WEEK 33: A Big Burger and A Cockroach Party

MONDAY

OOF what a night. Soooo an American themed restaurant close to where we live has a cheeseburger challenge (kind of like the one at The Wall at BYU). 

The challenge is six cheeseburgers and two hotdogs stacked into one giant megaburger. If you eat the whole thing AND a liter of Coke (or juice) within 40 minutes it's free. Otherwise it's 66 Reais (Brazilian currency)

I took em on.

I managed to get it all down and felt soooo full after. Lots of people there were so amazed and scared to see a 6'5" American scarf down a stack of burgers. They got pictures with me and THE OWNER of the restaurant straightup gave me 100 Reais! as a prize (which is almost 30 bucks) and said he'd frame my picture. The owner's a total homie.

Naturally França and I went and got Acai after to celebrate. Then we walked to two appointments and I felt like a pregnant human bowling ball.

TUESDAY

Today we came home to find about 100 cockroaches chillin at our house. In the bathroom, in the kitchen, in the... well that's our entire house...

There was one on Elder Wilding's shirt.

They swarmed our house because there's a sewage pipe right outside our door that the cockroaches must've just discovered today. They've been crawling out of that opening all day. We came home and saw them all hunched together in a clump behind the pipe and it was the grossest thing ever. We kicked the pipe and sprayed bug spray all over them to try to kill them. We're gonna stick tape over the hole and hopefully that'll stop em.

Other than that today was cool I guess. We did divisions so I was with Elder Wilding all day. It's fun spending time with Americans cuz we all kinda have a similar sense of humor.

WEDNESDAY

Last week we met this suuuper dope couple who we've been teaching. The husband, Willian, (Yes, Willian, not William) is a big guy with huge flow and a beard. He said he's growing out his hair to donate to a cancer charity. Kind of like locks of love. He also said he's a part-time Jesus at his church. (I guess his church does plays during services or something) Anyways they're both really fun and not gonna lie I'm kinda inspired to grow out a beard and long hair to donate to cancer when I get back haha

THURSDAY

Today we got home and my shoes felt sticky when I walked. They were making a weird popping sound too. I looked at the bottom and turns out they've been melting just from being on the roads.

ALSO at lunch today something really incredible happened. We were just eating at a restaurant and randomly a lady came up to us. 

She said "Has anyone told you guys today that Jesus loves you?"

We were like "No, actually"

And she told us so and said as missionaries we give a lot of love and hardly receive any in return. A lot of our efforts go unnoticed and unappreciated. She told us she appreciates the work that we do and gave us 100 Reais! I didn't know until after she left that we aren't allowed to accept donations as missionaries... whoops. But I was really touched by her generous actions. She was an example to me, because random acts of kindness like that are things that I think about doing to others but usually talk myself out of doing. I'm definetely going to be putting her example into practice and showing more gratitude and service.

FRIDAY

Today we did divisions and I went up with our district leader to Porto Nacional. It was cool because that's an area Bryce, my brother, served in.

We just spent the day doing interviews so I didn't get to meet anyone he taught but it was still cool to see what I've read about in his mission journal.

SATURDAY

Woah BIG news. Haha today at lunch Elder França and I were planning what mountains we were gonna hike for next Pday and the Zone Leaders were looking at us all weird like they were hiding something. So I asked them what and they were like uhhhh yall are getting transferred to Araguaina. Araguaina is a BRAND NEW area of the mission haha. Right now it is a part of the Teresina mission (where Brandyn, one of my other brothers served) and after this transfer it'll be a part of our mission. So they're moving both me AND França to Araguaina as companions and they said I'll be the district leader there haha. I'm wayyyy excited because we'll be leaving Taquaralto early and spending the week with the Teresina missionaries. Living with missionaries from another mission is practically unheard of. It'll be dope. Also one of my bestest buds Lizzie Miller is serving in Teresina right now so maybe the missionaries know her.

It's definitely gonna be a big responsibility being district leader this early in my mission, in a brand spankin' new area, on the outskirts of the Brasilia Mission, hours area from any other missionaries, but I'm so ready.

We're leaving after the Palmas zone conference, then the next day we'll go to the North Palmas zone conference, cuz we're moving zones. It'll be a lot of sitting. But I always love a change of pace like that.

SUNDAY

The primary and I had the primary program today :D

I accompanied as best as I could on the out of tune piano that's missing a few keys and the kids were still able to sing a long. I definitely won't miss that stinkin' piano. Later we were contacted from some lady in Palmas who said she had friends in Taquaralto she wanted us to visit so tonight they took us over there and we had dinner. One of their friends speaks English, French, Spanish, and (obviously) Portuguese so we talked about languages for a while. It was weird because we'd be talking in english with him then França would start talking to him in french and I'd be lost. I'm adding french to the list of things I'm gonna learn someday soon.

Ta ta for now gente,

Elder Young

PICS:

1-6) THE BURGER

7) The owner and I after he gave me 100R$

8) Açai after the challenge

9) Sunset

10) Almost got it

11) Elder Wilding enjoyin the view

12) I got a splinter in my thumb the other day while trying to knock mangos out of a tree for some kids

13 & 14) A little bunbun from an investigator's house

15) Cuscuz. Which is essentially ramen in Brazil. Super cheap and fills you up so we usually have it for dinner.