Handwritten letter from Sister Jones as she procrastinated packing!

Yoo-hoo Familia!

Well its been sometime without a letter and I should be packing up my stuff right now, but am avoiding it (nothings changed). So I was like, hey I'll write a letter for my family!

Well I am still here serving a mission- I can't believe that its already been almost 7 months.  It seems like every month and transfers goes by faster and faster.  Also weird that right now I am fluent in another language.  I never thought I would arrive at this point.  One thing I learned is that no matter how good us Americans talk, people will still have a hard time understanding us.  Dang accents!  But todo-bem.  I am already praying that Trevor will serve in Brazil (or Meredith!) because then we can talk (with accents way different) but also he can baptize BUEY!  But yea, I have learned that we are all on our missions for a special reason.  The people here in Portugal are like eggs.  They have a really hard shell, but once we crack it-they are straight gold.  The challenge is cracking the shell!

Some other things about Portuguese people:

-They are literally always sick- if they don't want to do something its always "oh I am sick" or "I am caring for a sick person".

-If you are talking and they want to say something, they will just talk over you in a louder voice.

-There are SO many Jehovah's Witnesses here.  The worst mistake you can do is try to contact a "TJ" (Testemunho de Jehovah)- they will go into a huge rant about the name of God.

-It smells bad here.

-The word for congested (like when you have a stuffy nose) is constapada- I literally thought people were saying they were constipated my whole first transfer! haha!

-People here LOVE tea "vamos tar um chazinho" literally everyday

-Beijinhos- so many kisses- sometimes I'm jealous of Elders

-People here always eat with the fork in the left hand and knife in the right.  It makes more sense, but it is so hard....still.

-If you let yourself out of the house of someone it means you won't return- so if you want to leave you have to stand by the door and wait for people to open it for you.

-People work so much- literally everyday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and only have one free day a week.  It is pretty sad to be honest.

-People here LOVE to talk!  Its good because I have to talk less, but also annoying during lessons.

-People here are so honest.  If you gain weight, they'll tell you, if you have acne, they'll tell you, if they don't like your haircut, they'll tell you.  Its a good thing I don't get offended about these things here- a few days ago someone said my haircut makes me look like a boy haha!

-They LOVE to give directions!  They are so funny about it too.  It's an honor for them if you ask for directions.

Okay, that's probably enough for now.  but yea, my mission has been the hardest thing I have ever done, but I have also felt so much happiness here- real happiness that comes from helping people receive the blessings of the gospel.  I am so grateful for all the experiences I had growing up.  All the hard times I went through and all the things I have learned to prepare me for this time I have right now.  There is nothing better, and also very few things harder, than giving your whole will to the Lord.  Putting off your desires, fears and needs and letting the Lord take control of your life.  He can do so much more with our lives than we can alone.

Love you all so much and pray for all of you everyday!

Con muito amor,
Sister Jones

Tchao Seixal!

Olá Amigos!!!

Hope you all had a great week this week!!

We were having a great week until we received ANOTHER phone call on Friday. A phone call saying our area would be whitewashed (meaning that we will both leaving Seixal). That’s two transfers in a row, I think president likes to rip my heart out... This phone call totally caught me by surprise and I might of almost started crying during the call because I only have 6 weeks here in Seixal, which is like NOTHING!! I still don’t know the area that great, or even half of the members. But I know I am needed in another place.

Seixal will be whitewashed which really surprised me. They want to make it a model area, so they are putting two sister training leaders here to do divisions with the rest of the sisters. They will do really good work here and baptize a lot of I am not worried. Sister Truman is going to Setubal (same city as sister Conrad but a different ward/area), she already had 3 transfers here so I thought she would leave and I would get another companion.  I am sad to leave Seixal because the ward here is incredible and the people here are WAY receptive. But since I only have 6 weeks I don’t feel that attached to the area. I would of liked to serve here at least 2 other transfers.

