Tuesday, May 26, 2015

HEY HEY HEYYYY ANOTHER WEEK OF MISSIONARY WORKKKK

(NOTE: With the holiday, the editor forgot to update the page so this is a day late..)

What up to my friends and fam and a big, happy OLA from Gaia! So I get in this bad habit of just kind of leisurely enjoying people´s emails and responding with novels and then being like HEY I should probably actually send out an email for the peeps to read when theres about 0 hot seconds left to do that. So this´ll be short.

THINGS HAPPENED  
- everybody dropped us. Practically. Mostly. Basically everyone. Not sure what happened but we´re back to square one since so many different people have decided they really aren´t interested in the gospel of Jesus Christ. It kinda sucks but THE WORK CONTINUES and now we get to find new! In the 4986372 degree weather! So stoked. So very very stoked.  
- But joking aside, missionary work is pretty great. Our dear recent convert Joao has been kinda MIA lately just because of his work schedule, but we finally got to see him again this week and teach him the 2nd lesson again, and I was actually crying and being such a proud mom listening to him answer our questions. We taught him so good! We got to temples and he said "oh that´s where you do baptisms for the dead and get married for time and all eternity" and I very excitedly shouted ISSO FREAKING MESMO JOAO!!!! And I think he was pretty freaked out but what can I say, it´s our convert and I´m pretty happy about it
- We thought we weren´t going to have a SOUL in church yesterday, and then, miracle of miracles, we had 4 PESQUISADORES which is a record for this area! Unfortunately to do so we had to arrange rides for 2 4 billion year old ladies who live 100 years away from the church, and then run about 6 miles back to the church in the heat. Sister Pereira was about 100 feet in front of me with her hair casually tossing in the wind practically filming a Garnier commercial and I was in the back, shedding actual tears and thinking about all the ways I could call President and explain to him that I was going home. Yeahhhh running isn´t really my strength.  
- So Sister Harper and I bought this really hideous matching nightgowns from the Chinese stores and maybe wore them to district meeting?! Where we played True Mormon, our own fabulous version of true American from New Girl?! Maybe we´re too good of friends with our district....  
- If anyone happens to see any promotionals for Sea Life in Porto, we´re in those commercials. Fun fact.

That´s all I got, sorry if these emails are getting pretty lame but thanks for all the love and support from everyone all over the world, you guys are the best and the CHURCH IS TRUE! MUCH LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Sister Parkinson

Monday, May 18, 2015

OLA QUERIDOS AMIGOS E FAMILIARES

WHAT UP FRIENDS AND FAM!! I have nearly no time, since all the computers in the library were taken and we just barely got on, so I´ll keep it quick: WE DID MISSIONARY WORK THIS WEEK! We talked to some people and shared the gospel and taught some lessons and it was great.

Some quick fun things about this week:
 - Elder Bianucci being in charge of the district meeting game this week means a rousing round of "church history soda pong". I´ll send pictures when I get the chance  

- Our always good-looking recent convert Andre blessed the sacrament this week and I LITERALLY started bawling. I honestly don´t know what came over me, just seeing him up there in his suit doing his thing, I was such a proud mom. I was also sitting on the stand so it was really embarrasing and everybody was uncomfortable. Especially Andre.

 - My companion´s boyfriend got his mission call and HE´S GOING TO AFGHANISTANNNNNNNNNNNN. At least, this is what we thought. I swear the mission map was partially in that country.... Anyway, she was weeping while the rest of us are shouting about terrorists and how he´s going to die and it was all pretty exciting. Turns out he is opening a new mission in Eurasia central, but it just BORDERS Afghanistan and includes other scary Stans like Uzbeckistan and Kazakstan, so he has a slightly lower but still prominant chance of dying. My companion still cries about it while I very supportively make terrorist jokes. COMP OF THE YEAR AWARD

 - On Sunday we had church in the morning, stayed after because Andre made us all cake because we "heart-attacked" his door for his birthday and he was just so grateful, went to lunch at the stake presidents house, came back to church for choir and then institute, and then went to a different family´s house for dinner. I call that a great day of missionary work right there. Sister Pereira said something about "not getting anything done" but who knows what she´s talking about am I right     That´s about it! I love you all lots and lots and lots and I miss yall tons. Have a good week and FICA BEM FAM!!

TCHAU TCHAU BACCULHAU TCHAU COM LICENSA TCHAU BEJINHOS

(Editors Note: picture once again stolen from the sister serving in the same area as Carly... so have no idea who these people are!)

Monday, May 11, 2015

FRIENDS AND FAM. ANOTHER WEEK DOWN

WHAT IS UP FAMILIA!! ANOTHER WEEK HAPPENED! And it was about the same as every other week. Missions, am I right?! When I first got here everything was so new and different that I couldnt understand why people would write mega short emails home to the family every week (not naming any names or anything.... But Alecs emails were like a sentence a week) but now I get it. Oh, we taught 30 something lessons this week?! And contacted a billion people and did weird things?! Whats new, right??!

