Zone Conference was Great!

Terciera

Hi everyone!

Sorry I couldn't write yesterday, and I only have a little time to write today...so here goes:

To answer poppy's question first:

No, teaching Relief Society is not part of a calling that I have. It was just an assignment for that one time, but it went really great and I think it helped us have a better relationship with the members. I got to meet everyone that way and formally introduce myself. Anyway, it turned out really great. I was able to speak in Portuguese really well and easily, which was a blessing, so people just think that I always know what is going on...little do they know...na, it's really not bad. Every day gets better. It's just the accent here is so different!

1. Where did your other suitcase end up? Will you get it at some point during your stay or not?
My other suitcase is at the office back on the continent and I don't get it here in the Açores. I have to wait until I go back to the continent to get the rest of my stuff.

2. Do you need us to send you anything you could not bring with you?
No, I don't need anything. But, I got your package and it was amazing! I loved it! Thank you thank you thank you! I cannot thank you enough! I really felt your love with all of the things you bought me! I am doing great!

3. How many missionaries are in the Azores? How many on the island of Sao Miguel? Is the Azores its own zone?
In the Açores, there are 14 missionaries. There are six on the island of Terceira and 8 on the Island of Sao Miguel. We just had zone conference yesterday (during p-day, so I couldn't write you, sorry) and the missionaries from Terceira had to ride a plane over to our island so that we could have zone conference together. And, President Torgan, Irma Torgan, and the assistants rode on a plane to come out here. Also, it works a little differently here on the islands. We have two zone leaders, but one stays on the island of Sao Miguel and the other is on the island of Terceira. We also have the Koskis, who are a couple that work on our island. They are amazing! I love them. They work in the archives at the library and take photographs of old records of the island and send the photos to Salt Lake so that they can be put onto the internet for usage of genealogy work. It is really cool. Last p-day, we went and visited them and they showed me what they do all of the time. At night, they usually come with us on teaching appointments, which is way fun. They are working on their Portuguese, so it is good to have other people who are learning here with me :) I really love them and they take good care of us.

4. Tell us about your companion. Where is she from? How long has she been out? In what other cities has she served? How is her Portuguese?
Irma Howard is from Minnesota. She knows Lynda. She started last June, so she has been out for almost a year. She started serving in Portamao--in the Algarve of Portugal, which is in the south. It is a hot vacation spot that everyone in Portugal goes to. She also served in Almada for only three weeks, and then she has served here in the Açores for one and half transfers before this one. So, I think that we will be together here for at least two transfers, maybe more. I also feel like I am going to stay here for awhile, which is just great. Her Portuguese is pretty good, but her accent is very American. I think that is why a lot of people think that I am from Brazil because my accent is different from hers. I have heard that my accent sounds like all sorts of things, but basically what I heard is that I will soon "choose" what kind of accent I will have. I think my accent is interesting now because I had teachers who served in Mozambique and Brazil and I had an Angolan trainer and I am teaching Portuguese people. So, my accent is kind of messed up because of all of the different accents I hear all of the time. Oh, and now I have an American companion, so that probably will influence my accent. Anyway, her Portuguese is pretty good, but she said she had a lot of trouble learning the language, so she always tells me how impressed she is with my Portuguese. I think it's genetic because both my parents have talents with languages, so it kind of comes easier to me I think...

5. Tell us about your branch. How many people attend? How long has it existed? How many branches are in your city? On your island? In the Azores?
My branch is absolutely amazing. There are us and a set of elders that go to our branch. The attendance is around 65 right now, which is good, but we want to get it up to about 100 so that more areas can be opened here in the Açores. It has existed for a while. The capela that we use now is new from the one they used to have and it is really pretty. There is only one branch in my city, but there are two branches on the island. And in the Açores, there are three branches on Terceira, but one of them is an American branch because there is an American base on Terceira and the missionaries don't work in that branch.

Other news:
Zone conference was amazing! We also had interviews at the same time. My interview with President Torgan was awesome because I can understand everything he says now. He has such love for missionaries and I can really feel it. Just the whole day was great for learning. Basically he told me that the Lord trusts me and that he trusts me and that is why he sent me to the island so early in my mission. He says that he only sends missionaries who are really great to the island because it is so far away from Portugal. So that was definitely a boost.

Also, in RS/Priesthood, President Torgan told everyone to kneel down together and say a prayer about references to give to the missionaries. And we got 340 references from them! It was awesome! We have so much work to do here.

Also, another miracle that happened this week is that we have been looking and praying and fasting for families to teach and this past weekend we found three girls playing in the street on a road we were knocking. They said that they were cousins. We said that we were here to share a message with families. All three of them got excited and said that they would show us to their families. All of their families accepted us and now we are teaching three families! I am so impressed with the miracles that I am seeing here. We are going back to all of them tonight, so I have so much hope for teaching them. We just have to get them to church and baptized...:)

Anyway, it sounds like the weekend was packed with fun! Oh, my...I can't believe you all pulled out the family videos...how embarrassing. Has anyone else ever noticed that the family videos only caught embarrassing moments of me? Yeah, awkward...

That would be great if Alex could go to University of Maryland for grad school and live close to you guys. That would be a blast. I am glad to hear that everyone is in good health and happiness. Are Alex and Maggie doing spring and summer semester so they can graduate early? How are they doing? When does Jessie leave again? Is she home right now?

Sounds like everyone is great...that was a funny story about not being able to find the car...although I am sure it wasn't that funny when it happened.

Anyway, I have to run, but until next week. The Açores are great. I love you all so much to the moon and back.

Fica Bem,

Irma Perez