GREAT. ATTITUDE.

We are in the city of Barrieras conducting interviews and visiting the branches.  We were able to have dinner with the branch presidents and some of the elders here.  We loved being with your missionary.    He looks great and has such a great attitude.   We love him!! 

Sister Bianca Lisonbee

DIDN'T. KNOW. IT. WAS. POSSIBLE. TO. BE. THIS. HOT.

This week flew by!!  It rains almost every day here and it is soo hot that even when you are in the shade, you can’t stop sweating. We finally got our new washer on Friday. It is small but it washes our clothes good.

Portuguese is still hard, but I do understand more and more. Everyone all talks a little different and they all talk so fast.  I think it is going to be awhile before I can speak the language. It is hard to pronounce all the words correctly.  It took an Elder here 8 months to get it down.  I am able to help a little with the lessons.  I memorize parts and bear my testimony as often as I can. Sometimes it scares me I will never learn the language.  I just think it is going to take time.  There are a lot of people here trying to learn English. So I am able to help them and they help me.  It's pretty cool!

It depends on how many lessons we teach a day here by how many people are home. We usually teach around 1 – 2 lessons a night when people are eating, and they usually feed us.  We wear our church clothes even on pday here, but I don’t mind.   We had another baptism this Sunday! We let a member baptize her. It was a neat experience!!!

A guy stopped us the other day on the street and asked for a Book of Mormon. Everybody stares at us wherever we go. They say stuff in a group then they all look. It’s kind of intimidating.  My companion and I are the only white guys here and my compaonion doesn’t tan at all, he just burns!

The guy Francisco that I baptized is really nice and likes the gospel a lot! We have a baptism scheduled here every Sunday but one, so hopefully all of our investigators follow through. We walk around in rain and mud a lot, but it’s ok cause it helps cool it down a lot and is better than all the heat.   I honestly didn’t know it was possible to get as hot as it does here.   We found some cool machetes!!!!  They were at a hardware store.  I’m going to get a case for it today!! Haha!! And a member here had some horns that he gave me. They are funny looking.  

The members here cook a lot for us.  We don’t have to cook very much or very often at all.   I really like all the guys in my apartment.  They are all very nice.  I’m not sure if we are going to celebrate Thanksgiving.  I was talking to my companion and there is a school here that teaches English, and they make American food. We might try to go there for Thanksgiving, but I am not sure yet. 

The members eat rice and beans for EVERY meal.  The families are not real big families, two or three kids.  The people on the street are nice so far.  We have met some people that were literally crazy. They have lost their minds.   We walk a lot and catch a bus sometimes.  There are food and stores all over here and some pretty nice markets.

There are bugs everywhere here.  And the fruit here is really really good.  I drink as much water as I can.  It is nice to have water in our apartment and we just fill up water bottles and store them in our fridge.  The water filter at the house is really slow and all the water here has chlorine in it.  I think the filter is just for safety.  Not everyone here filters their water but all water has chlorine. I sleep good and because it is so hot I have to have a fan blowing on me.  The Branch President here is very nice but I really can’t understand much that he says.

So I will be with Elder Bailey for 12 weeks since he is training me. Transfers usually last 5 or 6 weeks but I will be in this area from anytime between 3 to 6 months.  I don’t know what will happen after that.  Just that I will be with my companion for 12 weeks. My companion is cool.  We really get along.

I guess visas here don’t last for the full two years. They last a year and about 11 months.   So depends on what my transfers are like, but I might come home a month early. I don’t know how true that is.  That is just what I have heard.

This guy is from Pocatello.  He knows about Howe and is some how related to the Fullmers in Arco. He goes ice fishing at Mackey and wants to go with us when I get home.

The district leader is in our house and I’m not sure about the zone leaders. Any mail they will bring to our zone conference and that is like the second week of December, so hopefully some of your letters make it.

Thank you guys for everything. I love you all.  Just know that everything is good here.  We have another baptism scheduled this Sunday so hopefully they follow through. I will take more pictures for next week.  Hope all is well with you guys at home.   Love you all!! Talk to you in a week.

 Love Elder Nickerson

FIRST. WEEK. IN. FIELD.

Hey everybody!

It has been a crazy week! First off, I got a new companion, Elder Bailey.  His name is Parker Bailey from Tennessee. I like him a lot! My new area is Barreiras. It's 15 hours from Salvador and we had to take a bus there. It was a long ride!!  We are a long ways from Salvador!!!!! And yes, Tanessa, we went right to work.

