Out in the Field

So I'm in Campinas my area is Huge and my companion is also new to the area as well. I am her first filha and she is the shortest littlest sister here so mom your prayers are being answered. I tower over her no joke!! I am a giant!! Thank you for praying for me to have great companions it´s working. So yesterday was a little crazy all the Elders are so nice. We arrived to my first apartment last night and the Elders living there before left it so dirty so we cleaned and unpacked. It's just me and Sister Souzo and we are the first sisters to be here and serving in this area. It's close by the mission office 20 minutes by vehicle. I am actually serving in Campinas so that's cool. I was hoping for this. The language is coming along it definitely is a trail of my faith and it's coming… The scriptures have never spoken to me before like they do now. I was reading Moroni chapters 7 and 8 this morning and it was so amazing. The Spirit is so strong and helping all the way! I am blessed without mosquitos and we have clean water and can flush the toilet paper down the toilet. So the physical environment is grand. The only thing I could complain about is the heat. My apartment reminds me of the best two years. Okay maybe only the shower. I arrived here yesterday and a letter from mom was waiting for me.. yeah!! Sorry I haven't sent any pictures, time time time. Saying good bye to my district was hard but now its over and I am here to work in the hot sun!! yea!!
Well all in all life is good. I am only beginning, I have a lot to learn I feel totally clueless and really bad for my compaiona having to do a lot on her own because I don't know the language and we both don't know the area. Todo bem… Tchau
Love, Rachel

Last Email from the CTM

Dear Everyone:

I really want to work hard, every day I feel like a fubeca (slacker) just studying all day. The MTC is cushy, really cushy, food, air conditioning, my American companion, English speackers, etc..
Last week was a little discouraging with the language and just being trapped in the MTC;. I am so excited to leave. I leave Tuesday October 9th, 2008 for Campinas to get a companion and assigned an area to serve. I still don’t know Portugues and I just am trying my best with it. I need to learn to love it… Spanish is still my number one. There are actually 2 American elders from another district and lots of Brasilians going with me to the field on Tuesday. Campinas is about an 45min. -1hour drive I think from Sao Paulo, not too bad. Man am I excited, But scared a little too. we are all getting sick and tired of the CTM. But it’s been an amazing experience and really has prepared me for what is to come… except I don’t feel perfectly prepared, oh well, I am leaving the nest!!!!!!!
Thanksgiving sounded fun and we had an amazing Thanksgiving here too, lots of food, I think the Brasilians were all thankful for Americans that day because they don’t celebrate thanksgiving in Brasil.
This is our last p-day here in Sao Paulo so you won~t hear from me next week. A letter or two are on there way.
Today my instructors and district went out to eat at a Churrascaria, where they come and give you all sorts of meat and things. My tip on the beans, cook with pork fat, that´s what I have noticed. The fatter the more flavor… gross huh?
We went proselyting for the last time at the CTM on Friday and got chased by a bum with a porkey belly who’s pants were falling off. (he had black shorts on underneath fortunately.) He was actually after our instructor first, Irma Michelotto and then chased us. our elders tried to help we were all laughing. Finally, my instructor got the police to help. We were safe and everything no worries. Lots of police around and people to help, just a funny memory to take home…
My elders were talking about saying good bye at lunch yesterday and I got all teary eyed. I am going to miss them and am so sad that they´re not going to my mission. I get so attatched to people, this mission is going to be good for me changing all the time!! my comfort zone at the MCT will be treasured and missed.
I love you, thanks for the prayers I need them, and miss you so much. Serving a mission is so cool, because it´s blessing me, my family and those I will teach. On the hard days here at the MTC I think of the people I will be teaching or of you that helps me push through!!
LOVE YOU!!!
Rachel

