Year One, Letter Fifteen

HEY EVERYONE! HAPPY DECEMBER!

ok mom, you forgot to say, "Scott, send us your favorite scripture!" But i am incredibly diligent and enjoy doing that. SO i remembered. It is Jacob 4: 6 - 8. I shared it this week in a message and i loved it. Thus and therefore, it is the favorite scripture of the week.

ok so you all seemed pretty upset that i waited till the last minute of my last letter to tell you about Junior´s baptism - oh, and yes, i got pictures with him - so i won´t wait this time. We baptized Elisangela yesterday right after church. :) it was amazing. i thought at the beginning of the day, that i would just be dragging because i had a headache and i was really sore from my bed, so i wasn´t too stoked about anything. but i love the members of this ward. they are all so amazing. as soon as i started talking to them and laughing and stuff, my whole day got so much better. during sacrament, junior received the holy ghost, and then right after church, elisangela was baptized. it was so amazing. she was so ready and her testimony is so strong. she is only 17 and she is married. her husband has been inactive for 9 years but now we have them going to church. i am glad i write in my journal every night, because the feeling was just incredible. when she came back into the chapel, she was glowing. like literally. elder cabral always messes around and covers his eyes and says, " ay! cara, muito gloriosa!" and normally i am like yeahhhhh so he is a nerd. but she was seriously glowing. i was just like, "Whoaaaa..."

so that was amazing. i got pictures with them too. she came up to me afterwards and tried to give me a hug and i was like NO i can´t! and she was like uhhhh yes you can! and then the relief society president came swooping out of no where and was like WAIT! he is NOT allowed to hug girls! i don´t know why i told you that story. it was really funny to me at the time.

anyway, so dad -

junior´s family is ok with it. they were pretty interested and we are waiting for the ok from junior to teach them. the mom has a problem though. she just had an abortion, and her and junior got in a big fight about it. he was pretty stressed and worried about that but we had a feeling to visit him that day and when we got there and talked with him and comforted him, he was better.

i can´t believe that about tiger. what an idiot. i wonder how that is going to affect his game. ay caracca. and it sounds like the rest of the sports world is pretty bland. but cardinals are winning the division?? crazy!! i hope they keep it up. and the suns need to pick it up. and i hope BYU trashes UoA. and finally...yeah you are going to destroy me. lol how did you do in the tournament with Gary and Tim??

the temple sounds great. did Mark really enjoy it?? was he kinda a little weirded out or what?? i can´t wait to be able to go to a temple again. i think the next time i will is when i am in the mesa temple again.

oh and i finally have an address!!!! it is Av. Mario Filho, 1814, Apt. 6. Morumbi II, Foz do Iguaçu, Parana 85859 - 000

I hope that works...

I will be keeping David in my prayers. i am currently writing a letter to jake. i hope he is doing well. i also wrote to Hyrum. i will be sending that today. how is everyone else doing? any info on Connor and Jackson??

and mom -

i think the camera had something to do with the rain and humidity. it is doing ok now. if it happens again, i will be sending it home. but as for now, it is doing ok.

thank you for all your fasting and prayers. they help so much. the language is picking up. still tough as heck. but picking up. we have another high potential to be baptized. it is jackeline. she was going to come to church yesterday, and if she had she would be marked for baptism next week. but she had...female troubles. she was dying yesterday from a pain that - being male and everything - i cannot give sufficient details. but she wants to come next week and be baptized next week. we will visit her a few more times this week to see how she is doing. she is awesome. we thought she was going to give it up after we taught law of chastity because she sleeps in the same room with her boyfriend...even though she is only 14. so we were like ok whatever this will probably be it. but instead, she tells her dad after the lesson that she needs a new room so that she can´t sleep in the same room with her bf. so, he starts building a new room in their house the next day. so she has her own room now. amazing? i thought so too.

i don´t really understand testimony gloves, but i am sure that i will when they arrive. your temple work sounds amazing. especially about your mom. :) that must be so exciting.

i am super psyched to talk to you guys in a few weeks. that will be awesome. and i am glad you are all enjoying the christmas holidays. haha i know it is always so fun to get everything set up, but it is always so worth it afterwards. you will have to send pictures of our christmas - decorated house.

oh and if i can play golf with president leal, that would be spectacular. i can´t even imagine how bad i would be though...and i will listen to sister leal about the water and such. i don´t want to deal with hospitals and doctors in brazil to be honest..

