Transfer day! I am back in Dias D'Ávila, folks, and so happy to be here. In case you want to see in on Google Maps (did I already say this once?) it's very close to Camaçari. My new comp is Sister Piola, a jolly sister who has 10 months or so on the mission.
ANSWERS to my Mom's questions:
Do you use an umbrella, or a poncho, or both? Umbrella.
Is your hair all frizzy from the humidity and wetness all the time? Yes.
Do you keep an extra pair of socks in your pocket so you can change out of the wet ones? Nope. I just wear the wet socks all day long, and at the end of the day my feet are painful raisins. Ha.
What about rubber boots? Nope.
Does it rain every day? No. There's just been a few very rainy weeks.
Does it cool off at night? A little.
You mentioned cobblestone streets. Are they all that way, or are there a lot of dirt (mud) roads, too? LOTS of cobblestone, some pavement, some dirt. Some roads are completely undrivable. I'm in a little town.
Are they slippery when wet? No.
What holidays are celebrated big there? LOTS. You wouldn't believe. Lots of saints, Fathers Day, Mothers Day, Children's Day (yes, seriously), Day of the Dead....TONS.
Have you experienced any of them yet? Yes. I arrived in the mission in the middle of São Juão, a huge holiday here in Bahia. Parties all week, bonfires EVERYWHERE.
Do you fix all of your own food? No. We eat in the house of a member every day for lunch.
How is that going? Fantasticly. :-) The sisters in the ward are absolutely incredible cooks. I'm officially addicted to beans and farinha de mandioca now.
Do members ever feed you? See above. I'm getting chunkier every day.
Do you still have access to peanut butter? No. At least, I haven't been able to get to that store that has it. Alas. :-(
Any more questions, anyone? Send questions to my mom or a sibling, and I can get them answered. :-)
Gente, the week was a good one. I love the mission more every day. My favorite part of this week was I saw William walk into church on Sunday. William is a man in his mid-30s, and is absolutely enormous (I think his arms are bigger around than my head). However, like some character from a movie, he's also a complete mommy's boy, and raises rabbits. Ha! He's the neighbor of a member, and we taught him twice this week. Each time, was said we'd just talk for "cinco minutinhos," but these turned into more than an hour because of all the questions he and his mom had. We loved the questions.
And then he showed up at church--NOT what I expected--in button-up shirt, black pants, shaven and chique! Even with the right clothes, he looked a little like that proverbial bull in a china shop, lost and awkward. However, the members grabbed him and helped him feel welcome. YAY!!!
Josafá, our baptism of a couple weeks ago, gave a prayer in sacrament meeting last week, bore his testimony in church this week (there's absolutely nothing like this feeling for a missionary), and will give a talk in church on the 18th. I'm so grateful for our wonderful bishop who is integrating him so very well.
My friends, I love you all. I received a handful of letters today in Salvador (transfer day, remember?) and nearly fell over with happiness. THANK YOU for all your love and support, my friends! I can't tell you how much your letters -- each one of them -- touch my life as a missionary. And when you include things you've learned recently, experiences you've had at church or in the scriptures, I learn so much from you. Truly. Thank you, from my heart.
I know my Savior lives. The Gospel changes lives, not just here on this earth but in the eternities. And it is changing MY life, right now. I thank the Lord daily for this opportunity to be here, giving my all to Him.
Much love,
Sua missionária,
Sister Petty
P.S. Our washing machine isn't working lately. Now the words "hand wash cold, separately" have taken on a whole new meaning to me.
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