October 18, 2011 Email

This week has been somewhat uneventful, as much as I love the MTC/CTM Im ready to get out of here. I'm still learning a ton from my teachers, and study times but it will be so much different when i am actually out in the field. To find investigators, teach them and be fully enveloped in the language. I can't wait to be walking around the city all day. The CTM has prepared me so much, but nothing will be like actually being out there. You can only teach your teacher so many times before it starts to get old. But like i said I've loved my time here and in Provo.

This was my first week with another new companion and a new district and new teachers. So 4 different companions (counting the 2 for the trio), 3 districts, and 6 teachers all in my 7 weeks at the MTC/CTM. My newest companion is Elder Robdison hes a really good guy and works hard at the language. Hes had a tough time understanding but hes been getting better each day which is awesome to watch. Luckily my understanding has shot out of the roof compared to 3 weeks ago when i got here. I can definately see how the average is 6 months and I'll understand pretty much everything. It's so weird to think I'll be completely fluent by the time Im home. Ill be able to say Im bilingual!. So Sick. Oh and this week were getting 6 more missionaries from Provo for our district. 104 got their visas this week and 39 are coming here to the CTM. The rest finally get to get to their actual missions from their reassignments. Pretty exciting stuff. 3 of those ones coming are going to my mission and 1 who is a Sister was in my district in Provo.

Today the Brazilian Elders that came in on the day i got here all left and it stinks. Those Elders were the best and helped me out a lot. And they made my nickname mococco branco (white monkey) because i east so many bananas haha. I know i was sent here at the time i was for a reason. I needed my month in Provo to set up good study habits and I needed to be here to start learning the culture and to love the people. Even if i cant speak the language right away at least I can show my love for them and how happy I am to be here in BRasil.

I can already see my life, thoughts, and actions changing day by day. Almost everday I'll hear or read something that will strike a memory and all I think is what was I doing. There is so much more i could have done to share the gospel especially in high school and work. Instead I chose to just skate along. I think i was an okay at best example for the church but again I could have been so much better and done so much more. My mission has been a life changer and I'm only 2 months in. I'm probably going to be one of those weirdos when i first get back that doesn't want to do anything. But hopefully Ill get back into the swing of things and not stay too weird. Just different. And maybe people will be able to see a difference and want to know why. Thats all 2 years away though so I wont worry about that too much right now.

What i do know right now is that I am the happiest ive ever been and im learning and teaching the thing that brings the most joy into my life besides my family, well even that my family is even more awesome because of the gospel. So its like a 1a and 1b. I love this Church, and i love the happiness that the gospel brings into my life.

Eu te Amo!

Elder Gleason

P.S. I've been watching the mormon.org videos they are super sweet if anybody hasnt watched them, go and check it out!

October 11, 2011 Email

I didn't think it was possible, but weeks are going by even faster here in Brasil. I've already been here for 2 weeks, crazy. Whats even crazier to think about though is that I only have 3 weeks left in the CTM. And then its out to the real world again and being completely immersed in portuguese.

I've been noticing a significant change in the language for myself. I look forward each day to when I get to come back to the room and speak with m brazilian roommates. Over this past week we've grown to become good friends, it helps that I am understanding more, and able to find a way to say what I want to with the little language I know. It stinks they leave next Tuesday (Terca-Feira) and in all honestly I probably will never see them again. Even when I come back to Brazil later on in life the chances to see them all is extremely slim. So thats how it goes and will go I guess, make friends for a few weeks and then yeah thats pretty much it.

But on a happier note, our lessons and Training Resource Center (TRC) have been going really well. We teach sometimes 3 times a day and at least once everyday. The teachers definately arent afraid to hold back judgement either which is extremely helpful. Weve heard a ton of things that are helping us to teach more effectively and prepare us for actual invsetigators instead of being the perfect ones who accept everything we say. And of course right as the 3 of us (my companions and I) are starting to understand how to work together while we teach, I'm changing districts and getting a new companion. The last 2 weeks I've been with Elders who are a week behind me but starting Wednesday (Quarta-Feira) we will have 4 Elders that are my week and will have our own district. Which will be good because now I will get everything I am supposed to learn instead of missing a week. So this will be a good thing.

