This is Sister Holdens sister :)
Its so crazy to think that 18 months has flown by and that Janelle is coming home this thursday! I have absolutely loved reading her emails and feeling the love she has for the people there. I know that I have seen such a change in her testimony and strength. That as she has relied on the Lord, He has blessed her with such a strong testimony. We are so grateful for her example in serving a mission and we know that she has touched many lives. For 18 months every night we have prayed for her safety and that she will be guided by the spirit to find those who are ready to accept the gospel. I have felt the love that Heavenly Father has for Janelle, and through her emails I know that our prayers have been answered.
I am so grateful for the gospel in my life. What a blessing it has been to see sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father through Janelles eyes. She has shown so much love for those around her and that has inspired me to be better. I hope and pray that all of you have been touched by Janelles testimony as I have.
We are so excited for her to come home, and I know without a doubt that she will faithfully continue to spread the gospel.
I'm sure we will get some fun travel stories up on the blog as soon as she gets safely home.
Thank you everyone for your love and support towards Janelle while she is serving the Lord!!
Monday, January 26, 2015
Jan 19, 2015 - Porto Alegre
this is probably my last email!
Well, thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday! It´s weird to be 21, but i think it´ll be a great year ;)
I
don´t know what i want to say this week. It´s so weird that this is me
last week as a missionary. I am so grateful for this time that i´ve had
to serve the Lord!  |
| -this is my little scorpion Murilo |
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| -we had an activity today! It was weird to wear jeans haha |
Jan 12, 2015 - Porto Alegre
IT´S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN
This week i saw a tornado, JUST KIDDING! Hahah a
HUGE storm started out of nowhere! So naturally, we had to take pictures
hahaha.
ALSO! We are trying to do everything fun we can, as non-Brasilians.. So we bought coconut water! people, it´s not that great. hahahaha Sister Ayala liked it, but i thought it just tasted like watery milk. Yum.
ALSO! We are trying to do everything fun we can, as non-Brasilians.. So we bought coconut water! people, it´s not that great. hahahaha Sister Ayala liked it, but i thought it just tasted like watery milk. Yum.
I had my last mission birthday this week..
AND
something happened this week. The other set of sisters in our ward,
went looking for some old investigators, when they got to the house, the
fire had just been put out. The family that lives there is family with
the old investigators. They lost everything in the fire. So the sisters
started helping! the next day, we went to help, and on Saturday there
were a ton of members helping clean up, also donating what they can. It
was very cool to see how the members jumped in to help. 
Jan 5, 2015 - Porto Alegre
the hill to heaven
Well folks, this week i climbed a hill that pretty much went into the
sky. And i didn´t climb it, i hiked it. In wimpy flats, and a skirt, in
the rain. HA okay not the rain, but a rainy day. IT WAS SO COOL. :) the
view really was worth it! Too bad i didn´t bring my camera :( I saw all
of Porto Alegre, part of the other mission, the Lake of Ducks ;) SUPER
COOL!
This week we also found ANA CAROLINA! She is
so awesome! I loved her response to our questions.. Like "Have you heard
of Joseph Smith before?" "Not yet!" Haha i loved it because she had
hope to hear of it, you know? Like she knew she would hear about it. She
also understands a ton about faith and about Heavenly Father. She is so
awesome:) she´s 13 years old :)
Also it´s
January people! I have a whole list of things i´m going to do this year!
Like my visiting teaching, giving referrals to the missionaries every
week... etc.
What are you going to do this year?
I love being a missionary, i love seeing the miracles i get to see everyday!
<3 Sister Holden
PS this is the Lake of Ducks! (Dad;))
PPS if you have a problem under the sink, don´t worry! Sister Ayala can fix it ;)
Dec 29, 2014 - Porto Alegre
HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2015!
no time to write, AGAIN. But i wanted to share an awesome miracle this week:
We
have a part of our area called, Boa Vista. And it is super rich. My
comp was told that there are only snoddy people and mansions there. But i
wanted to see the mansions! haha. So we planned to go there, visit the
members that lived there, active or less active, and knock doors.
PEOPLE. We found SO many awesome, happy people who want us to go back!
ha. It was so cool.
Another miracle: kind of.
The
Spirit is amazing.. yesterday there were a lot of crazy people on the
road haha. I didn´t feel safe almost the entire day. But it was a great
comfort to know what we needed to do to avoid bad situations.
