I'm Here!!!

Hi Mom, Dad, Family, and Friends,

Well, I made it to Joao Pessoa and now I´m in my first area, Queimadas! It´s about three hours by car away from Joao Pessoa and the mission home.

So there was a pretty big group of us that left the CTM together yesterday. There were 16 of us and then 4 Americans that had been serving in the US met us at the airport in Sao Paulo. Our flight was 3 hours long and Sister Fuentes and I had a really great conversation with the lady next to us on the plane. She is Catholic but she was so open and accepting to our message and we did it all in Portuguese! We gave her a pass along card and a little card that had the Articles of Faith on it.

When we arrived at the airport President Nogueira and his wife and the APs were there to greet us. There were about 20 something missionaries that were on the flight with us. 

We then went to the chapel where we had a quick lunch and a training meeting by the President, his wife, and the APs. 

We met our companions there too. My companion´s name is Sister Marschall and she is from Santa Catarina which is in the south of Brasil. She has only been out in the field for 6 weeks and she´s already training me! And, she´s only a month older than me so we are definitely new at this. I´m so glad that she´s a Brasilian though because I know she´ll help me so much with my Portuguese.

I´m a little overwhelmed right now and I can´t understand a lot of what people say but I´m excited and ready to get to work. We got to write today because transfer days are also p-days and our normal p-day is Monday. 

Last night we stayed in the mission home which is a huge apartment building because we had to travel so far today. This morning was a little crazy going back and forth to the mission office and getting suitcases and people and everything but now I´m in my first area in Queimadas. There is only a branch here but the goal is to put some missionaries in here and help the branch grow. 

Our apartment is definitely different than what I´m used to but I´m ready for a new experience. Also, normally it has only been for two people but there will be four sisters. Me, Sister Marschall, Sister Fernandes (Sister Marschall´s trainer) and Sister Johnson. Sister Johnson was serving in Rochester for 3 months and just got her visa. I think that would be really hard to have spoken English for 3 months and then be put straight into Brasil and her companion doesn´t speak very much English.

I´m really nervous but I´m very excited. I want to speak Portuguese a lot better now but I know that I need to have patience.

How are you all? Mom, how goes the recovery? Dad, how are you? How is work and your calling? 

How´s work going for the boys? Lindsey and Kelsey, how are you all? Norah and Alice?

Amanda: How are you doing? Getting ready for school?

I didn´t bring my stuff to send pictures but I will on Monday! I have so many to send you!

I miss you all like crazy but I´m so happy to be here. I love this Gospel and I know that it is true with all of my heart!

I love you all so much!!!!

Lots of love,

Sister Hicks