10-26-2009 Letter Home

My First Area!

It's been CRAZY here in Juazeiro. It has very few members and no chapel, though one is being built and will be completed next February. As I've learned more about the area, it turns out that this area around Cratos, Barbalha and Juazeiro at the southern edge of Ceara is the President´s most favored area. He has made it a goal to establish a stake here by the time he leaves and he sends the best missionaries here. I don't want to brag about any of this, just give the facts and how astounded and grateful it made ME feel. My trainer would be Elder Carvalho.

We were the last ones to leave the office. Some of the assistants to the president helped me take all my stuff onto a taxi and we rode through Fortaleza to a huge bus station under this cool concrete dome. Waited for our bus. Got on the bus. It was very comfortable, actually. Great air conditioning and big comfy seats. We were going to ride in style. I sat by Elder Pereira and we rode into the night, out of the city and into the big inky wilderness. Elder Pereira and I talked for a long time, we are both really excited about being in Juazeiro. He is my only connection with what I knew before... he was a Brazilian Elder I hung out with in the CTM and I like him a lot. Very spiritual and determined guy, like me, I think. 25 years old and used to work at a bank. Is trying to learn English.

Anyway, I fell asleep. Woke up several times when the bus was stopped in these strange little towns and it got more and more crazy as we went. Just... you know, poor countryside. I'm starting to think... what have I gotten myself into... Oh man. I slept through the night and woke up at about five. Arrived at a bus station in Juazeiro at about six thirty. Elder Pereira and I moved our stuff out, intent on finding our trainers... nothing. Waited by the taxi pick-up spot for two and a half hours. I talked to some taxi drivers on their break there, talked more to Elder Pereira. Finally our trainers got there and said that they had heard we would be there at 9. Whatever, no biggie. So we drove off to our new home.
Saw a lot of the city. Really crazy... its just slightly more modern than towns in northern Mexico here and has a very similar feel to it. Paved roads, yes, but there is still that kind of chaotic feeling in the air.

Our home seems like a crack in the wall. Much less comfortable, much more dirty and disorganized than at the CTM. I'll send pictures. I unpacked my stuff and got to know my trainer Elder Carvalho. He is supposed to be some kind of legendary missionary that is President Batt's favorite. I like him. You'll see pictures of him.

Showers here are all cold water and to flush the toilet you need to dump a bucket of water into it. There's cockroaches that come out at night on the floors and the walls and ants at all times. But I am getting used to it.

Oh man. What can I tell you about my first few days here and what it's like...?
I spend most of my time deferring to Elder Carvalho because I can understand extremely little here... I can pick out words in every sentence but the people in Fortaleza speak very quickly, even to Brazilians from Sao Paulo. It's the stuff in between that gets me confused. I can bear my testimony and give lessons but they are slow. There's been spiritual things but right now I feel I am just having trouble adapting and Heavenly Father is trying to stretch me a bit. Don't worry about me, its very natural for new American elders here. Once I get the language and have a month of experience of squalid conditions its going to be fine.

This is a great area and the Spirit is really strong here, trying to build up the Church here. The food is excellent as well. They drink this cashew soda, made out of the part of the cashew plant you don't eat in the United States.

Everyone's sink and shower water goes into the gutters in the streets, so there is always water flowing there. Which also makes it stink quite a bit. There are also these tiny monkeys that hang on the electric lines.

Ran out of time!

I love you guys!
Bye!
- Elder Carpenter