Week Eighty Six

Monday, March 26, 2012 6:58 AM
Hi Mom!

This week was absolutely nuts- we were running all over the place to try and baptize two people, and in the end we only managed one, but I think this week we should be able to get the other guy baptized. He wants to be baptized before his friend leaves for the mission on April 5th, so this is the last weekend he´s got. We´ll see, but we´re hopeful. The zone is doing great, even though there are some obedience issues. I´ve turned into the dictator here, everyone threatens their companion that they´re going to call Elder Dohrman if they do something wrong. Not sure why; I just wish people would stop making things difficult and work! Either way though, we´re doing well. We´ll find out about transfers tonight, so next week I´ll let you know if anything changed. I don´t really have any way of knowing because I think a lot is going to change, but we´ll have to see. I´ll go where I´m needed, as always, with who I´m needed to be with, as well.

I´m excited to be able to cook again on american stoves. Not an excuse, I know, but here´s so different. There are two temperatures: hot and burn, and I have no idea how to change the setting. I´m used to it, but so much of the food I´ve made would be so much better if I didn´t have to worry about that.

I´m so excited for conference! Best weekend on the mission by far. And then Easter, and then in like 4 more weeks mother´s day. Time is really rolling, but now there´s stuff to plan for at least, right?  I love you Mom, and thank you so much for the help! Love you!!!!!!! Have a great week!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hi Dad!

I´m super excited for conference! It´s always great to be able to hear from the prophet. Things are going well here, but we´re going to have to start looking for new people to teach soon. We have a family we´re teaching that´s great, but when the wife was riding her bike to church last sunday the spoke cut her son´s foot super deep and now they´ll have to wait a little to be able to come again. But they´re liking the messages we´re leaving and we´re going to try and get some members to teach with us.

We find out what happens with transfers tonight, so next week I´ll be able to fill you in on everything. I´m not sure what´s going to happen here in the area, but I do know that the zone (and probably the rest of the mission) is going to change a lot. And not a moment too soon either; we had some disobedient missionaries that were really trying my patience. One´s going home so I won´t have to worry about him, just his companion. But I won´t complain, we´re all children of our Heavenly Father.

I can´t believe how fast the time passes! This next tranfer´s only five weeks long, which means it´s really going to fly, and after that, only two more transfers left! I won´t get trunky, don´t worry :) But everything´s going well and I´m glad the ward´s getting more excited; that´s all it takes to make a ward into a missionary ward.

I´m grateful for everything you guys do for me, and I know that without you I wouldn´t be here. So much has changed in my life, and in yours too, but the Gospel is still the same. And still true, which gives me comfort. I love you Dad and I´ll keep working hard until the very last second! Have a great week!!!! Love you!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Eighty Five

Monday, March 19, 2012 12:00 PM

Hi Mom!

This week was really great; Elder Lima and I both felt that our hard work really paid off. We were kind of worried that this month we wouldn´t have a lot of success, but we had a baptism yesterday and we´re going to have two more this weekend, just as the transfer comes to an end! It was a really great experience to be able to baptize Sebastiana, because she was really looking to find out what would happen to her husband and youngest son, who passed away. We´re going to have a family home evening tonight and we´re going to teach her about temples; I know she´s going to be really excited to know she can see them again! I thought a lot about Papa when we were teaching her, and it gave me an even stronger testimony that he´s learning all of this stuff in the spirit world. I´m so grateful for this gospel.

I´m so excited for conference! Can you believe it´s my last on the mission? I´m not sure what´ll happen this transfer but if I do get transferred it´ll be the first weekend in my new area. It´s hard to tell what´ll happen because a lot of new leaders will have to be called, and usually that means stuff gets shuffled around, but we´ll just have to wait and see. For now, I´m going to keep working like nothing´s going to happen; it´s easier that way. I can´t believe Nick´s so close to getting into the MTC! He´s gotta be going nuts. I miss going to the temple; I´m sure it´s going to be a great experience for you guys. Live it up, because the temple is one of the greatest places on earth. I´m so excited to be close to the temple again, be it on the mission or off. I´ve got a goal to go every week, so I´m going to have to plan well! I love you Mom, and thank you so much for all of the help and everything. Have a safe trip, and let me know how everything goes!!!!! Love you!!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Eighty Four

Monday, March 12, 2012 1:28 PM

Hi Mom!

It is SO HOT; I do a little bit of walking and I´m sweating like I weigh 900 pounds! But it´s good at the same time. We helped demolish a lady´s house on Saturday, and I kinda felt cleansed after all of the sweating I did. But the perspiration´s paying off; we had 10 investigators in Sacrament meeting this week! And a family of 5 who FINALLY came to church! Only the parents are old enough to be baptized but we´ve been trying the whole transfer to get them there and they liked it a lot. We´ve got a lady set for baptism next weekend who´s really progressing well, too, and it´s so great because you can see how happy she´s becoming. I love this gospel so much because of that!

