Well ok....I have 3 more weeks, that´s it, Then I will be home my friends.

I hope all of you are happy, I am.

This last week was good. It was very hard, but it was good and we did our best. That´s what we need to do, it´s not about numbers or anything like that, it´s how you feel, and if you did your best. That´s what we did.

Well, this week we went to an inactive family and only the member´s dad was home, this is a crazy family..... He always wants to give us abacaxi, so he always gives us 2 of them. and he always just puts us in another room with the TV and puts on one of the Novelas.... Then he always askes us the same questions and this time he fell asleep. He gave us a rotten abacaxi and then we decided because he was asleep we should go, so we grabbed our stuff as quietly as possible and left, we had to run out but it was way funny.

We were walking down the street and I stepped on a little milk carton and I didn´t know it was full and it sprayed all over Elder Bird. It was kinda funny.

Not much happened, except for not getting in to any houses. It was one of those weeks.I hope you are all well.

I am Elder Richardson, LD and I end mine epistle, amen

This is a pig's ear. Yummm.

Teeny tiny turtle.

Hey! Well, this week was not bad, it went well, it was very rainy.

We had like R$ 90 for lunch we only had lunch with members for 2 days this whole week, on Friday and Sunday. The rest we had money for lunch. So on Tuesday, we went and go sushi again. Man it was good and we only paid 2 of our own Reais for it. Man it was so worth it.

We got rained on a lot..... I ran out of dry clothes to wear.

But the highlight of this week was this: We, (all the missionaries) met 2 Apostles, Elder M. Russell Ballard and Elder Neil L. Andersen. We also met the Area 70 for Brasil, actually the presidente and the 2nd councelor. Elder Costa and Elder Mazzagardi. We also met Elder Jensen of the presidency of the 70. They talked to us about missionary work and it was very good.We got to shake their hands. It was a neat experience. I have now met 3 Apostles on my mission. I met Elder Russell M. Nelson in the CTM. It was a very cool experience and we had a special stake conference with Elder Ballard the next day. It was cool hearing him speak in English.

It was a pretty good week. We had 6 missionaries in our house for the last couple of days. It was pretty nuts.

Well only 4 more weeks of this great work! I love it here!

Happy Birthday Dante!

I love you all!

I am Elder Richardson, LD and I end mine epistle, amen

Hello, my fine American Friends (well and anyone else that will read this)

This last week was a good, hard, very hard working week.

We knocked on so many doors, we knocked on Doors for 5 hours on one day.

Man we had a great week, we worked so hard and because of that the Lord blessed us immensely.

I plan on doing the same thing for the next 5 freaking weeks. This way I will be working until the end of my mission.

We were knocking on doors and were invited in to a break off of the "Congregação Cristã do Brasil" which was located in the back of some lady´s house and we went in for like 45 minutes and we got really bored and my comp and I started playing with a kid and then my comp almost got his finger bit off. The kid bit him!

Then they asked us to read something from the Bible so I read Amos 3:7 which talks about profets.... It was crazy.

Then when we were at the store a member kid came up to my comp and asked where he was from and my comp told him and then he said to me I won't ask where you are from, you are from Mexico!

Then we were waiting for a member and his cat was looking at us through the window and my comp threw a dime at him and hit him in the face! It was pretty funny.

We heard a funny frase this week. "You can take them out of the Favela, but you can´t take the Favela out of them." The Favela is the Ghetto. Look in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 and go to the Rio de Janeiro Levels, they are in the Favela and they are pretty accurate. I have been in Favelas, they have one here in Vila Virgínia.

Check it out.

Anyway we will be meeting 2 Apostles this week. Elder M. Russell Ballard and Elder Neil A. Anderson. This will be an opportunity of a lifetime. I'm pretty excited that it will happen when I am still here.

Love ya!

I am Elder Richardson, LD, and I end mine epistle, amen

This is the end, the beginning of the end, I am starting my last transfer today.

I am in Vila Virgínia with Elder Bird. I'm happy to be here.

"I know my mission and my business. God Almighty is my shield; and what can man do if God is my friend?

I shall not be sacrificed until my time comes; then I shall be offered freely." Joseph Smith

That is on the front of my last planner. It was a good quote.

Anywho, this last week was nutty, It was kinda hard for us. Not much happened and then at the same time everything happened.

It rained a lot, we got letters, and we went to an all you can eat sushi place. Man that was pretty good. I like sushi and man it was worth it.

It was all you could eat, and sushi isn´t big. so just go NUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Right now at this very moment it is raining. The skys are grey and the thunder is loud. I honestly have heard some of the loudest thunder in my life here. It's so loud. Our week was filled with lots of door knocking and contacts... mostly doors and no one being home or answering or wanting anything, we even did this in pouring rain. We walked around soaked and knocked on doors.... It was a good time. I had fun.

We are working very hard and having fun. Just the way it should be. If it isn´t then you won´t be happy.

I love being out here for every reason.

I am Elder Richardson, LD, and I am ending my mission here, and I end mine epistle, amen.

Happy New Year!

So anyway guys, I hope it was good for you. I guess it was for me....

On New Year's Eve, we stayed up and talked and Played Chess.... Then at about a quarter to Midnight we finally looked outside and it LOOKED LIKE WE WERE IN THE MIDDLE OF A WAR MAN!!!!!!!!!!!

There was so much smoke in the air..... and then you´d see lots of lights flashing in the air and then an explosion! It was nuts.... Everyone was going crazy!

Then we watched for a couple minutes and then went in and went to bed.

This last week wasn't bad, we tried our best but when everyone is stoked about the weekend, of parties and getting wasted...... well there you have it. I had a good week and a good time.

Next week is transfers, we don´t know what will happen but we hope and think that we may just stay together..... I hope so, have a good comp at the end of the mission.

So anyway, Happy New Year!

Happy Birthday Travis Cloward!
Happy Birthday Emily Landon!

I am Elder Richardson, LD, and I end mine epistle, amen

Then this last week was nuts, because not a lot of people were at home, kinda like last week.