Reporting from "Macedonia"

Here we are in what I like to call “flip-flop-landia” where everyone and I mean everyone has thong clad feet even construction workers. Yes JUST thong clad FEET only. Contrary to popular belief... no, this is NOT Rio..no Copacabana. No chiseled bodies shimmying to samba, and drinks with umbrellas or Jesus statues and tropical birds- it's just not at all what you think. It's hard to believe we’ve been here two weeks. We still feel like we’re in rural Mexico, not Brazil. Things are a little behind, backwards and slow in Northeast Brazil (and those aren't just the words of a dumb American..it's even considered a whole other world here even to the Brazilians in the other parts of the country) but we’re easing into our new home and embracing the heat.

This is Our Street

This is Our House

(There cars are parked there but there are NO cars in the household)

This is Our Bathroom (JUST KIDDING) but this thing is in the Backyard

What makes it all worthwhile is the service. Everyone almost everyone listens. It also is an added bonus when you start your presentation off with “Eu venho dos estados unidos” (I come from the united states) That really makes them fling their door open and pull out all the chairs for you to sit down. That’s IN TOWN that is—the people in the rural towns have NO clue where the united states is. One lady asked “oh baby is that like 3 hours away from here”. LOL. Poor lady. Most people do not know how to read or read very little. The new brochure is coming in handy, that’s pretty much all we place with everyone, that and tracts. Magazines are for the more educated and we don’t find many of them. Mostly the young kids and teenagers are the ones have education. The most exciting time here is the rural territory that we cover once-twice a week. There are 106 small towns that are a part of the territory, they’ve only covered 28. So there are 78 to go! That means the ppl in these 78 areas have never heard the good news. Its pretty exciting. We really enjoy the rural territory versus local service, since the local territory in town has been covered. However it’s quite exhausting attempting to do the rural territory more than twice a week, without cars and besides the local brothers need support in service in town.

Rural Territory

Rural Territory

Eating Goiaba (Guayaba) We Picked from a Random Tree

Cool Pic of Bruno on Break

Nice Scenery in Svc

People Actually Reading what we Just Left

Okay Maybe its Just Me but I Found this to be Very National Geographic

If you look closely... people carry things on their Head here

There are only 21 publishers in the congregation and almost all of them are new. Most are women and there is 1 elder, no servants (now 1: Bruno), 2 Pioneers Marcelo and Flavia (the brothers we live with), and now us 2 and there are 2 Auxiliary Pioneers Manoel and Menice who are all stars in our rural territory photos. Manoel is the big dude who looks Dominican big time. LOL Menices the "blonde". They’re fun. Other than Marcelo, Manoel and now Bruno there are no brothers, just a 10 year old a 15 year old and an 90 year old, none of them can give parts. Therefore in the past 2 weeks Bruno has conducted the congregation bible study, the bible highlights, given a public talk and will be doing the Sentinela (Atalaya/Watchtower) next Sunday. Let’s just say they’re putting him to WORK.

Our Local Territory

Service with the Local Cong

Bruno + Amber in Local Territory

Bruno Doing the Bible Highlights

Things I'm in love with here other than service:
- The Kids (as always). Theyre beautiful in all shades from tan to chocolate brown.
- Agua de Coco (Coconut Water)
- Cheap Cachaca (its like Rum but stronger-it costs $2 for a huge bottle. We already have had it in the states but Its about $20 at home)
- Fruit Trees in the Yard
- Walking (Though I’d like to walk more here, everything is around the dang corner)
- $.0.25 Lettuce, 10 Mangos x $1, and other what I'd l like to call "REDONCULOUS" (a bit more that ridiculous) produce prices
- That surprisingly its NOT as hot as North Carolina Summer (But there is NO AC, or riding in the car that’s the only problem)
- Washing my clothes by hand in the backyard and hanging them up. Can you believe it? I find that fun!
- Having enough time to study for all of the meetings and read the Bible and time to THINK

I heart the kids

Cute

Agua de Coco

Caipirinhas (Made w Cachaca) Makes it All Better

This Pic was Staged don't get any ideas

Additional Things Bruno’s especially in love with:
- Preaching without a Tie
- Giving Parts without a Jacket
- Eating Sugar Cane while in Service
- Brazilian ‘Novelas’ (Soap Operas) LOL, just kidding. No HES NOT Kidding. LOL

Bruno Eating Sugar Cane that He Ripped Out of the Ground

We could make a huge list of the things we DON’T like but we will keep it positive. Haha. But I will list a few things that don't make things so fun:

- Annoying retarded roosters that crow at 4:30 in the morning, dogs barking at 4:30 in musical chorus with the roosters, parties in the town til the roosters start crowing, noisy kids playing at 5am in the street (WHY are they up?), cat fights at 5am-literal cats, not women,..oh annnd MOSQUITOS- they’re the devil. Oh yah lets add crappy Internet connections to that. Ohh we really could go on and on, there's a lot that’s lacking in the 3rd world country. But okay that’s it for now.

Things we miss other than all of you:

- #1 would be being able to actually flush toilet tissue in the toilet. It's the simple things in life. LOL.

In a nutshell, we're living in a 3rd world country so some shock is to be expected and we do miss home, our family and all of our friends but we are having a good time fulfilling Matt 28: 19,20

Enjoy some of our photos and we'll get back to you as soon as we have time and good internet access, the later is hard to come by. We miss you all!