A New Kind of Missionary Work

Has there been any talk there about the meeting President Eyring is attending with the Pope? Any plans for President Eyring or Elder Perry to meet with the missionaries while they are there this week?

So I guess some apostles are here in Rome. I have not really heard much about it other than they went to the church on the other side of Rome (the really nice area of town) and they spoke to the members and missionaries there. President did tell us that the Pope is going to give the opening remarks for this conference and President Eyring will give the closing. Pretty cool. The conference is all about the family but other than that I do not know what is going on. 

Today for P-day we are playing soccer on some fields right next to the Vatican. Maybe we will stop by to see what is happening.

What was your best experience this week?

This week I got my first member referral in my mission. Her name is Timy. She is from China and her husband is Italian. She speaks pretty well. The member asked us to meet her because their kids play soccer together and all the moms went out for coffee and the member did not get one. So Timy was curious why. We are hoping to meet with her again this week.

Who was the most interesting person you talked to this week?

This week we had to do an exchange with some elders this week. We have been a little concerned about these elders and the quality of their work. So during our exchange they took me out to meet with one of their investigators... We took a 2 hour bus to get there and we show up to a huge castle looking villa. Fountains, turrets, long driveways, multiple buildings, vines on all the walls. Super classy looking place. So we go inside to find this investigator (I was very impressed at first at this place where she lives)... I see about 20 people dressed in really funny clothes walking around the grounds mumbling under their breaths. A few of them where sitting on benches or sprawled out on the lawn. After about 20 seconds I realized that we were in an insane asylum. So we find this woman and give her a copy of the Liahona and what have you and then I wanted to get straight out of there. I have no clue how they found this woman... I think the doctors of that place and I agree that she may not have need of a baptism. 

Oh man... This zone has a lot of trouble maker missionaries that kind of like to waste time.

What was church like yesterday?

It was good. Not all that much to report. It is really weird being in a ward and not a branch. I am not really sure what to do or who to talk to.

What was your miracle of the week?

We did our Zone Conference this week about member missionary work. Anziano Budd has had a lot of success with member missionary work so he knew what to talk about during the conference. I felt kind of weird because 100% of my investigators have been found through my own efforts. But it is with members that people are baptized. It was a good conference and went well.

Sights in Rome & Zone Conference Prep

What are your responsibilities as a Zone Leader? Do you have training?

We have a Zone Conference tomorrow. I don’t really know what I am supposed to do as a Zone Leader. I really just seem to be doing the same stuff as I did before but for some reason it’s more stressful.

What was coolest thing you saw this week?

We had Stake Conference this week in a super fancy hotel right on Villa Borghese. We did some finding before and after the conference in that Villa. That thing is super cool. We also saw Piazza del Popolo because that is where the Metro stop was. There is so much stuff to see here. Today for P-Day we saw the Forum and Coliseum. It was really cool. We didn’t really have time to enjoy much of it though. It would probably take 3 hours or so to enjoy it. We did it in 2. There is so much old everywhere.

What was the best (or worst) thing you ate this week?

This week we ate Pilipino food that was really good. A member made it for us and gave it to us at the conference. I can’t think of what the worst was this week?

What was your miracle of the week?

There is a new convert here that was talking with her friend and this week we will have an appointment to meet the friend and her family! That will be really cool. The mom is Chinese but the dad is Roman.

We have been busy this week trying to organize Zone Conference and take care of other problems in the zone with missionaries and stuff. I am doing good though.

I'm in Rome!

Can you send me more pics of your new apartment and area?

Our area is in the heart of Rome. Its pretty cool.I have only been here 3 days and have not taken any pictures. The apartment is really funny. It is rented out from an old lady that has tons of pictures on the walls and funny old yellow chairs and couches from the 1800's. 

The area here is crazy. In all cities there are always ruins and churches and stuff. But here in Rome the ruins are HUGE! The churches are HUGE! We pass by a few old Roman aqueducts every day and there are old Roman things that people just don’t care about everywhere!

