More than 9 months in....

Here are some more pictures from Elder Kennedy:

Life in Jenipapo

What’s up family that I love so much! This week was chill. We have 2 investigators with some serious potential just needing a little miracle. They are a bit lazy and don’t read anything we ask them too. Their names are Coroline and Vítoria aka the snakes. I think I mentioned them last week. This week I am going to work until I pass out, and that doesn’t take much because these hills and stairways are killing me, but I love it. My companion is really cool he has a big heart and I am teaching him English. He says he wants to be rich so he has to learn English. He speaks really well.

Brasil is super dirty but I love it. It rained all night Saturday and all day Sunday. Chuva chata! Wow where is this month going? Jenipapo is cool and I love the members but we don’t get invited to many meals at member’s homes. They always give money because I guess the members are really busy and working all the time. So we cook a lot at our house. It’s cool I guess. I’m practicing my skills. I’m cooking macaxeira, which is like a potato but better. Way better. It looks like a root. I’m cooking rice and beans and pasta with calabresa. Fattening food! This week we are going to buckle down and contact all our investigators and get our teaching group structured and probably drop all the flaky people that aren’t interested/quer nada com nada.

Joe and Renee! Jealous you guys are traveling Cali like a touring rock band or something. Joe that’s way sick you love your job with Ben. He is super smart and awesome to talk to. I didn’t realize before the mission how timid I was because here in Brasil I’m pretty timid. Well I started the mission being all shy and stuff, but now its só vai/ just do it, and I’ll talk to anyone. One time we knocked on a door and it was a bar kind of and we talked to the owner and he was like all drunk but super friendly. And we were like “hi we are here to talk about the gospel” and he said “thanks bro but no thanks, I got my beer and I’m doing fine.” Then I replied “There is something way better than alcohol” and he said “dude I drink everyday! What is better than drinking?” And I was like “Jesus Cristo” and he laughed but in the funniest laugh ever and said “Yeah, you are totally right, and Jesus helps me drink. Who do you think protects me when I’m drinking? I love Jesus.”

Man this guy was wild but sadly he didn’t get the point of our message, but he was the happiest and most honest drunk I’ve contacted. I’ll give him that. It’s hard working in the hills because everyone can see us coming and we will be walking to a house and see people sitting in front and they make a run for it in their home and close the door.

This week was difficult but I wouldn’t want it any other way. I miss you guys! I hope you are all doing well. Keep living the gospel because it is so true! I know Jesus is the Christ and that he died to save all mankind not just for a few of us. He lives and loves us more than we could possibly imagine in this mortal life, that’s for sure. Thank you for being such great examples of disciples of our Saviour. Paz e amor deus abençoei 

Praying for a baptism

(This was last week's letter)

Hey!

Dang my area has a lot of stairs. I’m getting my calves worked. That’s legit you’re all in the Olivenhain ward and that they are very friendly. You guys can leave me in the LC ward or transfer me to the Olive ward, I don’t care. That’s way tight about Creed and Reagan Orme. They are going to love their missions! This week was pretty awesome! We are hopefully going to baptize this Sunday. I’m praying for a miracle, please pray with me. Caroline and Víctoria are super close to being baptized they just have a few concerns. We found them knocking doors and they let us in. Their parents are way chill and have potential too. Their step-dad speaks English so he practices with me. I’m loving the new area!

I miss everyone so much but I am having the best experiences of my life here. The ward here is super tiny (like 40 people). They are pretty excited about me and Elder Delabrida. We are going to work well with the members and help the weekly attendance grow. My face got sunburned this week. I look like a camarão (shrimp) I’m so pink. hahahaa eu amo muito de vocés, eu sinto sua falta. Tou gostando a minha missão. Ele tá passando muito rápido. eu não acredito que eu quase tenho 9 méses na missão. incrível. Boa semana para vocés. tchau abraço

Elder Kennedy

P.S. Blake looks super tight! He’s going to be huge when I get back. Chloe and Jason already are ginormous!!!

Pictures..last ones of Ponte

These pictures were sent 2 weeks ago along with this note:

Renee, Joe and Mom. Have fun in Nor Cal! love you guys! I love my new area in Jenipapo. It's just way different not being in Ponte, but i'm getting used to it, love you guys! Hug and kiss our nieces and nephews for me. 

tchau abraço

Elder Kenndy

p.s. hope you got the photos

Transferred!