andddd lauren -

i know i very rarely have time to share my words of wisdom with you personally, and i know you always have such a strong desire to hear them, so here we go. lol.

thank you for your diagnosis of my camera. it doesn´t like wet, humid areas and it doesn´t like hot areas either. perfect. why didn´t i think of this?!

um assistants to the president have a ton of responsibility. they travel all over the mission to the different areas and they have a lot of work for the president, but they don´t usually get to teach a lot of people. and zone leaders travel a lot and do lots of baptismal interviews and go on lots of trades. i mean i wouldn´t complain if i got a calling, because i know that God is the one calling me. but i would prefer to just be a really good missionary lol.

my face is doing good. i have a few little break outs, but i am getting used to it. the food is good. but i have found several bugs in my food. you wouldn´t survive lol. but yeah there are certain things that i will NEVER eat again after the mission. i ate chicken heart and liver for the first time. you would have liked those...lol

i saw a commercial the other day for the movie Just Like Heaven and it reminded me of when we would watch it during my haircuts. lol yeah it made me miss you.

anddddd the news about the salon is great. i mean it can seem annoying to be in the law suit situation, but you are safe. sandy can´t do crap. she is just incredibly annoying. anddd this crap with you and...that girl that used to be a really good friend...is even more annoying. i would have slapped her. hard. but now you have a better job and you are happier :)

lauren, don´t be worried about utah. i know it can be scary to start over again with a bunch of girls and other people that you don´t know, but you are so tough and you have been through so much, but you still have one of the most amazing hearts out of anyone i know. everyone will love you if you just be you. and you have mom just a phone call away :) and you get to call her like....a lot. i only get to call twice a year lol.

i love you all so much. thank you for everything. i love being able to hear the updates every week. oh and i am super psyched for those packages to get here. i can´t wait to read dad´s christmas letter either.

love you all.

till next week

elder scott ghormley

oh and our christmas conference will be december 21st. that will be cool. i will see elder yuma again. lol and we will be able to speak...some more portuguese than the last time we saw each other.

love you all! peace.

Year One, Letter Fourteen

hey everyone!

sorry it is a lot later than normal. today has been busy as crap. e. cabral and i had to wake up at 5:30, be on the bus to the station by 6:15, pick up the assistants at 8, be back on a bus to the terminal at 8, meet president at the parque dos aves (bird park - basically, zoo) by 9, and then we went through the park and went to lunch with president. and it rained the whole time. but now that is all done and we have some valuable email time. :)

Favorite Scripture: Alma 7: 23 - 24 good scripture.

anyway. so here is the news -

first of all, we will no longer be going to the Falls. President withdrew that promise. now, he said that we will go IF every single companionship (65 duplas) baptizes in the same month. so, yeah that sucks.

next, my camera decided to stop working today. i was taking a picture at the bird park, and the screen started flickering and then just went dead. so that is great. it hasn´t gone back to normal. i might have to send it home so that you guys can use the warranty for it. and possibly send it back? i would send it back with the memory card so that you can see all the pictures i have since that cd i sent home. i will wait for the ok on that one though.

um if thanksgiving was quiet for you guys, i don´t know how i would describe mine. i mean the food here doesn´t quite compare to mom´s cooking. so i suppose i had the worst thanksgiving dinner thus far in my life lol. i am sorry that i wasn´t able to provide the comedic relief necessary during rook. i know how tense that game can get without the occasional ron white rendition (sp?). blindside does sound like a good movie, though. i will be thrilled to watch it...in two years when it isn´t popular anymore. lol.

for thanksgiving, i made a list in my journal of everything i am thankful for. like, everything. big and small. and during that time i had a kind of personal revelation to remember certain things because i had an impression that i would need to remember them in the upcoming months and also that i would be talking about them in my homecoming talk?? yeah, talk about weird. i wasn´t even thinking about my homecoming talk but i have already started writing a little bit about it based on the feelings i was getting. kinda cool. i guess i better follow that. but i really missed you all during thanksgiving. i was just remembering all of our family times and all the fun stuff we all did and i was getting a little down. buttttt it´s all good. i know that i am doing what the lord would have me do and that - even though it is hard to be away from all you guys - this is the right choice. every day i can always push forward because i know that this is the work that i am supposed to be a part of.