Oh, and I got my package too! THanks so much. I think I gave myself a really bad stomachache though; three days of bathroom trouble with all that chocolate. Elder Lima likes milkshakes, so we added M&M´s to the mix to see how it would go over. Tasty, but I ate too much. No worries now though, they´re all gone. 

We´ll see what happens with transfers, maybe I´ll end up closer to the office. It´s not really normal to be transferred after only 2 transfers in an area, but I don´t want to get too hung up on the people here because I know that I have one more area on my mission, so I want to get sent there soon and develop a good relationship with them. Finishing a mission in a brand new area would be pretty tough.

You guys counting days is making me think about how much time I have left! It´s crazy how the time flies, but I´m glad Nick´s on his way out after all this time. Will he be in the field on Mother´s Day? If  he´s still in the MTC, unfortunately he won´t be able to call, but either way it´ll all work out. I´m so excited for him, and I hope he gets to have some games soon!

I think I´m going to make chicken salad for a family home evening tonight; last time I made it it was a big hit too. I´m here, to make changes! I love you mom, and I hope I´m still on when you reply! Have a great week! Love you!!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

Things are still hot, and I don´t think there´s any way to get used to it in a white shirt and tie. We´re doing our best though, and stuff´s going great; we had 10 investigators at church last week, and a couple of really great families we´ve been teaching! There´s one lady who´s got a really firm date for baptism next weekend, and a guy who we´re working with to get baptized by the end of the month too. We´re running like always, but it´s great to see how things pay off. The Zone´s great too; the sisters in the zone are going to baptize all of the members of a family of 5 this month! The first daughter was baptized yesterday, the other two are this week, and the parents next week! Isn´t that great? It´s so cool when families come into the gospel. That´s President Cordon and the Area Presidency´s big focus this year: men and families. It´s crazy to think how big of an effect we can have on a stake, but because of our efforts here 19 people have come into this stake in the past 2 1/2 months! And a lot of them were men too! It´s the best to see people you helped come into the gospel preparing, blessing and passing the sacrament, baptizing others and soon receiving the Melchizidek (I don´t remember how to spell in English anymore) priesthood. I´m so excited too because a family Elder Gill and I reactivated are going to the temple at the end of may! I´m so glad I had the opportunity to come out here and make a difference in people´s lives. The life I´ve changed the most was definitely my own.

I think I´m going to be really out of date when I get home; I don´t even remember how to text anymore! But it´s good because I´m focusing on what needs to happen here, and things are really going well.  If we do things in the Lord´s way, they end up the way He wants them to! I love you Dad, and have a great week!!!! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Eighty Three

Monday, March 05, 2012 9:26 AM

Hi Mom!

I think with the change the time gap will actually be a little smaller, which might make things better, but we´re doing really well; we had two baptisms and our zone baptized more than almost all of the others in the mission in February! It´s not about that but I feel really proud that the smallest zone in the mission was able to do all that. Our goal for this month is 15, and we´re on our way. This week we´re going to work a lot more with the members, and it already seems to be working out: one of the members of the ward gave us a reference that she said´s a sure baptism! It´s so great to work somewhere where the people are so ready to hear the gospel.

We talked in the Zone Leader council this month about virtue, and how sometimes just us thinking about home can be a lack of virtue, because we´re not keeping our eyes fixed on God´s glory. I´m working really hard to think about the people, and I realize that the time passes faster when you do so. It flies when you stop thinking about yourself!

I´ve had 4 american companions (well 3 and one cuban): Elder McLaughlin, Elder Palmer, Elder Serrano and Elder Gill. I´m thinking that at the most I´ll probably only have one or two more companions, so we´ll see who it´s going to be. I´ve already got 13 companions in total, which is a ton for a missionary, so I´m going for it.  We´ll see how far it goes, I could still have 3 or 4 more left in me :)

Elder Lima´s good, and we´re working hard to find new people. We´ve got some great investigators now, and all we need to do is integrate them with the members. This week, we´re going for 10 lessons with members present, and we´ve got some really good lessons lined up. One lady, Sebastiana, came to church this week, and when we came and got her she said that she had prayed and asked God to send us to get her if our message really was from the Lord. We were literally an answer to her prayers! Another member said that the talk that I gave last week and my testimony this week were answers to her prayers, too. It´s crazy to think about the effect that we have on people, but that´s the way it is on the mission and in life. We have to take advantage of every opportunity because we never know what it might lead to! So never be afraid to open your mouth, because that person very well could be needing you. I´m doing great, and I´m really excited to see what happens this month!

I love you Mom, Have a great week!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Eighty Two

Monday, February 27, 2012 11:17 AM

Hi Mom!

