Semana 13

Wow I can´t believe that is is semana 13 and I have been here in the field for over 2 months now. We have a new missionary in the house now I think I mentioned and he is from California and when I explain things a little in English its very very difficult to speak English. I know the words but the Portuguese leaves my mouth every single time lol. This is a good thing!!!

This week has been an adventure to say the least lol. I want to start with a story about how food was this week. yes, I had lunch everyday and sometimes I had dinner actually but this is about food that I have never had before and wont touch again lol....

We had lunch this week with a member at a buffet that I have never been to in this area. We are serving our plates and I mean pilling our plates up because well its a buffet and I am really really hungry not only from our walk but because I am always ready for food. I come across this one dish that looked like chicken and tomato sauce so I ask Elder Quaresma What is this? he said: its chicken! So loving chicken I pile it on top of my rice and beans and I am very excited to eat this food now! I have by rice beans and chicken and some salad because health lol. I pray for the food and then I look at the "chicken" a little more and then look at Elder Quaresma and look back at the chicken and it looks like the skin of a chicken when you pluck the feathers...... I think "this is not chicken"  I try it and its the most sour fatty tasting thing ever! After that I asked Elder Quaresma "What is this?" he said: Its stomach... what stomach I asked? He said: lamb stomach..... Lol "that's it I'm going home" I thought to myself!! Not to mention I already had been feeling sick today with a runny nose and a sore throat this is the last thing I wanted. And because I had a runny nose and sore throat the flavor stuck in my throat all day.... I don't remember the name in Portuguese but I recognize the name when people say it and I was warned of this before my mission... To the date the worst thing I have ever had and this includes how much I hate yogurt with fruit chunks inside lol.

We had splits with Elder Pettingill this week and he said that his mom knows you mom so I thought that was pretty cool to mention. His area is awesome but it has lots of hills and I mean they aren't little. Almost mountains lol Elder Pettingill is from Sacramental California as well as every other missionary from California is lol! But it rained all day in his area and we walked a lot. I think his area is 3 times the size of mine lol.

We had new investigators last week and they knew us before we had a lesson. Their 14 year old daughter is crazy to say the least. She tried to take a photo of me during the lesson which I was not expecting but I caught her when she almost took it and she put the phone out of reach after. She is known to have stalked my Facebook as well. Same family that said if she gets baptized you take her back to America with you ... kinda a crazy family in general lol. So our recent convert Brenda has a crazy dog that always barks and wont stop so we started to spray the dog with a water bottle every time and its the funniest thing because Brenda is okay with this as well because they don't like that the dog barks all the time!!

I think I have more photos coming from this past week. But I love you all so much and cant wait to send another email this coming next week for you all. I miss home sometimes but when I think of it I have grown so much here in the 3 months then I would have in a year home. I love this service and the people in my life right now and at times I love the struggle of a new language. Its coming and soon enough I will have an accent lol. Maybe! 

Love you all!!

-Elder Hammond