WEEK 3: Elder Uchtdorf came to the MTC

MONDAY

Today we did companion exchanges to teach a lesson. I was paired with two really neat Elders. One of them will be at BYU with me when I get back. We taught an entire 15 minute lesson entirely in Portuguese.

Not much else happened today except for emails. They gave us a little extra time which was soooo nice. Made a world of difference. Oh also Elder Nielsen accidentally dropped his fruit snacks out the window. So much stuff falls out of them into this lil garden that we cant get into. So theres literally a small pile of pens, books, fruit snacks and a beloved backpack-hanger knob just chillin' in the ground floor garden.

TUESDAY

Today was one of my favorite days. We went to the Sao Paulo temple in the morning. Its BEAUTIFUL. I"ll send a picture of it when I leave the MTC. On the way home my companion Elder Warnick and I had a 40 min convo with the bus driver. He was so nice and we found out a lot about him. I LOVE Brazilians. He told us about how he's been driving for the past 25 years and spent 5 years driving in Tokyo. We talked about God for a little bit. Hopefully next temple trip Warnick and I can ride in his bus again and keep talking with him.

After that it was P-day so we spent a lot of time shopping. I had some super good food and got a haircut. We're supposed to go to a certain barber and get reimbursed by the MTC, but Warnick and I accidentally went to the wrong barber and got our hair cut by some huge guy covered in tattoos. He and his friend were super friendly haha and they followed us on instagram. I want to stop by next week just to say hi to them again. Total homies

After classes we had a big assembly because Elder Uchtdorf is coming tomorrow and we need to be prepared. (Elder Uchtdorf is an apostle, a very important leader in the church.) He's one of my favorite people, I'm so excited to be able to meet him.

WEDNESDAY

Uchtdorf's talk was incredible. Absolutely incredible. His talk was entirely inspired and I'm sure of it. He went up to the pulpit with no notes and delivered one of the most beautiful talks I've ever witnessed. That man is a man of God.

I'm excited to put all the advice he gave to use throughout my mission.

Something I found interesting is that he emphasized that the Brazilian missionaries in the MTC need to learn English. He talked a lot about how languages bridge people together, provide you with opportunities to meet and bond with people. He repeatedly challenged the natives to learn English throughout their missions. Just as the Americans are learning Portuguese and Japanese here.

Anyways yeah his talk was incredible. I took like 4 pages of notes, which if you know me, is shocking. I never take notes.

Other than that Irmao Vianna gave us a good portuguese lesson. Portuguese is going super great still. I think I know more portuguese than Spanish now.

THURSDAY

Today it poured like all day. I loved it. We just had a blackout & I was shining my flashlight across the dark city and a few people in faraway skyscrapers started flashing theirs back at me haha. They're actually still doing it lol. I wish I knew morse code. Also some dogs started barking at us a few blocks away so I barked back (A weird talent I have) and soooo many dogs started barking. So now Sao Paulo is full of strobe lights and barking dogs because of me

FRIDAY

Not too much to write about today except its wayyy hot here and I'm constantly sweating lol. I carry around a 5 LITER water jug to stay hydrated. I refill it in the water fountain every day. Takes like four minutes. Everyone thinks I'm so extra but hey at least I'm hydrated and happy

SATURDAY

This Sunday Elder Warnick & Elder Sherrill are singing "How Great Thou Art" at Sacrament meeting. Warnick is a music major so he put together an incredible rendition that we're gonna use. It sounds super good so far but I'm starting to lose my voice. I'm coming down with a cough or something.

Also the nights at the MTC are my favorite. We see all our Brazilian roommates again and we all hang out. They're seriously some of the funniest people I've met, I cry laughing like every other night. They leave this coming Tuesday to go to their missions and we're all so sad. I'm gonna miss Elder Batista and Araujo the most. Such great guys. Araujo might be coming to BYU Idaho after the mish and if he does I'm def taking a roadtrip out to see him and a few other Elders.

SUNDAY

Today we sang! It was so good. One of the best sacrament meetings I've been in. My voice was almost gone so I had to try soo hard to keep it from cracking.

We finally retrieved our lil class pet knob. He's covered in mud and grim and stuff cuz he's been out there during a few thunderstorms.

MONDAY

Our Brazilian elders leave tomorrow!! We're devastated but excited. It's been so hard saying goodbye to Elder Batista, Fiuza, Frietas & Araujo. Such good guys. The goodbyes were sad but I can't wait to see all the good work they'll do.

This week was super great!! Thanks for all the emails!

Love, Elder Young