Crazy week in Siena

CIAO

     Ok this week was cray. But good. Here are some highlights. 

     We visited Jennifer and she is still in the hospital unfortunately, but is hopefully going to be out soon and promised to make me a batch of Nigerian rice when she is. 

     The Gori's are doing well and we have made a lot of progress with them. Sorella Gori sounds like she is ready to set aside things that have happened in the past and move forward with the future. She misses church so much, she misses feeling that spirit in her life, she just needs the courage to come back. We are helping her as best we can and she is almost there.  

      I was really praying hard for Eunice before we went to her house to teach a good lesson with her and have the opportunity to invite her to be baptized. It can be hard sometimes because she is usually so busy with the kids and cooking to really focus on our lessons. Well we walked into their house and needless to say I thought my prayer didn't work. She was running around with her kids and babysitting another, dinner was being made, Adriano was there in the middle of all of it, and it was the most chaotic its ever been. We sat down and only had 20 minutes before the bus home and I assumed we wouldn't really get anywhere in our lesson with her. But to my surprise she finished cooking and Adriano took all the kids and went into another room and she was able to sit with us!! I shared with her Alma 7:15 and she accepted our invitation to be baptized June 12! I was so excited for her and she was as well. Our mission president needs to interview her before she is baptized so hopefully he will be able to come all the way down to Siena before June 12. It was the highlight of my week for sure!! I love Eunice and her family so much.

     We also had a scambio this week in Florence. I went with Sorella D'aleo, she's the best. It's so nice being with an Italian because they are able to speak to the people on a whole different level than the rest of us. We did finding work ALL day and met many people on the streets and buses. We also had dinner with Julia, who I met with Sorella Taylor two scambios ago. She is so sweet and made us Peruvian chicken and rice it was so good. She was emotional talking about all the hardships in her life right now. We shared a message of finding peace in our lives and prayed with her. The spirit was very strong.

     After Julia's we were standing on a sidewalk huddled under my umbrella waiting for Sorella Rowe and Insalaco to pick us up. When out of NOWHERE I look to my left and almost had a heart attack because I see a guy (18 or 19 years old) maybe 4 inches from my face staring at me and says"Da mi un bacio!" which means give me a kiss and leaned in to kiss me!!! I didn't even know what the heck was going on!!! Luckily I leaned back and he missed my face by 1 millimeter and both me and D'aleo pushed him away and he went off back down the street! I couldn't believe it. After we both calmed down we couldn't stop laughing. Italian boys are something else I'm telling you. 

     On the train back to Siena we met a great guy and taught him a lot of the restoration. He took our information and I hope something can come from it. Then we went straight to English class. Jose came which is great because I've been wanting to talk to him a little bit more about the gospel. Jose has two grandson's who have been taking our English class and he always waits in the lobby and reads the book of Mormon in Spanish. I also know that he has two kids who are members of the church. So I taught him through google translate while Rowe taught the boys. It made him happy to hear me try my best to poorly pronounce all the Spanish I have immediately forgotten since learning Italian. 

     Two new girls came to my English class too, named Lorena and Julia. I taught them English and explained what I'm doing here as a missionary. They were so sweet and I taught them the restoration. They are coming back next week and I'm excited to see them again. 

     This week is Sorella Rowe's last week so I'm depressed. We get transfer calls Saturday and I will find out which Rowe wanna be is coming down to Siena to be with me, just kidding. But I really am nervous about it! You are truly never comfortable on a mission. The minute you get situated something changes! But I have been loving my time here and feel like I've learned so much in this short amount of time. 

I hope you all have great weeks!!

vi voglio bene

Sorella Williams

Maria, Alex, and Turbo

The Firenze District

Torrita di Siena Mostra

Hola tuttiiii

     First and foremost Buon Anniversario a miei carissimi genitori! Venticinque anni e forte ancora! I'm so blessed to have great parents who are so kind and loyal to each other and loved their kids enough to raise us in such a loving God centered home. I am truly so blessed!!

