Setembro!

Hello Everyone!

Happy Labor Day! How is it already September... School will be starting this week... Man, how time flies!

This week was a pretty normal week again. The entire town of Itabaiana celebrated the birthday of Itabaiana, so it was a holiday, everything was closed and the only people in the streets were the ones drinking... needless to say we tried to visit some people, but then headed home until we had our reading class because no one wanted to talk with us. There was a concert in the afternoon/at night and there was a amusment park too. I was right about one thing about Brasil before my mission- that they like to celebrate and big. The phrase ´go big or go home´ yeah, that´s Brasil :)

This week I celebrated 10 monthes of my mission and Sister Lopez and I went to eat açaí again. I took a picture this time. It is dark, so may be hard to tell, but hopefully you can get a better idea of what it is. I ordered açaí with cashews and sweetened condenced milk- yum!! I love açaí and it actually has some good health benefits too. Well, maybe without the sweetened milk, but whatever :)

Everyone here has a hard time saying and remembering my name, so I usually just end up ´sister´, but yesterday the brach president asked me to say the opening prayer for sacarament meeting. I was waiting to see how he said my name, and without hesitation he said ´sister chilson´´. After he sat down he gave me a look like ´was that right?´ I smiled and nodded and he gave the biggest smile in the world like he was so proud that he got it right. Then I just laughed. Good times in Brasil :)

Yesterday we were walking in the street to someone´s house and there was an older woman with popcorn that she has made and she was sitting there with two other people and as we passed by she told us to take some. Yup, we just took a handfull of someone else´s popcorn in the street. She was so persistent though and it smelled really good. That describes two things different about Brasil- first that people live in the street here. Especially after the sun goes down, people are just sitting in the street talking, eating, or whatever. Also, it shows how Brasil people love giving. Especially here in the NE, people always offer food, even if they have almost nothing, they always offer food to us and always tell us to eat until we are full. It doesn´t matter how humble they maybe, but they always give. I love Brasil and it is such a wonderful example of selfless people giving to others before themselves.

Well, I guess that is about all for this week. I know that this Church is true. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that Thomas S. Monson is our prophet today. We have a living prophet who speaks with God and then tells all of us- how amazing is that! We can know exactly what Heavenly Father wants us to know and we will have the opportunity to hear from the prophet, apostles and other leaders in about a month! How blessed we are!

I hope you all have a fabulous week, a wonderful, relaxing labor day and if you are starting school this week- good luck! I love you and miss you!

Com amor,

Sister Chilson