Things here are going well; this last week was really hectic and this week´s going to be more of the same, but so far so good with Elder Lima. The zone did really great this month; we baptized 11 people and one week we baptized more than any other zone in the mission! And we´re the smallest out of all of them. This week we have a lot more people lined up for baptism in the zone, and as long as that´s going on, I won´t get to rest, so I think I´ll be tired for a while. That´s alright though, running is always good.

It´s so funny to see how stuff changes as we grow up for real and our priorities change. Even here on the mission I´ve made a few decisions like that about television and video games and how I really want to spend my time. It´s pretty nuts to see how much someone can grow!

I love you and have a great week!!!!!! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Eighty One - New Companion

Monday, February 20, 2012 10:52 AM

Hi Mom!

I´m in a hurry again, we´ve got a lot to do and not a lot of time. I hope all´s well there!

We had a baptism this weekend, and we might have one this coming weekend too! We´re working really hard to keep everyone excited so we can keep having success. Elder Medeiros was transferred to Prudentópolis (!!!) and I´m here with Elder Lima, a brasilian who´s going home with me. It´s pretty crazy and I really liked Elder Medeiros, but that´s the way the mission goes; things are always changing. Lots and lots of stuff changed too, but we´ll have to see how it goes.

Here during mardi gras we have carnaval, which is the same thing. In the northeast of Brazil the missionaries can´t go out to work, but here´s a lot more calm. We still have to keep our guard up here on the beach, but we get by pretty easily. We just have to stay clear of downtown, which is pretty easy because we´re going to be working far from there. This morning they were setting off fireworks at 2 am. Crazy.

Things are going well here; lots of changes but we roll with it. I need to get more accustomed to it so I can get back to working hard faster, but we´re doing well and we´ll keep doing well for sure. I love you mom and thanks for everything, sorry this oe´s short but I gotta go already. Love you and have a great week! Love you!!!!

Hi Dad!

I´m going to have to be short today, we´re really busy. Today we have a division with the Assistants to the President and lots to do, so I want to let you know that Elder Medeiros got transferred to Prudentópolis, and my new companion is Elder Lima. He goes home the same day I do, weird huh? We had a baptism this weekend and we´re working to have one this coming weekend too, lots of work but it´s all paying off. The zone is doing really great as well, we´re really close to hitting our goal and everyone´s super excited. We climbed that hill with President and Sister Cordon today too! It was fun but next week I´ll tell you more about what happened there. 

We´re teaching around 23-28 lessons a week here too, which is around the norm, but we´re working hard to find new people, so I think we´ll be teaching a lot more. At least I hope! We´ve got a lot of investigators but we always want more. It´s so great to be a missionary! Sorry this is so short dad, Love you and hope that everything´s going great! Good luck with your games and work and all that! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Eighty

Monday, February 13, 2012 6:28 AM

Hey Mom!

I got on a little early today, but things were really good this week too. We didn´t have the baptism that we were expecting, but we´re going to baptize this weekend at a youth conference! It´s going to be really cool, I´m positive. It´s so crazy how your mind really changes; I remember how I looked at baptisms at the beginning of my mission and how I look at them now, and it´s so different. I know what the objective is now, and I know that the only thing that I have to do is work hard and it´ll come. We have so many people to teach, it´s ridiculous, and we´ll keep on finding people too. It´s so cool to see how your hard work can really pay off: this week we invited a bunch of people to church and worked hard to find new people to teach, but none of them came. The Lord blessed us because of it, though; 7 investigators came to church! One of our recent converts got a calling too! It was such a great meeting, and I truly felt that we were doing what God wanted us to.

Transfers are this week; we find out what happens tonight. Elder Medeiros is pretty nervous, which is kinda making me nervous, but I´m just going to trust in President´s calling and inspiration. So many people are getting ready for baptism that Elder Medeiros wants to stay, and he´s been here for a while already, so he´s getting antsy to know what´s up. We´ll see either way. I´ll let you know next week what happens.

I´m doing great and am super excited to keep working hard! It´s going to be an awesome month and an awesome transfer, for sure! Love you mom! Love you!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy Nine

Monday, February 06, 2012 7:44 AM

Hi Mom!

Sorry I couldn´t send you a picture last week; we were running around like crazy and it really irritated me. I don´t like being unorganized, and like it even less when people make me unorganized and I can´t do anything to control it. Oh well though, the important thing is that we´re here and that an entire family was baptized together!!! We baptized three people on saturday after getting them married and a whole host of other things I won´t even go into. It was so cool and even though I wasn´t the missionary that started teaching them, it was really great to be a part of that experience. I´ll attach a photo of them; they´re really great. They´re both going to have callings soon for sure.

Things are busy as always here, too; transfers are next week and I´m not sure (as always) what´s going to happen. I´m 99.99% positive I´m staying, but I don´t know if I´ll be getting a new companion or not. I´m not really worried about that though, we´ve got a ton of people to teach and are really going to go after finding some new people this week. I gained a testimony of diligence after what we went through last week, mostly because we didn´t have it. We need to plan better so that these people can receive the restored gospel, and I´m really going to focus on that this week. It´ll be good too, because we have a leadership training and our interviews with President Cordon tomorrow. I´m really excited to see what they bring to the table.

