Miracles and a Sweater...

Okay I don’t know what happened I’ve been trying to upload fotos for like 10 minutes. So... just remember what I look like okay? GREAT. Obrigada.

Sorry about the money! I was going to tell you! The other day we were waiting for the ônibus in another bairro (neighborhood sort of?) and I was literally freezing to death. Like... almost an icecube. The weather here is like a Sister missionary. I won’t sing Katy Perry for you... okay I will... YOU´RE HOT THEN YOU´RE COLD... (Side note- the other day I called Presidente for permission to leave our area and he started singing [in English] IF YOU DONT KNOW ME BY NOWWW. YOU WILL NEVER EVER EVER KNOW MEEE. OOOH. OOoooOOOooh. Which is actually true because he is leaving at the end of this transfer...) But really it was FREEZING. I think the vento (wind) did it. Anyway there happened to be a nice little shop there with straight up American sweaters. Like Abercrombie and Fitch? So I bought a sweater. It was way pricey, but I figured the hospital bills for pnemonia would be worse. And now it’s my favorite sweater! WOO! I dont know why I just spent a whole paragraph explaining a sweater but... you get it. DESCULPA! AND I almost got a perm today? My hair is dying. I’ll keep you updated, but I need just one more for 6 more months right? Consider it a birthday present? But claro (obviously) I’m being careful!

I love that you name dropped Harvard and MIT! Ha! Everyone here thinks a gente é bem rico (aka they think we are rich) but they think all Americans are rich. So keep traveling. Aint nobody gonna judge you! Mas, I must admit. I miss the Veendam. Sometimes I have dreams where I just sleep. Im so tired. I understand all the boys who get home now. When they say things like- I fell asleep in church. SHOOT, I practically fell asleep in a lesson the other day.

Im still here in Santana de Parnaíba! With Sister Sares. Which is a little bit of a surprise to everyone, but Im excited to stay for my birthday! We have one more transfer June 17th for Sister Huskey and Sister Montjoy to come here- so if I don’t recieve a new American, I think I’ll stay here til July! Can you say longest area ever? Toto, we are not in Montana anymore!

What is a week in Brazil without finding at least one elect family? Or for us this week. TWO! WOOO! One doesn’t live in our area so that was a little triste, BUT we were riding the ônibus the other day and I started chatting with this guy Clayton. (He has an American name- I know) and Im like you should visit our church! Where do you live? Pq. Santana dois. .... NOOOO! The elders area!!! But I get his info to give to the elders and we hit our stop. So then Saturday we are walking home and I was having sort of a horrible day because the whole world was like- hey can I marry you? Are all Americans as beautiful as you? which sounds really flattering, but when it happens to us we have to say super forcefully NOOO and leave the area so they cant follow us around? So essentially that day we walked to whole city. My companion is always like- I always wanted an American companion, but this is a little bit annoying! HA! I die. But anyway, we see the same guy with his wife and he is like TOMORROW 9 o’clock! Ill be there! I didn’t forget! We are like alright see you there! But then he insists on buying us sorvete (ice cream) which is way expensive here and then the next day... WHAT DO YOU KNOW he comes to church with his wife! I don’t even care that he is not in our area, he is the BEST. His wife and him loved church and she started crying a little during fast and testimony meeting. THE SPIRIT OF GOD LIKE A FIIIIIRE IS BURNINGGG. 

