Saturday, June 6, 1970

Although not fully recovered, I am up and out again. Yesterday I stayed in the house during the day. Last night we taught a first lesson to Aldo and family. This afternoon I took Elder Camargo with me to the chapel. He worked with the MIA people, readying for this evening. I had paper work and other assorted details to keep me busy. Virginia was there cleaning, and I called her and interviewed her relative to accepting the job of Primary president. She accepted. For now she is Relief Society president, branch pianist, and now head of the Primary. She has had a very trying week, topped off this morning by having her purse with 100 cruzeiros and all her documents stolen. Aldo told her she should have been more careful.

Tonight when Inez arrived at church, she got Elder Camargo and me (and Betania happened along also) in the office and broke down and bawled. On the way to MIA, Aldo said in front of the entire family that last week’s MIA was the worst he had ever attended. Inez had given her every effort to make it a success—and it had been—only to have her father smash it all in one blow. It further appeared that Aldo did not like the idea of having the MIA on Saturday night, although he was the one who moved it to Saturday from Thursday just before he was released as branch president. Maceió is the first place in all Brazil that I’ve heard of ever holding MIA other than Saturday night. Inez said a weeknight would not work because the afternoon was needed in preparation for the evening’s activities. Perhaps Aldo did not like the first MIA because it was too organized for him. Back in the olden days he used to announce, “Well, now we’ve had the opening song and prayer, let’s pass over into the other room to see what happens.” Following MIA tonight we, the elders, came home and had a discussion session trying to figure out what we might do to help out.

Tonight MIA was likewise good. Edmilson taught the first lesson ever in his life tonight. He was so scared. He did fairly well though. The subject was fasting and prayer. Afterwards, under Elder Camargo’s direction, everybody answered questions taken from the first book of Nephi. He had it arranged like a written test. A week ago it had been announced that everybody needed to read first Nephi.