So the report we sent to the apostles was about the member lists in Ala 2, and it was well-received, I guess. They didn´t say anything to us about it, but it talked about how a lot of member records that should have been transferred weren´t, and now they´re just taking up space on the records of Ala 2. Some of the addresses are so old that they don´t exist anymore, or never existed in the first place, and it´s causing a lot of problems for home teachers and other people too. They talked about the problems that the whole stake is having and all that too, and it was really well done. I´ve got it here on my email and I can forward it to you later if you want. It was really interesting, and I think it´ll make a big difference in the future if they really decide to take action; whole stakes could be reorganized. I think we´ve got the same problem here in Paranaguá, but I´m going to work on that a little later on. Right now there´s too many people to teach!

It´s really really REALLY hot here, you would love it. We´ll see how long it keeps up, but I think we´re headed into the fiercest part of summer. Elder Medeiros was here last summer and said this one´s a lot worse, so there´s something for us to look forward to. You´d be sitting pretty in your Mustang here, that´s for sure!

That´s a tough thing at times to see people stop coming. We really need to work on home and visiting teaching as a whole. I made a goal to never miss my home teaching ever after I get back. I´m going to stick to it, too.

Love you Mom, and hope you´re doing well! Love you!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

This last week was a pretty big scramble, but it all worked out because we baptized a family! A mom, a dad and their son were baptized and confirmed this weekend, and the parents are now temple recommend holders, too! It was such a cool experience, and even though I wasn´t the one who started teaching them, it was really great to see how much they grew in the little time that I was here. We had a few challenges to overcome, like getting them married and getting them to authorize their son´s baptism, but now they´re all really happy, and helping others to get to know the gospel, as well: this weekend we´re going to baptize a reference that they gave us! It´s so cool to see how things can change in peoples´ lives through simple choices, and I know that they´ve made the right decision. The mom´s parents don´t really accept it yet, but I know that one day they will. We just need to be patient and work with them any way we can. There are so many people for us to teach here, it´s crazy! We´re going to work really hard to find more people this week and I know that there are people ready to hear our message.

It is HOT HOT HOT; yesterday we couldn´t go out on the street because we were getting headaches just from walking, and Elder Medeiros almost passed out. Things are a lot different than in Curitiba, but there´s a saying they have here: I was sweating so bad yesterday that it was dripping from my nose and eyebrows, so that might give you an idea. Not really sure but it´s gotta be up there in the 90s-100s. Now I don´t know because there´s air conditioning in the LAN house. The warmer the climate, the warmer the people. I really believe that, so it can stay as hot as it wants. I´ll just get tanner either way!

The youth in our ward are doing a bunch of fundraisers, and the young women are going to do a spaghetti feed. Guess who´s cooking? Haha it´ll be really fun, I´ll take pictures and stuff and send them to you. I´ll send some pictures right now, too, so you can see where I went last week. I hope everything´s going well Dad, and don´t forget to be diligent in all things, especially the little things. That´s something I´m really going to work on this week, because I felt like we relaxed a little too much this week. But it´s going to be great! Love you Dad!!!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy Eight

Tuesday, January 31, 2012 6:03 AM

Hey Mom!

Sorry I couldn´t write this week, we went to Matinhos, a city close by where the sisters work and climbed a little mountain there. I´ll be on a little later today so I can send you some pictures while I´m sending the other stuff I need to, but I just wanted to let you know that I´m fine. I´ll let you know about the apostles next week, OK? It was SO cool. It was only two hours but they taught us a lot and we really had a great experience. Just let the kids know they really are called of God. You can see it in their faces. But I hope everything´s going well, and have a great week! Love you!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy Seven

Monday, January 23, 2012 9:41 AM

Hi Mom!

So I guess that I didn´t explain well enough but the apostles are coming this week, and we´re really excited. We´ll have to see how it all goes with the report; Elder Gill´s putting the finishing touches on it now and I just translated it all into English. It´s really cool, talking about all of the work we did looking for members for home teaching and helping with the leadership. It really looks good and is going to turn out great. 

This morning we moved into a new house and it was REALLY tiring. We had to take everything down a set of stairs to put in a hand driven cart, take up and down a hill, then unload it and take it up another set of stairs. Needless to say, I´m exhausted, and we still haven´t eaten lunch. It´ll all work out though; anything for the Lord right?