City of Barreriras

Brazilian Flag

View From the Apartment

Barreriras

Then we got hit with a big rainstorm and the ceiling leaks. It has rained 5 days here and the streets are all muddy. And when the sun is out, you can't even breathe. It's so hot!  Very very hot! Man, I wish it was that cold here. It is soooooo hot you wouldn't even believe how hot it is here. Especially after it rains and the sun comes up it almost cooks you to death. It is impossible to keep our shirts white and clothes clean. We sweat all day and the dirt here is red so it sticks and makes our shirts really dirty.  We have seen big tarantulas, lizards, frogs, and centipedes. There are a lot of bugs and I saw a dead frog half the size of my head the other day!  There was member with a turtle as a pet in their house that just wandered everywhere. There are chickens and stray dogs and people ride horses here. The houses have holes in the ceilings. There are poor and rich parts. And it sure makes me miss and love you guys a lot.

Rainy Days in Barreriras

It was cool yesterday, we got to church, and a guy named Francisco wanted baptized that day. I was able to baptize him on my first Sunday here. I ate cow feet last night for dinner!!! And we were walking on the street and there were people in a big circle and there was a body in the middle. I guess a teenager got shot by somebody. Everybody here is nice for the most part, especially the members!! There is not a temple here. The church is really small about 30 people came to church Sunday.

First Baptism 

The mission field is so much better than the CTM. I miss you guys a lot. The mission president said all letters have to be mailed to the mission home. I will get them every six weeks. The apartment is small and on the sixth floor. Our apartment has one nasty bathroom and two bed rooms. There are four of us to one apartment.  Members feed us a lot and are very nice!! I'm so lost with the language.  It's so hard.  I hardly understand anything. I haven't cooked yet and we have to pay for Internet here. But the mission will pay for that part.  I was able to get money to use through out the week. We have a toilet that flushes, our washing machine is broken right now, and if we don't get it fixed I will hand wash my clothes. Yes, we have a fridge. My bed is good but small. The other missionaries are a brazilian guy and a black kid from the states.   

Our Bedroom

Kitchen in Apartment

Home Sweet Home

Here's My Monster! 

We can drink the water in the apartment, we don't have to buy it.  And there are little stores all over the place.  It would be hard for somebody to break in.  I think each house has a locked sliding gate and the nice ones all have electric voltage running around them. I miss you guys a lot when I wake up in the mornings. Tell Kallee and Stephanie hello and I love them! 

Tanessa maybe login to my Faceboook and Instagram. People here have looked me up and added me so maybe you can accept their request. I think and pray for you guys a lot. Dad, I wish you and I were companions out here in the field.  I love you guys very very much and miss you guys soooo much. And I can't believe I got to baptize someone on my first Sunday here. That was really cool for me. Portuguese is very hard and everybody is always trying to talk to me and I have no clue what they are trying to say to me. I sure do appreciate you guys and all that everyone does for me. I can't wait until I can sleep in my own bed again and talk to you guys whenever I want to. 

My companion and I stick out like a sore thumb here. Two white guys in white shirts walking down dusty muddy roads with the locals staring at us. It is better to be out of the field but it can still be very discouraging cause all I can do right now is bear my testimony in Portuguese to the people.  I have met some good people though. My hair isn't too long yet. Maybe a week or two and I will get another haircut. I got it cut at the CTM before I left. There are some cool shops here. I bought a cool leather scripture case. It is kind of scary at night. We just avoid the dark spots! And I wish it was colder.  On Pday I think we can do whatever within bounds.  There is a little hill here my companion said we can climb sometime.  That would be cool!! We are going to teach a lesson today.  Most of all the food is good.  Rice and beans are with everything.  My companion only has 8 months left in the field.  My companion has been out over a year and hasn't had anything happen to him.

Ok guys,  we are about to leave here. The streets are safe I think for the most part. My companion has been in even more poor parts and he hasn't had problems. The members here feed us a lot and we have safe water in our apartment. I sure do miss you guys a lot at times. Good to hear everything at home is doing good. Take care of the animals. Tell Charlie, Grandpa and everybody I said hello. I love you guys, I pray for you guys, I love you all very much and look forward to the day I can see you all again. Mom, maybe you could throw in a egg omelet pan if it isn't to heavy..... but if it's to heavy don't worry about it. And maybe a small thing of contact solution just in case I run out and can't find any. I still haven't even used my little bottle of contact solution yet and there are pans here, so if it weighs too much it's not a big deal at all. I love you guys. Tell Grandpa he better stick around and that I miss him a bunch! 

If I run out of supplies there are shops all over the place here to buy stuff. Every time we go to Salvador we have to do the 15 hour bus ride. That's why we can only go there every six weeks.  I can't wait to be able to call or skype home. I have to go now.  Hope you got some pictures finally. We are going to the market to get milk and eggs and food right now.

Talk to you guys next Pday. Love you all very much. Be safe, until next time. Love you.

Elder Nickerson

Here are some pictures from the CTM.  Finally.