Good blood

Querida família,
So I got fleas.
Well more specifically, just one flea. But it bit me like, 100 times. Here´s what happened. Yesterday we had no compromissos, so we planned to try to find some old investigators (from a while back--when there were still elders in the branch). So we found the road, and were going up, and then it turned into this sketchy alley-way. But it was still light outside, so we decided to see what we could find. We saw an old lady and started to talk to her, when suddenly her cat thing started trying to rub itself against us. It did not look normal. It had like a crusty ear and a runny eye and its fur was all matted and dirty and I didn´t want it near me. So we left pretty quickly. A few minutes later though, I felt something bite my arm. When I looked I didn´t see anything, just some bites. Then awhile later, my back started getting really, really itchy. Sister Anderson looked and said I had a bunch of weird white dots. So we went to Micaela´s house, because she knows everything. She took one look and said "Looks like a pulga" (a flea). So right when we got home (probably should have waited until after planning but I wasn´t going to just sit there with a BUG CRAWLING ON ME), I went and took a shower. I inspected my clothes, and sure enough, there was one small black bug, a little smaller than a grain of rice. I squished it and it just exploded in blood--MY blood. Micaela said to put my clothes to soak in some cold water and that if there were more, they would float to the top. I left my clothes soaking overnight but no other bugs came up so, that was the only one. Now my back is still really itchy. I guess the members were right about me having "good blood"--every insect here treats me like a feast!
Besides the pulgas, we had some other adventures this week. We had interviews with Presidente Fluckiger--and it was kind of neat because there are only ten missionaries in our whole zone so we actually had some time to talk to him and Sister Fluckiger.
I got beijinhos from a man for the first time in my mission. I was SO CLOSE to making it through but no--Luis´s dad got me. I was trying to say we can´t, but it was too late. And after he got the first one, Luis said "Dad they can´t!" It was awkward.
We learned some Portuguese jokes from Sister Silva. I think Portugal humor is a lot different... For example:
Q: What is a lice (a louse?) doing on a bald man´s head?
A: Looking for shelter!
She would crack up and we would kind of laugh nervously...
We worked with Luis again every day. He is so awesome. Especially because he says things like: "Actually sisters are better than elders because they´re the ones who work".
Also, we had a HUGE miracle this week! I don´t know if I already told you about Joaquim? He is 22 years old and we contacted him a few weeks ago. He was going to the Igreja Universal. We had some lessons with him and he got answers to his prayers and said he knew the Book of Mormon is true and that Joseph Smith was a prophet, but that he still felt like there was more than one true church of Christ on the earth. He also believed that he had already recieved the gift of the Holy Ghost. We were kind of at a dead end, not knowing how to help him more, so we were just praying that he would recieve an answer about the Church that he could not deny.
So on Saturday night, we were up working on the mountain. I don´t know where it came from, but we just got this FIRE and were working harder than I have ever worked in my life. We were knocking doors and just telling people "We are mensagers of God here to tell you that His Church is on earth again!" and we were talking to EVERYONE because we felt so much like something was there for us to do. But, nothing. Not a single person even would set up a return appointment. So finally, at 8 p.m. we gave up. We had a compromisso with Joaquim at the capela at 8:15 .So we went to catch the bus--and we had missed the last one. So we walked down the mountain. We finally got to the church at 9. (We had called to say why we were late.) When we got there, Joaquim was sitting in the sacrament meeting room, reading the Book of Mormon. He came out and he looked, different somehow. He told us, "I didn´t already recieve the confirmation of the Holy Ghost." And he said, "I´m going to come to church tomorrow" (he had never been before). We talked for awhile, and then he said "I feel like God thinks this Church would be perfect for me. But I still want to ponder some more". So we said to go home and pray, and we´ll talk at Church. We went to catch the bus. As we were waiting, he called. He said, "I have recieved an answer. God spoke to me in my heart. He said this: `My son, I am very happy for you--you have found the true church of God, where you should attend, and be baptized. It was not by chance that I put my daughters in your path. I love you all.´" Then Joaquim said, "That´s what Heavenly Father said to me. I am so happy. I recieved an answer." We were with tears in our eyes, because Heavenly Father didn´t just answer his prayer--He answered ours as well. We said, "Do you want to get baptized next Sunday?" And he said yes, of course. He came to church and stayed all three hours--actually when we left 30 minutes after church ended, he was still there talking to some members. It was incredible to see how his heart has been moved. Wow!
That was the news of the week. Heavenly Father is so incredible! When we just trust in Him, and let go of every single last tiny little doubt, He will give us marvelous miracles.
I know that He loves us so much! He just wants us to be happy. All of this--the Church and whatever else--is only for that reason, our happiness. This Church is true--it´s the only true one! God said so Himself!
I love you all tons! Have a wonderful week!
Com amor,
Sister Gidney