looks like the sports world is falling apart. are cardinals even in the hunt this year? are the suns still running? i hope byu keeps it up. but more importantly, dad i am sorry, but i will be totally ready to beat you when i return home. :) president leal told me that he wants to play golf with me some time and that he would send me to a really good area if i let him win lol. but that he had other plans for me if i won. lol

i had an interview with president leal on sunday morning. he told me that my language is progressing very quickly compared to the other newer missionaries so that was great. and he told me that based on the interview and what he has been told about me, he thought that i was going to an excellent missionary. cross your fingers, right? lol but do me a favor...pray that i don´t get called to be an assistant to the pres or a secretary or a zone leader or anything like that. haha

ummm i still have not received the address. but we are probably going to be moving to an apartment in centro. very soon. once the mission gets all the necessary supplies. that way i won´t be spending 40 reais per week on bus fees.

food is decent. lots of rice and beans. and chicken and beef. and spaghetti is big here. and then they love giving us guarnana. and we drink that because they don´t have mineral water. only water from the tap. and sister leal told me that if i keep drinking water from members houses that isn´t mineral water, she is going to call my mother. but i think she was kidding...maybe. occasionally, a member will just give us a little bit of money to go eat at some cheap buffet place for like 7 reais.

i do remember new york. and yes a lot of centro smells like that. a lot of areas smell worse, but some areas just smell normal. the area we work has some areas we avoid because they are nasty. going into the favelas and hostels is the worst. it is way dangerous and it smells awful lol.

my shoes are doing ok. yeah i think i will probably walk at least 7000 to 8000 miles on the mish. no joke. we walk between 10 and 15 miles on average. and then on days when we are super busy, it is a nightmare. sometimes my legs just go numb after a while. it is funny though because at night i get those muscle spasms all the time. but i conditioned and cleaned my shoes, so i am good for now.

so things are going pretty good with our investigators. we have a few that are progressing really well and want to be baptized either this upcoming sunday or the next one. so that is pretty cool. jackeline and anglea both want to be baptized this next sunday.

junior is doing pretty well. he went from smoking 20 cigarettes a day to zero and he no longer drinks coffee. he committed to living all the commandments and has heard all the lessons. he prayed about the book of mormon and woke up in the middle of the night and heard something tell him it was true.

oh and he is also another reason that i would like to send some pictures home. you see, he was baptized last night. and i baptized him. :) sorry, i almost forgot to mention that :P

anywho. yes we will be having a christmas conference, but i think i will be getting packages before that. the rest of this week was pretty good. lots of lessons and progressing investigators. maybe we will have some more baptisms this sunday. i hope so.

the news about all the temple work you guys are doing is great. that is so awesome that you are getting that all done.

i love you all so much. i am so thankful for all of you and all you do for me and the support you guys give me. thank you all for your examples. i can´t wait to talk to you guys in a few weeks. it will be great.

well i gotta run.

until next week!

love

e. scott ghormley

Year One, Letter Thirteen

hey everyone!!

favorite scripture: D&C 122. the whole section. i just read it as i was reading Our Legacy (or is it Our History?) and it was pretty powerful.

So Morumbi isn´t like that at all. It is quite busy. It is about 15 minutes from the Falls. It is next to the Ponte de Amizade. It is the bridge between Paraguay and Brazil and also Brazil and Argentina. I am very close to that area. And the tres marcos - the area where the river divides brazil, argentina, and paraguay. if you look at that area, you might be able to find it. just try looking up the city foz do iguaçu and you might be able to find it. but i am a LONG way from são paulo.

so thanksgiving isn´t celebrated in brazil, obviously. which means i have been seeing christmas since about two weeks ago. lol morgan, remember when you said it seems like christmas starts earlier and earlier in the states? imagine what it is like here! haha but it is more of a shock to have the hot christmas. i mean you see all the same pictures with santa in his big coat and all of the people in winter clothes, but then you realize that every other advertisement is someone drinking a freezing coca cola on a hot brazilian day - oh by the way, i am not allowed to drink coke. mission rule. lol. or chimarrão. blake - do you remember chimarrão? that weird green herb drink? yeah, i can´t drink that. anyway. we are probably going to be singing christmas hymns on the streets. which will be great. nothing like caroling in 125 degrees. lol

dad - i do remember those stories. it is so much different now, huh? i mean the entire mission has changed from the discussions to the rules and the areas and everything. it is amazing how much the church has spread in such a short time. we have a "history of the church in brazil" poster in our house and that is pretty cool. it shows all of the changes that have happened over the last century or so. it is crazy.

