Merry Christmas from Ben

oi familia!!!
wow i am exited for that call!! ha ha ya broken ingles is a good way to put it ha ha my brain is right in the middle of two different languages so righting is nearly impossible but talking i think i will be alright i speak ingles almost all day on pdays with the other americans i hope you guys know that me and elder harris matts nephew are seriously best friends now and will be for the rest of our lives no doubt ha ha

PORTUGESE

ha ha so portugese is a verry difficult language to learn in case you thought it was eaisy but i am getting better and the lord is blessing me for my efforts this week in zone conference in my interview with prezidente he toldme that he has missionarys leaving this transfer who still cant speak as well as i can it was verry hummbeling for me because it has been difficult for me and they have been struggleing with it for 2 years iam great full i can speak as well as i can.
soccer ha ha i have played soccer 3 times where i have put on my shoes and played but i have not gone one day without touching a ball i love soccer so much and of coarse like i said before i have the one companion who hates it !!!! ahhhhhhhhhhhh its so hard....... so ya i will be looking forward to your call i probably will not be the one to answer so be ready to hear alot of portugese ha ha just stay on the line :)

now i want the whole family to read this part!!!
Family this christmas i want you all to realize the amazing blessings you have there in our little town of hyde park! there are people here who work their whole lives for less than 5 reals a day thats 2.50$ they have nothing here seriosly they have nothing!! i am greatfull everyday for the life that i have had living in a house that has a yard,heat,windows,carpet,air conditioning,doors,

electrisity!!! i cannot describe some of the things that i have seen here... people live with nothing the best way i can describe is to have you go out to our shed and put a little stove in the corner that burns wood and move our entire family in there if our family only had that here in brazil we would still be considered rich because we had a sorce of heat in the winter!!! i cant tell you.... its impossible to watch these people without been gratefull but the most powerfull part about it is that they are happy! they are so greatfull for everything that they do have they love the ball thats 20 years old held together with plastic bags and other garbage and they have their familys!! i love teaching people how to pray here they allways have so much more to say about what they are greatfullfor. so this year everyone realize that no matter what, be greatfull, kids here dont ask for toys they ask for a new shirt or some socks we asked one kid on saturday what he wanted and he said he wanted his mom to get the new dress she had been saving her money for! i dont know what else i cansay about it, be greatfull that you have a pair of soccer socks to strech out and hang on a tree that is covered in beautiful decerations! be greatfullfor the blankets that you have to stay warm be greatful for a bed to sleep on!! and be greatfull for your family :) i love you all so so much i miss you all but i know i am here on the lords errand :) love you allcant wait to talk with you :)
com amor,
Elder Eric Brooksby