Being here has really given me a testimony that I was sent by the Lord to help these people; one of the members was going through a really tough situation, and Elder Medeiros and I were both impressed to visit them without any prior knowledge of the situation. The whole week I´d felt that we should stop by, and on Sunday we went over right when she needed a blessing. I offered it and I really felt like I´d done what was needed, that the Lord had sent me here for a wise purpose, not just for that but for a lot of other stuff. I´m really grateful that I can serve a mission and serve these people. I love being a missionary!! Love you mom, and I´ll talk to you next week and let you know how the training was! Love you!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

Here the weather´s just getting hotter; nothing even resembling snow anywhere. I hope everything went smoothly and that you guys are safe. Tell mom to take someone with her if she travels. 

 So Elder Gill´s actually putting the final touches on his report now, because the apostles are coming on this friday, and it´s about the attendance and membership records in my last ward. There are a lot of records with addresses that don´t exist and frequency problems throughout the stake, and president cordon wanted us to present the information in a report type format for the apostles to see. I translated all of it from English to Portuguese right now, and I´m waiting to see what he thinks. We´ll see if I need to edit something else.

Other than that, things are going well; we´ve got some investigators that are going to get married and baptized this week, and we´re working on another couple investigators with dates for this week. One of the guys we were teaching who we almost lost hope on came to church by himself yesterday! It was really great. We moved into a new house this morning too, and we had to move everything by handcart. It was really tiring, but it´s going to be really great living in the new house and everything. Elder Medeiros is really chill, and we´re working really hard to find some new investigators and help them towards baptism. I´m not going to be able to talk today dad, sorry, but things are going really great. I´m really busy but I´m completely committed to make this work happen here, help the whole zone and I´ve got some really high goals set for the rest of the transfer! I love you Dad, hope that everything´s good and that all goes well with the games! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric 

Week Seventy Six

Monday, January 16, 2012 8:53 AM


Hi Mom!

How´s everything? Things are good here and all´s well, which is nice. It´s getting hot, but it rains quite a bit so that helps. This week was good, but there are a few things we´re going to work on to make it better. We´re going to do a training with the Zone tomorrow about how to work with the members, and I think it´ll help a lot. We´ve got a lot of less actives in the stake, and I think that if we work to bring them back, we´ll be able to bring a lot more with them. Elder Medeiros is really cool; super chill and willing to work. We´ve got a lot of ideas, we just need to get everything organized.

BIG NEWS!!!!!! Two Apostles are coming to the mission next Friday! We get to go to Curitiba and hear them talk, and some of the work that Elder Gill and I did will be presented to them by President Cordon! I´m so excited!!!!! It´s going to be so great. We´re working really hard to be able to show them what we´re made of; we just got everything ready for a wedding and we´ll be baptizing the couple and their son at the beginning of next month! Things are really going well, I just need to be more patient. Our Zone needs a little motivation, but I have to remember the Lord´s timing in everything.

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

How´s everything? Things are going great here; pretty busy but that´s nothing new. We´ll be giving a training to the Zone tomorrow, so I´m kinda thinking about that along with all the other things I have to do. But it´s all going well and we´ve got some great stuff going on. The biggest news is that 2 Apostles are coming to the mission next week! They´ll be having a mission conference with us in Curitiba, and some of the work that Elder Gill and I did will be presented to them by President Cordon! Isn´t that crazy? I´m so excited to hear what they have to say. On top of that, we´re moving into a different house this week, working on a wedding and baptism and a mess of other stuff. I can´t even keep track of it at times; good thing I´ve got a planner.

I´m glad Nick´s getting a routine down, that´s super important when you´re waiting like this. And before we know it, he´ll be out in the field too! I can´t believe he´s leaving in April! How cool! These will be some good times for him.

 Love you Dad, and have a great week! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric



Week Seventy Five - Transfers and a New Companion

Monday, January 09, 2012 10:47 AM

Hi Mom!

Sorry the Pday change caught you by surprise, but I think we´ll start getting into a rhythm soon enough. I got your package, and I have a few comments: BJ and Max both need to shave and Blake and Madison need to stop growing. The cover turned out so cool! I can´t believe that I received my last book of pictures for the mission! It´s pretty crazy, but I´ve got enough on my plate now to keep me busy.

So I was transferred back to the interior, only this time I went to the other side of Curitiba and the only other zone in the interior that I hadn´t been to: Paranaguá. It´s a really cool city on the litoral, or coast, of the state and it is HOT. I got off of the bus (which took 3 hours to get here because they went down an old highway which was really beautiful but took FOREVER) and immediately started sweating. It´s going to be interesting, but I´m sure I´ll get used to it after a little while. The zone is a lot smaller than the last one I was in; only 10 missionaries including us, and one set of sisters. It´s really cool because we´re all in the same city, and we´ll get to see some really great stuff and work with some really great people. I forgot my camera but next week I´ll send you pictures.  I´ve pretty much passed through all of the zones, but I´ve only worked in 5: Guarapuava, Ponta Grossa, Tarumã, Curitiba/Iguaçu, and Paranaguá. It´s crazy how much each one is different and how my perception of the church has changed through all of this. it´s a really cool thing to notice, actually.