We had to wait until last night to receive our new areas, but the call came and I will serve in FARO!!! It’s in the Algarve, and like the most Southern part of Portugal (So its way hot there most of the time). I am SUPER excited because I have wanted to serve in the Algarve for a lot of time so it should be good. Sister Conrad served there, it was her first area, and she LOVED it!  It is a little smaller and more like Mafra, which is good.  They have a branch there which I am excited about.  I was a little overwhelmed with a ward here…. BUT I am going to a WHITEWASH (meaning that its going to be two new missionaries in the area together) and I am SO nervous. I have said since my first transfer that I never want to whitewash.. so we will see how this goes. We may end up a little lost but hey, we will learn a lot. My companion is Sister Rubio and she’s from BRAZIL!! I am excited to serve with a native again, and I know my Portuguese will get a lot better so I am excited about that!!! She only has 2 more transfers left on her mission so I am excited to work hard and learn a ton from her! Also I will probably kill her because she only has 2 more transfers on her mission. But she served in Mafra last transfer so that will be way fun to talk about all my people with her!! It will be a great transfer if we can find our way around the city hahahha plz pray for me!!

On a sadder note I found out that they closed Mafra. I am way sad about this because that’s the city I was born in and it had my whole heart!! But its a really hard area and we are losing a lot of missionaries in the next few transfers so it just didn’t make sense to keep it open :( Everyone keep Felyphe in your prayers that he can stay strong without missionaries there (he is doing great right now! He got the priesthood yesterday and has a testimony SO strong).  This is so hard because Felyphe is SO strong there right now, but Mem Martins is like an hour away and 10 euros every week and he doesnt have that much money. I am really worried about him and what he will do. ON a brighter note is got the priesthood yesterday and he bore his testimony last fast Sunday (which is HUGE for him!!! He is so shy!!) 

Also I am way sad to leave Seixal! The ward here is SO good. They help so much with the missionary work and are all so sweet. Also I am most sad to leave Mayara, our recent convert, and her mom, Elisangela! Elisangela will be baptized on Saturday and I am so excited for her! Its sad because Algarve is like 3 hours away so I won’t be able to attend the baptism (I have the worst luck with baptisms and transfers) but I know she is so ready and it will bring their family SO much happiness!! We have one last lesson with them tonight, but I am going to miss our visits with them! They really are incrível and were prepared to receive the gospel!!  I am so happy for Elisangela! She is so ready!! Her story is pretty incredible too! She talked with the sisters like 10 years ago, but then decided she wasn’t interested more. Then we taught Mayara and she was baptized and at the baptism of Mayray Elisangela felt the spirit telling her that this church is the right church to join. She has never been baptized in any church before so she always wanted too, but never could find one that was right. But now she knows that this one is right and that there was a reason that none of them felt right until this church. I am so excited for her and will be a day really special!! 

 Other than that our week has been good. Some members are sad to see us go.. others just yell "TRAITORS" and storm off hahahah-

Also we had divisions in Setubal this week and a cat peed on my foot. And I was wearing flats. And people wonder why I don’t like animals.

Also a creepy man was following us and asked if we liked Donald Trump.. I was with a sister who is only on her 2nd transfer so she didn’t really understand what he was saying so I just responded yes.. he then just said "I don’t want anything to do with you guys" and walked away. SO yea I found a way to get rid of the creepers. The sister was way confused what happened and I just said "I said we like Donald Trump" hahaha

But yea this week has been a rollercoaster.. I am sad to leave Seixal and this awesome ward, but I know I am needed in Faro. It will be a good area and a good transfer!!

The worst part about this is because our area is getting whitewashed we will have all of our bags, and then I am entering a whitewash I am going to an area with all of our bags, and we wont even know how to find our house HAHAHHA I will die. Literally DIE!! Plz pray for me. 

But yea it will be fun to serve with sister Rubio! We did splits with her my first transfer and she is a really good missionary! I will learn a lot and we will work really hard which I am excited about!! But I just really don’t like moving areas so I already know that this week will be difficult 

Com Muito Amor,

Sister Jones

A Good Week

Olá Todos! 