     We taught Paul who was very nervous because the next day he was going to Rome to basically see if the government would give him the paper work required to stay in Italy. Paul is so faith driven and told me "I have faith God will let me stay in this country because he knows if he does, others will ask me how this was possible for me to get my papers and I will tell everyone by the grace of God". Paul said if he stays the next time he sees us he's bringing 7 friends to listen to the missionaries. What a guy.

     We helped Nicoletta translate her resume into English so she can hopefully get a job in England when she graduates college. She is so sweet and really loves the missionaries. She said she would be ok with us teaching her about our church, as long as we keep teaching her English too. So it's a deal.

     Jennifer is in the hospital for her son Emmanuel. We found out the only reason she moved here from Nigeria years ago was for cheaper medical care for Emmanuel because he has major heart issues. When I went to the hospital I seriously could not believe it. We are very blessed in America that's all I can say. It's such a miserable situation for her there. The way hospitals work here is you basically have to wait with the person in the hospital until they are better 24/7 or else they will lose their spot/bed. Other sick people are in the small rooms as well with them. The last time Emmanuel was in the hospital he stayed for a couple months and Jennifer was there in his bed with him every minute of every day. Luckily they feed her a little bit too. It's awful so we've tried to visit her a couple times to keep her company.

     Frotello Rotelli called us and told us we got permission to do a Mostra where he lives in Torrita di Siena (the most beautiful Tuscan city outside Siena)! A Mostra is pretty much a public display or show to get people interested in talking to you. Anytime we've tried to do one in Siena the cops threaten to arrest us haha. So we were excited. It was part of an old vintage book fair in the city, so we set up our booth with Book of Mormons because hey it's a vintage book, we aren't breaking any rules. It was pretty cool and Frotello Rotelli set up a big family history booth as well and talked to a lot of people about it! We only handed out a couple books, but had some pretty good conversations with people. We did that all day Saturday and then went back right after church Sunday until night. It was Sorella Rowe's birthday  on Sunday! The Rotellis fed us lunch before the Mostra Sunday for her bday and it was sooooo good. I'm still getting used to the four course meals. Italians do not mess around.

      Monday we went to Florence for Zone training! It was good to see other missionaries again. Sorella Rowe gave her dying testimony and both her and I are in denial that she's almost done here. Other than that the training was great and I learned a lot. Best part was they fed us TACOSSSSS. I HAVENT HAD A TORTILLA IN YEARS PEOPLE.

     On the train home we sat by this New York couple on vacation and it was such a party. I loved them they were hilarious. They explained to me all about how Italians work in New York and how they all are from Brooklyn and then move to either Long Island or Staten Island. I quoted all my favorite New Yorker-Italian stereotypes from movies and they were dying. We talked about our church and what we are doing here as missionaries. They thought it was really cool and took information to learn more.

     We passed by Ketusha's apartment because she never answers her phone and hasn't been to church in forever. She wasn't home but her cute roommate was and she let us in and we ended up talking for an hour! They are having us over for dinner next week. I'm glad to be building friendships with people instead of just jumping down their throats with gospel stuff, I think it's important to show you care about them more than only being there to share our message, which isn't hard because I really do love the people we teach.

I     t can be frustrating not progressing as fast as I would like to be with some of our investigators. But the circumstances are hard here. Everyone works on Sunday, buses don't run Sunday mornings, trains are expensive, and no one has a car to just come to church or meet with the missionaries. On top of that, the only missionaries here are me and Rowe and it's hard. It's like all odds are against us sometimes and I can feel so discouraged wondering if I'm actually helping these people. I don't understand how the truth can be right in front of them and they can't recognize it!! But I am reminded that God has only asked me to do one thing, to preach his gospel. And if I did nothing than that for my entire mission than I guess I fulfilled my job. I have faith that these people can recognize, change, and pray for the answers I know they have in their hearts. Please pray for the Sienese people!

