Home

YALL I'm home... and its the weirdest thing. 

How do I write about a year and a half in the Amazon Jungle, preaching and teaching and walking and running and sometimes crawling and crying and laughing and growing and being stretched and missing my family and also never wanting to go home? I feel eternally grateful for my time spent in Manaus. It was the hardest, and also the best thing I've ever done. I came to know to know my Savior Jesus Christ and my Heavenly Father by serving His children in Brazil. I learned things about patience and humility and Christlike love and charity that I really needed to learn. I grew to appreciate my family and friends in ways that I never had before. I learned Portuguese! I learned how to make Brazilian food! lol in my dreams. Okay so maybe I know a few things.

Anyways. I feel so blessed that God let me go on a mission to Manaus, Brazil. I also feel blessed to be back at home. But we'll save that for another post. 

Peace I'm Out

While I'm gone you can write me aaaaaaaat:

Sister Allison Riding

Brazil Manaus Mission

Rua Loris Cordovil, 1066

Alvorada 1

69042-010 Manaus - AM

Brazil

Interested in reading more about why I'm on a mission? 

Lemme tell ya!

My wonderful mother may or may not post my letters here. We'll see :)

Both to BRASIL

Okay first of all I'm having slight anxiety over how to spell Brazil (Brasil???). Like I totally get that Brasil is the "correct" way to say it because that's Brazil in Portuguese but we don't run around calling Germany "Deutschland" just because that is Germany in German!!! 

I digress. If you are not friends with me in real life slash do not stalk me via social media then you may not be aware that my sister/best fran is ALSO going to Brazil! Yippity skippity!! It's funny because when I opened my call I was cool/calm/collected. When Jen opened hers? A different story. 

Jen- "I'm going to Brazil!"

Me- *crying*

My visa still hasn't gone through yet, so I'll fly out to Provo next Monday afternoon and do my training at the MTC (Missionary Training Center) there! Time is ticking! Still excited and feeling great about heading out to serve the Lord. But yes, I am a bit of an emotional wreck. *grin*

Called to Serve

I have decided to serve as a full-time missionary for my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A mission is something that I've always wanted to do, and recently the age requirements were changed, allowing girls to go at the ripe age of 19! After a lot of praying and fasting, I feel confident that this is the right thing for me to do, right now. I submitted an application to the church headquarters a few weeks ago, and finally yesterday I received the letter back telling me where the Lord wants me to go. 

I've been so anxious about where I would get assigned but felt immediate peace about learning that I will spend eighteen months, starting March 27th, in MANAUS, BRAZIL. 

:)

This explains a little more about what exactly I'll be doing. My heart is full and I'm so happy!