When one of our good friends inquired in an email as to whether we are still out there in Brazil or have maybe dropped off the end of the world or maybe gotten lost in the streets of Recife we felt it is past time to do a new entry in the blog. All is well with the Iveys! Guess we are settling into a routine and it seems like there is not much new or different to report in our daily activity. We are working hard at the office each day and spend two mornings a week visiting the Elders and Sisters in their apartments. As is the nature of anything new, as we keep trying, things miraculously seem to be getting a bit easier. Not that we are about to win any awards for our flowing Portuguese but we are adopting the philosophy that heck we are trying hard to learn and if you are not happy with us - well that is your problem not ours. That philosophy has it's genesis more with Ed than Jessie who still worries more than her husband thinks is worth the effort. The balance keeps us studying when he is ready to go play on "P" day and forget the books. We enjoy our visits out of the office and do not get lost as much as earlier adventures. We still marvel that we find a house not by street sign so much as counting the number of streets on the map from one of the rare street names we discover. We stop and ask directions (seems all are familiar with the missionaries) and if we are within a few streets complete strangers can lead us right to them. Lastly the cell phone and the plea to "stand in the street Elders and watch for us" is our last straw. There are 80 houses in the mission and we have discovered 20 so far - that is not bad for a couple of "senior citizens" driving around with several million other folks on the road. Add to the excitement that there are no rules on these roads and Jessie is white knuckles most of the time in the car. So I say again things are just fine down here and no one need worry that "old Ed and Jessie are hightailing to catch a cruise ship to paradise or lost in the jungle."
The picture above shows 4 of the sisters in our mission at one of our apartment inspections (Sister Wilkinson, Sister Lindsey, Sister Santos and Sister Alves). Their apartment is in Olinda and was spotless! Sister Lindsey is new, has only been here for about a month. Sister Wilkinson and Sister Santos are finishing up their missions this next week and will be flying home next Wednesday. Sister Wilkinson and Sister Lindsey were walking to one of their appointments a week ago and a couple of men stopped them on the street in broad daylight, grabbed Sister Wilkinson, put a knife to her throat and demanded her cell phone. She of course handed it over. They took it and ran off. The sisters continued on their way and Sister Wilkinson, when she told us about the experience in the office last week, said after walking about a block further, broke down and started crying. She is a really strong woman so I'm sure the seriousness of that situation must have finally hit her, or the shock of it all overcame her and she couldn't hold it in. We are grateful for the protecting hand of the Lord upon us as missionaries. Those occurrences rarely happen, and for that we are truly grateful.
We love the work and are grateful for your prayers and thoughts in our behalf. May the Lord be with all you, our friends and family and may he ever bless the country we love and miss. Love, Elder & Sister Ivey
1 comment:
So, so happy to see a post from you. I was starting to wonder how things have been. It sounds as if you were acclimating to your new schedule and demands...maybe not the heat, though? :) I can't imagine having a knife put to my throat and not falling on the ground right there and crying my eyes out. What an experience! Since when do missionaries get to have cell phones, anyway? So different than when Nate served a mission. Maybe sisters carry them for safety? We think of you every day and miss you dearly. Please write as often as you can! We love you!
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