It was tough to leave Ala 2 and not be Elder Gill´s companion anymore, but I´m now companion of the missionary that he trained, Elder Medeiros! He´s from Olinda, Pernambuco, and he´s two transfers younger than I am. He´s really chill and the work here´s going incredibly well, so I´m excited to see what´s going to happen. We have the unique opportunity to be in almost constant contact with the missionaries in the zone, and I´m definitely going to use that to my advantage if I can.  Being new in a ward is pretty tough, especially because you know NOONE. That´s alright though, I know I´ll be able to get to know them quickly, and I can always cook for them; it´s worked well so far!

Thanks so much for all of the help and support that you guys give me and I know that things are going to go great here as well in Paranaguá. We have great members that are willing to help, and I know that that´ll make a huge difference in our work. I hope that you guys have the chance to help the missionaries in different ways there too, because it really is a blessing.

Love you!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy Four

Monday, January 02, 2012 6:52 AM

Hi Mom!

So I know this is a little unexpected and might take some getting used to, but we´ve switched P-days to Monday now, permanently. Just for you guys to know so that it´s not a surprise next time too. No worries, there was no way to let you know before anyway.

How was New Year´s? We had to get in early on President´s orders, but it was still good. I can´t believe that we´re already into 2012! I´ve been through the biggest part of my mission and now spent a full calendar year in the field. So crazy! Transfers are Wednesday, and we still don´t know anything, but I guess I´ll have to let you know what happens next week. It´ll be fine either way though.

We had another miracle at church! The Lord is so good to us. We only had Sacrament Meeting again, and we saw early that nobody we´d invited was there. Suddenly right after the sacrament a guy walked in and sat down, without saying anything. After being here for a while it´s pretty easy to tell who isn´t a member, but this ward has so many less actives and stuff that you never know. We talked to him afterward and he just decided to visit. It was so cool; he´d already talked to the missionaries on the street and accepted a visit tonight! He´s really great; pray for Osmário for us.

Nick´s probably got to get a lot of shots, huh? When´s that going to get sorted out? This time´s going to be so great for him; has he decided about school yet? What are your New Year´s resolutions? 

I just wanted to let you know that I´m good and let you know about the new P-day! I love you Mom, thanks so much for everything you guys do! Love you!!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy Three

Wednesday, December 28, 2011 11:36 AM

Hi Mom!

It was so great to hear from you guys; I told Elder Gill after that it felt like it´d been days ago that we talked about 5 minutes after we disconnected. It´s great to get a little bit of home once in a while. And the crazy part is, I´ve only got one call left! Can you believe it? By that time, two families that we reactivated will be going to the temple, Nick will be on his mission and I´ll be almost done! Time goes by so fast, and things change in what seem like heartbeats. Either way though, we´re working hard and things are going incredibly well. Our Zone baptized 4 people on Christmas Day, and we´ll baptize at least two more on New Year´s! What better way to spend the holidays?  We aren´t sure about New Year's Eve yet apart from watching fireworks from the top of our building. I think we might try to go over to one of our recent converts´ houses, but we haven´t talked to them yet. We´ll figure it out though.

I´m realizing that I don´t need a whole lot right now to be happy or to even get by, and with all of the plans that I have (Elder Gill and I talk about it all the time) I won´t really be able to afford a lot of stuff anyway! What´s important though is that Nick´s ok. 

The Bishop´s family loved talking to you. They´re really cool but kinda crazy so there isn´t anything that you can throw at them that´ll weird them out. I don´t think they understood most of it anyway. Oh, and one of the packages showed up! The one with the clothes and stuff. It was perfect!!!!!! I LOVE the hoody and Elder Gill really liked the book, too. I think we´re going to start working out with it tomorrow. I´ve actually lost a little more weight since I became a Zone Leader, which is good, but I want to get in even better shape, so that´s going to help a lot. It was great, and I can´t believe more´s coming! Thanks so much for all that you guys do for me and I´m so excited that Nick´s got his call!!!! Everything´s getting better and better here, and I know that they´ll keep improving there, so keep going strong and enjoy all the blessings! Love you Mom, and  have a great week!!!!! Love you!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

The call was great, good connection or no. I was so happy to see you guys and to hear about Nick´s call was so awesome, one of the best Christmas presents I´ve ever received. Speaking of which, one of the packages showed up! It had the clothes and the book that you guys got for Elder Gill. He really liked it, and me too! That hoodie is so cool!!!!!

It´s so weird that Steven and Candace´s baby was already born! it seems like forever ago that you guys told me she was pregnant, but at the same time so fast that all that happened. It´s so weird time here on the mission. But it´s good, and it goes by way too quick at times. This is the last P-day before the transfer and I have no idea what´s going to happen, but I´m really hoping Elder Gill and I stay together. I think it´d be really great, and the ward would continue to progress really well.  Elder Gill´s done in february. If anything happens I´d probably go because i´ve been here longer, but I´m trying not to worry too much about it. We´ve still got a lot of work to do in our area and the others, so we´ll just keep pushing. We had a baptismal interview this morning before the temple, and she´ll be baptized on New Year´s! It´s going to be great, because it´s the last Sunday for one of the missionaries there.

