Brendon with President and Sister Batt when he arrived in Fortaleza on October 23, 2009
Chicken is so TASTY when it was alive just a few hours earlier. Except for the spine, that part of it - yuck. But it is better than the head. The only fun part about eating a chicken head is the fact that its a chicken head. Haha, I've actually eaten several meals so far where they have just killed and cooked the chicken that morning. It really is much more delicious.
Anyway, this week was called Sete Dias das Problemas com Casas. Cada ("dude"), first of all, that terrible house in Novo Oriente that I was telling you about was causing Elder Matias allergy problems, so we have been catching the crazy train (crazy in that it rocks back and forth like you are on a ship caught in a storm... and there's no lights which makes it scary at night) to another area every morning and night to another companionship´s house. We just decided a few days ago that we are going to stay there throughout this transfer, because the other house in Novo Oriente we want to move into is being renovated. At least tomorrow I can finally fully unpack my things after a week, and maybe finally put on a new pair of clothes (just joking). Figuring that whole problem out... touring the new house we want to buy and talking to a whole bunch of people about buying it and getting the money from the financial secretaries here, just one big hassle that took a lot of time throughout the week. Eh. Whatever. The house we are going to be staying in with the other companionship is really cool, we live on the third story of this big building and we can see the whole city and the wind is awesome at night.
By the way, you know how I said the other missionaries abandoned all of their things in our terrible house that we arent sleeping at? Turns out that one of them has the same size of clothes as I do, and so I was able to scavenge some really good pants and shirts. I was really excited by that... but typing it here kind of makes it sound a little pathetic. But hey, really, my clothes are deteriorating very quickly in this tropical climate! ; )
Speaking of tropical climate, the closer proximity to the Sun has caused me to develop a new freckle on my right cheek. It is strange to see there, but it was meant to be. According to my calculations, if this freckle has appeared solely based on my increased exposure to the radiation here on the Equator, then by the time I return home I will have seven new freckles in total on my face! It will make telling the difference between Connor and I much more easy. : . )
Maracanau... is not incredibly hot every day! The first few days here, feeling the wind coming in from the ocean, I can't describe to you guys how it felt, it was so refreshing. I guess I had forgotten over the last six weeks how much I had been burning alive in Juazeiro. I was getting hit by temperatures upwards of 90 degrees Celsius every day without breezes and I had just gotten accustomed to sweating every minute and soaking my clothes down to the tie. But here... you guys would still think its hot but it is much more comfortable. Some days the temperature is down to the high 70s.
Other than the weather, Maracanau is a little bit more urban, though I have still seen wandering cattle here and there. No one riding horses. The problem is there is far less people on the streets here, its much more empty. The reason is because so many people commute to Fortaleza, for work or for school. They take the train into the city in the morning and come back at night to go to sleep. It makes talking to people much more difficult... we knock doors (not really, people here clap their hands instead) without a response much more frequently. A little frustrating.
We have three people with a date for baptism already! All investigators that had been working with the other missionaries when they left, so we don't feel like we earned the privilege of baptizing them, but it is still good news.
I was so happy to see all of those pictures, guys! I laughed, I smiled, I caused a disturbance in the internet cafe. Man, I cant believe it snowed that much at our house! And, the pictures of all the relatives were excellent, I loved seeing all of those faces. It looks like everyone had a very fun Thanksgiving vacation.
By the way, I will be getting my Christmas package today, it arrived a few days earlier and the secretaries were just holding onto it until Zone Conference, but the companionship Elder Matias and I are living with (Elder Hlaverty from Cash Valley, Utah and Elder Shibata from Sao Paulo, Brazil) are heading to the Mission Office and are going to pick it up for me! I too am looking forward to my Christmas phone call, and I agree getting Connor and I on the phone at the same time would be very fun. Maybe, though, only twenty minutes of us both on the phone would be better, so that you can stretch out your time with both of us. Good luck planning all of that! I haven't been given any information so far on what is going to happen. Remember though that the time to call is the most important information I need.