Today we are hopping the metro and going to go see the Vatican and a castle near there. We are not going in them but just going to relax and see the outsides. Maybe eat some gelato and sit on a bench. Should be pretty relaxing after transfers. I will try to send some pictures next week.

Were you finally able to see the temple?

I don’t believe the temple actually exists. I have never really seen it or heard anybody talk about it yet? Maybe one day we will do finding out in that area to see it.

How was your travel and did Elder Maxwell stay in Lecce?

The travel was good. It was a 7 hours train ride alone. Elder Maxwell stayed in Lecce and help to organize the Halloween party that night. An Anziano from Bari came down to be his companion.

A little dedica for Anziano Maxwell I made. It is about 10 pages long. It is really cool. I have a video of it.

What are your first impressions of Rome compared to other places you've been?

It is big. Very big. Very old. It really feels like you are in a great city. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s the huge Roman stuff everywhere or the history but Rome has a really cool atmosphere. I miss the small town feel of Sciacca or even Lecce.

What was your best experience this week?

I liked saying bye to everyone in Lecce. It made me feel loved. The branch did a small bowling activity for me the night before I left. It was fun. I had dinner with a lot of members and said bye to my English course. There are a lot of super awesome people in Lecce. Really awesome.

English course piz

The English course students made me a cake. They are super awesome!

What was church like yesterday in your new ward?

Big. There were about 75 members there. That’s the most I have seen in my mission. Lots of really cool and sane people here. I think this ward has huge possibility to grow.

What was your miracle of the week?

Good question. We got a baptismal date with a man here in Rome named Carlos from Peru two days ago. I am still confused who is who and what is what in Rome. I have met a lot of people. Our area has a lot of people in it. We ride Metros and walk and busses and train. It is really cool. It does not have that small town feel like I have been used to all my mission. Essentially all my mission essentially all people have talked with us missionaries in the past but here in Rome we can goes hours without anybody who has heard of us.

Goin' to Rome!

I got transferred. That is to say I am being transferred this week to Rome 3. I will be the Zone Leader there. I don’t think I am this Zone Leader material but the Lord does. I am excited to see Rome. Rome 3 in the center of Rome by the Vatican and Coliseum and stuff like that. That should be pretty cool.

How was Otranto? Pictures?

I am going to try to send a few! It was a really cool city. We ate an expensive fancy meal at a fancy restaurant with the money we had put away. It was really cool. We took our roller blades down there and cruised around the whole town. It was super cool. There are quite a few famous things there. A huge mosaic floor and the bones of 800 martyrs. I really liked that town.

With Elders Maxwell and Bahme.

What was the best thing you ate this week?

The meal in Otranto. It was a 5 course meal. All sea food caught locally. 

What was church like yesterday?

Not many people showed up. I would have thought after summer ended people would start coming back but it seems kind of the opposite. It was my last Sunday so I was able to say goodbye to all of the members. It was good. I have really enjoyed my time here in Lecce. I really liked it. The branch is trying to organize a branch activity for me on Wednesday to go bowling but I think that I will be transferred by then. I am also sad that I will miss the Halloween party that we have been planning. Well... I guess that is life though. 

This week has been a little rough. We did mostly street contacting. We were able to meet with Jimmy McFoy though. He is really cool. He is now trying to quit smoking but he has quite a few problems that he is going to have to overcome.

Well that is about all. Next week I will email from Rome. My new companion is named Anziano Budd. I believe that is his name? Never met him before.

Free Masons and Less Active Work

What was the most interesting place you visited this week?

Today we are going to a city called Otranto. It is supposedly a really cool beach city with a castle and what not. President always talks about it whenever he talks with the Lecce Elders about going there for a P-day. We have planned to take a train down there and then rollerblade around the city. It should be really fun. Other than that we mostly just stay in Lecce. The small cities are filled with really old dying people and nobody is on the streets. So it’s more effective just to stay here.

Who was the most interesting person you talked to this week?