I
love the scriptures. Alma is a great book;) Read your scriptures! Do
Family Home Evening! Seach to have a greater portion of the Spirit in
your lives.
I love you!!
Dec 22, 2014 - Porto Alegre
FELIZ NATAL
Just kidding, MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! Wahoo! :)
this week was super awesome! getting to know the area, the members, and my new companion!!
Sister
Ayala, from Argentina, SUPER AWESOME, hahaha we laugh the whole day
long. She really so great. She is so excited to work and talk to the
people. I am learning so much from her.
I have
absolutely no time this week haha, but i hope everyone has a super merry
christmas, and that you think about what gift you can give to Christ
this year.
LOVE YOU!!
<3 Sister Holden
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| -so long Pelotas! |
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| -we live with 4 sisters! Sister Ayala is the one on my right. |
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| -Ps Santa is super young this year... hahaha. (that is Gabriel, President Castro´s son) |
Dec 18, 2014 - Pelotas
don´t chop garlic in your hands..
or your hands will smell like garlic for dayss! haha.
This week was awesome! We got to run home in the rain.. We ate french fries with a pile of meat and cheese. And we had a Christmas party, and used the left over food to do a ward lunch! hahaha was real cool. ;)
But really our ward Christmas party was super cool:) We had lots of investigators there, lots of food, and lots of laughs.
This week was awesome! We got to run home in the rain.. We ate french fries with a pile of meat and cheese. And we had a Christmas party, and used the left over food to do a ward lunch! hahaha was real cool. ;)
But really our ward Christmas party was super cool:) We had lots of investigators there, lots of food, and lots of laughs.
I
don´t have anymore time! but i will be getting transferred! WAhoo to
Porto Alegre! :) Will be super cool, I will go to the temple, and work
in the big city ;)
10 days till Christmas :D
I
love you all! Alma 15 is my favorite chapter. It has the whole gospel
of Jesus Christ! ha it really is so good. Read it this week! :)
Have a good week and be obedient! ;)
<3 Sister Holden
 |
| -POURED, don´t worry, i saved the cotton candy! |
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| -Albert Enstein, i mean Francisco and Maria ;) |
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| -Who remembers Pedro? This is him! haha and don´t judge my face, i was cracking up laughing.. haha. |
Dec 8, 2014 - Pelotas
"you have an accent that i can´t understand a word you say"
I love how honest kids are ;) hahahah. That was from Pedro, he is 7
years old, and comes to church by himself, no one in his family is a
member, SO guess who we´ll be visiting! ;) i asked for his address, and
he said, why do you want to visit me? Because you, my friend, are super
cool. Haha. Maybe next week i´ll take a picture with him :P
All
i can say this week is that the Atonement is REAL. Real in so many
ways. Bah, we can literally receive help, and support, and peace, and so
much more through the Atonement.
Next week we find out about transfers. Weeee what will happen what will happen?
Remember the reason for the season! ;)
OH and summer is here. And Mom, i am super grateful that you made me bring sunscreen SPF 50. hahaha. Really, thank you. :)
Love you all!! Follow the Spirit, read the scriptures, and tell someone you love them ;)
<3 Sister Holden
PS this email was short so that Laurel would read it.
PPS- pictures:
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| Patrícia and João! |
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| Guys, there is a CASTLE in Pelotas! |
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| happy 16 months! |
Dec 1, 2014 - Pelotas
i got a pocket, got a pocket full of sunshine...
HELLOOOOOOO! :)
How is everyone doing today?
Okay, this week was SUPER cool. We found so many awesome, prepared people!!
Daniela,
she has a young family, and LOVED the message about Joseph Smith, she
really understood the need for a Restoration! It was awesome, she
accepted the Book of Mormon and said she would read it to her kids
before bedtime :´) haha.
