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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Trick or Treat Amazon Style
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
The Baptism of Marcilene
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
The Baptism of Cleiciane
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Friday, November 6, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Carving Pumpkins
Hello Family and Friends,
All went well with the baptisms of Marcilene and Cleiciane. There were quite a few people in attendance, which was nice to see the support of the ward. Right now, we are focusing on 2 more people who have baptismal dates marked in the near future (within the next two weeks). Maria José will be baptized on the 8th and, if all goes well, Hamayana (the street contact) will be baptized on the 15th of November. As for those who have potential after I leave, there will be the wedding and baptism of Wellington and Erika in January as well as several other possibilities for December.
Halloween was pretty cool. For the first time in a while, we were able to carve pumpkins and attend a member's (Suzanna Leite) little Halloween party. It's still a far cry from a good, old Halloween party back home, but it was cool nonetheless considering Halloween generally doesn't get celebrated in Brazil.
The weather here is starting to change to what they call "winter." In other words, essentially it rains a little bit more than average, which may require the need to carry an umbrella or rain jacket.
Something that has made the whole Financial Secretary experience a bit more interesting lately is the fact that we have to switch over to a new payment system called iMOS. As a result, this past week we spent 4 hours watching training videos, which as you can imagine were extremely interesting. Despite the fact that Missão Brasil Manaus gained more territory and missionaries not long ago, making it one of the largest missions in the world, the mission is shrinking in numbers. Every transfer, approximately 16 people go home and we only receive about 8 to replace them. Unfortunately, that means areas are being shut down and that's generally not a good thing for the new members in the area.
I still don't have the slightest clue where I'm going to be headed after the office, but my work here in Flores is nearly done. The area has grown tremendously and is now one of the highest baptizing areas in the West Zone!!!!
That's all I have for this week. Everyone else has been kind of sick so they're dragging and nothing too terribly exciting has happened. The training continues to go well.
Abraço,
Elder Taylor Mackay
All went well with the baptisms of Marcilene and Cleiciane. There were quite a few people in attendance, which was nice to see the support of the ward. Right now, we are focusing on 2 more people who have baptismal dates marked in the near future (within the next two weeks). Maria José will be baptized on the 8th and, if all goes well, Hamayana (the street contact) will be baptized on the 15th of November. As for those who have potential after I leave, there will be the wedding and baptism of Wellington and Erika in January as well as several other possibilities for December.
Halloween was pretty cool. For the first time in a while, we were able to carve pumpkins and attend a member's (Suzanna Leite) little Halloween party. It's still a far cry from a good, old Halloween party back home, but it was cool nonetheless considering Halloween generally doesn't get celebrated in Brazil.
The weather here is starting to change to what they call "winter." In other words, essentially it rains a little bit more than average, which may require the need to carry an umbrella or rain jacket.
Something that has made the whole Financial Secretary experience a bit more interesting lately is the fact that we have to switch over to a new payment system called iMOS. As a result, this past week we spent 4 hours watching training videos, which as you can imagine were extremely interesting. Despite the fact that Missão Brasil Manaus gained more territory and missionaries not long ago, making it one of the largest missions in the world, the mission is shrinking in numbers. Every transfer, approximately 16 people go home and we only receive about 8 to replace them. Unfortunately, that means areas are being shut down and that's generally not a good thing for the new members in the area.
I still don't have the slightest clue where I'm going to be headed after the office, but my work here in Flores is nearly done. The area has grown tremendously and is now one of the highest baptizing areas in the West Zone!!!!
That's all I have for this week. Everyone else has been kind of sick so they're dragging and nothing too terribly exciting has happened. The training continues to go well.
Abraço,
Elder Taylor Mackay
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Boi Manaus...The Festa Zone
A View of Ponta Negra Beach
Out of the Water...Piranhas!!!!!!!!
Sun, Soda, and Good Friends
AHHH...Memories of the California Coast
The Famous Tropical Hotel
Life on the Rocks
Staff Family Portrait: Elders Reis, Mackay, Murray, Marinho, and Sant´Anna
Come Fly with Me
By Land, Air, or River...We'll Get it Done
Monkey See...Monkey Do
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
A View of Ponta Negra Beach
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Out of the Water...Piranhas!!!!!!!!
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Sun, Soda, and Good Friends
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
AHHH...Memories of the California Coast
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
The Famous Tropical Hotel
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Life on the Rocks
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Staff Family Portrait: Elders Reis, Mackay, Murray, Marinho, and Sant´Anna
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Come Fly with Me
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
By Land, Air, or River...We'll Get it Done
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Monkey See...Monkey Do
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Tropical (10/29/09)
The festivals in Manaus, that had music blasting until 3 a.m., have finally come to an end. This past week I had an interesting experience with both my companions. First off, Elder Reis went to get a tooth extracted, but he couldn't handle the anesthesia, so the doctor only started the procedure (gashed the inside of his mouth) and stitched it back up. Elder Murray then got pretty sick. Apparently, he had a bad fever, so that left just me and Elder Reis. Unfortunately, Elder Reis' stitches opened up, limiting his physical activity. Well...there go my companions. In order for us to teach at least some of the people we marked with appointments, it was necessary for me to call a ward member to do divisions. I called good ol' reliable Boby and he came to the rescue and helped last Saturday and Sunday. However...out of nowhere on Sunday, he faints on me and falls to the ground like a dead man for half an hour. It was crazy!!! That essentially ended the week besides a last minute effort by Elder Reis and me to do some street contacts Sunday evening.
