Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2001 12:13:39
Subject: Acampamento

Greetings,
	I hope all is well where you are.  I am doing better and better.
God is growing my faith in strange and amazing ways.  This past week He
has given me a great hope for the future.  I can't really put my finger on
what the hope specifically is, just that Christ is sufficient for all my
needs and He will give me awesome joy as I mature in Him.
	This past weekend (which was a 3 day holiday starting on Friday) I
went to an acampamento for jovens.  That is, I went to a youth camp.  It
was a great deal of fun, and it was surprisingly similar to the typical
American youth camp that churches often frequent.  We had several
"functions," as it were.  The first was a costume party.  I borrowed a
Karate Kid outfit from this dude I know so I was able to participate.  I
was surprised at how many people dressed up like Americans.  There were
quite a few hippies, rock stars, and 50's type costumes.  The next
function was a "clone" thing.  The idea was for two people to dress up
like each other and tell everything they knew about one another to the
whole group.  I got roped into this shenanigan by a large Brazilian named
Wagner (pronounced Vagner).  He apparently misunderstood how we were
supposed to dress because we SWAPPED clothes instead of dressing
similarly. As I said, he was large (and I am small) so you can imagine
the ridiculousness of the situation.  After people started laughing at us
we went back and changed into matching clothes.  During this whole time we
were talking to each other and finding out what we would about one
another.  When we finally got up to the front of the group I was the first
to talk and I mumbled something about his name being Wagner and that he
liked to eat a lot.  That was all.  I passed the mic to Wagner and got
some funny looks.  It was hilarious (in retrospect).  The rest of the time
was spent either eating, relaxing, or talking with Brazilians.	Overall it
was a very memorable experience.
	This week I am starting my "routes."  This is where I will go out
around the city (accompanied by a Brazilian guide) and talk with
nationals. Basically I memorize a speech and then spit it out on queue.
This should be a humbling experience.
	Next week I am moving out of my Brazilian host family's home and
into a place of my own.  I will be sad to go, but this will also give me
much greater freedom to explore and do some things that I have been
wanting to do since I got here (i.e. update my webpage and listen to
music).
	Pray for:
		Language (as always)
		Not to be distracted by the women
		Developing relationships with nationals
		Not missing the States so much

	Thats all for now. Thanks for all your messages of encouragement.
Please know that I treasure each one and they mean a great deal to me even
if I don't respond.  Time here is tight.

Justin

P.S.  When you guys change for daylights savings time I will be 4 hours
ahead instead of 2 (because we change too, just in the opposite direction)