Week #9

Bazinga! 

I don't have long to write this week because I just arrived at the mission home but I found out my area! RONDONOPOLIS!!! It's about 135 miles south of Cuiaba (where the mission is located). Apparently the work is really booming down there! My companion/trainer for the next 12 weeks will be Elder Herrera and he is also the district leader (like Asa). He is also American! I will have more details about everything next week. I leave for my area tonight on a 4 hour bus ride. SO EXCITED!!!  I will send all of this last weeks events in my next letter next Monday (that's my new p-day like the rest of the world). 

I LOVE MY MISSION!

Com muito amor,

Elder Roman Laws

Week #8 - "Now we all have the giggles!"

Bazinga!

GREAT WEEK!!!!!

Alright so last week on Thursday my companion and I went to the dermatologist for my head! The office is downtown in this little mall thing and to use the elevator we had to show them our ID. We didn't have it so the instructor with us told us to show them our lunch cards! So we pulled them out and gave them to the people at the desk. They asked if this was really ID and the instructor with us said yes and that the number at the bottom was our ID number and they ACCEPTED it! It was crazy! There is no way that would fly in the US! Anyway we got the the Derm office and after sitting there for about 45 min I got called in to talk with the Dr. I come out and my companion is full on giving the first lesson to a lady in the waiting room! I wish I could of jumped in but she was right after me and had to go back to see the Dr! My companion said that she was soaking it in! Great stuff!

We taxi to get there and a taxi to get back. On the way back the driver asked (in Portuguese) what we were doing in Brazil! So our instructor told him we were here to serve and teach people about the gospel of Jesus Christ for two years! He seemed impressed and asked what the message was so the instructor told US to share it! It was so fun! We straight up taught the first lesson AND the plan of salvation on the cab ride home! I gave him a Book of Mormon and Elder John gave him two pamphlets and we invited him to read and pray about them! He said he would!!!! I love this!!

OK! Then on Monday we went proselyting around the CTM! We had six Books of Mormon to give out and six pamphlets!! We gave all the Books of Mormon to people and three of the pamphlets!! It was so exciting!!! The first guy we gave one to was sitting in a little park that was on a hill so we walked up and started talking to him in Portuguese and he said,"Do you prefer English?" so of course we said yes and we talked with him in English! Turns out he is part of this black magic church but we taught him and gave him a pamphlet and he really wanted to read! Next we talked with some kids while they were walking home from school! This too was all in Portuguese. They were pretty cool and one of them already had a Book of Mormon so we gave the other two 1 copy each! The next one we gave to a man sitting on a doorstep! He seemed interested a little and then he saw that Elder John was holding a book. He literally grabbed it out of his hands and said "que isso?" or "whats this" and we started telling him about it!! He started looking through it and I showed him Moroni's promise and he started reading it WHILE we were talking to him! It was so great! He really wanted to learn and asked how so we told him to call the number which is on a sticker at the front of the book. He said he would and thanked us! I LOVE THIS!!

I leave for the field next Tuesday and I couldn't be more excited! At first I was a little nervous but this is what I am supposed to do and I know the Lord will help me! I'm a little nervous about the heat still though. As far as the language goes I can understand about 75% of what is said to me in the CTM and about 50% outside the CTM and I can say enough to communicate! I cant wait to learn more!!

I love you all and thank you for your support and prayers!

Com muito amor,
Elder Laws

Phillipians 2:2-3

mom: please buy me a Book of Mormon case to match my bible one that you sent a few weeks ago and have them send it to the mission home!

family: I love you and miss you so much! Read your scriptures its a commandment!

Week #7 - "So when you text, is it in portuguese...or...wow never-mind."

Bazinga!

Great week! First this morning we went to the Campinas temple because the Sao Paulo temple is under renovation! It was a bit further but we made it and it is now my favorite temple! While we were there we talked with a man about Cuiaba and so far this is what I hear: Its HOT, WAY HOT, also that outside the city is all farm and and cattle land and there are cowboys! OH and apparently that's where the nicest people in Brazil live! SO EXCITED!! Cuiaba is a fairly new city and its one of the biggest in Brazil. It only has 33 meeting houses in the the 3 combined states so we are going to be doing some serious WORK! The best!

SEW, (punny haha) last week one of the elders, Elder Alex Dahlstrom was trying to iron a Brazil patch to his backpack because he thought it was and iron on. It wasn't so I offered to sew it on for him! Once I was done, he showed his roommates and immediately other elders came to ask for help with a bunch of sewing stuff! Anyways I now spend my nights helping and sewing. I've done a ton of buttons, 8-9 pant leg seems, and 3-4 suit coats! Oh and mom I have a confession...I know how to hem pants by hand...I've known for a while, but your sewing machine is faster and that's why I ask you! Anyway, I've also hemmed 2 pairs of pants for people in our district! SEW MUCH! hahaha. It's fun and I love talking with other elders while I do it!

Two Sundays ago we were told that people who have been here more than six weeks have to give their sacrament talks in Portuguese! Holy cow! So naturally I spoke last sunday! It was a great experience! My Portuguese wasn't perfect but I think I got the point across and I know I had some divine help! I loved it!

