I was transfered a few days ago to a place called Manga, its is about 45 min away from the nearest city out in the middle of the jungle. I really like the area alot. It's way cool and it is really Africa! It's what I thought the mission would be like before I left. I think it is North or North West of the city. My new companion is Elder Naylor from Iowa. The area is amazing! The spiders are HUGE we have to use baseball bats to kill them the shoes aren't big enough! jk but they are big about the size of a frizby, I don't know if I spelled that right but ya they are big!

It's hard to believe my mission is already a third the way over! Wow time is flying by! The jungle is really cool! I love it! It's cool to wake up and go out in the morning and hear all the crazy sounds of animals. I haven't seen any yet but we are going to a place that has a bunch of monkeys today so I will see a ton of stuff I'm sure. The week I got here we baptized someone which was cool. I still dont know all our investigators or members but I'm slowly getting to know them. The chapel is a little rented building that looks like an old warehouse. Our branch has about 100 people and is pretty strong compared to other branches. The jungle is pretty thick and its easy to get lost in but I love it! Alot of crazy random things happen all the time here. For example a few days ago a plane crashed pretty close to our house out of no where. It is starting to get really hot here as we move into the summer and into the rainy season.

Other news is that next transfer starting in November, we will be sending missionaries to Angola which is also apart of our mission but it is on the other side of Africa. Also a few new area's will be opening in cities where missionaries have never been before. Its a way exciting time here.

Thank you guys so much for all the things you are doing. I'll think about what I want for christmas besides Wendy's. I know I'm spoiled and loved and I'm thankful! I love you all and I miss you but I'm safe, healthy and I've never been happier. Thank you for all the Love and support! I love you!
Elder Brown

Questions & Answers:
1) Do you feel OK with how the transition went in Beira. Do you think the new Elder's will do OK and your investigators will be OK?
ya i think they will be fine. I'm not worried about it.

2) We're guessing Manga is about 1 hour away by chaupa. How will this affect your P-day schedule? Where is Manga anyways? N-S-E-W?
It is about 30 min away from the city so it doesn't mess with our schedule too much. it is North of the city I think.

3) What is your transportation now? Are you on bikes?
We have bikes but we dont use them we just walk.
Thanks!!!!!

The Beira Zone May 2008. Brady is the 3rd from the right on the back row.

Hi, I hope you’re not up at 2 am reading this ha ha but yes I did get transfered. I'm going to the Jungle!!! I'm way excited! I'm going to a place called Manga and I'm going to be serving with Elder Naylor. I wish I could describe the area but I don’t go there until Thursday so I'll let you know next week. President said that he thinks we will have the strongest companionship and best area in the mission so I hope I don’t disappoint him. Besides that something else happened that kinda sucks. Elder Nascimento went home last Thursday for a bunch of stuff. So now my area will be white washed. I just hope that the investigators will continue to progress. I will be training one of the new missionaries who will be serving in my area until I leave for Manga. I hope that they keep progressing.

Anyways I wanted to see if you could get some stuff for that package. “The Prophet of the Restoration”. I don’t know if that is out yet it wasn't when I left but we could use that movie. It’s the one that is being shown at the church building thing where they use to have the Testaments. If you haven't seen it yet take Tyler and Kaylee and go see it, it is amazing!

Greed is a powerful tool the devil has. I can see it every day here. The culture here is based on greed until even the members would steal things. The culture here at least I think 100 percent from Satan. I haven't heard of one good tradition or seen anything good come from the culture here. The government is super corrupt and they just wait until the US comes and builds the things that they need. Everyone asks us for money because we are white. They won’t even ask each other they just ask the missionaries. I get super frustrated with people here but especially the members. They know better than that but they still act like it. I don’t know, anyways I'm glad to hear everything is going good at home. Thank you for all the encouragement and advice, I always love opening your emails and reading them. I love you and I couldn't be out here with out you guys! I hope you can sleep now. Thanks again for everything!
Love Elder Brown