   I hope you all have a great week! Vi voglio bene

Sorella Williams

Firenze (Florence) Zone Conference

 
Siena Duomo


Duomo of Siena


Mostra in Torrita di Siena with Frotello Rotelli


Sorella Rowe & Williams at their booth in the old village book fair

Ciao tutti e Buona Festa Della Mama!!

Ciao tutti e Buona Festa Della Mama!!

     This week we had a lot of good lessons with people. Wednesday we taught the Gori's and I'm really hoping they start coming back to church. I think it's fear that's holding them back (and the fact that church is an hour away). But they are some of the kindest people I've ever met.

     Thursday we helped Daniella move out of the nunnery and into her new apartment. We are just as excited as her because this means we don't have to hike up Mount Everest to get to the nunnery anymore. I will try to say this as lightly as I can,  Rowe and I almost wept tears of joy when we left her old apartment which smells like something had died in it. I never knew how brave Rowe was until I saw her cleaning Daniella's old, moldy dishes with only a little soap and her BARE hands. My main job was to run around with a rag like a lunatic trying to kill the 23947850298 flies. 

     We taught Paul again and we will be teaching him later today as well. He is such a sweet person and is really loving the gospel. He just relocated to Poggibonsi so hopefully we can still see him as frequently as we have been. 

     We saw Doris and Eunice twice this week. Eunice told us that her family is moving to Namibia in Africa (where she is originally from) in August. I was shocked because Adriano is 100% Italian and I had no idea he had the desire to leave. I am actually really happy for them because they want a better life for their family and it seems like they have some pretty good plans for themselves once they get to Namibia. I am really sad, but I can see how excited they are so I am too. I'm not entirely sure what this means for her baptism but we are still working on it. But I'm happy and relieved because in the area they are moving to there is a church just down the street from them. We are Incredibly blessed that this gospel has been spread all throughout the world. She kept saying "It will be fine, you can visit me." I told her "Yeah I'll just pop on by the next time I'm in Namibia". 

     Sunday was a great day. We had a lot of tourists visiting and we got Kelly and his friend to come to church with us too. I spoke in sacrament and then we taught sunday school and relief society so it was a long day, but I really had a great time with everyone. We even had a girl randomly walk into the building who apparently had been taught by missionaries a long time ago and decided she would come to church! We are meeting with her later today.

     But most of all Sunday was the best day ever because I GOT TO TALK TO MY FAM. I had to wait until 5 because of the time difference and that was the longest wait of my life. I was super tough and didn't tear up once...haha. Then one of my best friends from college named Sarah came to Florence for study abroad and was able to take a train down to Siena and see me!! She only had less than an hour with me, but we were so excited to see each other! I was overwhelmed with seeing everyone after not seeing anyone for a long time, but so happy! I am so sooo blessed with the best family and great friends. 

I hope you all have a great week!!

Love, Sorella Williams

Lindsay with her friend Sarah in Siena!

Sorella Rowe & Sorella Williams 

Roccastrada, Poggibonsi & San Gimignano

Buona Mercoledì tutti

     It's been a good and busy week! We met with Paul and Sonia again and taught them the Plan of Salvation. They asked great questions and want to continue meeting with us so we are excited about that. It was funny, we had this spiritual moment and then Rowe said the closing prayer and as she is praying the janitor of the train station comes through our little huddled circle on the benches and decides that now is a good time to start sweeping right in between us hahaha it was so awkward. We had a good laugh about that one.

     We also went to Roccastrada to teach Doris (Eunice wasn't available) and it was great! We had extra time before the bus so we walked around the town a little bit which was the best decision ever because that town is BEAUTIFUL. Best part is that it is in the middle of nowhere. A lot of Italians don't know it exists much less tourists so everyone was staring at us like "what are these Americans doing here". That whole town knows each other so windows and doors are always open with people conversing across the little rock streets to one another.

