Temple.  This will be either Wednesday or Friday, depending on individual assignments.

Your missionary is about to make an eternal difference in the lives of many others. President Lorenzo Snow said: “There is no mortal man that is as interested in the success of an elder when he is preaching the Gospel as is the Lord who sent him to preach to the people who are the Lord's children".  We love these missionaries as if they were our own.  We will watch over them carefully to ensure they are ready for a wonderful missionary experience after the rewarding time they will have in the MTC.

We thank you for preparing such a wonderful representative of the Lord.

Sister Grahl was sick at the time we took the picture, she apologizes and soon she’ll take another picture with your missionary.

Pres. Paulo R. Grahl and Sister Zuleika M. Grahl

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:  

PLEASE DO NOT SEND PACKAGES to the Brazil Missionary Training Center. All packages must be sent directly to the mission where your missionary will be serving, not the MTC. If you have already mailed a package to the Brazil MTC, please understand that the package cannot be forwarded to his or her mission and will be returned to you.

WE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE SENDING HAND WRITTEN LETTERS. Please write your missionary´s first and last name. Your missionary will provide you with his district and box number. Also, please DO NOT SEND ANYTHING BY FEDEX, DHL, UPS, or other private carriers.  The cost to process this type of correspondence is exorbitant.

Nailed It!

We recieved our first email from Coulson on January 2, 2018 at 7:30 this morning!!! What a relief to know he is in Sao Paulo, Brazil and arrived at the MTC safely!!! 💝 I am so honored to pass along Elder Charles Coulson Rich' s messages to all of you!

Week #0, Day 1

Nailed It!

Totally made it here with all of my bags! I will be emailing on Fridays! I can't send photos home yet while I'm at the MTC because it slows down the entire network. (definately taking photos)  I'll send some when I get out in the field! It sounds like The scheduling from boys state here which isn't a bad thing. My flight was pretty good I sat next to a guy named Alphonso from Texas and he was pretty cool and not a missionary. I don't have much time so I'll email you again not this week Friday but the next week! So it'll be 10 days until my next email. Love you both SSOOOO much!