Oh and the elect in our area. Jader and Janice. The other day I was on the phone with someone and we were going up this hill. Apparently some guy said to my companion- are you evangelizing? She said yes and then just continued walking. Not a joke. But I was on the phone so I didnt hear this. So then the next day we are walking down a street and meet this boy Henry (pronounced here like you are drowning.) He is like- I used to go to your church when I was like 10. So we get his contact info and the next day we are in that area. Brazil thinks they are so clever with names of streets so we are on Rua Urugai. como Uruguay. (Obviously I have a preference for Rua Estados Unidos- but it only has like 10 houses on it so...) Anyway we go to visit this house and it turns out Henry doesn’t live there! We are like oh.. sorry what is your name? This woman says Ivonette, remember me? The other day you were with a different American and you asked if you could visit me! (The other day as in a month ago) Oh- yes of course I remember you! (lie) Can we share a message? She had a whole bunch of people there and looked pretty busy so we were a touch reluctant and she is like- I have my 2 sisters and friend here. Is that okay? CLARO! So we teach them and in the middle this man comes into the house and is like- I KNOW YOU to my companion. Turns out he wanted to talk to us the other day but we just passed by. I told Sister Sares she will for sure have to thank God on judgment day for not letting that little gem pass by a second time! Him and his wife came to church, are reading the book of mormon, and will hopefully be baptized this next week! 

AHHHH Milagres people! They exist. I know because somehow I speak Portuguese these days.

Love you! 

Soldades de vocês.

Sister Haley K. Mills

GREVE.

Ask a Brazillian about the greve in São Paulo.

I dare you.

We had a snow day this week. Where we has to stay in our house all day because there was a huge greve AKA STRIKE of the police and buses. The good thing is our Bishop is a policia so he kept us updated. ALSO he is like everyone's who is police in 5 cities boss so... there is that... also there is the fact that our mission was GOING to go see Elder Russel M. NELSON! AHHHH. Cancelled. Then we didn't have ônibus for 3 days so we missed all of our appointments with our investigators in other cities... OH then our perfect investigator that we met last week that understands the authority of God? REMEMBER? HER HUSBAND SAID SHE CANT SEE US ANYMORE!!!!! Then we couldn't find a bus to leave her city so bispo came and got us. 

I think i'll cry.

But really the week wasn't that bad, I sort of loved it. It is freezing and rained the whole week! I taught my companion the song RAIN RAIN GO AWAY COME AGAIN ANOTHER DAYYYY! She is hilarious when she speaks English. If I wasn't already crying about everything else, the English did it! 

My companion called me gorda (fat) a total of 500000 times this week too. I think we are besties. Too bad today is transfers and almost with certainty I will be transferred. We will just wait and see na? 

We have an entire family on date to be baptized. STOKED.

The book is blue, the church is true. 

AMO VOCÊS!!!!

 

 

HELLO PEOPLE!

HELLO PEOPLE!

Sister Pereira only knows like two phrases in English and it is either WHAT? or HELLO PEOPLE! Not sure why? MAS we love it! 

We had the baptism of my favorite person in the whole world this week! (desculpnãodesculp) MAGALI! She is probably the coolest person on the planet. Sister Fuller and I found her in the area book and pretty much our first visit knew she was perfect. I have the gift of discernment, na?? But in all seriousness. On Sunday after the baptism she was given the gift of the Holy Ghost and she was STOKED. She sat next to me for sacrament and started to get all nervous! After I was like- Você sente muito bom? She was like no, better, MARVILHOSA! Soooo... I think God might let me into heaven just for finding her. JOKE. We all know God found her, we were the ones who were lost!

Hmmm other than Magali our week was um poco CRAY. We don't have electricity today? Not sure why? So I showered in LITERALLY the coldest water of my life. I felt like Jack in the Titanic. I tried to explain to my companion the phrase FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS, but turns out that doesn't translate well. She was like- you don't have problems? Then she called me DOIDA (a crazy person?)... Minha vida.

We had a ward activity for missionary work and afterwards we "GOD SQUADED" this guy... Sister Armstrong and I could not stop laughing. When you have more than one set of missionaries testifying that Jesus Christ has a church here on the earth again- you have to join right? We will wait and see with that one. But after, as Sister Sares and I were leaving we started talking to this woman Dyena. She is part of a church that... well... doesn't like us much? So after she said that I decided to become friends a little first so she would HAVE to listen to our message? So after the normal guessing game of where I am from and how many filhos (children) I have, she is like- so what is different about your church? Is it different? BOOM. We taught her about the authority of God right there in the street (Slipping her daughter cookies to stay quiet- JOKING... Not.) And she is maybe the first person my whole mission to say- So then we don't have the authority of God? None of the churches had the authority of God! Exactamente. So we are visiting her today. Obviously. Ill keep you updated!