     Saturday we had an appointment with Tina, but she stood us up, wow Tina come on, but it turned out to be good because as we were walking back to the bus we ran into Irma!! It's so hard to teach her because her job is around the clock so she never has time to meet with us.  She had a couple free minutes and we taught her about baptism. We invited her to be baptized on the 21st of May and she accepted! She missed church though because she had to work so we will push it back to the 28th, but that's only if she can come to church with us so we are really praying for her.

     We taught Maria and the Natale's in Poggibonsi and both went really well. We were walking on the train platform about to hop on when we heard the whistle blow 10 minutes early so we walked quickly to get on (we were only a couple feet from the train door) when all the sudden the doors started to close!!!! Sorella Rowe threw herself in between the doors and I ran behind her and started to push her in all while I managed to get one leg and arm in myself. It was an automatic door so there were no levers to keep the door open. We were both screaming and freaking out because we thought those were our last minutes on earth. She finally popped in and started to pull me as hard as she could, but the doors were clamped around my waist and purse!! Just as the train started to move she pulled the door as hard as she could and I went flying into the train onto the floor. Once we realized we were OK we started laughing and couldn't stop the whole ride home. I took a couple minutes to compose myself on the floor before I stood up. It's always a good time with the Siena train. I still have the bruises. 

     Sunday was awesome because Eunice, Adriano, and the kids all came to church!! There was a mom and a daughter in church that day too from Washington on vacation in Italy. The daughter had just gotten back from her mission in California so we asked if they wanted to help teach gospel principles class to Eunice's family with us. It went really well and I'm excited to see Eunice this week so we can get a new baptism date with her and make sure we are still working towards that goal. I love Eunice she is the best. 

     Monday we finally got to meet Kelly, who is one of the Anzianis investigators they gave to us when they left. Kelly has two cousins who moved to Utah for school and were converted into the church so he knows about the church. It is honestly so crazy that of all the people for the Anziani to have gone up to in the park that day, they went up to Kelly. We taught him the restoration and he really wants to learn more. We are really excited only we have no idea how he is going to get to church (story of our lives) because he doesn't have a car and the buses don't run on Sunday mornings and the rest of the people in our branch who have a car already are picking up the rest of the branch members. So I'm really worried about that. It's so hard when you have people who really want to come to church, but just don't have the means of getting there. That is our biggest struggle right now. 

     Yesterday we met with Jennifer in the morning. It's hard to know exactly if she has us over because she wants to progress in the gospel or if it's just for Bible study. We reminded her our purpose and told her that as missionaries, we can spend all day teaching about what we know is true, but it doesn't mean anything unless she asks our father in heaven if it's true and receive a conformation of it for herself. She said she doesn't want to pray for anything specific right now because she isn't spiritually where she should be. I then bore my testimony to her that if I waited until I thought I was spiritually where I needed to be in order to receive God's blessings, I certainly wouldn't be here with her in Italy. As a missionary I'm probably the most spiritually sound I have ever been in my life and yet still I do not come close to where I think I should be or feel deserving of God answering my prayers. God does not care what you are doing, who you are what you have done or how lost you feel, he wants to hear from you. And he will answer you. And if you don't think so, try Him. 

     Later we took a bus to San Gimignano for a little fun. Today is our P day, but we had to schedule appointments for the whole day so we just took our p day yesterday for the afternoon. We had heard from others in the branch that San Gimignano was a super ancient city, we had no idea it was the worlds biggest tourist spot EVER. I haven't heard that much English being spoken in months it was weird! The city sits on this giant hill with a big defense stone wall around it with a beautiful view of Toscana. I had celestial gelato and all was well. 

Sperro che tutti voi abbiate una buona settimana

con AMORE Sorella Williams

"Gelato che e il piu buono nel mondo" CONGRATULATIONS THE WORLD'S BEST ICE CREAM YOU DID IT

I'm a legal Italian- got my permesso!

San Gimignano