In better news...in the midst of all the chaos, we were able to mark baptismal dates for four people, which is always exciting especially for Flores. We have been working lately with the family of a returned missionary, Guillierme, to help them get back in the swing of things. All but his father are members, but they have grown pretty inactive over the years. It looks like this Sunday they will be back...at least some of them.
This week there will be two baptisms, one on Saturday (Marcilene) and the other on Sunday (Cleiciane). One of them is from a street contact made a few months ago (they actually do pay off) and the other is a result of asking, "Who else?" and marking appointments with the new faces you see on Sunday (just so happens to be the sister of a member).
Our ward in Flores has flaked out on us the past few weeks with respect to providing lunch. I don't remember if it was this week or the last, but 4 out of the 7 days lunch fell through. This week we received money twice for lunch and it ended up being pretty nice. There is a place nearby that sells chow mien (the noodle, vegetable, and meat dish) for $5.00 USD. It is a nice change from the usual rice, beans, and chicken.
P-day was pretty cool. For the first time in just about forever, we left staff to go out and do something. We decided with all the hype Ponta Negra (home of the famous Tropical Hotel) was the place to go. At eight in the morning, we got dressed and hopped in the car to go to Ponta Negra. It was a cool drive. Once we got there, I felt as if I was at the beach, but it's just not the same. The water is brown, the sand is filthy, and if you look hard enough, you can see land on the other side (Iranduba). After a stroll on the beach, we headed over to the Tropical Hotel to check it out. I'm not going to lie, it's pretty legit. We had the chance to talk to one of the Cessna pilots that takes people on aerial tours of the Amazon (70 min $350 USD). We also checked out the hotel's zoo, which included several monkeys, birds, a jaguar, and other stuff. There were several Americans there and I enjoyed listening to them try to communicate with the hotel personnel. On both sides, the speech was less than perfect, but it made for a funny experience. In a few of the pictures, you can see a bridge off in the distance being constructed. Just to give you an idea of the progress, they started the bridge when I arrived in Compensa last year.
That's all I've got for this week. This transfer is passing ridiculously fast. After this week, I only have 2 more weeks and I'm out of the escritório. Tchauzão para todos.
Abraço,
Elder Taylor Mackay
In better news...in the midst of all the chaos, we were able to mark baptismal dates for four people, which is always exciting especially for Flores. We have been working lately with the family of a returned missionary, Guillierme, to help them get back in the swing of things. All but his father are members, but they have grown pretty inactive over the years. It looks like this Sunday they will be back...at least some of them.
This week there will be two baptisms, one on Saturday (Marcilene) and the other on Sunday (Cleiciane). One of them is from a street contact made a few months ago (they actually do pay off) and the other is a result of asking, "Who else?" and marking appointments with the new faces you see on Sunday (just so happens to be the sister of a member).
Our ward in Flores has flaked out on us the past few weeks with respect to providing lunch. I don't remember if it was this week or the last, but 4 out of the 7 days lunch fell through. This week we received money twice for lunch and it ended up being pretty nice. There is a place nearby that sells chow mien (the noodle, vegetable, and meat dish) for $5.00 USD. It is a nice change from the usual rice, beans, and chicken.
P-day was pretty cool. For the first time in just about forever, we left staff to go out and do something. We decided with all the hype Ponta Negra (home of the famous Tropical Hotel) was the place to go. At eight in the morning, we got dressed and hopped in the car to go to Ponta Negra. It was a cool drive. Once we got there, I felt as if I was at the beach, but it's just not the same. The water is brown, the sand is filthy, and if you look hard enough, you can see land on the other side (Iranduba). After a stroll on the beach, we headed over to the Tropical Hotel to check it out. I'm not going to lie, it's pretty legit. We had the chance to talk to one of the Cessna pilots that takes people on aerial tours of the Amazon (70 min $350 USD). We also checked out the hotel's zoo, which included several monkeys, birds, a jaguar, and other stuff. There were several Americans there and I enjoyed listening to them try to communicate with the hotel personnel. On both sides, the speech was less than perfect, but it made for a funny experience. In a few of the pictures, you can see a bridge off in the distance being constructed. Just to give you an idea of the progress, they started the bridge when I arrived in Compensa last year.