MILAGRES!

Eu amo vocês MUITO!

Sister Haley K. Mills!

PS Tell Sister De Paula that people are starting to think I've been here for almost a year? Good sign right? But I still wont write her in Portuguese. DESCULPNÃODESCULP!

 

Sister Sares (from Bolivia), Magali, and Sister Mills

 

Data Marcada

Im not even going to say I have no time because at this point the world knows. Sooooo REAL QUICK.

We had a baptism of Andressa this week. She is maybe the cutest 12 year old I have ever met. We taught her about repentance and she starts BAWLING. Im like wow she must have something to repent of? And she goes, thats just so great that God loves us THAT MUCH! Can you say golden? Its so great to see someone make the first step towards eternal life. Especially when they are so solid and you KNOW they will become a future mission presidents wife or something. Her baptism was awesome and right after a ward activity so people were actually there. Tender mercies! AND the day after all the moças sang in church (Young  Women) and she joined them after her confirmation! If that doesnt complete my mission I dont know what does. Probably December 17 will... I meannnn....

You heard it! December 17th, now lets not get trunky! President tried to tell me when I was going home by telling me I got in trouble and would be kicked out of the mission? My heart stopped. Its FIIIIINE. Then he was like just kidding you just wont be about to call your parents for Natal (Christmas). Wait why not? Ill be home, na? He was like nooo.... Oh WOO what happened? It says your release date is January 4, 2016? I was about to tell you that you will be kicked out of the mission December 17 so....

Obviously I told him I wanted to stay til 2016 and he told me for a 3 year mission I needed to marry someone super solid and endure to the end. Of course all of this is in Portuguese because my District leader pronounced me fluent today? We all went to the temple and I was like SORRY I cant do the session in Portuguese and he was like SISTER. You understand everything. You dont know some words, but when you can explain to me what word you want, that is fluent. YOU ARE FLUENT. And he is a Brazillian so I think Ive made it?

Oh and the temple. Turns out SUPER awesome in Portuguese. President talked to me for like an hour after about the perks of studying the gospel in two languages. But now I really understand. SO many insights. Word choice sometimes im like... WAIT THATS WHAT THAT MEANS?! This is my plug for everyone to learn Portguese, but then you might realize how bad my grammer is soooo maybe not? Desculpnãodesculp.

Also, I know you know already, but for everyone else- Sister Fuller was mid transfer adjusted (sort of) because we recieved a big group of new Americans. So now I have Sister Sares from Bolivia! She is pretty great. Ive been teaching her english, and she is new so we have both been working on Portuguese because sometimes we STRUGGLE. But just in this one week- LEAPS AND BOUNDS better.

Anyway, LOVE YOU! And it was great talking to you on Sunday, sorry for BAWLING when Rory said HI HALEY I MISS YOU and blew a kiss, but who are we kidding? That girl is cute as DIRT. Irmã Maria Carmo talked about her for like an hour after that! YOUR SABRINA IS SO CUTE!!!!

TCHAU!

Sister Mills!

Sisters Fuller and Mills

Sisters Mills and Fuller

Baby, will you pray?

OIIIII!

Its preparation day agaaaain! OH and its transfers? Again? We wont know til later today if we are transferred, BUT there is a rumor that if you get an email from President that doesn't say the name of your companion in it then you are.... sooooo.... well see about that today! HA!

Dad got a jeep?! Do you have pictures? WHAT IS THIS!!!! I wanted a jeep when I got home! Oh well, it sounds awesome! And at this point Ill settle for anything that isn't a ônibus. The other day we were on one for over 2 hours, on dirt roads, going AT LEAST 60 mph. I almost vomited. AND I learned what they call roller coasters here? Montanha Russa? AKA Russian Mountain? No one can explain that one to me!