Patrícia, she is the
girlfriend of a less active. I spent Thanksgiving wiht them ;) haha. But
she also is so ready! She has had so many experiences with the church,
and so many good examples. She just needs to get married! But she really
wants to, so it´ll be really cool to help them with that:)
Sister Santos likes to call me "Turtle face" -_- don´t know why. ha. but it´s really funny. ;)
SOOO
Saturday, Elder Moroni Torgan, visited our mission. :) And burned us,
haha really bad. He talked to the whole mission about breaking rules and
slacking off. He used really sharp words haha. I know that everyone
received answers, and guidance from the Spirit. He put a visual in our
minds.. "Every time you break a rule, you are helping crucify Jesus
Christ." WHOA. Thanks. Then he gave an awesome prayer, demanding satan
to leave our apartments, and our lives.. It definitely wasn´t the
meeting i was expecting. Haha. But i learned a ton, and i now have new
goals:)
Also, yesterday after lunch, we left
to go to work.. Litterally down the street from the member, we began
talking to people, i felt ONE drop of rain, and the POOF! it was pouring
hahahaha. POURING, we didnt have anything to protect us, so we walked
back to the members house, just to laugh with them. It really was within
like 5 minutes! Poured for 10 and then was gone. Then it got hot and
our clothes dried, but i, i like to use make-up... My face was a
messssss. hahahaha. But we worked and did contacts and it was a super
great day. haha. Funny.
Today is December. The
last month of the year!! Can you even believe it went by so fast! "this
is the season, beloved of the year.." Christmas, then the new year, new
goals, new clothes, and new pages. This is the time to celebrate the
birth of our Savior! And share that news with everyone! Glad that i can
be a missionary at this time of the year again:) Last year was so
special. :)
Love all of you!! Have an awesome week, and show someone you care!
<3 Sister Holden
something i forgot.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzjFEMmM0Xs |
| - my Santa Gaucho mug! :) |
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| - a nativity in the park! :) |
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- made a "thanksgiving dinner" on Tuesday ;)
|
Nov 24, 2014 - Pelotas
I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents...
This week, my friends, ended in a day that reminded me of a roller coaster. Hahah.
It
was hard to find people home this week, but that´s not super new. What
IS new that we had 6 people visiting on Sunday! BAHHHH! Manoel, he was
looking for a church and walked into ours a few weeks ago, he came back!
And was SO happy. :) We had members, who are coming back to church,
bring their boyfriends/girlfriends, recent converts brought their
grandparents ahah. It was really cool. And we managed to set up
appointments with all of them! :)
In the
Gospel Principles class, it was about The Spirit World, and what happens
there. One girl that was visiting, Patricia, she has a disabled sister,
and she asked how she would be judge/what would happen to her. Watching
her face as Siser Santos expained was really cool. I could see how the
Spirit was testifying to her. She felt it. She began to cry and the
other members too. Ha i wanted to cry! The Spirit was so strong. I´m so
grateful for the knowledge we have of what will happen after this life..
That we don´t need to fear death.
Also taught
the English class again, we talked a lot about Thanksgiving, awkward,
because i thought it was last week... HA. i need a calander from the
states :P but it was a lot of fun, interesting, becasue they have only
seen or heard about Thanksgiving from movies and TV shows. and a lot of
the time, there are things that aren´t thaaaat acurate. Haha but it was
fun.
Today i bought a mug that has Santa as a Gaúcho!! Ha, i didnt take a picture, how lame, but it´s really cool.. ;)
We played volleyball today as a district, and an Elder had a Chicagoe Bulls hat! woop woop Chicago! ;)
We have a Christmas tree in Pelotas!!
Have a great week! Remember the blessings that you have and always look up!
<3 Sister Holden
Nov 10, 2014 - Pelotas
"You are Bishop, what do you change in your ward?"
This weeks episode on: The Adventures of a 19(20)year old missionary in Brazil.......
I
forgot my planner again hahahahha sorrrrrrryyyyyyyy. But i wanted to
talk about something that has been on my mind this week.. We had an
activity, a STAKE activity, that wasn´t announced in any wards. This
activity was called, "Open House" for people to see a chapel, get to
know the church, with absolutely no committments or anything. So all of
us missionaries went to the church to give the tours.. Sitting there,
waiting and waiting, the representative from the stake told us that it
wasn´t announced. Anywhere. And that it had been planned for a year!
haha. So my point is this: SUPPORT YOUR LEADERS. Even if the stake
presidency is new, they have the authority and receive the reveltation
your stake or ward needs! It made me so sad to hear that the bishops
weren´t showing this support. Done with my rant;)
Our
Stake President used this time during the activity to talk to us. About
the challenges in our wards/areas. He looked at us, " you all asre
bishops of your wards. what do you change?" An interesting question
right? But it helped me. Not to judge or critisize the bisho here, but
to see where the ward is lacking, to know what to do. We are going to be
working a lot more with the less actives and getting to know the
members better.