the suns are still surprising me, i hope mountain view finally wins another championship, YES for USC losing, and i never expected anything from ASU. lol

oh and when it rains, it does cool down considerably. i almost prefer the rain. my shirt is less wet at night on days when it rains then when i walk around in the heat all day. lol i guess brazil makes you sweat a lot. who knew?

morgan - your chairs and tables sound wonderful. i will sit in one of them in a while and tell you how great they are personally ok??

lauren - that guy sounds like a FREAK! you should have kicked him deliberately in the nuts before running away. that guy is a weirdo. are you still excited for utah? that will be fun. don´t be scared. starting over is tough, but you are always up for it. just be strong and have faith. everyone will love you. that is just how it is. :) oh and twilight...the second...sounds just as awful as the first :P

blake - i am writing you a letter in portuguese. just give it some time and i will have it sent to you. lol maybe a lot of time?

um personal well being updates?? my rash is still...a rash. it is getting better. i have been using cream for jock itch. i don´t even know if this is called jock itch. but it seemed like that general area. so i went with it. and that has been doing alright. ummmm so yesterday i was having an awful day. church was good. we had Junior come - i think he is really progressing. we taught him plan of salvation and word of wisdom. word of wisdom will be our biggest speed bump because he smokes, drinks, and all signs point to uses drugs. but he said he doesn´t so i will take his word for it. even though no one else believes him. i am hoping for a story like yours mom. kinda the "stop right now!" type of story. but i dunno if i will be that lucky. anyway. so church and lunch were fine. and then it started coming down in sheets outside. you could barely see across the street. so we left and i was feeling pretty sick and had a really bad headache. i tried to work and made it till about 7 or so and just couldn´t do it anymore. so we got home, but we don´t have a key to our "temporary house" so i had to wait outside. i took my temp and it was at 102. i had a pounding headache and the fever wasn´t that great either. i took some advil and prayed and prayed and then prayed again. and i woke up this morning with a temperature of 97. and no headache. how awesome is that? yeah, i thought so too.

hmm so the language is coming along. still tough. but i figured it kinda has to be. the temple must have been so amazing for you all. mom, did you cry? i bet you did huh? haha i am kidding. it must have been so amazing. did lauren and blake both love it too? that is so great that you all got to do that together.

i love you all!! I hope you have a great thanksgiving!

blake - eat my share of food, please. let me know just how excellent mom´s rolls are. and definitely use a word other than chique. because we both know that word is stupid.

love you all! happy thanksgiving and have a great week!

Elder Scott Ghormley

Scott Arrives at the Brazil Londrina Mission Home

Londrina, October 30^th 2009

Dear Family of Elder Ghormley,

We are writing to inform you that on October 30^th 2009, Elder Ghormley arrived very well in the Brazil Londrina Mission field. We were very happy to meet him and to know that from now on he is part of this great and wonderful army of the Savior. After a long wait and much preparation, he along with many other missionaries arrived at the mission home safely and very excited. They had lunch, and after a great testimony meeting he learned who would be his companion

The Brazil Londrina Mission is a blessed land where many people are hearing and accepting the gospel of Jesus Christ in such a joyous way. It is an honor for us to be able to receive your son in this area, and we know that this is possible only because you have so lovingly taught, guided and cared for him until he could arrive here. We want you to know that we will strive to fulfill all his needs, and will take care of him as if he were our own son. Thank you for trusting us with your son for this short yet fundamental period of time in his life!

We are at your disposal to help in any way during this time.

With gratefulness and love,

President and Sister Leal

Year One, Letter Twelve

HI!

So hello everyone. It doesn´t seem like it was too long ago that I was sending an email to you guys but this week went pretty quick. A few of the days drag, but the week went pretty quick.

So favorite scripture: D&C 121: 7 - 8. Patience, patience, patience. Yes, I need it. My journal tells me that every time I write at night. But everyone in my family - meaning...all of you guys - knows that if there is one thing I lack, it is patience. Goodness. Why does that have to be such a necessary attribute??