Q1) How's the weather? We're guessing it's spring there. Is it getting warmer? How has winter been?
The weather isn't bad, it is spring so its starting to heat up. The rainy season starts here in about a month so it will be very hot and very humid. The winter is nice, its usually the perfect temp to walk around and do whatever without it getting too hot.
Q2) Do you sing at church now? How's the music there? Do the people have good voices? How do they do with the hymns?
ya I sing. The music is alright, some of it is kinda annoying but they listen to a lot of American rap so I have something to remind me of home. NO! The people have TERRIBLE VOICES! It is the worst singing I have ever heard in my life!!!! They do alright with the hymns they just can’t sing at all.
Q3) Have they put missionaries in Angloa yet?
In November they are sending 4 to Angola and 2 to Nampula another city in Mozambique
Q4) How did transfers go. Are any of your MTC buddies coming North? Any interesting transfers?
No everyone stayed so it looks like I won’t see them for at least another 6 months if not then probably not for the rest of the mission. Thanks!!!

It was a holiday here last Monday so everything is closed. This country is super lazy, they have a holiday about every other week where they just close everything and everyone just gets drunk. Oh well, it makes walking on the streets more interesting. We gave a baptism date to a girl named Tininha, she is 23 years old and is already stronger than most of the members. She came to church when she was pretty sick which is something a lot of people in Utah don’t even do. She's great. Her bapism date is October 11th unfortunately I probably won’t be here because transfers are this Saturday and I'll probably leave. We have 2 investigators that are kinda hard cases for us. Anna Jazel and Paula. Anna Jazel was a prostitute and Paula has had 2 abortions. It was kinda weird finding out about that. Anna Jazel is really changing her life. She dresses nice, she reads and prays every night, she comes to all the church activities and does everything we ask her to do. Unfortunately she has to wait along time to be baptized. Also I felt bad about Paula because I was the one that had to tell her that abortion was a very serious sin. She feels super bad and is really depressed. I stressed really hard that she could be forgiven and gave her Alma 36 to read. I know it is part of the repentance process but I feel super bad about it. I feel like it’s my fault she feels bad. Oh well I'll let you know more about her if anything else happens.

With the pictures, I was hoping to send them with a missionary who is leaving here in 2 weeks but he's in Maputo and I don’t have a way to get them to him. His name is Elder Duhadway and I think he's from Logan. I actually taught my first lesson with him in the country. I'll call and get the information from him about his home coming for you if you want. Also no one will leave next transfer so I'm going to have to wait 12 more weeks to send a flash drive home sorry. Third world countries kinda suck huh.

There aren't any problems with my companion, we get along great and don’t have any issues. President Packard said that we were pulling the best numbers that the Beira has seen. Our area is the hardest area in the mission but he said that we are performing a miracle in our area so he's super happy with us. Thanks again for all the news and stuff its really nice to hear about these kinds of things because no one here has any idea. Anyways next week I'll let you guys know if I get transferred and to where. There is a spot opening in the jungle again so we'll see, keep your fingers crossed! I love you and I'm so grateful for everything you do for me. Love you! Elder Brown

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Q1) 2 weeks ago you were going to tell us all the reasons why things were so frustrating, stressful and hard in your mission. What has been happening? What can we pray for specifically to help you?
A) Well the members here are very frustrating and cause a lot of problems.
Q2)Do you see any wild animals in the city? (besides the Chaupa drivers)
A)No just dogs and chickens every once in a while a monkey but hardly ever.
Q3) How do you weigh yourself so that you know you've gained 30 pounds?
A) They have a scale at a pharmacy outside of the super market.
Q4)Do you hear any tribal languages or other languages? Have you learned any new words in other languages?
A) Ya we hear it all the time Massena, I'm learning a little bit but I'm concentrating more on the Portuguese.
Q5)Do you have many health problems with members in your ward or people you teach, aids, kids dying, etc.?
A) One little girl just died of a brain tumor but its not to bad, people get malaria here like people get the flu at home but they get over it pretty fast.
Thanks mom!