In our District Meeting this
week, we practiced doing contacts haha. And Elder walked up to me, hi
how are you, etc... "We are representatives of Jesus Christ, and we have
a message that will bless your life." WHOA! haha blew me away. It was
so powerful! I really liked it a lot. Because we really ARE His
representatives, with the best message ever! And the power behind that
phrase was undeniable! So i will be working with those words ;)
hit 15 months this week. Weird.
AND:) This week is transfers! Siste Santos and I will be staying together for another 5 weeks!
I
love you all, tip for the week: Don´t let people put doubts into your
mind. You have your testimony, and you have answers that you received,
don´t forget about them. :)
<3 Sister Holden
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Nov 3, 2014 - Pelotas
Sometimes you only have 12 weeks left in Brasil.
So, this week, i forgot my planner. HA. So i can´t remember hardly anything.
BUT i do remember that we had a few miracles and an awesome activity!
Our
activity, should i tell you? It was the journey of the yellow
submarine. There was a game of Q&A, and a few choices they had to
make.. Then they all died. and were told which door to go into.
Celestial, Terestial, or Telestial. Was super cool! Afterwards we had
hot dogs:) I love hotdogs. Also, one of the choices was fruit or
chocolate, and because chocolate is SO much easier to choose, we got to
take home a TON of fruit! haha yay for us!
Our
miracles this week, we were knocking doors, and Sister Santos was
talking to this young man, and he said, oh no, sorry but we got to the
Mormon church. -what?- ahaha we´re from the "Mormon" church! haha. He
said his parents go every Sunday, but i dont know them, so i dont know
haha. But he said he isnt baptized! "Sooooo wanna be baptized?" :P But
we are going to start visiting them! It was way cool to find him:)
Also
yesterday, a man, Manoel, was walking around, looking for a church, and
found ours! Saw the sign "Visiters Welcome" thought oh good! And walked
in just in time for Sacrament Meeting! He just cried and cried, and
told me, "This is the house of God" IT was really cool:) He is from the
North East part of Brazil and just working here. He really liked the
meeting and will come back next weekend for all the classes:)
I
have such a strong testimony of this church. It IS the church of Christ
and people are drawn to it! Christ really did die for us, and live
again, so that we too can live again. I know that our Heavenly Father is
a just, loving, and caring God. Our families can be eternal. The Book
of Mormon is the word of God and the proof that His church is again on
earth. My heart literally aches when people lose their faith and their
testimony. We can´t give the adversary the inch in our hearts. I know
that faith is the first principle of the gospel, and knowing that, i
know that we need to use it, a lot, in this life. We are so blessed to
have the Priesthood on the earth again, the true, and complete church of
Christ, and the Book of Mormon. Who doesn´t want more of God´s word? I
love you all! Can you believe it´s November? All the stores here are
already decorated for Christmas. Aaahhh!:)
Love love love you! Sister Holden
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| this is my ward mission leader! Irmão Meiatto! He is super cool:) Sometimes kids confuse him with Pres Uchtdorf hahaha. |
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| FRUITS |
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| -Sister Santos and i! |
.JPG) |
| -my zone!! they are the best. Don't mind the goofy Elders. |
Oct 27, 2014 - Pelotas
I talk in my sleep but don´t worry, it´s in Portuguese. ;)
Don´t have a TON of time, but what´s new?:)
How are all of you?
This
week was full of faith building exeriences! :) WE had a conference with
President Castro, divisions, an awesone talk from the Bishop, and a
goal to find a family.
Our conference, Sister
Castro talked about being excited to work and how we can have that
excitement:) a lot about being grateful helps with being excited.
Presidente Castro talked about knowing our purpose as missionaries. And
how if we dont know our purpose, we are like a ship without a rudder.
(he used a talk from President Monson in the Priesthood session of Oct
14.)
We also did a cool activity.. we got
blind folded, and had to follow a voice... Lucky for me, it was Sister
Castro, so i trusted right away. She led me back into the chapel and had
me sit down.. When i could finally take off the blindfold, i saw a
drawing of the temple. Really pretty. And then i saw like 45 other
missionaries who didnt make it back into the chapel.,.. they listened to
other voices.. President compared this to people who are learning about
the church,. There are tons of voices, and we need to be worthy of
their confidence. I like it a lot. He said, "Now you know how your
investigators feel."