"One more photo of the members I left behind in Jauziero!"
Hey, Connor, there is an Elder Trage here that was born in Passo Fundo! He knows the city very well and was excited to hear that you are there. He's German-Brazilian, and he looks exactly like an American missionary, only he can't speak English and instead is fluent in Portuguese. Do they have a lot of people there that look exactly like Americans?
Dad, sorry to have skipped your last letter, I just didnt have enough time. Funny how often that excuse is used. We taught Jorge, Jackson and Jardel many lessons from Week 3 to Week 5... I want to say around seven to eight. We wanted them to have a firm understanding of the commandments and so we taught them one each morning for a number of days. My Portuguese is to the point where I can teach the first lesson very well, the third lesson okay, I can testify well and give answers to very easy questions, but many time it is my Brazilian companion who answers questions and is there when the lesson deviates from the plan (which happens a lot and should happen). After speaking with many American missionaries, I feel that I will never become fluent like a native, but it surprising how well I can speak Portuguese even now. I can follow a conversation pretty well... its weird, I can just recognize the meaning of words and sentences that three months ago would have sounded completely illegible.
Yes, President Batt let my district play Rockband for one P-Day. That doesnt happen every day for sure. We can watch Disney movies here in the Fortaleza Mission, and many Elders take advantage of the permission, watching three movies every P-Day. You might think that might destroy the rest of the week, but it doesnt. A few hours of clean entertainment in an air-conditioned room can do wonders after a week of sweat and tears. The problem is, when we watched School for Scoundrels, is that the whole district thought it was a Disney movie. It wasnt until after that I discovered that the Elder who had rented the movie had... uh... "forgotten" to check to see if it was made by Disney and for that matter what the rating was. The thing is, I had thought it was taking the Spirit away while watching it, but everyone else kept on watching and laughing, so I did as well. Elder Carvalho and I talked about it afterwards and he assured me that we had did nothing wrong. The thing is, like I have explained before, you end up accidentally watching unauthorized movies a lot, like at members houses or even in restaurants that have television (even fast-food places have televisions here, Brazilians just love watching TV while eating). It would be inappropriate to ask someone to turn off the television or to excuse yourself from the room, especially in this culture, and yet we still keep the Spirit with us afterward, because we didn't go looking in the first place to break the rules. Hmm... its not something I like doing here, but it happens.
Back to Connor. We aren't contacting very many people every day. Even with Elder Carvalho we were only doing an average of maybe five people a day, and in Maracanau so far it has been less. Missionaries here think that thirty is an incredibly high number to contact every day. I want to change that, too, and I will. I want to give you some advice on the first lesson that I have learned, as it is the one you teach the most, but I am going to have to wait until next week. I am missing you a bunch man. I think I have been dependent on the Lord and on the other Elders here in a huge way to help me cope with that. I am glad you arent feeling as homesick lately, that sounds really crappy. Just take one day at a time and try to have fun with your companion and with the members. Americans are so used to being constantly entertained, but you can turn that into a strength by entertaining others or creating an entertaining atmosphere by smiling a lot, talking a lot with people, playing games with children, and making jokes (especially about how horrible your Portuguese is, that always creates laughs). You can do it man! Remember, you have got to focus on other people, how to help them, lift them up, in order to lift yourself up. You solve your own problems by solving the problems of others. I am sure there are some small exceptions sometimes to that rule, but generally, especially in being a missionary, it works.
My memory this week is the two of us playing Indiana Jones: The Lost City of Atlantis when we were kids. Salaam afendi! *chuckle* That was a fun game.
I love you Lynsey, Kaitlin, Mom! Thank you for your letters!
Christmas is almost here!
- Elder Carpenter
From Kay Lea (Mom)
Even though this photo is blurry, I loved Brendon, the future Movie Director's caption:
"Four missionaries. One large city in Brazil. A sacred duty with eternal consequences... "Elders of Juazeiro" Now showing in theatres near you."
Love you guys!!!!
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