This week was pretty good, we had some really strange things happen. One we sat down with one of our investigators and she said she wanted to confess something to us. She is 25 and has 3 kids with no husband. She sent her kids off and she just came right out and said. "I am a prostitute..." Kinda strange, it was a first for me. She was really sad and said that she wanted to change her life. She already had changed her phone number and is looking for another way to make money but it was just kinda weird and unexpected. We talked to her about repentance and we are getting it taken care of but wow it was weird. We also were teaching a family about the 10 commandments and they had a lot of questions. Then when we finished they started asking about the traditions of their country if they were good or bad (there are a ton on traditions including things like praying to ancestors and other weird things.) we were there for an hour and a half and I answered all of their questions because my comp didn't really know. He was baptized when he was 18 so he doesn't have a ton of experience in the church. When we left my head was pulsing with all the talking and everything. It was kinda ruff but I answered their questions the best I could.

Its good to hear you guys had fun in Seattle. That was a way cool experience thank you for sharing it with me. It's amazing to just look at the little miracles that happen in our lives, there are probably so many that happen without us even noticing.

This week I wanted to write to you and dad about one of the members here. His name is Raul, he is a great guy, he is 23 and a great member. He is trying to serve a mission but is having some problems. Our branch president thinks that he likes his daughter so he doesn't like him and there is a whole other list of difficulties that he is having. But when I first got here and I saw him I knew that one reason I had been called to this area was to help him serve a mission. So I am doing everything I can to help him. He is different than any other Mozambican I have ever met. He is a really good guy. He has a girl friend who is from Brazil who lives in Provo, he wants to go to the US after he serves a mission. This guy is like my brother, I would do anything for him and he would do anything for me. I just thought I would share that with you guys I'm not really sure why.

This week we gave a baptism date to Tininha, she is a super strong investigator but her father doesn't like the idea of her getting baptized. She is 23 but she probably won’t be baptized until October so I won’t be here. It kinda makes me sad that I won’t be here to see her get baptized. but oh well there will be others.

Oh with pictures, I think I'm just going to put them on a flash drive and send them home with a missionary who is going home to mail to you guys. I have a lot of one little girl who's family we are teaching. I gave her a slinky and she hasn't stopped playing with it since. Unfortunately I don’t have a picture of her with the slinky. Giving out those toys is hard because I just get swarmed by kids and they all grab what they can and run off so I don’t have very many pictures of kids with them. Ungrateful little ***** as Big Jim would say. But I'll try.

I got on a chaupa a few days ago and I was smashed between 3 fat chicks in the back of the chaupa. I thought "oh man this chaupa is going to suck." But then Bob Marley came in the chaupa. He had long hair a binni, a thing of weed in one hand and a bottle of beer in the other and as soon as he got in he looked at me and said "WHAZZ UP!!!" I wanted to through my hands up in the air and just yell "YES!!!!! THE CHAUPA IS GONNA ROCK!!!" Oh man I've never had a better chaupa ride in my life. He was from Mozambique but he spoke perfect English. I asked him where he learned and he said from watching movies. He talked just like an American saying things like Chillin and Smokin and dude. He even didn’t put the "g" on the end of the words with "ing". He was hallarious! Other than that not a whole lot else happened this week. . Anyways I better go, thanks mom, sorry our p-day moved to Tuesday because yesterday was a holiday. Thanks for all the support that you guys give to me. I don’t think I could do it with out you guys. I love you and I'm grateful to be your son.
Love you! Elder Brown

This week will be kinda short because something is wrong with the bank or something so we don't have money this week. They can't put money in our bank accounts to get money out until Wednesday, problem is I don't have money at all so I'm sorry to keep doing this but I need to get more money out. I won't take alot just what I need, I feel way bad about it. All this means I only have like 30 min to do email. I'm super frustrated with all this stuff that is happening, I'll write more about it next week just alot of stupid things happen in this mission that just make life hard and stressful. Anyways I got that Dear Elder package! Good Ghandi that is so good! If it's cheap send more! That stuff is invaluable here! (We sent 8 Mrs. Fields Cookies and Beef Jerky) Anyways I think I better go if I want to email President Packard. Thanks for everything! Sorry for the short email and the money thing I still feel bad but if I don't take money out I will starve! sorry again. Elder Brown