The Bishop´s talk
yesterday was so good! About challenges in our lives. That challenges
are nessesary for growth.. Think of a chick, trying to break out of the
shell, if you help him, he won´t have the strength he needs to do other
things after that inicial break of the shell. I loved that. He also said
that, "God won´t do anything that we can do ourselves." Oooooh. Just
think about that. It really hit me.. If we are praying for
things/blessings/help but aren´t trying to get it ourselves, we need to
back up hahah. Really i loved that.
And
yesterday. Okay it really starts on Saturday. ( Our number this week
aren´t super great..) I was talking with one of our Zone Leaders, and he
asked how i was, how my week was going, and he said, lets set a goal.
Tomorrow, you will find a family. Do you think that Heavenly Father can
help you find a family?(of course...) So sunday comes around, I had been
asking everyone if they knew a family we could visit... How is it that
no one has a family? hahaa. But anyways. 7:40
came around, we still hadn´t found this family.. Just praying, and
looking around the houses for a sign that a family lives there.. I saw 2
girls sitting outside, "Perfect! Let´s talk with them!" Their mom is of
a religion not very friendly.. they didnt let us in..
Kept walking..
I
saw a dog, sprinting away from the house that he had just escaped haha.
And a little boy pretty much in tears, yelling after his dog..
So
we helped round in the dog haha the dad came out and helped too, it was
really funny, the poor dog looked really nervous. Anyways, finally got
the dog, and i started talking to the dad, Eduardo. Eduardo and Viviane
live with there son, of 8 years. (How pefect i know) we taught them
about prophets and the Book of Mormon and he was so excited to get to
read it! Set up another day to visit with them again.. It was such a
miracle! I am so grateful that we could have the opportunity to see that
Heavenly Father really does answer prayers, and lets us see miracles:)
It was way special! :)
I love all of you, read
Mosiah 24. Remember about what Christ did for you. Remember to show your
love to your family. And remember who we can live with after this life.
Knowing that we can live with Heavenly Father again, helps us decide
what to do TODAY. I love this gospel!!
<3 Sister Holden
Sister Santos and i like to match sometimes..
Plan of Salvation pillow!
Oct 20, 2014 - Pelotas
I´m teaching Albert Einstein
This week, what a week, just want to say, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! YOU ARE THE BEST! ;)
this
week we had a ton of rain, a ton, lots of lightning and thunder too...
So much, that because my bed is right by a window, my blankets get all
wet hahah. But it´s part of it right?
Ha so i
just want to give a little advice right now.. Please, dont overload new
members or investigators with information. There is a time and a place
for everything, but it is "line upon line" They cant swallow a huge
chunk of meat all at one time. hahaha. thank you. In my ward, we have a
recent convert, i love her, super awesome girl and i love when she comes
out with us, but she gets so excited about the lesson and every single
detail she knows about it, she shares. haha. And sometimes it scares our
investigators a little. haha. Anyways.. :)
This
week, i ate a new dessert (sorry Dad, i just remembered right now haha)
It was sweet potatoes! but not like we have... I think it was boiled,
with some type syrup on top. Different. Sweet, haha dont know if i want
it again ;P but it was tasty.
Albert Einstein:
his real name is Fransisco! And he is so awesome! :) He is progressing
so well! It made me so happy to see.. He read like 5 or 6 chapters in
the Book of Mormon. Bah, him and his wife, Maria, are so awesome, they
want to show us around Pelotas! Like drive us to the beach and show us
all the cool places :) Think President will let us? :D They are super
cool, oh! And he is Albert Einstein because, he looks JUST LIKE HIM.
hahah it´s incredible! He stuck his tongue out and everything ;)
Next
miracle, Bruno. He went to church!! :D man it was so good! And tons of
members were talking to him, involving him, i love when things work
out:) He is also is reading in the Book of Mormon. People like these,
just make everything worth it.
To see
progress, and success of what you are doing, it´s the best:) BUT like a
lot of things, it takes time to see the sucess, or see the blessings of
keeping a commandment, but it´s so worth it. :)
So
grateful to be here on the mission, to get 2 hours mostly everyday to
study the words of Christ. I read about Alma, who was the only one to
believe Abinadi (he never even saw the success!) and baptized 204 people
in one day! haha. I know what i´m doing here is helping improve lives.
Mine too. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is
Christ´s church. I know that we have living prophets and that our
families can last forever :)
I love you all. Read your scriptures and don´t give up!!