I talked to a man who was a free mason. There is a small free mason club here in Lecce. All of the masons are very proud to be masons and always have pins of their guild on their jackets. All he kept saying was he was a part of a guild designed to save humanity from political and religious evils. He was not very interested but he was a very interesting man.

What was the hardest thing you did this week?

For some reason this week we met with a lot of less actives. They all could meet with us. But... Less active work is sometimes very hard... Because it is always pride that keeps people from coming to church. Also a few of the people we met with probably should not have been baptized because they really did not understand what they were doing (3 of them had no clue who Joseph Smith was... Wow...). That is always a little hard and frustrating.

What was your miracle of the week?

We have a friend here in Lecce named Slim who works at the castle. His name is not really Slim but he likes to be called that. But after 30 years of dating various women he has decided to get married. He proposed to his girlfriend a few days ago. It made me really happy.

Well that is about all for me today!

Funeral Sunday

What was coolest thing you saw this week?

One of the first things that comes to mind is me and Anziano Jones were doing exchanges this week in Lecce and we were talking with a nice couple next to the Roman Theater in Lecce. But as we were talking to this woman all these crazy people started coming up to us (seriously tons!). One would leave and 5 seconds later another one would come. Asking us all sorts of questions. After about 10 minutes of people coming up to us we finally managed to talk to the couple again. It was super strange. 

What was the hardest thing you did this week?

This week we had a really awesome member named Nicla die here. Almost of the branch was baptized thanks to her and everybody knows her. She got cancer and became very sick. I had the chance to home teach her and to clean her house. She also used to teach Gospel Principles with me. She was really an awesome lady. Her husband Kim is really awesome to. He is American.

What were your duties church yesterday and did you have any investigators?

Yesterday in church we did not have really anybody in church because Nicla died yesterday morning. All the members except for about 5 went to the hospital. So we did sacrament with about 0 people in church and then we all went to the hospital. In Italy they do the funerals within 24 hours of the death. In the hospital they had small chapels below where people can meet and say their regards.

So yesterday we all met as a branch and organized how we would help the family and then late that night we went and did the sacrament as a branch in their home. We sang hymns and it was a really tender moment. I blessed the sacrament. That was a really tender memory for me this week.

Today we had the funeral in church. Lots of people. Lots of work transforming the church into a suitable place for a funeral. After emailing we have to clean it all up.

What was your miracle of the week?

I really like branches how they can come together to help out a family. Especially these Italian Saints. They have to give up a lot to be members here. A lot. So the church then becomes their family.

Meet the Mormons?

I read something about it on lds.org during conference. But... I think it is only in English so I don’t know if it will be of much use here. That is super cool that the church is making movies and is all about social media now.

What Do I eat each Day?

Pasta. Lots of pasta. I have been trying to mix it up with rice. But Italians eat different kinds of pasta everyday so that is all they sell in stores. It is really hard to eat diverse. 

Duties of a District Leader?

I plan the weekly District Meeting where we talk about work and I give a training about various things. This next week I am giving a training about the pre-Earth Earth and learning to love.

Do I miss Sicily?

Sicily was awesome. I really loved Sicily. I would love to go back. But I don’t think that is what is going to happen to me. I honestly don’t know if I will ever see that island ever again. Sciacca and Palermo are just so hard to get to. I really love Sicily though.

General Conference

Here are some questions that mom sent to help make my letters better. Thanks MOM!

What was the best thing you ate this week?

For General Conference I made some tacos with my tortilla recipe. I also made some salsa for Anziano Maxwell! It was really good. But it needed some cilantro. Conference was really good. We watched it in English in one room with two visitors from France (one of them, Robi, lived here a few years ago and served a mission) while the members watched it in another.

What was the hardest thing you did this week?

Mostly the same struggles of trying to find new investigators and trying to use our time effectively.

What was your miracle of the week?

This week I had 8 new students come to my English course from the University! It is awesome! I really hope that they stay because it will help our English course there a lot.

I am sorry if this letter is very short but today I have to fill out a bunch of stuff for BYU to go back there next fall.