We had a good week here in Seixal, Portugal!! We are working hard, searching for new people, and loving all the people that we have!! 

Glad you learned how to pronounce Seixal from the Portuguese servers on the cruise, but I kinda want to know how you guys were pronouncing it before. hahaha all of the areas names are SO funny when Americans (that don’t speak Portuguese) say them. But yea Mafra is a lot prettier than Seixal, but the ward here in Seixal is literally gold. I don’t think I will ever serve in another area with a ward TÂO BOM. But yea there are some Indian people here too.. and Asian. but mostly just African and Portuguese and some Brazilians. 

Also we decided on Tuesday to do a Valentines Day lunch for ourselves (because missions are all about celebrating the little holidays). So we bought heart shaped pasta and red sauce (our type of cooking), tried to make heart shaped cookies (emphasis on tried), and red jello. Also found some wine glasses in our apartment so we used those to have a way classy Valentines Day lunch. It was way funny and fun! Sister Truman is way fun I love her! I We have a lot of fun together! I really hope that we can stay together next transfer but I have a feeling we might get split apart :( we will see on Sunday. Its way hard to adjust to a new comp and see how they teach and work and how to work together, but after like 2 weeks its fine. But yea the first little bit together is never that fun.. so it would be great if she could just stay here!! 

This week we also had a visit from Elder Soares from the seventy! It was even better because he is from Brazil so we could all speak Portuguese!! IT was SO GOOD! It was all the way in Algarve, so we left our apartment at 6:15 AM and didn’t return until 10:40 PM. We had a 4-hour bus ride, and then a day full of learning and growing spiritually!! It was SO GOOD! They talked a lot about changes and how we are constantly changing, but we have to make the choice everyday to change for the good. The power to change is a gift from God.. we always have to look to the future and aim to be better everyday. Elder Soares talked a lot about the importance of our calls also, we are here for a specific reason and we should let all of the rejection make us think otherwise, or make us wish we were in a mission with people more receptive. Don’t let the rejections discourage you because we are right where we are supposed to be at the right time. He also talked a lot about missionaries who act with faith and different qualities they have. I have so many things I need to change and so many attributes I have to develop, but I am determined to work hard and serve with ALL of my heart, might, mind, and strength! He left us with a challenge to determine our biggest weakness, and tackle it. Then go from there and tackle all of them. That is something I am doing everyday and trying to be better everyday. It was so good and I left wanted to work harder than ever before!! 

Also I finished the Book of Mormon in PORUGUESE in 20 days!! It was hard at times (especially during the Isaiah chapters) but it was so worth it. Not only did my language abilities get better, but my knowledge of the scriptures. But most of all I felt SO much closer to my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know that through the Livro de Mormon we can learn and grow closer to Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for my Savior. I know for a fact that He lived for all of us, and He died for all of us, and it is through Him that we can gain eternal life. 

Also at the conference this week almost all of our group from the MTC was together again and it was so fun to talk to them!! And talk to them in Portuguese!! Who would of though that we would be fluent in Portuguese one day?? In the MTC I never thought this day would arrive. 

OHHH also I decided to chop my hair today. I was sick of my long hair with this wind and humid weather, so I just walked into a salon. It is WAY shorter than I wanted, and also not the most even haircut in the world.. but hey hair grows.. Also I think it is an unwritten rule that every missionary has to have a bad haircut at least once in the mission, so at least I am getting mine over with in the beginning. 

Hope you all have a great week and remember to read the Book of Mormon everyday!!! 

Com Amor,

Sister Jones

The Rain Came Down

Hello everyone!! 

Hope you all had a great week!! This week it rained. a lot. I don’t want to talk about the ridiculous amount of money I have spent on umbrellas here in Portugal. I think I am on my 6th umbrella here... wind and rain just aren’t my friend. 