I did get to Skype the fam and it was CRAZY fun. You guys looked good! And it was also good to hear that yall dont think Im fat just yet. Wait a couple weeks fam, we are headed that direction real soon.... But seriously, it was great. We skyped in Xecas house, shes this crazy MA in our ward that is literally hilarious and has us over for dinner all the time and makes the best food in the world. She was really working the english with you guys, I particularly liked when she said "your daughter is going to eat my house!" Yes Xeca. Yes.

Anyways, other than that it was a pretty normal week! We had a lot of member support this week and a TON of member present lessons which really are just a whole lot better than regular lessons. Especially with how much Portuguese people talk, we hardly have to do anything! They just take the whole lessons into their hands... Not but really there was one day, Quinta I think? That we had 4 member lessons in a row, one after another, in the capela. This does NOT happen in Portugal people. We are crazy crazy blessed in Gaia! I am so lucky to be here. The amount of dinners we have, and ward support and all that, it is just unheard of. Its great because people who go to Gaia tend to stay here for 6 months or so and I am SO fine with it.

I never remember to do quotes of the week so heres a good one. During district meeting we were supposed to be taking the "christlike attributes" quiz in PME and figuring out what our average was, so here came a great quote from Elder Bianucci: "YES! Looks like Im just above sometimes doing the right thing!"

Thats literally 0% of all the good times that happen here. Our district is one big family and we are always having crazy pizza parties and eating francezinhas and being friends and its the best. I love em to death!


Seriously, Im very blessed to be here. Sometimes its hard to be away from family and friends and be 49025 miles away from home but in the short time Ive been here Ive already met people, investigators and members and missionaries, that have changed my life. And its FUN! Hard, but crazy fun. Miss you all lots and lot and love yall tons. FICA BEM FAM!!

Monday, May 4, 2015

WEEK SOMETHING AND I ONLY CRIED 25098460 OR SO TIMES

WHAT UP FAMILIA!!!!! First off, I gotta said a huge, massive, incredibly excited PARABENS to the new Mr. and Mrs. Parkinson! Thats right fam, Alec and Jalyn finally sealed the deal and got themselves married. MUITO CONGRATS TO ALL!! I only cried upwards of 14 or 15 times that day too, so I feel pretty good about that. And I cried reading the emails and seeing pictures and Im actually crying right now but we wont worry about that

Anyway, this week was great! A little slow and not much happened, but still great! Gaia is seriously incredible, the members are so great and wonderful and the best. We had... wait for it.... 4 DINNERS WITH MEMBERS THIS WEEK. Im pretty sure this is a Portugal Lisbon Mission record. Hold the applause fam. But actually though, that took up a good majority of the week. Portugese people dont really understand the "one hour of dinner" concept and sometimes we are just a little too lazy to correct them, especially if it means theyre bringing out more food. The food here is just too good.

We did have a zone conference on Quinta and it was glorious because I GOT THE WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENT. THE DAY BEFORE THE WEDDING. I didnt think Id get it for at least another week or two. Small milagres fam! Since then I spend most of my time sitting in front of the fridge staring longingly at the annoucement which has caused more than one sister missionary to question my mental health. Suffice it to say the annoucement is BEAUTIFUL and my brother and his wife are very cute and I miss them.

We also had interviews with Prez this week which I probably couldve enjoyed a lot more if Elder Bianucci hadnt spent a good 15 minutes or so right before showing me his incredible President impersonation. Prez is so great, and very inspired... And also very hilarious to impersonate. He also goes home AFTER THIS TRANSFER? Which is CRAZY and we will all miss him a ton. Im definitely slightly jealous hes headed back to the promise land TEXAS but Im sure hes jealous I get to stay here so Ill just stick it out and wait until I have that feeling too.

Sunday was especially cool, we had Stake Conference and we got to hear talks from President and Sister Fluckiger and Elder Moreira, a member of the 70 here in Portugal. Probably the raddest thing about it was that I didnt have to fight to stay awake because I WAS UNDERSTANDING SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WERE GOING ON. Small successes am I right?! I actually had a moment at one of our favorite MAs house this week, when I was participating in the conversation and then realized that I was participating in the coversation?! And knowing what was going on? It was a very "Best Two Years" moment and I was a lot more proud of it than anyone else would have been. PORTUGUESE FAM. It no longer sounds like chinese and that makes me more than a little happy!

Thats pretty much all I have to share I guess... We had a number of pretty powerful lessons that Im hoping leads to some success! Our RC Joao is still rocking it and the members just ADORE him (great for us, we get to tag along when he gets invited to dinners and stuff), it was Elder Bianuccis birthday so we spent probably too much time eating cake in the kitchen of the church, eating cake at members houses, eating cake at restaurants... Always cake. Portuguese people make good cake.

Anyway, thats about all I have! The days and starting to blur together into one long "we did missionary work" week so I have a feeling my emails will only get more boring from here on out. BOA SORTE FAMMMMMMMM I love all of you lots and lots and think about yall too much. Stop being so cute so I can stop missing yall, ok?! MUCH LOVE FROM PORTUGAL






(Editors note: Pictures stolen from a missionary serving in the same area... see other blogs linked on the side)