Dad: I am sorry but no one will give me or no one has my permanent address at the moment. I am living above this pharmacy in a city called Morumbi. We aren´t too far from the Falls. I have been informed that we will be going December 7th to the Falls. How sick is that?? But I am sorry that I don´t have a permanent address. When I get transferred, or finally move into the house that Elder Cabral and I are supposed to be in, I will know. But as of now, I am stuck in the same house. 6 elders in one room (because it is the only room with AC). It smells great. Believe me...

Mom: I will definitely get a picture with the falls in the background when we go. I have only seen pictures of them, but they are spectacular. they are going to be added to the wonders of the world when they get updated in 2013 i think.

Dad: I am glad that your hand is all better!! No surgery?? I would say an incredibly, incredibly painful shot directly into your thumb is a lot better than that...I think? But you better keep practicing...because two years without touching a golf club is just going to improve my game...Oh and I would suggest not using the gofl carts as bumper carts. I got in trouble for that when i worked at superstition :)

I am glad the Book of Mormon reading is going so well. Read it in Portuguese and English :) that is what I am doing. I am in Alma in English. And First Nephi in Portuguese. Lol. I never thought I would want more time just to read the Book of Mormon.

The suns are killing it huh?? That is surprising. Go figure all we needed to do was keep Marion. GREAT!! lol. but that is awesome to hear. I hope they keep doing well. That SUCKS that the yankees won the world series. who did they beat?

I decided that my email last week kinda sounded pathetic. I was complaining and I shouldn´t be. I mean yes, it is hotter and more humid than any other place in Southern Brazil (yes, that IS a fact), but I am a missionary. I am serving the Lord in a country 10,000 miles from home. I mean how awesome of a calling is that? I have found that I am almost becoming a little more accustomed to the weather. My feet don´t like it. Sweaty socks means blisters. Blisters the size of my thumb. 3 of them, if you were wondering. I haven´t had anything really bad growing like fungi or mold, but i will use that cream if i see anything fishy. But anyway. I know that this is the greatest work that I could ever be a part of. I love that I can help these people, I just want to be able to help them MORE than I am able to. Once I learn this language, I think I will be able to help SO many more people. But even when I do, it is still so hard to see these people who seem so interested fall through. Now i know why they told us that we will have the most joy and the most sorrow that we have ever felt in our lives on our missions. But when we have success, it is so cool. Right now, we have 5 people - Lucas, Tais, Charles, Jackeline, and Junior - all preparing for baptism either the 22nd or the 29th. We are praying that they will keep following through on their commitments and everything.

So elder cabral is a great missionary. he has his weird things and annoying things, but i am sure he gets annoyed at me constantly asking him to repeat stuff or if i get frustrated at some concept of the language. so we get along well. we are actually pretty good friends. i hope i get to stay with him for more than just this transfer, but this is his third transfer here, so he will probably be leaving after this one. But he is helping me learn the language and helping me get into the customs and culture. it wasn´t really that big of a culture shock for some reason. most of the people are incredibly nice, so it is easy to get along with them.

i am glad you reminded me of your story, mom. because that is something i will need to keep in mind. the lord prepares the people who are going to accept you, you just have to follow the spirit to them. our investigators right now are really great from what i can see and i think they would be willing to make changes, especially since a lot of them are my age or younger, so they haven´t really got into anything too bad yet. i hope we can help them to stay that way.

Lauren: that is so cool that you are going to be doing the baptisms for all of those names. remember to write in your journal about the feelings you have. the spirit can teach you when you remember the feelings when it is most strong. the other day we weren´t having any success at all, so elder cabral and i both said a prayer and then as i was walking down the street i started singing "the spirit of god" and the spirit was so strong. i felt such a change in everything. we ended up finding and teaching Lucas and Tais, who are now preparing for baptism. it is amazing what the spirit can do.

oh ok christmas package. this is spectacular. um these are kinda the necessities and wants and necessities.

"EXTRA" Gum. Lots of it. POLAR ICE please. :) Altoids? STICK DEODORANT!! AXE is the best here. Anything that is gel is bad. but the white stick deodorant is a necessity and they don´t sell it here. Uni-Ball black pens! I need good black pens and they are expensive here. Gold Bond Powder?? Candy? Eh, eh? like butterfingers and milky ways and stuff. Oreos?? Skittles? OH! M&Ms!! Peanut butter kind. or plain. or both. lol. A hacky sack? a racquet ball? a stress ball that you squeeze in your hands? Gatorade powder packs? Um a cool tie?