The big meal here´s on Christmas Eve, but it was really good. It had a lot of healthy fruits and vegetables too, so that was really nice. I ate a lot this weekend, and I´m hoping that we get a break on New Year´s with sweets because we got a lot from all of the ladies in the Relief Society! We´ll see how it goes though. It sounds like you guys ate well too and that everyone did pretty well with the gifts. I can´t believe I´ve got more coming! It´s going to be pretty crazy this week with all of the work and travel, but i´m sure we´re going to have a lot of miracles. I love you dad, and Hope you have a great week!!!!! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy Two

Wednesday, December 21, 2011 10:26 AM

Hi Mom!

So today I´m on later but I don´t know how much time I´ll have to talk; we´re going like crazy this week to help everyone baptize on Christmas! We´ve got a really solid investigator lined up, plus we´ve got lots of other people set up for next week. One guy even called us asking to receive the lessons! He got our number from the bishop´s wife and called us in the middle of lunch on Sunday, it was nuts! We´ve got other great people too, and I know that the end of the year´s going to be really great.

As far as the call goes, I´m thinking about skyping at 8:00 your time in the morning, which will be right after lunch here.  I can´t believe it´s already Christmas again! It´s so nuts to think about. I´m so excited to talk though!

Anything else planned for christmas? And new year´s? We´re almost into 2012! I´m going to stop thinking about that for now. The cake looked great! What´s on the menu for Christmas dinner? We´re still not sure where we´re headed for christmas eve, but I think it´s going to be really cool! We´re going to get a Christmas basket we heard, so that should be really interesting, and it´s so great to have members that love us so much.


Can´t wait until Sunday! Love you!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

Feliz Natal! I can´t believe we´re here already! This week has been INSANE, and it´s only going to get crazier. We´ve got invites from a ton of members to go to their houses for Christmas, but we´re so focused on the work that we haven´t even had time to decide! Today I have to go to one side of the city to do two interviews while Elder Gill is going to the other side to do four. It´s nuts.

It´s been really great though, and the Lord has given us some great people to help and teach.

We´re teaching a teenager named Inaroá, and she´s got a date for baptism this weekend! Her mom´s a less active member, and her aunt and uncle are having some marital problems, but I see as we teach them all together that the things we explain really help them all. The couple was going to separate, but until now are still together, and the Mom is doing everything she can to help her daughter be ready for baptism. It´s so great to see how this Gospel blesses families.

It sounds like lots of stuff is going on with the house; when we talk on Sunday you´ll have to show me around. I still can´t believe it´s this Sunday that we´ll be talking, and next Sunday will be 2012! Time goes by so fast. Nick told me to try to remember how I was a year ago and it seems like an eternity ago, but I was just starting my mission in the field. I´m so much different now, and I´m so grateful for the things I learned.

We´re kinda in a rush today but I'll see you on Sunday! Love you Dad!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy One

Wednesday, December 14, 2011 5:51 AM

Hi Mom!

So I´m on early again; we´ve got a lot of stuff to do so we got on the internet early and are trying to get everything sorted out. How are things at work? How was the cake? Dad said that it was a huge success; I hope that it wasn´t too much stress. But congratulations! That was your biggest project yet, right? I´m sure it was definitely worth it to put all of that work in.

We had our Christmas conference yesterday, and it was awesome. We learned a lot about the Atonement of Christ, and I understand it now in a way that I never had thought of before. President and Sister Cordon really are inspired, and every time that President speaks I can feel his authority. He really is called of God. We had some really cool practices, really great food, and it was great because all of the Americans that got here with me were there! My camera´s dead for now, so I´ll have to wait until they send me the picture, but I´ll be sure to send it your way.

Things here are going well, getting hotter every day but there´s always a little rain to keep things interesting. Friday we got totally DRENCHED; we had to sprint home to get our clothes changed, take another shower and grab our umbrellas. I´m sure it was pretty nuts to see two guys in white shirts and ties running in a torrential downpour, but there weren´t really any other options. It´s these kinds of things that make you laugh on the mission, though. So crazy!

The first package didn´t get here yet, but I´m sure it´s on its way. The conference was early this year, so there were a lot of people who didn´t get the stuff their parents sent yet. I´m still in shock that my second and last Christmas conference is over, and that we´re headed in on our third call! Elder Gill´s family wants him to call in the morning on Sunday, which for us will be the early afternoon, so I need to know what time church starts there so I can plan out when we can hook up. I want to make it so you don´t have to worry about the time. We´ll get it working though; I´m sure of that.

