Week One!

The view from where I live!

After all these months of getting ready I’m actually in Brazil and have survived my first week! So far things have been going well and everyone has been so welcoming and kind. The journey went smoothly apart from maybe a few tears on the first plane (and needing to rescue the woman next to me who got stuck in her seatbelt!) and I was met by Sandra, the Mum of my Brazilian family, and Carol, a friend who I lived with last summer. It was so lovely to see them and to know that both me and my luggage were on solid ground and had managed the journey! When I got back to the house, I had potentially the best welcome present ever waiting for me – a trilingual Bible (in Portuguese, English AND Spanish!)

Since then the last few days have involved lots and lots of meeting people and speaking Portuguese, which has been quite tiring but great. I’ve been well looked after by Judith and Adrian, a missionary couple from Northern Ireland who I am helping this year in their work with families from a community called Porta Larga. On Wednesday and Thursday I was helping with two library sessions. This is when children come from Porta Larga to the church, where they play games, look at a bit of the Bible and practise their reading. It was really exciting to see the children concentrating on reading and to start getting to know them and learn some names. On Thursday I had my first theology class, it was really interesting although I had a slightly awkward moment when I had a complete linguistic fail and asked one of the guys in the class (as my opening question) if he had a wife...! Wasn’t quite what I was aiming for!!

On Saturday there was a big event in the afternoon put on by the Church’s ladies group, for the Porta Larga families. This started off with some games (including ‘Guess how many lollipops in the box’ (for which I had counted out all 449 the day before!) and then included health talks (including some great tooth brushing cartoons for the children!) After that there were hot dogs and a talk from the Pastor of the church as well as games for the younger children, before the families

were given soup to take home. I’m finding understanding the children quite hard, as they speak very quickly and use lots of words I don’t know (yet!), so trying to organise some games with them was quite a challenge. However Judith is amazing with them, so I’m sure I’ll learn lots off her and I already feel like I’m understanding them a bit better!  The event on Saturday went really well and it was amazing to see so many children there enjoying themselves. One particularly special moment was meeting a little boy called Thales who is in a wheelchair. He is really talkative and funny and has an amazing smile! After the event had finished I went out for a drink with Adrian and Judith and a guy called Rafael, who invited me to go round to one of his friend’s houses in the evening. It was really nice to meet some of his friends and we played the Brazilian version of Risk and ate chocolate cake! Who knew all those Christmas games of Risk with the cousins would come in useful out here!

Yesterday was my first Sunday and began with Sunday School in the morning – here adults have Sunday school too and I had the privilege of being part of a group looking at Matthew’s Gospel with some adults from Porta Larga. It was great to meet them and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the next few weeks go. Then the main service is in the evening at 6pm, during which I helped Judith with her teenagers group. This was really good, although a bit of a challenge on the Portuguese front but was amazing to see how Judith managed to get even the liveliest teenage boys to focus! After church I went to subway with some people from church (some of whom I met last year) and then to one of their houses, where I met his three year old daughter Dudu!

Me and Judith visiting one of the families

Another highlight of this week has been spending time in Porta Larga, visiting the different families and picking the kids up for the different events. In the photo on the right you can see me and Judith visiting one of the houses. Meeting their parents and seeing where they live has been a huge privilege and it has been particularly exciting to visit one family who are having a proper bathroom built. Adrian and Judith managed to raise the money for this when they were back in the UK this summer and it is fantastic to see the work underway and how excited the children are about it!

On the whole, although there have been hard moments and a lot of new things to get my head round, this week’s gone well and I’m really excited to see what God does with the next few! Hope you are all well and that it has been a good week for you. Thank you so much to those of you who have sent messages and encouragement over this week – I’ve loved hearing how you are and what you’re up to. Sending lots of love.

Flor (My new Brazilian name, which means flower in Portuguese!) xxxx

So tomorrow I set off to start my Year Abroad in Recife, North-Eastern Brazil. At the moment life is full of piles of to do lists and  running around and losing the spare bed under an ever-growing "Brazil Pile". Said pile currently includes some pretty bizarre items and a lack of some pretty key ones (such as clothes)! However, I still maintain that the crucial items to fit in are definitely several inflatable musical instruments (thanks Emma :) ), some patriotic English football things and several packets of instant custard! 

A Group photo from Latin Link Orientation

I got back this week from eight days on Latin Link Training (the Christian charity I'm not technically with but who are being a massive help). It was so great to meet lots of other people heading off across Latin America and spend some time studying the Bible and looking at things like safety, culture shock, Latin American history and even drama. We had loads of fun over the week with particular highlights being a Mexican dancing lesson and a ceilidh on the last night and meeting a couple who'd spent 40 years in Recife (and happened to have gone to the same church as me in Cambridge before that)! 

I'm gradually working through the goodbyes, which has been sad but also made me feel very lucky as I realise how many amazing people there are in my life. The best goodbye so far has to be with my lovely home friend Cat, we were enjoying a very civilised catch-up afternoon tea when all of a sudden a bird pooed on my head. Classic. I should have known I had no hope of a smooth and sophisticated exit!

So Saturday was my last taste for a while of Gloucestershire countryside-ness; the highlight of our village year - the annual Produce and Craft Show! Things had been hotting up in preparation and I had been taking advantage of the chance to be chief sampler of the Butler household. The village show includes some classic competitions, such as  'Heaviest marrow" and, my particular favourite, 'Most comical vegetable,' as well as the annual Tug of War between North and South Woodchester. I'm going to miss life in Gloucestershire! 

Before I head off I just want to say thank you for everyone's support so far. Thank you to all those who are supporting me financially and/or in prayer and also thanks for all the lovely emails, letters and conversations that have been a massive encouragement to me over the last few months. I can't believe the time has actually nearly come to head off but I'm excited to see what this new adventure will bring. Please keep in touch (florencebutler on skype or email at feb36@cam.ac.uk). Looking forward to hearing what this year brings for you too.

Love Flo xxxxx