First, I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and just know I truly am so grateful for so many great friends and family in my life. I am especially grateful for the mission and the happiness that I have here. It's the best. I celebrated with a fresh, straight out of the toaster, top of the line, PB&J on Thanksgiving because we didn't have time for anything else. But it's ok because last year Christmas day we ate PB&Js in the MTC so I'm just keeping the tradition alive. BUT really I did get to eat a piece of homemade pumpkin pie from Sorella Arbon who I did a scambio with. It was so great.
We did 3 scambi this week....wowowowwo. un po dead. But that's ok. Scambi are the best and also the worst. The worst because you have to double book your city with appointments for two days for each scambio. And since we did three this week we had to double book just about everyday. And I had to learn how to navigate the most confusing metro system in Milan REAL quick. But they are the best because you get to learn so much from each sorella you do scambio with. Its like a mini new transfer with a new companion. And by the end of the day you're so dead tired you end up just laying on the floor and laughing your face off with them. So all turns out well.
I really love Cimiano. These members are all over the board. And luckily for us there is a lot of work to do. So much happened this week and I really don't know where to begin. We are teaching like crazy. We have been fasting this week for a couple who wants to be married but there are some complications with the family. They want to be baptized, but obviously cant until they are married. The spirit was so strong as we testified about how God hears and listens to the desires of our hearts. I told them that I don't know one thing more important to God than the family unit and he is with them as they try to complete theirs. We have other progressing investigators and I am excited to see them this week to hopefully set baptism dates. Sometimes you just have to be bold!
This week was a series of events of being at the right place at the right time. We met a Ukrainian family living in an apartment the size of a closet. I felt God's love for them so incredibly strong the first time I met them I couldn't help but cry. They are in extreme poverty but don't complain. They smile and offer us whatever they have and are so grateful to just be together as a family. They had nice houses in ukraine and the dad was in the military as well. but when the war started with Russia they were forced to flee and must live as refugees here. They are incredible. We met a woman on the bus and I sat down next to her and asked her "whatcha doin today". Clearly she had been praying for someone to care because she looked so relieved to be able to talk to someone. Just a couple months ago both her parents died and she is scared living alone now without them and without a job. I hugged her and told her God loves her and she began to cry. She promised to come to church this Sunday. We were at the church when a lady walked in. We showed her the new Christmas video and by the end she was completely in tears unable to talk. She told us that the video was an answer to her prayers about a huge problem she has been having at work. We met this lady named Betti who is trying to learn English. We have taught her English only a couple times and share spiritual messages each time we meet afterward. Yesterday, while I was with sorella Burgess who I LOVE, on scambio, we taught her the restoration and she was fascinated. She wants to read the Book of Mormon and the Bible together to understand how they are both testimonies of Jesus Christ. It was such a change from the other times we have taught her. She believes that God gives his gospel to all his children, also if they lived in the Americas long ago, so why not have more than one book of sacred scripture? It was fantastic! We truly are seeing miracles here! I wish I could write everything; good, bad, crazy, funny. It's just not possible.
I absolutely love Sorella Castro. and I'm never leaving Italy.
I thought leaving home would mean I could avoid my mom forcing me to get a flu shot each year. I got an email from President telling me I have to get mine tomorrow morning. I told him no. But then he said yes. boooooooo. I was so close.
Have a great week vi voglio un mondo di bene
Sorella Williams
Back to back scambio
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