I´ve realized this week that I need to be a little more out going and excited with the investigators, and it´s really been working.

Date: February 23, 2011

Area: Itaporanga,Sergipe

Companion: Elder Smythe

From: San Fransisco, California

Hey Fam!


This week has been pretty good so far, not really anything new is going on... the work is going okay, Lú didn´t go to church this week so her baptism is pushed to a week from Saturday.
To get baptized they have to go to church at least two times. We found a lot of new people last week, but none of them went to church, that catholic family fell through, we went to their house and the wife was home alone so we said we´d come back, as we were walking away we saw the husband riding towards us on his motorcycle... once he saw us, he turned around and zoomed away. so we waited and a few minutes later he came around the block the other way. so basically he ran from us. lol they were actually married civilly which is rare. but besides them, we currently have 5 baptisms marked. we found 2 sisters and one of their friends and marked their baptisms. I dunno how firm they are but pray for them alright? Joelma is 35, Dione is 19, and Jacki  is 25ish. Also Jose 68, he´s really cool, he should get married/ baptized soon.  and Lú 23 (she´s so snakey). I dunno I feel like its easier to mark baptisms than to get people to church, they always have an excuse!
That´s cool that Cody´s a missionary and is in the MTC!
 and McKay emailed me really quick he´s got a week in the field! I hope he loves it!!!

On Monday we had zone conference, it was really good and got me really excited to get out and baptize. I´ve realized this week that I need to be a little more out going and excited with the investigators, and it´s really been working. before we were both kinda shy and quiet, but we decided to try and open up alot more towards the people that we meet.

That´s cool Brian went to the REV THEORY concert. I liked those guys!

The only one of my companios that I see is Elder Thomas. he´s my zone leader. the other ones are in Maceió. Elder Thomas goes home soon, in like 2 transfers or something, then I will be 11 mos behind him.

How was baby sitting Sadie and the boys?  Man I was thinkin and she´s gonna be big by the time I get home!

Yeah it sucks that we never get lunch here, the biggest reason that I have no money is because I´ve had this rash for like 5 weeks, and me and Sister Beynon can't figure out how to get rid of it. I kept forgetting to tell you about it, so yeah I´ve spent like 50 bucks on medicines, and we have to take a lot of buses. but that's all reimbursable, my reimbursement was like 130 reals of the 200 that they give us. so the allowance will come through on Monday and the reimbursement will be on next Thursday so I'll be fine next week, but I have had to use personal money a couple of times.

Thanks for the pic of the new president. that's gonna be wierd to have that change.
He looks really young and nice.

Well, I love you guys!
Be safe and read your scriptures everyday!
I know that I´m here in this area to help someone be baptized and that I´m being blessed for the hard times here and that after we are tested we receive great blessings...
for example, who knows, maybe my future wife signed up for a gym membership when I got assigned to Itaporanga lolol ha ha. just kidding!!

Love you all
Bradley

We're Pretty Broke, Losing weight

Date: February 16, 2011

Area: Itaporanga,Sergipe

Companion: Elder Smythe

From: San Fransisco, California

Hey guys,

Well another week came and went in Itaporanga. It was alright. We´ve been working with a girl named Lú and she´s hecka cool and we´re gonna try and baptize her next week. she´s a way excited person we still are just knocking doors all day, everyday. A family is going inactive so that´s one less lunch every week. we only have two times per week. We´re pretty broke and everyone says I look a lot skinnier when they see me, even though I still have a gut. lol but it´s going good.
(They should be eating at a members home one meal a day every day, but the ward is too small)

The old guy that we´re working with needs to get married before we can baptize him he´s cool I really wanna baptize him.

We had transfers and we both stayed here. The pics look cool from the St George trip. that's cool you met a Maceio missionary. I´m sure the elders are babied in the St George mission with good food and stuff. haha

That was  nice of dad to get you a nice valentines gift! congrats on the star Bubba! just get your Eagle asap. Brian, that's funny that you asked out a girl with a girlfriend.... haha I bet that was awkward! I can just picture you. we laughed so hard at that story. you should definitely go to prom dude.

I´ll take a lot of pics this week, I haven´t really been taking a lot lately I need to do better.

We did find one other family, their hecka catholic and their baby died of dengue fever about a year ago, she had 16 months. we taught the plan of salvation and it was really powerful. the mom was crying. I dunno it was a really good lesson, but their gonna be tough to get baptized. We´ll keep passing by this week, they seem like really great people and were excited to work with them.

I dunno this area is pretty tough but I feel like theirs some people that we can work withe here.

well, I love you all be safe.

Love Bradley

We definitely were blessed for our sufferings last week.

Date: February 9, 2011

Area: Itaporanga,Sergipe

Companion: Elder Smythe

From: San Fransisco, California



Elder Smythe and Elder Ludlow



Hey guys!!! How´s everybody doing? I´m doing okay, this week was pretty good, although Elder Smythe and I both got really sick for the first few days of the week, but we´re both feeling a lot better.

We had a miracle at church on Sunday!!! There´s this guy of about 70 years that's been going to church for a long time, but was never baptized because he didn´t want to get married, well he decided to get married and will be baptized (next transfer) we still haven´t been by to mark a date cause he lives in another city but I´m really excited with him. It´ll be really be cool to baptize an older guy.
We also did a division with my father Elder Thomas yesterday and it was way fun and we found some really solid people. We have a few rapazes of like 14 or 15 we could maybe baptize.
(rapazes means boys, I had to look that up, I don't think he meant to write it in Portuguese, how cute)

So yeah, sorry I didn´t email, p day is on Wednesday now. it´s really weird it feels like Monday today but it´s Wednesday já!!! I dunno I feel like I´m in a way better mood than last week. We definitely were blessed for our sufferings last week. lol.

Today for p-day a rich member from a neighboring area took us and 2 other elders  to a way nice restaurant right on the beach it was nice to chill in the salty air and I took some sweet pics, I´ll post them.

That´s sad that your friend Troy died mom and dad. I´m sure that he is in a place free of pain, where he is at peace. I thought a lot about this yesterday... we were on our way to district meeting in an area called Estançia and we saw a dead body. We drove right by him really slow and they had him laying right on the side of the road, he was on a motorcycle and got hit head on so his face was so messed up, I really wished that I hadn´t looked afterwards, you know how I am when I see blood and stuff. But it was weird to think that just a few minutes before there was a spirit there, and now his body was empty of life.

That's sick Derek got home, how does he seem? does he have an accent? (Derek just got home from theThe Belgium Brussels/Netherlands Mission) Wish Cody good luck, tell him that it flies by, especially after the MTC, Send my love to McKay too my red headed homie!

That's crazy that the Superbowl came and went... stupid packers. Brazil is playing I think like right now we might go and try and catch a little bit of the game at a members house lol when Brazil plays, the whole country shuts down!

I hope Brookie feels better, that's rough that shes been sick for days already. feel better sis!!!

I love all of you guys! be safe and have fun! I´m praying for you!
Bradley