August 25th

Hey!This week has gone by so fast! It was pretty uneventful...We Had TRC again. Which is when we teach families that come to the CTM so we can teach them. Except this time, no one came... So we just had to give a lesson to our teachers. Kinda a let down.I decided to get a haircut from the CTM barber. And it got cut kinda short. So if you get the pictures that we took at the temple this morning please post them. But ya, thats what happens when you get you hair cut at the CTM. But this week I have learned so much about the gospel! We had a bunch of deep doctrine lessons. I dont know if im more amazed at how much i learned, or how much I didnt know! It is amazing how simple the gospel is, but it is also so incredibly complex. We went to the temple today, it was really nice to go and get some questions answered and to just relax from the busy schedule. So every week for the past month only like 20 or 30 missionaries have been leaving, and we are getting 50 to 60 new ones every week. So its getting really crowded here! So now not every district gets to go to the temple every week. So we didnt get to go last week and we wont get to go next week. So it was my last time for about 3 months.There were some missionaries from the São Paulo North mission there at the temple today. It was really cool to talk to them. They said that we get to go to the temple about every three months, and there is about 6 areas in the city, and 6 that are in the “interior” (which means the countryside) So it would be way cool to get to go somewhere out of the city. The missionary that I talked to was in an area that was about 4 hours from the temple. Anyways, its just really exciteing! I cant wait to get out there! Im going crazy in this place!!!On friday we will get to go proselyting for the second time! We will be going to the downtown area! Apperently its the equivilant to Wall Street in New York City.

Oh and from now on all letters sent to me need to go to my mission home. So if you could post that address for me on the blog, that would be great! Thanks. And the missionary that I talked to said that all mail has to get sent to the mission home for your whole mission. So thats going to be my address for the next two years. I guess because the mission is so small we will just pick up our mail from the mission home whenever we are there. Which apperently is only every 3-6 weeks. Which is unfortunant. But I just want to throw this out there, for anyone who reads this... I love letters! I didnt think it would be that big of a deal, but getting actual letters in the mail is so awesome!

Each week I study in my personal studies about a Christlike attribute. This week is was patience. I came across an awesome quote from Thomas S. Monson. “Life is full of difficulties, some minor and others of a more serious nature. There seems to be an unending supply of challenges for one and all. Our problem is that we often expect instantaneous solutions to such challenges, forgetting that fequently the heavenly virtue of patience is required.”

Well I love you so much! Love,Elder Schoen

Hey,This past week has been so crazy! So to start off, on Friday we went proselyting for the first time, like officially. My companion and I had two Book of Mormons to give out, and they have us an hour and a half to walk around the town that the CTM is in. We walked pretty far and we were just talking to everyone we could. But unfortunatly no one would accept our message, and some wouldnt even give us the time of day. So we had been walking and talking to people for about and hour and twenty minutes and we hadent been able to place a Book of Mormon, or even talk to someone who was the least bit interested. We were starting to get really depressed. So, being almost out of time, we decided to head back to the CTM. Instead of heading back the normal way, my companion and I both had the feeling that we should take a different street to get back. As soon as we turned on to that street there was this lady who was in her late twenties and she was walking with her son, who looked to be about 5 years old. We stopped and talked to her. My companion, Elder Andraszczyk, started the conversation and then I started talking to her about families and how the gospel could bless her family and her son. She got so happy and so we gave her a Book of Mormon. It was the coolest feeling in the world. Then the very next person we talked to was this older lady and we gave her one too! It is such a cool thing to be able to walk around the streets in a foriegn country and be able to talk to people in their language about the gospel. I can not believe how much of the language we have learned already. We are not fluent by any stretch of the imagination, but we can say a little. I am so ready to get out of the CTM to start teaching people!So yesterday it was starting raining sooo hard! Harder than anything I have ever seen in my life! Within 20 minutes the streets we conmpletely flooded! The water was atleast a foot deep and all the streets are on a hill so it was leterally a foot deep river everywhere! It was crazy! Once the rain cleared up I took a picture. So enjoy! Its going to be so crazy when we are having to be tracting in that weather! The crazier thing is that its supposed to rain 4 times as much during the summer!So I met a kid here in the CTM, and his brother is serving in the São Paulo North Mission right now and is going to be done next month. And apperently his parents are comming to pick them up. So if you guys still wanted to come, I'm pretty sure it will be a good possibility that it will be aloud!Thank you so much for sending the poem through the mail. It really comes in handy to be able to read it.Well as of today I have been in Brazil for 6 weeks now! I cant believe how fast time time has gone by! I cant wait to get into the field, the CTM is getting really old. Its like ground hogs day! The same thing day after day, everything just starts blending into one, and I cant remember which day it is! haha But I seriously love being a missionary! Its the best descision I have ever made!I love you so much!Love,Elder Schoen

Elder Schoen has 3 weeks left in the CMT. It takes about 2 weeks for mail to get to him. So... where do we send mail to now??