<3 Sister Holden
PS Welcome to Pelotas!!! ;)
Oct 13, 2014 - Pelotas
This week i got to visit, my family and all the hospitals in Brasil
So, i dont think this religion exists in the states.. ha but here it´s
called Espíritismo.. So one of our investigators gave the prayer and we
went on spiritual visits. ha. So i got to visit my family and all the
hospitals, and other places that i cant remember. Super different. ;)
i ate an octopus this week.. Will send a picture next Monday. It was super chewy! ;)
Also
found out that they have mullberry trees all over the place here. Also
that i like mullberries ;) hahaha especially when i´m hungry and there
arent any bakeries around ;P
i found out that
there is a movie out called, "Meet the Mormons" i soo want to watch it!
David Archuleta sings a song in it, sounds beautiful, (a member showed
me the trailer) Sounds way cool:)
And my last
topic. Who knows what babies, couples, bridal showers, and rings have in
common? The trunkiness of Sister Holden. Hahahha this weekend was Kid´s
Day! That day was super hard :P But i´m all good now ;) Ready to work.
Here
they do bridal showers a little different (OH i only visited the bridal
shower to eat a hotdog.. then the irmã made us sit down haha) but
before the bride opens the present, she has to guess what´s inside, and
if she´s wrong, the person who gave it to her, gets to draw stuff on her
face... she turned out REAL cute. ;P
Do we celebrate Kid´s Day there? Or have i just been jipped of presents all these years? ;) just kidding.
Also this week our district helped in our area, so now we have a ton of new investigators to help! :) Woohoo!
This
week i have been studying in Mosiah, 14-17 about Abinadi, man he is so
cool. He bore his testimony until the end. Didn´t have shame, knew what
he stood for, and stood in the fire for it. Such corage and faith. He is
sucha great example to us all, and to me. It hit me, people dont want
to kill me for my testimony.. Yeah, lots dont want to listen, but they
won´t kill me! haha why do i have fear sometimes? We all have things to
improve:)
I love this work! I love being a
missionary! I love my family! I love the Book of Mormon! I love the
Church of Jesus Christ! I love the knowledge that i have.
<3 Sister Holden
PS the second picture is of the water i´m gonna drink.. With eggplants and lime, i wil return home skinny ! ;) Love you all!
Sept 29, 2015 - Pelotas
Surprises in the fridge.......
are tubs of chocolate! HA! Made my night last night ;)
This
week was a little tougher, just getting to know my new companion,
Sister Santos, and praying that she has patience with me and getting us
lost. hahaha. All the streets in this area look the same! :P I´m still
learning... haha.
One thing SUPER exciting
that happened this week. We had a lesson with Túlio and Rodrigo, and i
saw a violin on their table, so natually i asked who plays, and Túlio
started playing, oh my goodness, the violin is SO beautiful! Then, we
sang a few hymns, Rodrigo palying guitar, it was super cool haha. Then
Túlio handed me the violin and let taught me how to hold it and play the
hymn "How Great Thou Art" haha it didnt super sound like the hymn, but
man it was cool. He said i have lots of potencial to play the violin ;) I
will learn when i go home! Ahhhh would be so cool:)
This
week we also had a lesson with Fabio, he is super cool. (We had given
him the Restoration pamphlet a couple weeks ago, but never could get
anyone to go with us.) He had read it, prayed about it, and had
questions. I was so happy! hahaha. He asked about Joseph Smith and how
he was a prophet. Then he asked about the Holy Ghost, what is the Holy
Ghost? It was so awesome to hear his sincere questions, aawww it was
awesome. Experiences like this, make everything worth it, when people
have questions that really matter to them, you know? There´s a
difference between these questions, and questions trying to prove us
wrong haha.
This next week we are focusing on
finding new people to teach, people that are prepared, and ready, and
waiting. :) Know anyone?;)
I am grateful to be
a missionary, to feel like Christ would feel teaching these people. To
really feel love for them, and want to help them understand.
I am SUPER excited for General Conference!! Aahhh vai ser muito bom. Tell me what you learn!
<3 Sister Holden
This is Sister Santos!! (please dont mind the bags of trash....)
Sept 22, 2015 - Pelotas
"Did you know, i was born on my birthday?!"
This week, i forgot my planner so i cant tell you a whole lot that happened. Other than i know why the Lord loves children.
Yesterday
was the primary program! Kids are so innocent. I cried when they sang!
SO cute!! We had an investigator there, and he cried! The theme for this
year is Families are eternal.. I know the Spirit spoke to this
investigator, i know he wants to marry someone in the church. Haha.
