Sorella Williams: Using Our Talents In Missionary Work

ciao tutti!

This week will be a short one, but it was a great week! We did a bunch of scambi this week and I'm exhausted, but I have an emergency gelato waiting for me after I'm done typing this.

We met a couple of new people this week. One being Lucia, an older lady. She invited us up to her office which happened to be very nice and we sat opposite a very long conference table haha. It seemed very official. She is VERY catholic. In the end we just bore testimony of Christ and that there is modern revelation coming to us from living prophets.

We had a fun picnic with Fernando and Eglayda (the weather is AMAZING right now, trying to enjoy it before I'm soon melting on the sidewalks). We talked about the importance of the Book of Mormon and how we need to center our lives on it. They are truly having a trial of faith waiting to hear back from a job interview.

This week was a lot of karaoke aka best week ever. We played with Tina and George after dinner and then with the Repoyo family. The Philippine people know how to party. We were just sitting there after we had eaten and George reaches in his backpack and pulls out this handy microphone and speakers and mobile karaoke device hahaha. I've never seen him without it.

We started an art class this week after President Allen challenged us to use our talents in different ways and it was so fun. Anziano Simkins is extremely talented so he teaches it. Some cool people showed up. We have gotten the word out about it and we think the class is just going to continue to grow.

We played soccer Saturday morning and let me tell you the word has gotten out. We had all kinds of people coming to play with us!! Which was the goal from the start so we were very happy about that. The game got so intense hahaha. I was covered in dirt by the end.

Gaia is amazing. A lot happened this week, but to sum it up, I know her sisters family is going to come back to church thanks to her studying the gospel. She's reading the scriptures and coming to realize what is the truth. She said to us the other day after speaking about the plan of salvation "Sorelle, I know this is true because the moment we all met I knew we were friends from before this life" She is basically our third companion we always joke. We are just three happy best friends and she is making progress. Of course we are praying for a baptism in the near future and doing our best to challenge her to that, but it will come and I have no doubt about it. It's just a matter of time.

Marilena was taught the word of wisdom this week and accepted it without a moments hesitation. She still needs to move out from her boyfriends house in order to be baptized and I'm honestly getting pretty nervous about that. I just have to trust in the Lord that everything will happen in its right timing.

I had an interesting experience this week. We were waiting at the metro in Garibaldi to go home at night and speaking to each other when this normal looking, nicely and trendy dressed, polite young guy (probably 23 or 24) walks up to us and asks in English where Centrale train station was. He seemed a little nervous and excited to find people who spoke English. We helped him out and I asked what his native language was, he said Arabic. I smiled and told him it was nice to meet him and have a good night, and that was that. I closed off as I usually do when I find out someone is Muslim. Especially a man. He walked away and Sorella Anderson and I continued with whatever it was we were talking about. Only a couple of seconds later he came back to us and said "I'm sorry, but what is it exactly that you guys are doing here". We explained we were missionaries for the church of Jesus Christ and was bracing for whatever comment we usually get from Muslims. He told us he was a missionary too in Lebanon for an organization made by Mother Teresa. He looked at us looking at him and said "Yes! I am Christian too!" He looked like he came from money given how he was dressed and the fact that he spoke English so well. I asked him a little bit about his mission and asked if he was in Italy for a vacation. He looked at me and said no, that he was a refugee. I asked him where he was from and he said Syria. He could obviously see I was surprised (refugees usually look a lot different than he did). He said he is living in a camp in Torino and he's got to get back that night so he had somewhere to sleep. I asked him if his family was with him here in Italy and after a second he said "my family is gone now, I am all alone". My heart literally broke. He explained that he had been in Milan that day to attend an engineer design conference for different universities, as that had been what he had studied at the university in Syria. He is hoping to do that here and start a life for himself. We talked for a little bit longer and I realized we were the first people he could freely speak to since he left his home. He was so grateful for meeting us and we gave him the missionaries numbers in Torino.

After he got off the train we both sat and I could not stop thinking about him. And I felt angry with myself. To protect myself from hurting so bad for them, I tend to de-humanize the refugees that I see here in these terrible situations. I avoid all and any Muslim interaction (which for most part is very important and is a mission rule) but I think I categorize them as different people than myself. Michael literally shocked me. I see the refugees with nothing, but dirty clothes and a back pack begging on the streets, and then there's Michael who probably came from a very normal family, in a normal home, went to school and was funny. He was just like us. His family had been killed and he had to run. I realized he had to have had no money at all because I noticed his cheap ticket just to get back to Torino that night was a fake. It hit so close to home for me in a way I had never felt before and I couldn't help but cry. I just felt so much love for him and sadness. No matter what we see going on in the world or the horrendous terrorist acts "in the name of religion" does not change the fact that these are innocent people who had families and lives and careers and were high schoolers and had moms and dads. We met another Syrian man this week who approached us, learned we were American and begged us to go home and tell our country to save them. To help them. That they need and want America's help to get away from their dictator and his armies coming against the innocent.

I just know God loves his children. There is no coincidence that in general conference, months ago, they spoke so much of these refugees. I truly, for the first time, had my heart fully open to them this week and looked at them as Gods children and just couldn't help but hurt for them and love them. I think God wanted me to learn that lesson to stop being so ignorant of their situation. I am so grateful for what I have and my family. And I also think where much is given, much is required. I also believe that if it is the desire to help those in need, to pray for opportunities to do so, and God will direct us how to.

I'm excited for Pasqua. I love my Savior!!

Vi voglio bene! have a great Easter!!! watch the Easter videos. they are amazing,

Sorella Williams