You can send letters to the mission office until he lets us know the address of his first assignment at:

Elder James Darin Schoen
Brazil Sao Paulo North Mission
Caixa Postal 26095
Sao Paulo-SP
05513-970
Brazil

Send packages to the mission office at:

Elder James Darin Schoen
Brazil Sao Paulo North Mission
Rua Dr. Rui Batista Pereira, 165
Jardim Caxingui
Sao Paulo-AP 05517-080
BRAZIL

His email stays the same but we will have to see what his new P day is and what the rules are on emailing.

We are so excited to have a missionary!! Although it will be nice when the twins comprehend time, they ask every day when JD is coming home. Trying to explain 2 years to a 4 year old is impossible!

Im glad to hear that you guys had fun with Uncle Dave and his family. And the weather here is so random, it has been raining one or two days a week. Today was pretty chilly, it was probably like 50 when we got up, and like 65 or 70 right now, and earlier in the week it was like 80 or 85, which was actually kinda warm with the humidity, They said in the summer it will be like 90 and rain almost every day.I have loved getting your letters and the kids drawing, I especially liked the pictures you sent, I would really love to get a thing of pictures like that every once in a while in the future.

So this past week was the half way hump and the CTM. As of saturday, I had been here for exactly 1 month, pretty crazy. On saturday we had TRC, which is when member families come to the CTM and we teach them the first lesson in Portuguese. It went pretty well, when were able to say everything we needed to say, but they talk soooooo fast, so everytime we asked a question we had no idea what they were saying, so I would just smile and nod my head.Then on sunday the branch president announced all the talks, he didnt say my name, so I thought, good. Im off the hook! Then at the end of the meeting he got up and said, ''We are going to have one more Elder speak, Elder Schoen, could you please come up?'' It was pretty awesome, I didnt end up talking about any of the points that I had written down, and I actually dont remember a single thing that I said. But everyone kept saying it was a great talk. Im pretty sure the spirit was helping me out. Pretty cool.This week our Brazilian roomates left for the field. We are going to miss them. It is pretty weird, because they are only in the CTM for 3 weeks, so they got here 2 weeks after us, and we still dont leave for another 4 weeks.I was wondering if you could find out how Blake is doing, and if he has gotten his call yet. Im super excited for him!I think thats about all the news I have for this week.

For my thought for the week, I just wanted to let you, and everyone who reads this know why I am giving up 2 years of my life. Its pretty simple, its because I love the Lord. I know that God loves all his children, and that Jesus Christ is my savior, redeemer, and brother. I know that He died for each and every one of us, so that we can return to live with our Heavenly Father and our families for all of eternity. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and that he had a question and asked god. I know that God will answer our prayers if we will just sincerely pray to him. I know that through Joseph Smith the true church was restored on the Earth. I know that the Book fo Mormon is True, and that it is the Word of God. I know that in its pages we can find answers to our problems in life. I know that we have a prophet of God on the earth today, his name is Thomas S. Monson. I know that through God, he leads and directs his church. I know that these things are true with all of my heart. I am so excited to share is important message with the people of Brazil. This is why im here.With all my love,Elder Schoen

Pictures from Elder Schoen

Here are two pictures. One is me and my companion and the two Brazilian roomates. I'm on the far left, then next to me is my companion Elder Andraszczyk, and the two on the right and Elder Ramos and Elder Tomaz.The other picture is from our window... The city is huge, and that is my mission. The CTM is in my mission so i just look out the window at my mission... Pretty Cool.

Short but sweet

Sorry, this email might be kinda short, they cut down our internet time to a half hour now, and I received alot of emails so i spent alot of my time reading them.So i got that pizza party today so my companion and I were really happy to get some american food! Also i got the electric razor today. Thank you sooo much!Things that happend this past week...So a couple of days ago our brazilian roomate started crying because he was super homesick. This guy is so funny, he might have a mental disability and he is always yelling and singing. It is the funniest thing. But we absolutely love him. So it was so sad to see him in a bad mood and crying. So his companion and I, and the other three americans in our room gave him a blessing. It was so cool to be part of a blessing in portuguese. And as soon as we were done he was smiling and singing again. It was incredible. The power of the Priesthood is true. I know this whithout a doubt. I am fortunate to see it bless me life on a daily basis.Also, this past week was fast sunday, so I bore my testimony. My companion and I also blessed the sacrament... in Portuguese! ... It was AWESOME!Yesterday we spoke in Portuguese for 24 hours again. This time went alot better because we can actually speak a little bit and start to form sentences, so it was less of a quite contest.I just got done trying to place my first book of mormon with my companion. We somehow got it in our heads that we could speak well enough to try and teach people on the street. So we walked around for a about and hour trying to talk to people. We talked to one guy for about 10 minutes. He was the nicest guy ever, and actually spoke some english, but he "already had a book of mormon and is just really busy so he hasnt read it yet" but It was a great experience to try teach some people.Other than that, its the same ol same ol busy schedule. But I do love it here and I am learning so much! I love my companion and I love my District!
Thought for the Day "Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care".
Love,Elder Schoen