November 24 Email

Hey Everyone,
Thanks for the excellent emails this week. It’s great hearing from you and your lives. And yes mom I was at the temple Tuesdays last week, the Sao Paulo Temple it’s amazing. Thanks for sharing your spiritual experiences with me and your kind words of wisdom and love. And Bryce if you had to type a long email in 45 minutes and on a Portuguese keyboard when cramming your brain full of Portuguese everyday you would have a lot of spelling errors and typos too, hahaha, glad you can decipher them, and thanks for your email and good luck with basketball be careful I know you’ll do great!! And every game before you go out on the court just imagine me in the fans yelling ´´ Í love you Bryce´. he he

So some stories from this week: We play Ultimate Frisbee every week and I have become addicted to it, it´s my all time favorite sport and I am getting really good at it here in the CTM sooo good an Elder called me Elder Davidson. I must play as good as an elder or better, pretty cool huh?? haha

Nothing more I can think of. Yesterday they served Nachos for lunch and Hamburgers and French fries for dinner. Of course it had a Brasilian twist the burgers were more like chicken patties and fries were like the frozen kind you buy at the store. And the Nachos were off brand nacho cheese Doritos with white creamy cheese and a mixture of greasy beef and beans you just pile it on top. But whatever we were all so excited to see food that looked like home. We even went back for 2nds!! So good!! I think I will actually miss the food here at the CTM because it’s all prepared for me all I have to do is show up to eat it. In the field it’ll be a whole new story, aye!!

November 17 Email

We went proselyting-- it was excellent. Of course I had my embarrassing moments of reading the wrong two paragraphs of the title page when I was trying to give a Book of Mormon away... weird, but I met a lot of nice people this time. Someone who thought we worship Joseph Smith and was actually happy about that, another asking us to give him a blessing, and of course there was the crazy old men trying to kiss my companion... I am tall and big enough they don't try anything with me fortunately. I have never loved myself more than on my mission. I love being tall and strong looking!!!
I recieved a card from Susan Vogel yesterday, that was great!!!
Happy Thanksgiving before I forget.
My best friends here in the CTM, my Brasilian roommates left yesterday that was soo sad, I have yet to meet a sister going to Campinas... only one really tiny Brasilian I didn't really talk to. Sis. Santos and Sis Martines are lifetime friends for me we had such a wonderful time together teaching me portugues and laughing at each other mostly me because não falo portugues bom anyways I miss them already and they left this morning. Can you believe it I have 3 more weeks here, (don't send anything else to the CTM, any mail send it to my mission address!!) we are leaving with the new group of Brasilians coming tomorrow wierd. We´re getting to be the oldest american district here. I can't believe it, I am excited and looking forward to it but I am also scared and it's going to be so sad saying bye to all the wonderful people I ´ve met here, especially my district. I am the only one going to Campinas from my district, so sad.
I am growing more and more in love with Brasil and the people. I am so grateful for my mission call, it's hard but it's a good hard. I am loving my life and loving missionary work!!!
love you all and miss you all so much!!
Beijos e Abrasos Grandes!!!

One Month Mark

Okay well the proseltying was scary, fun, hard, and interesting. I was able to communicate the message I memorized and I will never forget that day. We went to a park by the teatro municipal de são paulo. It smelled and there were bums, homeless people everywhere, drunk, dirty, and drugged. My poor naive companion, i followed her around to talk to some scary people. I did find some nice people. One lady was walking with her daughter who knew about the church and has wanted to know more so we gave her the card and the speel and off she went. I am confident she will call and find out more. I talked to a group of children and thought I was in Ecuador all over again as I kissed all the kids good bye afterwards. I scared myself as I was slapped back into reality--I was in Brasil and a missionary and i was not allowed to do that, OOPS! Don't tell the mission president. A drunk man came up to my companion and tried to hug her, I saved her though by grabbing her by the arm and speed walking away! We passed out all of our cards, I dont know exactly how many that was but a lot. It's so crazy! I am trying to find a love for Brasil and the langauge, some days are so hard. After we went proseltyzing our instructor Irmão (Bro.) Barbossa, yes like pirates of the Carribean, had us teach the first lesson in portuguese twice that night, the longest day ever! PORTUGUES!!! On a better note My Brasilian room mates are so incredibly awesome I talk to them every night in broken portugues, english, and spanish. They are so great!! My room mate I mean companion and I just got a new assignment from the mission president; sister coordinators!! We are in charge of all the sisters coming and going and making them all feel welcome. Its exciting. And just another responsibility to add on to the plate. I feel like I am slowly becoming brazilian, the food is not that bad anymore. Sundays are wonderful, It's the day we look forward to most even more than P-days! We go to church, take naps, watch a church approved movie and have a fireside, no class! This past fast sunday was amazing. First we had a conference with so many inspired words of wonderful, basically Don't worry be happy. DO all you can do and God will provide the rest. Have faith in him and trust in him. I am meeting so many friends and there is a love in the CTM that is not found anywhere else. I have been out for a month, 17 more months to go, pretty crazy!! I have 5 more weeks here at the CTM. Love you all and miss you all, too!! Rachel

