Day 19:

Seventy days left and we have so much to do yet! The day started out with another attempt at searching the university campuses only this time we brought along our friend, Tia. Tia moved in to the apartment one story above us just a few days after we had arrived. She is a single sister from Tucson, Arizona who has been pioneering since she was baptized in 2001, living her dream to serve where the need is greater. We absolutely loved working with her today- we got to hear her story, get to know her a bit, and encourage each other as we went on about our service morning. The highlight of the morning was definitely when we ran into two Portuguese sisters who had recognized us by the magazines in our hands. They stopped us to chat for a while, though we understand very little of what they had to tell us. All I remember was a slur of Portuguese phrases flying and smiles and embracing and hand gestures that were followed by more embraces and kisses on the cheek-as is custom in the Portuguese culture. Once again we behold how amazing it is to be a part of such a uniquely amazing organization that is uniting strangers from every corner of the earth into one brotherhood.

After searching the campus for a while, Tenesha managed to find one English speaking student from Japan who is in Lisbon until Friday but gladly accepted the magazines. Running into the sisters and finding even one person made getting out of bed feeling feverish and dizzy more than worth it. After service, lunch, and running a few errands in town, Audrey and I decided to go for a walk to explore the opposite side of Rua de Campolide. We were so happy to find a park smack dab in the middle of the freeway. Concrete surrounding grass and enveloped in blue sky- it was a beautiful walk. I remember talking with her about the sun- how awe inspiring it was to see the sun and know that halfway around the world it is shining upon the faces of our family and friends back home. It's truly admirable how vast the universe is and how small you feel when you take the time to ponder something like the sun, or the moon, or the stars.... the wonders of creation. A few miles more and it was time to get ready for our eight o'clock meeting- a time to which none of us have adjusted to yet.

You know that awkward moment when a strange man sits so incredibly close to you on a bus of nothing but empty seats and the whole ride all you do is pray that if something goes down it goes down fast? That was me the whole way to meeting- almost worse than the other night when the bus was so full that I couldn't tell where I stopped and the person next to me began. I don't know why but the bus rides to the kingdom hall are always the most amusing. Another thing I am learning here- besides the perks of public transportation- is that traveling on foot is just as life threatening as riding the bus. It is very common to see pedestrians standing in the middle of a busy street awaiting an opportunity to dart dangerously between speeding cars. The good thing is that we made it to meeting with our lives, without seeing anyone get hurt, and with a few more things to laugh about.

Meeting was so encouraging! To hear about the campaign and to go over some of the statistics from last year was so faith strengthening and made us all excited for the upcoming weeks. It was announced that last year, with 78 publishers in the hall,  (now reduced to about 40 since the recent division of Nepalese and English speaking congregations) some 229 people attended the memorial of Christ's death! Not only that, but it was announced that for the months of April and March, there will be four service meetings a week instead of just two in order to support those who will be expanding their ministry for the memorial season! Talk about answered prayers. We have all been stressing over time and service plans and the anxieties that come with planning your whole week in one night at the meeting. Thank goodness for this season's support and arrangements- we are all feeling relieved and ready to play catch up and to share in a part of this joyous work during the campaign. On that note... I've got a lot of rest to catch up on. Day 20 brings service plans with Fabio and girl's night out!

Today's Positives:

Made a new friend in Tia as we worked the universities

Ran into two lovely Portuguese sisters and felt the love that comes with being part of Jehovah's worldwide organization

Discovered some lovely artwork on guiding sides and got to hang out with Audrey at the park on a sunny day

We are all pumped up for the memorial campaign coming up and for supporting the congregation

I am definitely going to bed feeling better than I did when I woke up

Oh yeah... forgot to mention that we heard from a few friends today and Germany and Portugal Bethel are in our near future