Indian Music and a Hair Salon

Hello dearest family! Thank you for all of the updates and the prayers, and everything. I am doing really well and things are going well here in Olivais. The transfer is really starting to fly by and I can't believe it.

I thought I would start off by telling you about where it is that I am emailing from. I am at a metro station, still inside the station, in a teeny, tiny little internet cafe. Actually, it is half an internet cafe and half a hair salon. There are hair ads all over the little cafe. And to make it better, the people who own the shop are from India, so they play this crazy Indian music in the background. The people who own it always speak in broken English to us. It's really funny. Quite a contrast to the quiet, cute little library where I emailed from in Seixal.

It's been a good week here in Olivais. Lucy is doing really well. I am amazed with her. She is really trying to "put off the natural man" and change her life to live the gospel better. She is doing so well. She is speaking to her children in English and they are understanding her. I think they will soon start responding in English as well. Lucy has a great heart and she loves having us over, which is very refreshing.

Tania is doing well as well, she is a recent convert from Angola. She is so great and, when gross guys are hitting on her at the gym, she tells them that she has her law of chastity. She's so great and is really trying to live the gospel as well.

We found a few new people last week through less-actives. I already mentioned Ana Paula and we haven't been able to teach her again as she has been busy, but we found Felizmina, who is from Moçambique and has already been meeting witht he missionaries in Moçambique for over a year. She knows a lot about the gospel already, but we are trying to get her to church.

Pedro is doing well too, but he didn't go to church. Going to church and reading and praying are SOOO crucial and so basic and so important.

Sunday was an interesting day. We did more contacts in English than in Portuguese. We've started carrying around pamphlets in English so we can hand them out. The best contact was with a German couple who happened to be missionaries for the Jehovah's Witnesses here to teach the Chinese about their religion. We met them in the metro station and we started up a conversation with the man. His wife came over and she was super interested in learning about the Church. She asked some great questions and was so curious. I was able to testify about prophets and modern revelation as well as the Book of Mormon. They were very respectful and nice and had a sincere interest in learning. I hope that we were able to plant some seeds for them.

My apartment is the hub for all of the irmãs who need to come up to Lisbon. In the past week we've had six irmãs here. Wow. It's been fun to get to know some of the irmãs who are serving in areas I've not been.

Last week we had an appointment set up with Teresa, a new investigator and we brought Maria Encarnação, who is a recent convert of the APs in the other ward, with us to teach. She drove us over (whichw as really nice) but then we got really really lost. It ended up being exactly what needed to happen ebcause she really needed to talk to us and have us listen and give her support. God is very much in charge of this work and we helped her come unto Christ through Him guiding us, as He is always doing.

Sunday we also saw a group of old men playing bocci ball. It was soooo cute! I never thought I would actually see people playing bocci ball, which is like curling on grass or concrete. I love the culture here. I forget how different it is to the States, but it feels like second nature to me. We got to see a film that the Church just put out called Finding Happiness yesterday in Portuguese. I think they filmed it according to the regions of the world because all of the filming was done in Europe and the accent of the man was in Portuguese from Portugal. I didn't even realize that it was Europe until halfway through I realized that it wasn't the States, then I started realizing all fothe differences. I love being here in Portugal in this culture. The people here are so wonderful.

I hope that you are all doing so well. I love you so much and think of you often (but not too often, don't worry). Have a great week and continue strong in the gospel! It makes all the difference in the world.