The
question as the subject, Eduarda, 5 years old, asked me that yesterday.
Hahaha she was so excited to share that with me. And last night, we
found some members walking around, and this little girl named Kiria (i
thought her name was super interesting) She grabbed my hand and said "My
hand will stay with the Sister!" Was so cute:)
Our
District Leader is the coolest! He made these owls! Haha! Yes mine is
made with dental floss.... Dont worry, he said he didnt use it. ;)
hahaha.
Also this week, we got a new oven:) We can cook now! YAY!:) So i´ll send a fun picture about that ;)
Tomorrow
we have transfers... My dear friend Sister Carvalho will be transfered
to Porto Alegre :( And i will get Sister Santos! She has a little more
than 3 months on her mission. Should be fun:) Man i´ll miss Sister
Carvalho.
I love being a missionary, and i
love even more, when i can understand what people are saying or what i´m
reading:) Especially when i learn something new! Haha.
I
ALMOST FORGOT. Today i did a lot of things for the first time. I
cleaned the bathroom, Brazilian style! Hahhaa. It´s super different:)
Thing #2, i am making a cover for my planner! It´s all about prophets,
because of General Conference, i´m so excited:)
I love you! :) Getting ready for General Conference? Can you name all 12 Apostles? ;)
Sister Holden
Sept 15, 2014 - Pelotas
Who is online that isn´t a member of the church? What present do you want to give them...? ;)
Just a couple cool things that happened this week..............
I
tried a new dessert! And i remember EXACTLY how to make it if you want
to try it ;) Avocado flavored! Man it was different. SO different... I
think avocadoes are better salty, haha. It had sugar and lemon mixed and
purrayed? How do you spell that word..? haha. Not my favorite
dessert..
Also Pelotas, the city where i´m in
right now, is the #1 most humid city in the world! YAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY!!!
:) hahaha what an exciting thing. Number one ;) hahah thought that was
cool..
20th of Setember is the Day of Rio Grande do Sul, they will go crazy for this day, i know it.
Had
an AWESOME training from the assistents this week! About getting
referrals from members... So now, i want you to email me the email
addresses to the missionaries in your ward. So they can use this on you.
It´s so good, so i won´t ruin it.. But it has to do with facebook. Who
needs an iPad to be a facebook missionary? ;) Hahah, but really. When
the missionaries ask if you know anyone they can visit, give them anyone
you know. YOU NEVER KNOW WHO IS PREPARED. ;)
And
one thing that i learned today, not a new thing but it called out to me
again, haha. I was reading in the Book of Mórmon, Jacob 4:3. I love it
because he explains why they wrote down the history and the prophecies.
For us! Their children! and the Lamanites, their brothers. He just wants
us to learn from the Book of Mórmon, to remember them, Bah, have you
ever thought about how difficult it was for them? What a miracle it is
that we have the Book of Mormon? I will never lose my testimony and love
for this book. I know i challenge this every week, but please read your
scriptures! Especially hthe Book of Mormon! Read 2 little paragraphs.. I
know it will bless your life. This verse that i mentioned made me feel
so sad,because he just wants people to be happy and learn from their
words.. and SO many people reject the Book of Mormon. When i knock on
doors and they dont answer for a long time i say... Open your door and
open your heart! Hahaha that´s all i want:P I just want to help people
be more happy.
I love being a missionary,
sometimes when it rains all week long, and all your shoes are soaking
wet, it´s hard. But then you remember Jesus Christ, you remember why you
came out here, you remember the message you have! And then you´re happy
again:) I love this work. I love the special message we have, we ALL
have. Not just missionaries;) ALL of us.
I love you so much!!
Sept 8, 2014 - Pelotas
ducks, 5 months, independence of Brasil, oh my!
Hi:)
Let´s see....That´s my super long schpeel for the week... Love you all:) <3 Have a good week!
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| REAL coconuts.. |
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| Sou Gaucha! ;) dont judge our mirror.. hahaha. oops. you cant really tell, but the pants are the pants of a Gaucho. the shoes too :) |
Sept 1, 2014 - Pelotas
"oh yes, yes, clearly, without a doubt!"
This week was interesting,
the work was tough! But we laughed a ton:) it is so easy to laugh with
Sister Carvalho, she´s so awesome! Today she hits 4 months! :)
This week, i heard CA had a really big earthquake? Did any of you feel it?
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