"I Want To Do That"

Hello Hello.........

Alright, well despite all the disappointments and struggles of last week, this week has turned out to be pretty fun(for me, anyway). Yeah, I was a bit down last week, but it still wasn't too bad. I forgot to mention that two Thursdays ago we had Zone Conference. Elder Kopischke of the 70 and Area President came and spoke. We had to go to Milano for it and it lasted all day. It was super fun. He talked a lot about our approach as missionaries when we are doing strada (street contacting). Basically we just need to smile(which I am good at most of the time), testifying of the Restoration and always asking people for referrals. Obviously he went into a lot more depth about these points, but it was really fun. It was actually a big conference. I think 5 of the 8 zones were there. So, there were a lot of missionaries there. I even got pulled up in front because every time he would look at me I kept smiling and I couldn't help it. Basically he was like, do your best to not smile and I failed....haha oh well.

There were some funny moments last week too. While we were doing casa (tracting) we came across this lady and her son. We were giving a brief explanation at the door of our message and when we finished she said, "non interesa".....as she is closing the door her little boy that is like 5 yrs old says, "mama, per favore!" (Mama, please!). It was pretty cute/funny. It is always kinda funny when we ask our African investigators to come to church and they say "By the grace of God I will come to your church this week". Yeah, basically they aren't coming to church. haha. It is always funny to hear it though; I just wished they would actually come.

We also had interviews for our zone last Thursday and they were really fun. I was able to clear the water under the bridge with president. Apparently he got kinda mad at me for a comment I made in our last zone conference. I questioned they way we were using our time in the mission, and he didn't like the comment I guess. Interviews were fun though. While everyone else had their interview, the assistants and zone leaders had a lesson. Basically we just need to do a better at missionary work. We need to teach more lessons, especially lessons with members and lessons with only members. It was really fun though.

I got my package as well last Thursday! Thanks for all the goodies...they were delicious. Yeah, I think I ate them all by Sunday haha. I figured I'm gonna eat them sooner or later. Why not sooner rather then later(there is a Brink quote for ya haha).

I also got the letter from grandma and grandpa. Thank them for me, letters are the best(and the presents within them).

Well this week was fun, different, sort of productive. My comp was sick...ALL week!...we were able to teach some lessons though at the church because the church is right behind our apartment. It takes like less than a minute to walk there. So yeah my spirits were up though. I had a lot of time to read, read, read and practice the language(or at least study the language). I had started Jesus the Christ last transfer but I didn't get very far. I read like half the book this week and it's so awesome. I have learned so many interesting things about the life of Christ and of the people who were close to him. Even the little notes at the end of each chapter are very interesting. For instance, I didn't really know that the Savior hadn't started his ministry until he was like 30 yrs old. James Talmage is a genius, but it probably helps that he was intelligent and an apostle.

I am still not speaking as much Italian as I should be. We are going to work on speaking with each other more outside of the apartment. I feel that I have gotten a little better though at speaking, although it is definitely not flowing. haha Ashley, I'm not gonna embarrass myself by writing something to you in Italian haha sorry.

I think a real faith builder moment for me this past week was with our African investigator Helen. She is so awesome. I can't remember if I mentioned her last week. She is 60 yrs old and she came to church with a friend a few weeks ago. We happened to have a baptism that day with Kinglsey. She stayed and watched and afterward she came up to us and said "I want to do that". Since then we have taught her like 4 or 5 times and she has a baptismal date set for the end of this month. It is funny because she is always saying thank you. Haha she says thank you after everything we say. She is super nice and is just always excited for what we have to teach. It really brings into perspective how much our Heavenly Father blesses us. That she just happened to come to church two weeks ago and that we had a baptism that day. If we hadn't had a baptism, she might not have had the experience that she did. But because all that happened, she is now preparing to be baptized. She brings her grandchildren(Moses and Princess) to church. That is how my faith in the our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ has grown. They truly can do all things, it just not always that we recognize the role that they play. One of our goals each day is to find a miracle. We think about our day and try to locate/recognize a miracle that we saw each day because we are blessed with them everyday (even when we are trapped inside because our companion is sick).

The assistants read something by Elder Eyring during our interviews that was pretty awesome. I hadn't heard it before, but later that day I noticed that the same quote/talk was taped to my closet door.

"I am a a part of the fellowship of the unashamed, the dye has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let up, slow down or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I'm finished and done with the low living, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, worldly talk, cheap giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need preeminence, positions, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk with patience. I am uplifted by prayer, and labor with power. My face is set, my gate is fast, my goal is Heaven. My road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions are few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, divided, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I wont give up, shut up or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, and paid up for the cause of Christ. I must go till he comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till he stops me. And when He returns for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My Banner will be clear". -- Elder Eyring.

I just thought it was super super awesome. It really made me think about how hard I have been working thus far in the mission. It has inspired me to work harder, to give my best so that, like the quote says, "when He returns for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me." The work really is doing awesome. We had an opportunity to take some of our investigators last Saturday to our ward for a baptism(a couple in the other ward in Torino). It was really awesome and I think they enjoyed it a lot. They also got to hear the testimonies of those baptized and it was very spiritual. I didn't understand all of it, but I could feel the spirit and I know our investigators did, too. Hopefully they can just act on their faith.

One of our biggest problems has been that everyone we teach is poor. None of them have jobs and it's hard for them to come to church, have time to read, or have time for lessons. It is definitely a hard thing to do because they have to care for themselves and their families. They just don't realize that the Lord will bless them by showing their faith. Many of the people we teach also say they have faith, they just don't know they actually have to act on it. Hopefully we can try and help them realize these things because if they can understand it, then nothing will stop them from receiving the fullness of the gospel.

Haha so i am 20!.....wahoo...feels kinda weird. We made the cake you sent and it was really good. I'm gonna try sending off some pictures on a CD very soon. Keep praying for us; I'm doing the same for all you back home. Love you all and thanks for you support!

Ciao Tuck