To answer my mom…We live in an apartment complex. This one isn’t that big. We live on the 3rd floor (the top floor) Its actually an apartment of someone in the ward who died and gave it to the church, and elders lived here not that long ago. In other words things are very old and we find gross things in closets some times.. Its been fun. I left my sheets in Mafra because I didn’t have enough room and every apartment has sheets.. also I still have my blanket but it would of been so easy to just buy one here. I don’t know why I stressed about little things like this but didn’t think about other things that they don’t have here (like bringing more makeup or deodorant haha) 

I like the new missionary schedule. Its good, but at the same time we have a lot less time to study. Its different for every mission so for ours President decided we only need half an hour of companion study and a lot of times we don’t have enough time in the day to do it if we have lunch with a member.. but we are getting used to it and its nice to have some free time at night. Its been good with reading the Book of Mormon. I am already in Ether and should finish on Wednesday so its been good to just read for an hour every night haha. 

But anyways we had a good week here! We have been tracking down some less actives here. Its hard to find people at home (or more like hard to find people who will open the door for us), but this week we have found a lot of less actives at home who let us in and talk to them! I am excited to work with them and help them receive the blessings of the gospel in their lives again! 

But yea I really don’t have much to say this week in this email so here’s a warning that this email will be pretty lame. You can stop reading now and scroll down for the pictures. 

This week we haven’t had anything exciting happen like broken fridges, messed up washing machines. I mean we did run out of gas as I was trying to make chocolate chip cookies, on a Sunday when we couldn’t buy anymore gas so that was really sad. Maybe even worse is the fact that my hair is way greasy but I am refusing to wash it in ice cold water #vida. Yes here in Portugal you have to buy gas for your apartment and you never know when it will run out.. also ovens are gas and not electric which is probably one of the worst things ever!

Yesterday night we stopped by the inactive family that we found last week. Their names are Erica and Filomena. I already love them so much. We got there and they insisted on us eating dinner with them (they are from Cape Verde and they don’t take no for an answer when it comes to food there). They literally served me the biggest plate of food, and while the food was good I thought I was going to die. I was so full and I was only half way through my plate. I finally ate all that I could and tried to hide a little bit of the food on the plate. But Filomena did not let that fly. She gave me that look and said "we don’t leave any food on the plate in this house". So in other words, I am still full today from our dinner last night. 

Also yesterday we had a church meeting that was so good. The spirit was really strong there and I was just to grateful for the opportunity we have every week to go to church, feel the spirit, and take the sacrament. It is such a blessing in our lives and I think I take it for advantage too many times. Also during relief society our lesson was on being optimistic. It was a really good lesson! One thing I have learned, and am continuing to learn, is how big of a difference an attitude can make. There are so many things we can’t control, but the one thing we can control is how we react. It’s all about finding joy in the journey. And that is one thing we have to do a lot here as missionaries. Find things everyday that can make us laugh and lift our spirits. È vida boa!! Also love President Hinckley and all of his teaching! 

But yea I think that’s all I got this week for you guys! Hope you have a great week, continuing choosing the right, and say your prayers!! 

Love you all!! (Oh also Happy Valentines Day :)

Sister Jones~

I've Been Serving for Six Months!

Hello!!!

We had a great week and saw lots of miracles here in Seixal!!

 It started off like a normal week working hard and finding people to teach. We were kinda in a post baptism slump because we focused on Mayara so much the past few weeks, and realized we don’t have many other investigators this week. But we have been working hard and finding new people here in Seixal!

We had a lesson with a reference. She was 15, but has a family who is incredible. She is the only one interested, but her family is so sweet and supportive. They are from France so they only speak French at home. We had dinner with them one night and I literally felt like I was at the beginning of my mission all over again when I couldn’t understand anything, I am SO grateful I will never have to relive those first few weeks in Portugal hahahaha. But is was a really good lesson and she came to church yesterday and really liked it! Our ward here is awesome and takes all of our investigators under their wings right away!!

The primary is really big here! I really like the ward here! It works like our ward back at home basically. Of course it is a little less organized and everyone is a convert so isn’t the same structure, but its really rare for Portugal here to have a ward like this. Its good. 

