Merry Christmas from the hottest and most humid part of the entire world and maybe the entire universe!

Elder Olivier is a trainer now and we are so happy for him that his new companion speaks English too!  It sounds like things are going really well!  We are also super excited to get to Skype with Elder Olivier on Christmas Day!....only 4 MORE DAYS!!!

Here is his email!!:


Hi everybody!

First off, I want to just say that I love you all! And I hope you all have an awesome Christmas! Christmas is always the best part of the year!

Anyway, this week was pretty crazy. First off, on Wednesday everyone who was getting a new companion from the MTC had to pick up their companion. So I rode the bus with just about all of the missionaries in our zone (almost all of the missionaries in our zone are training a new missionary, because the new group that came into the mission was huge) to the mission office. We waited there for a while, got our companions, drank a lot of Baré (a type of Guaraná Antarctica that only exists in Amazonas-it is kind of like cream soda), waited for a while again, then went back to our areas (we had to wait for one member to drive everybody back).

So my companion is named Elder De Castro, and he is from Bahia, Brasil. He is pretty much already a super good missionary, plus he´s super excited to work, and (BONUS POINTS!) he speaks super good english. Once, he visited the United States. He went to Utah and California (all of the Brazilian members of the church who go to the United States visit Utah, haha). So anyway, when he went to Utah, he walked into Deseret Book, and met Dieter F. Uchtdorf. Of course, in Utah, inside Deseret Book.

So this week we pretty much just spent finding new investigators. We have a ton of new people to teach next week, which is exciting. And, we finally got all of the paperwork and stuff to get a couple named Bea and Ney married. So by the end of this transfer they should be married and baptized (finally!)!

Anyway, we have been handing out tons of these little cards with links to some awesome videos about Christmas. The videos are at christmas.mormon.org. A lot of times, we get caught up in a lot of things that don´t really matter around Christmas time, and we lose sight of what Christmas is for. It´s to celebrate the most pivotal event in the history of the world, the birth and the life of our Savior. He suffered and atoned for us so that we can live with Him and with our families for ever. Jesus Christ lives, and this is His church. I know that now more than I have ever known it in my life!

I hope you all have the best Christmas ever! 

Love, 

Elder Olivier

Elder Olivier's new companion, Elder De Castro!  Elder Olivier has been assigned to train Elder De Castro.

All the rain!!!