How is TJ doing? I don´t really have time to email anyone else other than the family. How are Jackson and Connor doing?? What about Hyrum?? Is he getting way excited?? Tell him Hi for me please and tell him that I am psyched for him to get out into the field and getting into this work!!

I am sorry but i just got a notice that my time is almost up!! I am sorry if i didn´t get to respond to everyone´s questions!! i love you all and you are all always in my thoughts!!

I love you!

Elder Scott Ghormley

Year One, Letter Eleven

That is about all i can say to this last week. Wow.

Hey everyone!

Quick Updates:

Favorite Scripture: 2 Nephi 32: 3,5

Health: I may or may not have heat rash. Or humidity rash. Or detergent rash...? Or new soap rash? Or maybe food allergies? Surprise, surprise here in Brazil, nobody knows!! So as of now I have a huge rash across my entire chest and stomach. How awesome is that, right?

Weather: Probably the reason I have a rash. It has rained for the last 3 days. And by rain, I don´t mean a light drizzle. I mean we got pounded for 11 to 12 hours a day for 3 days straight and then it just was normal rain for the other hours of those days. Who said not to bring an umbrella? So the weather is...Brazil. It was 43 to 45 degrees Celsius the days that it didn´t rain. Meaning it was around 110 to 114 degrees Farenheit. With humidity. LOTS of humidity. I will explain why when i get to the "area" portion. During December and January it is supposed to get to around 48 to 51 degrees Celsius. Meaning 118 to 123 Farenheit. WITH humidity. I am going to die. Hey mom, remember that day I was born?? Yeah, me neither. But anyway, I will die at the same temperature that i was born in. Only this time, there will be humidity. :) I am pretty sure I have never sweated or walked this much in my life. Gotta love it.

Trainer: Ok so my trainer is Elder Cabral. Surprise, he is Brazilian. He is from Santa Catarina (sp?). He speaks faster than most high school cheerleaders. The problem is...it is Portuguese. Thus and therefore, I cannot understand. I have to tell him probably 8 or 9 times per day to slow down. No joke. I have to have him repeat things about 3 times before I can finally understand. I believe that my brain is in a stage of confusion. It is registering Portuguese but not at the right speed. So i hear an entire sentence as one sound. Sometimes two. Oh and people from Santa Catarina don´t pronounce the entire word. Even people here can´t understand him sometimes. He says "est..." instead of "estAR" or "começ..." instead of "começAR". So it is way hard. One of his sentences sounds like one or two words. It is very frustrating. I have prayed for patience and understanding all the time. And that maybe if God wants, He can just make me fluent overnight. But I said that I would leave that one up to Him. But we get along ok. He has a strange sense of humor. But that is just how Brazilians are. He is friendly and we both try to understand each other. So for the most part, I just need to learn to speak portuguese at the speed of light and we can be good friends. No big, right?

Area: So this is the moment you have all been waiting for. My area. Ok so when they changed the boundaries to the Londrina mission, they cut about 55 percent of it out. They added a part of the Curitiba (sp?) mission, though. That part that they added included Iguaçu Falls. AKA the second largest set of waterfalls in the entire world. Guess what my area is? Hey you are right! Foz do Iguaçu. The Catarattas. Iguaçu Falls, Foz Centro. That is my zone/area combo. It is soooooo humid. And so hot. the area I am in is ridiculous. We have this street that is like the hardcore rich people street. i see incredibly nice cars in this one area and tons of nice stores and all kinds of stuff ( oh and as a side note - they have lingerie stores everywhere in the rich area. why is this important? it isn´t. it is just incredibly awkward, because they have actual models. like, live models. wearing the lingerie. in windows. talk about strange.) Anyway. SO yeah it is very rich. but then we walk about 2 miles or so to our area where we teach and there are so many poor people and we teach in the favelas and stuff and that is pretty tough.