Yesterday we had a devotional and the main speaker was Elder Carlos Augusto Godoy of the first quorum of the seventy! It was hands down one of the best and most inspirational talks I have ever heard! There was just so much information in that one hour and it was incredible! Oh and I went and shook his hand afterward! He is really in-tune with the spirit and it was very inspiring to see the love he has for us even though he hasn't met us personally! He told us to read Moroni 8:1-3 and use our name instead of Moroni's and to pretend like our parents wrote it! I felt so much love I almost started crying! Great Stuff!

Other than that not much else happened! Only two more weeks in here and then I get to start the real deal! I cannot tell you how excited I am to get out and serve! Those people in Cuiaba don't even know whats coming! They don't EVEN know!

Alma 29:9

Com muito Amor!
Elder Roman Laws

PS:
Mom: read the scripture in my letter! Also I love you so much its crazy! This is seriously the best ever and I'm trying hard to make you and dad proud!

Week #6 - "Sorry...we were playing footsie..."

Bazinga!

This week was fantastic! We set about four district goals and got 100 percent on all of them! It made us feel so great and like we are doing what we are supposed to! I have 3 weeks left in the CTM and then I go into the field of the Cuiaba mission! The day is Aug 28th I believe! Its crazy because I do not feel like I have been here for 6 weeks! I don't think any missionary is ever ready for what the field will be like but I'm trying hard and trusting in the Lord! My mission is supposed to be hotter than any other and I am a little nervous about that but I am used to the 80ish degree weather here in Sao Paulo so I think it'll be fine!

Funny story! So we were having a devotional on Sunday and at the end they had a little slide show about Bolivia because the next day was going to be their independence day! Anyway the last slide pops up and its a map of Bolivia with a bunch of cultural pictures in it and right in the middle was a big picture of a woman in the most immodest bikini EVER! So the picture was up for like 30 sec until the tech guy realized it and hurried and took it down! It was hilarious! All the heads in the room went down and everyone looked at the floor!

This week we made a goal to practice street contacting every day. It is so much fun and it really helps with the nervousness and our Portuguese! we always need to improve but we love this work. My district rocks!

There are some Sisters here that flew in with our district and they are great! They love to come in our classroom and talk to us. The other night they came in and initiated us into their "mustache hall of fame club" and gave each of us a mustache sticker to put on the back of our badge, so when we hold it up under our nose we have awesome mustaches! Ha we have so much fun here!

Other than that not much else happened this week! I just love it here and its going to be sad to leave but at the same time I can't wait to get to my area and get to work! I can't wait to have amazing experiences like my big brother Elder Laws #1!

Com muito Amo!
Elder Laws

Mom- the Brazilians think you are in your 20s and some call you hot!

PLEASE SEND ME THE PICTURE I DESCRIBED IN LAST WEEKS EMAIL! PLEASE SEND A HARD COPY THROUGH MISSIONTIES! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!

Also please ask Bro Fanning and Bro Lindhorst about doing a mutual where all the kids write the missionaries in the ward!
I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

Week #5

Bazinga!

"So on a scale of 9-10, wait I mean 10-9, I mean...never-mind..." (keep in mind that these quotes are coming from an elder that is 250lbs of muscle!)

Holy cow these weeks are going by so fast! It's crazy! I was told if you work hard that the time goes faster and that is so true!

So a little bit about my new calling! I am the assistant to the branch president, not assistant branch president (I hope you got my Office pun). Basically what this means is that instead of serving just 8 people in my district, I now serve and help 3- 4 districts! Also I am kind of like a ward executive secretary. I ask for volunteers and assign who does the songs and prayers in sacrament meeting! I think it is way fun!

This week we were informed that we will have two new teachers because of schedule changes. It was a bummer at first because we have become very close to these people. All is well though! One of our new teachers is hilarious! When she teaches and some one is talking she tells us to jump out the window! Its probably not as funny to all you back home but its way funny coming from this tiny Brazilian lady!

While talking with one of the senior elders we realized that my district is now the oldest in the branch! Its crazy cause we've only been here for 5 weeks! We still feel young and that there is so much to learn but at the same time we are trying to be the best examples we can be! The newest district came just before I got on to email and all I have to say is WELCOME ELDER REEVES (friend from back home in the same stake and same high school)! It's great having friends here from home! Elder Ammon Hayden came a few weeks ago (friend from Wilsonville, OR) and Elder Addison Reeves! I'm pretty sure he is in my district too!

I'm sorry about using so many missionary terms like "district" if you want to understand it better please ask my family. They would love to tell you about it!

We have about an hour of gym time a day here. We play basketball, volley ball, there's a weight room and a even a track! So I am very excited to say I have lost 11 lbs since I have been here!!! I guess it helps that I am allergic to beans and that's all they eat here, but I'm still excited! I'm going to have to get creative about what to eat.

I feel like my letters are too short but really we do about the same thing every single day and there wasn't much that went on this week, but I hope you all are loving life! I testify to all those reading this that the God the Father lives and that his son Jesus Christ lives! I have felt his love very powerfully while being here and there is no doubt in my mind that they love me and that they love each of you personally!

Matt. chapter 5 verse 44.

Com muito amao,
Elder Roman Laws

Mom - please send tons more letters (or missionties letter) from the fam and have the extended fam write handwritten letters! Letters make the world go round! You all mean the world to me! OH and please have my friends write me as well!