Tell Danielle happy birthday! I actually looked at my watch on the second and was like... tomorrow I have 10 months, and today is Danielle's BIRTHDAY! So she should know I thought about her on this continent! Also, I have started referring to this day as Brazilian Thanksgiving. We have this investigator, MAGALI. She is THE BEST IN THE WORLD, and on date to be baptized next week. (We want 8 baptisms this month so WATCH OUT) She feeds us EVERYTIME we come over. We can't leave without eating. So one day we got stuck there. And I mean stuck. We had like 12 courses. And she brought over all of her neighbors and family to meet us. We have like 12 contacts from her and now we are fat. Oh and then everyone tried to kiss me and I had to scream NÃO PODE and duck, but I was in a chair so people ended up like leaning on my face? EVERYONE WAS DYING LAUGHING. My life is bliss obviously. But seriously if she doesn't get baptized soon I will gain 20 kilos. 3rd world problems??? Hahahaha.Then we visited this less active Izilda and she thought we were probably starving and forced MORE food on us. Like... I took home a whole bottle of olive oil...

Still didn't get the package, but we have interviews next week AND we are going to the temple, so FYI I wont be writing til I think Tuesday? And if the package has arrived President should be bringing it to interviews!

In other exciting news we are supposed to baptize Andressa this Saturday! she is 12, and LEGAL! (cool. I realize that looks like I am saying she is legal? Oh well, you only mission once.) We asked her if she wanted to be baptized and she started crying and said - I want to be clean! Well technically she said - Eu quero ser limpo. But you get the point. She is GOLDEN. We were going to have her baptism last week but her aunt wants to make a bolo? SO... a baptism got pushed back for a cake? Only in Brazil. 

Did you know Brazil has LABOR DAY? But it is called day of the worker. Or as I mistakenly called it day of work?? Dia de trabalho. Minha preferida! We had almoço with our ward mission leader whose name is something REAL close to Voldemort? I still haven't figured that one out. And it was hilarious because everyone calls Sister Armstrong baby because she just... I don't know but they do. And so he gave us all nicknames? Sister Leite? AWFUL. Mas, Sister Bebe was my favorite. Especially when he shortened it to just bebe. I should include that he sort of looks and acts like an Indian Steve Carell. 

So just imagine this - Baby, will you pray? 

I don't think he knows what he is saying?! Mas it is MUITO hilarious. Oh then everyone here has a certain way they eat oranges and if you eat them wrong everyone FREAKS OUT. Soooo Sister Armstrong and I were made fun of for another 30 minutes. BEBE PARA!!!! Baby stoppp!!! HAHAHA. I die.

I was in a historic reunião this Sunday. The stake president came and talked to us about our ward splitting and gave us all assignments. Don't worry. Ours is to visit every single person on the ward list. Simples, na? OH and I played the piano for the first part of sacrament? Then got fired?! AWKWARD. Remind me to practice when I get home.  

Anyway, I love you. I miss you! And I will talk to you this Sunday! We are peppering the ward with obscure questions to figure out who has the fastest internet?

TCHAU!!!!

Sister Mills, Bishop Santos, Tamires. Sister Fuller

Sister Mills

LUFA LUFA

Sorry about last weeks email. There was a little drama because it was a Brazillian holiday and everything was closed. Soooo we took a bus to another city (dont fret - in our ward still) to email and only had like... ZERO TIME. Worse than normal? I think I'm starting to over use that phrase. Minha vida. 

Jamie {Peterson-Arnett} is SO PREGGERS! I am dying. I love it! And the blanket {Haley picked the yarn/colors Erika crocheted} looks awesome mom! So grateful you are always adopting my friends! Dad- buck up, scorpions are nothingggg {stung a week ago on the finger - still swollen and sore}! Just kidding, I found a cockroach in my suitcase two days ago and screamed like a little girl - second one in a week. I still haven't received the package, but we have interviews next Tuesday, so if it has come Presidente will bring it I think! Its crazy here whenever someone gets a package or mail it has to travel through like 15 missionaries to get to us. And then you have to hold it, while standing, on a PACKED bus, usually for at least an hour or two. Then walk 3 miles uphill (in the snow? JOKE) to your house. So I wont forget to tell you when I get it. It will be a big deal! Hahaha.