It is hard because the people that we are teaching just don´t have potential. I mean you have as much faith as you can but the bottom line is that they don´t have the desire. I mean if they let you teach the first lesson, and then they pray and go to church and receive an answer, then you have lesson 2 and 3. meaning you have to commit them to baptism and the gospel. which most people have a ton of trouble with. then you get to lesson 4. law of chastity and word of wisdom and keeping sabbath day holy are dang near impossible. people don´t want to get married, they don´t want to stop drinking and smoking, and they don´t want to walk all the way to church. it is soooo hard and has been a big struggle for me. but i am praying. and i will keep praying.

when i can get this language out of the way and actually get to my permanent address (yeah, i am the only elder from my district without a permanent address yet because the house i was supposed to go to was given to the sisters so now i am in a house with 4 other elders and my comp) i think i will be able to deal with a lot more.

i know this is a struggle. missions aren´t supposed to be easy. but i know i am supposed to be here. i just have a lot that i still need to know. it has been hard, but i know that with the help of the Lord, i will be able to adapt.

anyway. sorry that i couldn´t respond to everyone. i only have an hour and i had a lot to catch everyone up on.

i love you all! thank you all for the emails this week. they were all awesome.

i should be emailing every p-day from 11 to 12 our time so like 6 to 7 your time?? pretty sure.

love you all!

E. Scott Ghormley

Year One, Letter Ten

Hello everyone!!!

NOTICE: My P-day is now MONDAY. That´s right. I will now be emailing on Mondays because...that´s just how it is.

Scripture: 2 Nephi 31: 18 - 20 (20 is most important)

It is most important because that is what my mission will take...lots and lots of perseverance. This language is ridiculous. I can barely understand a thing. I got really frustrated because it is so tough. Especially in the morning. I have trouble functioning normally in the morning, but now you have to toss in the fact that I have two guys speaking more Portuguese than I can register. Which leads me into the week...

Brazil just got crazier. We finally left the CTM. FINALLY...? Once we were out in the real world, i realized how much i loved the CTM. lots of food, lots of people who speak English, lots of time to do what we need, bathrooms, closets, beds, lol etc. butttt not anymore. We left at 3:45 in the morning and flew to Londrina. We met the mission President. President Leal is pretty cool. He seems to know what he is doing, anyway. So, we had lunch, interviewed with him, then we were told to pack up enough clothes for 3 days and were put in a bus. We had to leave all of our other things in the church by his apartment. I was not happy about that at all. We were dropped off in little groups. My friend from the district in the CTM, Elder Burt, and I were dropped off (literally, like tossed out of a van) onto a sidewalk and we waited for our new companions. They are both Brazilian. One is named Elder Costa and the other is Elder Filadélfia. It was ridiculous. They know very little English. We are in a place called Cambé and we were taken to the apartment for about 10 minutes and then we took off. We taught one lesson with all 4 of us about the plan of salvation and how we can be with our families forever and then we were split. I went with Elder Filadélfia and we taught for about 5 hours or so and then went home. it is nuts how tired i am at the end of the day. we teach and walk around and then teach some more. we walk like 10 or 15 miles per day. it is so crazy. but we are only going to be here (probably) for these 3 days. today around 5 we are going BACK to Londrina so that we can meet our real trainers and go to our real areas. I just don´t understand this nonsense. but hopefully everything will start going smoother and we can get going. so far, though, it has been a bit of a roller coaster. at least these guys are cool and they try to help.

we had a water balloon fight this morning. that was the beginning to our p-day lol. after personal and comp study we had a water balloon fight, got some ice cream, and went to the bank. very interesting, neh?

anyway. so normally i can answer all of your questions, but now i don´t have any to answer. i know i am here for a reason and that if i put my trust and faith in God that he will help me. i have been doing the best i can to do that. because i know that i will need help.

um the people are really cool. they are nice most of the time. they feed us a lot. on fast sunday, for lunch, we went to this lady´s house and she gave us - take a guess - rice and beans, spaghetti, guarana, salad, and carne. i think that was it. but it was delicious. i wonder how much time it will be before i can´t eat anymore rice and beans lol. but fast sunday was cool. i bore my testimony for the first time in a portuguese ward. and it was actually in portuguese. but that was awesome.

what elseeeeee.

blake - thanks a lot for your email last week. at least i think it was last week. it has been an incredibly long week. but thank you. i would try and respond in portuguese but there is no way i could do that in the time we are given. but it was exactly what i needed to hear. i read it this morning again and it helped because i was a little overwhelmed.

well i have run out of time. i love you all and i miss you all! hopefully i will have time to write next week instead of just reading 2 weeks worth of updates!

love you!

E. Scott Ghormley