That's all I've got for this week. This transfer is passing ridiculously fast. After this week, I only have 2 more weeks and I'm out of the escritório. Tchauzão para todos.
Abraço,
Elder Taylor Mackay
Family and Friends at Ana Vitória Cooper de Oliveira's Baptism
Ana Gets a Hug from Her Primary President, Gisele Mesquita de Oliveira
Ana Dos Santos Leite Glória at Her Baptism with Family and Friends
The Three Amigos: Elders Reis, Murray, and Mackay with Ana on Her Big Day
Ana Surround by Family and Friends
Happy 8th Birthday, Ana!
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Ana Gets a Hug from Her Primary President, Gisele Mesquita de Oliveira
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Ana Dos Santos Leite Glória at Her Baptism with Family and Friends
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
The Three Amigos: Elders Reis, Murray, and Mackay with Ana on Her Big Day
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Ana Surround by Family and Friends
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Happy 8th Birthday, Ana!
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Os Guerreiros
It was a pretty good week with regards to just about everything. We were able to hit the majority of our goals we set and managed to hit the 25 contacts for the week. One unfortunate thing was that Anderson's highly anticipated baptism didn't end up happening due to several factors. Fortunately in about 4 days, the party season here in Manaus is going to end and maybe it will make it a little bit easier for him to focus on what matters most. Nonetheless, his new date is marked for some time in November once he can prove himself ready. On the other hand, we were able to expand the ward by two more new members. They were both daughters of members and just turned 8 years old. Why did we teach them you might ask? Well...if we didn't, nobody would. So in addition to our normal missionary work, we had to pick up the slack of the ward. On Sunday, we had the baptism of Ana Vitória Cooper de Oliveira and she was confirmed immediately after by the Bishop. Then last night, Wednesday, was the baptism (and birthday) of Ana Dos Santos Leite Glória. It was a very nice service. Boby left a really good message and we sang a special hymn, "Careço de Jesus," for those in attendance. It is great to see what was once an inactive family come back 110% to get on the right path and bring others along with them.
One thing that is really cool is Maria Gessy, who was baptized a few months ago, is making a lot of visits to non-member women, which is helping expand the missionary work. Another milestone that occurred this week was Erika and Wellington marked a date for their wedding (the third week in January) and have finished paying off their debts, which were impeding them from saving up a wedding fund. Wellington was one of those people who was prepared to hear us. As a matter of fact, we were doing contacts and he walked up to us and asked how he could learn more about the Church. The funny thing was that 2 minutes before we had just hit our mission goal for the week, so it was like a little blessing for doing what we're supposed to.
The Festa do Boi is building up until tomorrow night, which is the anniversary of Manaus... 340 ANOS! That's a long time. Sometimes when I walk in the streets, I wonder...what would Manaus have been like 340 years ago? Rubber trees...Indians...massive jungle warfare...man-fish? Needless to say, it must have been a lot different.
We had 11 investigators at church, which is always a good sign. Several of them are brand-new and we will continue teaching them this week. Tomorrow Elder Reis will complete his first year on the mission, so we'll have a party or something to commemorate. That's it for the week.
Até mais,
Elder Mackay
One thing that is really cool is Maria Gessy, who was baptized a few months ago, is making a lot of visits to non-member women, which is helping expand the missionary work. Another milestone that occurred this week was Erika and Wellington marked a date for their wedding (the third week in January) and have finished paying off their debts, which were impeding them from saving up a wedding fund. Wellington was one of those people who was prepared to hear us. As a matter of fact, we were doing contacts and he walked up to us and asked how he could learn more about the Church. The funny thing was that 2 minutes before we had just hit our mission goal for the week, so it was like a little blessing for doing what we're supposed to.
The Festa do Boi is building up until tomorrow night, which is the anniversary of Manaus... 340 ANOS! That's a long time. Sometimes when I walk in the streets, I wonder...what would Manaus have been like 340 years ago? Rubber trees...Indians...massive jungle warfare...man-fish? Needless to say, it must have been a lot different.
We had 11 investigators at church, which is always a good sign. Several of them are brand-new and we will continue teaching them this week. Tomorrow Elder Reis will complete his first year on the mission, so we'll have a party or something to commemorate. That's it for the week.
Até mais,
Elder Mackay
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
The Wedding of Jusse Maria and Heraldo in Lagôa Verde
Just One of the Family on the Couple's Big Day
The Baptism of Gabriel Martins Nery de Araújo
Elder Mackay in a Traditional Samba Costume
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!
Festatime with the Familia Leite
Having Fun at Boi Manaus '09
Clowning Around at Boi Manaus
Tight Squeeze
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Just One of the Family on the Couple's Big Day
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
The Baptism of Gabriel Martins Nery de Araújo
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Elder Mackay in a Traditional Samba Costume
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Festatime with the Familia Leite
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Having Fun at Boi Manaus '09
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Clowning Around at Boi Manaus
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
Tight Squeeze
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| From Taylor Mission Pics |
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