Week Twenty Four - Awkwardness.....

Tom and Elder Summerhayes in the MTC.

Tom and Elder Shaw in the MTC.

Tom and Elder Funk in the MTC.

Tom and Elder Kaufman in the MTC.

On May 13th, Tom hit the five month mark!  That is almost 1/4 of the way through!  It sounds like he is in the thick of things and is surviving, at least.  This letter cracked us up, especially the part about him tapping his feet.  He did that constantly at home and Em says it drove her crazy. He was always listening to music, either at the computer or with his head phones on and his feet were always tapping!  So glad to hear he hasn't changed! 

Hello Again!
    My week was okay. Tuesday wasn´t good, I woke up and my allergies hit me like a truck, and I was blowing snot out my nose all day, and they´ve been bugging me all week in the morning. But the pills are helping a lot. I think if I stay in this area for a while I will need more though, so maybe you can send some in the next package. We had another baptism this week, a 15 year old girl named Maria, but she looks like she´s 20. There´s a lot of girls here that look like they´re around 20 years old but they´re only 15, which is weird. But Maria thinks I`m weird too. Every time we taught her, I would start talking and she´d get a grin on her face and look at her boyfriend and laugh a little. Teaching her was awkward. We also met a woman, Teresinha, that we are teaching who has two daughters, and she likes us a lot. She gives us food when we visit and teach her. Her younger daughter calls us tio (uncle). And Teresinha even called us her sons, which was a little awkward. But she´s nice... Also, yesterday, we went with some of the youth and their leaders to visit less active youth, and apparently I tap my feet a lot. There was some music playing while we visited someone and I was tapping my feet the whole time, and the people that we went with thought I was going to burst into dance or something, so they made fun of me a little for that. They also pointed out that I wave good bye weird. First I hold up 2 fingers, then 4, 5, and a thumbs up at the end. I don´t do it on purpose, I just kinda copy what the people do that I´m waving to........ so yeah they laughed at me for that too. Sheesh what an awkward week. 

         So the pictures this week are of Elder Summerhays, Elder Shaw, Elder Funk, and Elder Kaufman on the last night of our stay at the MTC. Cool guys, not much else to say. Anyways, since my credit card can´t be uncancelled, what should I do with it? cut it and throw it away? I think you should still send a little more money, $27 I think. I don´t want to just keep 173 dollars in my wallet. But the problem is that I don´t think there are any banks in my area. So maybe I should just send the money back? I don´t know, tell me what to do.  "I am sure you are on the verge of having it all click for you!" HAH! yeah right... maybe some day. And the all the rest is good to hear too.

Q&A

 1)Everyone wants to know what you had to eat at the nice restaurant that Klayton took you to. Some rice, spaghetti, chicken, beef, the usual stuff here in Brazil, but many times better than average.

2)Was all of your stuff ruined by sitting in the mud for a day? pretty much!

Any packages get there this past week?  Aunt Lisa and Grandma Marta both sent you birthday packages and are worried they haven’t gotten there, yet. No!

How is sacrament meeting in the new ward you are in – any better than the last? Better!

What have you been doing on your P-days lately with your new companion? Sleeping!

Did you get the camera card I sent and do you think you want to send your card home, yet? Yes, not yet!

What happened to the three missionaries that died that you mentioned in your last e-mail - very sad. I think 2 died in car crashes, another was  robbed and killed in Rio, but this was months ago, but kind of makes me nervous to go to Rio.

Anyways, that´s my week. Okay gotstago now. I love you and miss you all and I`m prying for yas. Have a good week and don´t worry about me too much.

Love, O Americano Estranho!