The holiday season is busy, but we´re doing a lot of really great things. I´m so excited to see what happens in December! I love you Mom, Have a great week!!!! Love you!!!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

Things are great here, and it´s getting hotter and hotter and looking less and less like Christmas every day! It´s really really cool here, though; there are lights all over the place and special presentations in like all of the praças all around downtown. I was on a division with a priest on Monday and we went by a HUGE bank that was all lit up. There were kids singing and some sort of a presentation going on; I wanted so bad to go (and even though it was out of my area, it was in my Zone so I wouldn´t have to ask permission) but we had a lot of appointments to get to. We´re working really hard to find new people to teach, and trying to take advantage of the great Christmas spirit that´s here.

We´re working really hard with the Elders´ quorum to get them to do their home teaching in Ala 2; we prayed about it and really feel like that´s what´ll make the difference there. There are so many people on the ward list to visit, and our goal is to visit all of them. Every one. It´s going pretty well so far, seeing as we´re finding out that it´s been a long time since it´s been updated. Lots of people don´t live in the ward anymore, so we´re visiting a lot of people who aren´t members. It´s actually a really great opportunity to share the gospel, and we´re trying to take advantage of every minute we´ve got. After all, Elder Gill´s only got one more transfer after this!

I´m so glad everything went well with the cake. Send me pictures! Who knows, maybe Mom will get more clients soon! Did you guys get stressed out that bad? Maybe it´s only when I´m in the kitchen that Mom gets worried. In any case, congratulations for all of the work you guys did, I´m sure it was worth it. 

So it sounds like Elder Gill´s family wants him to do the call Sunday morning, so I think that´s going to be the easiest for you guys too. There´s a six hour time difference; what time does church start? I´ll try to plan it out so that we can talk and we don´t have to be in a hurry or anything. Let me know and I´ll get it all planned out.

Don´t get too cold! I´ll try to send some of our heat your way. Have a great week Dad! Love you!!!!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Week Seventy

Wednesday, December 07, 2011 9:58 AM

Hi Mom!

So I don´t have a lot of time today, but I´m sure we´ll get to talk a little. Christmas conference is next tuesday, so I´m not sure if the package will make it or not, but I´m not worried about it. It´ll be great to get anything, and I know that Elder Gill will be thankful, too.

Lots of stuff to do down here, too; we´ve got some really great goals and we´re really trying to make them happen. There´s a kid in our ward who came back from his mission early, and we´re really trying to help him to come back and to even finish his mission! He´s really great, and so willing to help us out with whatever we need. More and more, I´m seeing that we do have help, and the only thing that we need to do is ask for it. This ward´s kinda got a reputation for being a more closed off one, but we notice that all you have to do is be concerned about what´s going on with them and they open right up. Some of the most faithful members I´ve ever seen live here, and they really inspire me to keep going, because you never know what can happen. I think about the missionaries that baptized some of the people in our ward over 50 years ago, and how they must feel knowing that they´re still going strong until this day. I want so badly to feel that too, and I´m really glad I have the chance to change lives. It´s so great to be a missionary!

Let me know the very second that Nick gets his call!!!!!!! I´ll be waiting just like you guys, I´m so excited! And let me know what goes on with the cakes. Be sure to take pictures, and remember, you can do it and it´ll be great.  I love you, and I´ll be cheering you on from down here! Love you!!!!!!!

Love, Eric

Hey Dad!

Things are busy here as always, we´re about to start a huge jumble of divisions and then we´ve got Christmas Conference on Tuesday. It´s crazy that Christmas is already here! It´s still quite a ways off, but it´s coming a lot faster than I was expecting. And a ton of missionaries are leaving a few days after, so that means some transfers will be happening before the designated day. That´s the kind of stuff that usually leaves me stressed out, but I´m getting more and more used to it. Now I don´t expect anything.

We´ve been cleared to use Skype again, so I just need to find a member that has a webcam and we´ll get everything set up. How are the Cochrans? Tell them I say hi and apologize for me that I haven´t had time to send them a letter! I´ll put them up at the top of the list. You´re coaching again? I thought you might take a break now that you´re a head coach, but I guess that´s not enough work for you. We all seem to be pretty addicted to work in the family. I was talking to Elder Gill, and he was saying that he got like that in the office, and it was tough. Don´t tire yourself out.

I´m so glad Nick´s papers are finally in! I was getting tired of waiting too. If he goes to Brasil, I´ll basically be in my last transfer when he gets into the field. Crazy huh? It´s so great how everything just falls into place!

How´s work; still busy? I know that things get crazy this time of year, but for sure we´ll all be blessed by the decisions we make.I know that we´re going to do great things, each one of us in the family, as long as we do what the Lord has asked. And we´ll definitely be instruments in His hands to help lots of people know this Gospel. That´s what I´m out to do, anyway! Love you Dad, and have a great week!!! Love you!!!!!

Love, Eric