January 6, 2014

Dear Family and Friends,

Happy New Year! 2014!! How exciting! New Years is always a great time of year because it is a time to reflect, celebrate and start fresh. Here in Brazil, New Years is as big as Christmas. Everyone throws huge parties and at midnight the sky is full of fireworks. I was able to celebrate New Year’s with my companion Sister Barros as well as two other sisters (Sister Menezes and Sister Shepherd). We had dinner with a family we have been teaching and then had our own little party. We stood on the roof of our house (totally safe I promise mom) and watched the fireworks and looked over the city of Ananindeua. It was magical! Crazy to think one year ago I had not even opened my mission call and was at home celebrating, then did one more semester at BYU, opened my mission call, started my mission in June, Received my visa in July, have learned Portuguese, already lived in Brazil 6 months and now with transfers yesterday am staying in Ananindeua (Cidade Nova) but with a new Companion a(Sister Vargas) and will be serving as senior Companion. Who would have thought my life could change so drastically in one year!? I love to take time and reflect on where my life has taken me and I know that it is divinely guided. The Lord truly has a plan for each of us. He definitely knows when to push us out of our comfort zone and what we personally need in order to grow. That is the purpose of this life. To learn and grow in order to reach our potential. It is a test that if we rely on Him, we will receive more blessings that we can even imagine. His plan is perfect! Remember to put the Lord first in your life and He will direct the rest. 

 

I love you all and am excited to see what this year has in store for each of us!

 

Love Always,

<3 Sister Sender

 

Cultural:

-milk is sold in a box or powder form as well as most canned foods. They are stored in little sealed cardboard boxes. 

- they don’t use garbage bags. They use grocery bags

- they have a place to glue your envelopes shut in the post office because the humidity would seal the pre-stick envelopes (that happened to all of mine haha) 

- they sell live crabs on bikes in the streets. (they are tied together 100+ lives crabs) 

 

Random: 

I ate liver and pig fat on Saturday (not a fan)  

I ate oysters and tentacles yesterday (imported from Rio de Janerio pretty cool)

they eat the entire chicken/animal... including cow hooves and tongue

Everyone calls me a Barbie or doll and think my rosy cheeks= blush.... yeah.. no it is because it is hot here haha 

 

Love you all!