The other thing I feel like talking about is finding the good in everything. This has really been and will be put to the test with me on my mission. It is not easy to work with someone 24/7 you will always find things you might not like about the person. We can find the good or the bad in anyone or anything it all depends on our outlook on it. I think its one thing I'm going to learn a lot from on my mission is being able to find a way to work with anyone. It takes a little while and is sometimes really frustrating but if we can show love and patience I know we will find something good in everyone. When that happens everything goes a whole lot smoother, I can testify to that.

Anywho so letters yeah they take forever. For our district of 7 Elders we have received a whopping 1 letter in the 2 weeks we've been here. That is one thing i don't know if ill ever get used to about Brasil. Its tough not being able to hear from family and friends quickly. But then I remember its only 2 years of my life and I think ill stick with it. The good outways the bad tremendously haha. However it takes so long they advised us to start giving out the mission president office address which is were the letters SHOULD be sent for the remainder of my 2 years in Brasil. This is the most sure way to know I will get them all. So this is my last new address for the rest of the 2 years. So get writing I want to hear from everybody.

Elder James Richard Gleason

Rua Dr. Rui Batista Pereia, 165

Caxingui 05571-080

Sao Paulo, SP, Brasil

Eu te amo!

Elder Gleason

First Email From Brazil! October 4, 2011

BRASIL!

I don't even know where to begin, there is so much stuff to talk about and I know I wont even come close to saying it all. First off my new address for the rest of this month until i go to the field is

Elder James Richard Gleason

Mailbox #29 District 36-A

Sao Paulo Brazil CTM

Rua Padre Antonio D'angelo, 121

Casa Verde CEP 02516-040

Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil

Letters are going to take a whole lot longer to get here now but it'll all work out. They said on average it takes about a week each way...if theres no prblems with the post office. To those I told to wait to write me back until I sent my new address home..you can write me back before I write you :)

Anywho, so Brasil is absolutely amazing! In Sao Paulo the weather is perfection because it is spring right now. We have a huge window that we can open in our room and the skyline..phew. Makes NYC look like nothing. Basically the whole 180 degrees i can see is full of skyscrapers, its crazy. I find myself just staring out the window for long periods of time trying to take it all in. Thinking this is where I get to live for the next 2 years. It stinks the time is going to fly by. Oh yeah and on P-Days we have a set area around the CTM that we can walk around the city so we're not enclosed like in Provo haha.

However, our P-Days dont have as much free time because getting to the temple and back takes awhile. So thats what my morning was, but so worth it! A templo de Sao Paulo e muito bonita!! its just right in the middle of the city kind of like Manhattan..but not at the same time. The temple grounds are so awesome, theres a huge fountain in the front that is so sick.

The other HUGE difference is having Brazilian Elders all over. As opposed to just a few. We have (oh yeah and I'm in a trio until tomorrow when we get another Elder from Provo) 2 Brazilion roommates! They spoke zero English when they came in on Thursday so it was really hard to try to get to know them at all and have an actual conversation. But they slowly have picked up some English because they all want to learn it, and I'm definately learning how to hold a regular conversation in Portuguese. As opposed to just gospel and church related like it has been so far. So yeah it is awesome to have them in our room and it makes me learn and understand a lot more. Also everyone here is super nice and everyone keeps telling us thats how all of Brasil is. I know I'm going to love the people here because I already do. All I need to work on now is how to get the things I want to say across in a new language. NBD

Lastly a quick touch on conference this weekend. How great it was, am i right?! I just wanted to sit and listen to more and more i don't know what i was thinking not paying attention to it ever before. They are truly called of God and know what we need to hear and how we need to hear it. The next 3 times I listen to it it will be in portuguese, what an experience that will be! A couple quotes I really liked from conference real quick since I cant type them all out.

"Let us be as quick to kneel as we are to text." -Ian S. Ardern

"Take as your weapon the word of God."-Elder Jeffrey R Holland

I love the gospel. I love the work that I am doing. And I absolutely love being a missionary!!

With much love from Brasil

Elder Gleason