Sorry everyone for not writing last week. I am doing great sorry if I made you concerned, but last week one of my investigators was murdered, so p-day I was at her funeral. Her name was (out of courtesy we have decided to not put her name in the blog) and she was murdered by her drunk ex-boyfriend. She was pretty young and she read the Book of Mormon everyday. She was even reading it before she died. That one family I baptized was really good friends with her and they found her book of Mormon open and covered in blood and after they showed us. There has been a lot of killing in Ponte lately, well all of Pernambuco. Wednesday i was leaving my area for the zone meeting and we passed by a man lying dead in the street, he got knifed in the neck by a crazy druggy. Its been a really depressing week but it has allowed me to think about the spirit world and stuff. Anyway I baptized a young girl Mercia on Sunday and she is 4 months pregnant, so that was really neat. She is going to kill it in the relief society! She is super smart and spiritual. 

Anyhow, I was transferred and I’m now officially in Recife,..kind of.. my new area is called Jenipapo, I think. It’s really big and has tons of hills. It doesn’t feel real. 6 and half months is a long time to be in one area, but I loved it. Looking back, if I could, I would have no problem staying there for my entire mission. I had a lot of baptisms there. I baptized more than any other Elder in the history of the area. kkkk a humilde da cara (hah humble guy). 20 baptisms. I know numbers aren’t important but our President definitely wants us to have high goals. My new comp is district leader. Haha I always have District Leader’s as companions. He is chill though. He is a native. I’m stoked to be transferred and move on but man I loved my time in Ponte and love the members there. A lot of people really changed my life, and I will definitely come back to visit again after the mission. That’s so sick Dana had her baby. Blake looks like a stud thanks for the pics. Time is flying by but I’m trying to keep on working hard and making the most out of my mission here in Brasil. I love it so much and I know this gospel is true. 

Love you all!

Elder Kennedy

That’s way sick Joe is going work for Bro. Chapman, I bet Joe is gonna reel in the big money here soon.

I will send fotos next week for sure.

My own version of 4th of July

You are all awesome! Renee and Joe- keep rockin the member missionary stuff. Oh also, I got the package about 2 weeks ago, sorry I forgot to tell you. It’s awesome! Thanks so much!

Brazil won the confederations cup of soccer! So yesterday was insane! Brazil stopped. Like literally everyone was watching the game, and when Brazil scored (3 times) everyone yelled and screamed in the street! Then they launched fire works all day, so I am getting my own 4th of July celebration/ brazilan style.

I heard about the Supreme Court ruling on Gay Marriage. That’s crazy. I think the laws are similar down here in Brazil. Brazilians love Americans for the most part. Well definitely American culture. Wvery girl here wants to be an American. I’ve been proposed to by two women. Both were about 30-40 years old. Mother’s will introduce their daughters to me and say “Oh my daughter loves America and she wants to go there”..like im going to take here home with me or something NOPE sorry. It’s such a different culture down here! But I am really respectful, because everyone asks what it’s like in the USA compared to here and I always say its really different but that I love it here in Brasil. Everyday it’s a party here, brazilian culture is super relaxed and chill/ living in the moment.

For P-day, we’re just chillin, going to get my volleyball and ping-pong on! We baptized again! I know you guys are probably getting sick of hearing about all these baptisms hahaha we baptized a João Vitor (13 year old boy) and his uncle Luis and Luciana a woman/ mom of a member and she finally separated from her horrible husband/ that didn’t want anything to do with the church and he was really harmful to their family. But anyway our mission reached our goal of 200 baptisms in one month!!! We had 215. I think Elder Quinteros and I baptized more than any other companionship this month, not trying to brag, but the president is really happy with us haha its always nice to be on the good side of the President. Our zone is super awesome, and Tuesday/ zone meeting President Lanius is coming and bringing breakfast! So stoked!!!!!

This week has been really hard but the lord is blessing us like crazy. Miracles are occurring that i never thought possible! It’s amazing what the lord will do when we ask and put in a little work!

love,

E. Kennedy