7 MONTHS!!!!

É AI FAMÌLIA?!!   Do you know what today is?! IT'S MY 7 MONTH MARK! AHHH. Literally cannot believe it.....time is passing by so super fast (well for me at least). I have learned and grown so much over these past seven months, it's pretty incredible and feeling great about my Portuguese and everything is just wonderful down here in Brasil!    This week Sister De Lima and I worked hard and were able to meet a lot of new investigators which was super awesome! Hopefully this will lead to more baptisms this month! We'll see what happens.    This week I've been reading in the Book of Mórmon about how the gospel transformed a group of people that were a bit more than wicked. But once they had been taught the gospel, they were willing to do anything to be forgiven of their sins and come closer to Christ. Guys, the gospel can and will transform lives. I am seeing it happen in the lives of my recent converts and other investigators we are teaching. They have a new perspective on life and are willing to give up things of this world to come closer to our Savior Jesus Christ. I know that as we read the scriptures and learn more about Cristo and His gospel, our desire to do good and give up worldly things will increase and as a result, we will become better disciples of Christ.    Alright, so a little bit off subject but I am currently living in an apartment with 3 other sisters who are all Brasileiras and really want to practice the English they've learned over the years. So this week they decided that within the walls of our home, they would only speak English. So to help, we put sticky notes all over the walls with a billion and one words and then a huge chart with the verb "to be" and you, I she, we in all the tenses you can think of. We started off strong only speaking English but now it's about 40% English, 60% silence and Portuguese. Eventually we will get there.    That's all for this week. Nothing else too exciting happened. I love you all so much and am so grateful for each and every one of you! Have a wonderfully exciting week!    Love, Sister Hilchie :)

Transfers...

OIIIIIII FAMÍLIA!!!! 

Notice the street sign!

Welp transfer ended yesterday and guess what?! I AM STAYING IN SANTO ANDRÉ!!!! I am so excited to continue here and with Sister De Lima! We have met some really awesome families lately that we really didn't want to leave behind and our wishes came true! 

So our last week of the transfer was super awesome! We were able to go to the temple the beginning of last week. I am so grateful that we have a temple close by and are able to visit every 2 to 3 months. It's always so nice to go to the Lord's house and sit and relax with no distractions. To not have to worry about what's outside. To not have to worry about the world. So that was a nice little treat this week. 

Also, remember Oswaldo? He's the one that had always been interested in the church and then one Sunday appeared. Well we visited him and his family this week, and they are just wonderful! He said that after he came home from church that Sunday that he couldn't stop smiling. He had felt something incredible and nothing could take it away from him. So we started to talk to him about the church and baptism and all, and he said he has a strong desire to be baptized! He even came to church this Sunday and said next Sunday he will bring his family. His "wife" (because they're not married....we're working on that) and daughter attend another church so we are working with them too but a bit more slowly to not push them away. We are going back to visit them tomorrow and are super excited to teach them and help them be together for eternity! 

Besides this, our week was as normal as a missionary week can get. Except it did start to hail on us out of nowhere--it was kind of weird and random. Have a wonderfully fantastic week pessoal!!! EU AMO VOCÊS!!!! You guys are the best! 

Love, 

Sister Hilchie :)

The elder in front is coming to North GA!

At the temple

Her District at the temple

TRIO?!!!!

OI OI OI FAM!!!  This week was a little bit crazy. Sister Ferril (one of the sisters I live with) gained two huge blood blisters on the soles of her feet a couple weeks ago and couldn't walk--well she could, only she walked like a penguin lol--so she talked to president, and he said to just take it easy and keep rubbing a certain cream on them, so she did.One week passed by and nada. Her blood blisters didn't get any better. Not even a tiny bit smaller. So we told her to send a picture to Sister Broadbent last Monday and she did. The next day, she was off to the hospital to see what they could do. So for the rest of the day, Sister De Lima and I worked right alongside of Sister Lucena. We didn't think Sister Ferril would be too long so we gave her one of the sets of keys and waited for her to return. Only she didn't. The next morning we got a phone call that she had a mini surgery and they completely removed the blisters and all. Right down to the muscle. So until she recovered, she would be staying with the senior missionary couple. Well then it was time to get down to business. We had two huge areas which were now combined into one and only about 8 hours to visit everyone we needed to in both areas. Things got a little complicated at times but we worked it all out in the end and were able to do what we needed. This lasted for about a week because Sister Ferril was not about to sit around doing nothing all day her last two weeks of her mission. So she asked Presidente and he let her come back this week to say her goodbyes and take it slow but still work. She still walks really slowly but no more like a penguin! Now we are back to normal. 2 sets of sisters. 2 areas. But it was really awesome to be in a trio for a week. I had always wanted to and this week, I got a taste!  Besides that craziness, Sister De Lima and I met Cleidilene. She is an older woman who had the missionaries over one or two times before I got here in Santo André. She really liked having them over and said she feels something diferente when we're there. So last week we set it all up to visit her this past Sunday. Yesterday we did and man is she awesome! She is really trying to find the right church and has been praying também to find out how she can receive the Holy Ghost. We were in the right place at the right time guys. We started to talk to her about Christ's baptism and how afterwards we receive the Holy Ghost. She was over joyed and got goosebumps as we were talking to her. She knew that what we were saying was true and is super excited to pay a visit at church next Sunday and learn more about the gospel! We are too! We are super duper excited to teach her and help her find answers to her questions. Guys, I love missionary work! It's the best!!!  I love you all and am so grateful for all your support! Have a week that is out of this world! Love, Sister Hilchie :)

Adoring!

OIIIII FAMÌLIA!!!! BELEZA? 

Nothing superly out of the ordinary happened this week. We just worked and worked and talked to a lot of random strangers na rua e taught our investigators. About as normal as it can get being a missionary. Well except for one thing:

We were walking down the road doing street contacts when an older man walked up and started to talk to us. His name is Oswald. Então, he told us that when he was younger, he always passed by the church of Jesus Cristo and always had wanted to pay a visit to see what it was like. So we invited him to make a visit qualquer domingo(any Sunday) and asked if we could write down his address so we could visit him another day. He said that it was better if we didn't because of his family being another religion and all but said he would make a visit probably not this Sunday (which was yesterday) but the next. Well we didn't think much of it because a lot of people tell us that they will make a visit but no one ever does. So Sunday came around and we went to church as usual. Sat through Relief Society and afterwards, the Elders Quorum president came up to us and told us that they had a visitor today named Oswald. Woah! He actually came! Once we heard the news, we pushed through the crowd to get to where he was. Once we got there, we said hi and asked what he thought. He then responded that he was adoring the church. Not just liking or loving.....adoring! Ah did this just make our day or what?! So after we had Sunday school and sacrament meeting, we finally got his address and are going to visit him this week! Ah we are super duper excited! 

Other than that, Carnival started this weekend but here in Santo André, it doesn't get too crazy so we will be working just like every other day. 

Well guys, have a superbly awesomely fantastic week!! I love you all so much! 

Love, Sister Hilchie :)

p.s. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!