October 28 Email

Funny story this week. I was all dressed ready to go eat breakfast and as soon as I opened the door ready to walk out my companion said, ´sister davidson is that your slip´I go to feel and sure enough i was in my black slip and forgot to put on my black skirt. I can't stop saying thank goodness for companions!! The time here is picking up! I met a nice elderly man in the grocery store today on pday and he was really interested in us. I gave him a pass along card and i was the only one out of the 5 missionaries in my ditrict that could understand and respond! I was very proud of myself but know i am no where near where i should be. I am learning the 1st lesson this week in portugues.ah!!!!! it's so hard. ps.. tuesdays are my p-days--the elders in my district have announced thursday comb over day where we all part our hair something to look forward in the middle of the week i guess. Last week was amazing i had so many learning experiences!! Elder Richard G. Scott came to the CTM and spoke to us directly as missionaries. An apostole of Jesus Christ We are just a small group so it was so personal. I loved it!! All the brazilians were so nervous and excited for most it was their first time seeing an apostole and most likely the only time. He shared with us so many experiences and said our treasure is our testimonies. He said to wear out Preach my gospel and read from the BOM. He spoke directly to the sisters at one point and said how sensitive we are and how we'll be able to get through doors that elders would never be able to, he said we will learn the importance of the priesthood and love our missions. More and more women are going on missions to become more righteous mothers to raise a more righteous & noble generation... I am learning every day on what to do better in order to be a great missionary. The people here are wonderful. I am finally adjusting to this lifestyle and am becoming more comfortable with the fact I wear dresses/skirts every day and everyone calls me sister davidson, it's been rough.

News from Brazil

I love my companion and am loving it here . I am getting along in the language and my teacher here, Sister Michelotto is Brazilian and served in WA DC and she is so inspiring and loves us so much. I feel taken care of you know, I feel safe in God's hands. My companion and I get compliments over and over again--we´re the best sister missionaries here, there´s not many of us. So I feel special and rare indeed; Haha... I am learning how to teach the first lesson and each time I practice teaching it, it becomes more and more amazing. I love this work and am dying for some mail!! I am studying 8 hours a day playing ultimate frisbee with the elders. I am so much more athletic than my companion--she is so funny and ditzy when it comes to sports. I taught her how to shoot a basketball the first gym day and we do yoga together. We go to the temple every week to Campinas (my mission). I will be so excited if I get called to serve there first. I havn't met one american sister going to campinas yet... so i don't know!!

Our First Email from Rachel

hey everyone i am here in brazil having a great time \i ll be sending a letter your way soon. i am having the best time of my life it~s great details are in the letter. first p-day and we can email. yea!! well i am working hard and having fun in sao paulo. it~s hot and humid and i am eating a lot of beans and rice i love it!! i love you guys!!
rachel

Rachel's Address

From Oct. 8-Dec. 10, 2008:

Sister Rachel Davidson
Brazil Campinas Mission
Brazil Missionary Training Center
Rua Padre Antonio D'Angelo 121
Casa Verde
02516-040 Sao Paulo SP
Brazil