So last week I went on divisions. I think I told you? BUT while I was there I happen to see the Harry Potter books! NOT KIDDING. And my companion and I had been talking the week before about what the house names would be in Portuguese. This is important. PROMISE. So turns out they are hilarious. And my faves is LUFA LUFA. AKA Hufflepuff. 

So we were making a list this last week of people who have already been to church twice and could be baptized immediately. And I was like... Low Hanging Fruit... LWF...How would you even say that? LUFE? LufAAA! LUFA LUFA! And so the milagre (miracle) list was born! Our Lufa-lufa has spawned milagres fo DAYS. 

My favorite is that we had 3 baptisms this weekend? Okay only one was technically ours. TAMIRES!!!! She is the best. We asked her to be baptized on like... quarta feira (Wednesday) and she was like- SIM! So we said Domingo? Before church? Of course! It is so great to find people of great faith who understand the need for baptism by proper authority! AHHH. I love that girl. She has this little boy Kevin who I might potentially steal... of course its against the rules so.... The other baptisms- one was the Zone Leaders, but under doctors orders they can't leave their house for a week. Can you say dengue? Doglas always comes to our ward anyway, so we did them a solid and the whole district took a picture with THEIR baptism. It was hilarious. (The elders were here to interview our baptism and the Sisters serve in the same ward as us!) Then the Sisters had a baptism after church of a woman who has been going to church for 7 years. Eliane. She is amazing. And also very pregnant. Don't worry, we filled up the font REAL FULL. 

We had a lesson in this bairro kind of far away, so we ask an Irmao to come with us. Then his whole family came? Like EXTENDED. So we had a lesson with 7 investigators (a family) and like 10 members? AKA we had a festa. It was probably the funniest thing that has happened in a month. Sometimes I sit back and think... wait... am I really here? Is this really happening? I know I'm where Heavenly Father needs me, but sometimes its surprising to find yourself somewhere you know? 

Anyway. I love you and miss you dearly! I promise I'll brush up on my English before Mothers Day (JOKE- my companion is American!) Hahaha. Sister Martins called the other day because I had a little cold and she wanted to tell me what medicines I could buy for being stuffed up. She goes... 

-SISTER FULLER? 

-Não, sou Sister Mills. 

-SISTER MILLS?! VOCÊ È FALANDO EM PORTUGUES MUITO BEM! EU ACHEI QUE VOCÊ FOI SISTER FULLER! 

Aka my portuguese is improving? I think?

Anyway, LOVE YOU MISS YOU! BYEEEEEE!

Sister Mills

WAHHHHHH!

TIME IS ALWAYS RUNNING AWAYYYY!

We were singing a hymn the other day that had the word AURORA. I died. Our little babes is the DAWN in Portuguese. Love her. Glad she found someone to push her on the swing at Easter!

I don't feel like counting anymoreeee- a five year old said to me the other day (translated obviously) WHY DO YOU SPEAK A LITTLE BIT WRONG? Minha vida! HAHAHA. It was hilarious at least.

-A man stopped me on the street to tell me I was beautiful so invited him to church and then said bye.... 12 times... super awkward. We had a recent convert with us and she starting telling everyone we saw after that that I had a SWEET TALKER. AWKWARD!

-This week has been crazy. I went on exchanges in Sao Paulo proper. It was insane. A Hispanic and an American try to do missionary work in Brazil... its like a bad joke- BUT it actually turned out super awesome!

-I went to my first Churrasco this week! BARBEQUEEEE! It was delicious! Happy Pascoa (Easter)

-No more time! I promise really exciting missionary things happened this week too!!! And that the church is true! 

LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU!!!