We have also been praying a lot for the opportunity to teach the mom of Mayara. She came to the baptism and felt the spirit really strong there. Mayara said that after the baptism the only thing she said was "I’m next for baptism". We have been trying really hard to teach her, but she has a really busy schedule and wasn’t that willing to let us teach her. But then on Sunday she just showed up to church! And we talked afterward and she let us come over and teach her. She is really interested and wants to be baptized! We marked her for 19 of February so it should be a day really special!

 Also yesterday we were walking to an appointment, but we saw a mom and daughter struggling with their grocery bags. So we stopped and asked to help, they let us help (which rarely happens) and we started talking. Turns out that they were baptized 4 years ago in Mem Martins and were really active, but then they moved here about a year ago and didn’t know where the church was so they just stopped going. They let us in their house, and we talked to them, ate a cute little brunch, and they said they want to return to church!! They said they have been looking for the church for awhile but then just gave up after some time. This was such a humbling experience to see how Heavenly Father will put people in our paths, and that is why it is so important to talk to everyone we see in the street!! They are so sweet and I am excited to work with them!

Also we had lunch with the Bishop and their family yesterday. I really like the Bishop here and he is available to help us whenever we need it! He helped us figure out which less actives we should work with and where to start with our huge ward list that we have. I also bonded with his wife a lot because she loves Grey´s Anatomy. There house was so cute and they just have the cutest little family. I am really grateful for them!

 Also this week our fridge broke. I am convinced I have the worst luck in the world, I am always having problems here in the field. I don’t really know what happened, but we called the financial elders and they told us to unplug it, let everything melt, and then try again. We did this during the day and then returned at night to find weird brown liquid all over our fridge. It was so gross, and we had no idea what to do. SO naturally I decided we should just mop our fridge.. so that’s what we did. I will attach a photo to show you the life of missionaries.

 Also this week we literally ran a mile trying to figure out what bus stop was right, ended up missing our bus. And then sprinted to catch the other one. My track and field skills are coming in handy... man these are the adventures that no one can prepare you for. hahahha we slept really good that night for sure.

 And then last night our district leader decided to play a joke on us and sent a text that it was Pday of consagração. Basically Pday would end at 3 and then we would just have a normal day of work. We started planning out when we will grocery shop and do email and getting everything sorted out when he called and said he was just joking and we have a normal Pday. SO lets just say we are appreciating this day A LOT more hahah. Sometimes you don’t know what you got until you (almost) lose it.

The Produce here is basically the same. They have the same fruits. They also have others that are more tropical! They are good, but we don’t really buy them because some of them are hard to eat and I like our basic oranges and bananas like at home. But with members and stuff I have tried others... they’re good. The veggies are basically the same I think. 

I am reading the war chapters in Alma right now. I am reading in Portuguese and really surprised I have gotten so far and could understand everything, or mostly everything. It’s been good. We have to read about 25 pages a day to stay on track. It’s hard when we don’t have much time during the day, and have to study PMG during personal study, but we have been making it work. 

Also this week my body has been doing some weird things. On Wednesday we have interviews with President so we went to Lisboa. I was completely fine. We return eat lunch, and then have 1 hour of studies. After that we were preparing to leave and I started feeling way sick. It was so weird.. right before leaving I ran to the bathroom and threw everything up. But then I felt fine so I just brushed my teeth and we left. I didn’t want to miss our appointments that night. But then the rest of the week I haven’t been feeling 100 percent and have the worst heartburn everyday. I don’t know what it is, but I have just continued and not said anything about it because its not bad enough to stop our work.. so yea its been weird. But I hope this week I start feeling better. 

 OHHH also this week was 6 months!! Our day was so crazy that I didn’t even realize it was 6 months as a missionary!! It’s defiantly been the longest/hardest/most tiring/most rewarding/happiest 6 months of my life. I am so excited to still have a year to do this amazing work here in Portugal!!

 Have a great week!! Thanks for all the support!

Sister Jones!