Eva’s email 11/30/11

Ciao Caro Famiglia!!!!

Mamma can you email Lauren Kane and ask for her address and Catherine Cromar's and let her know when I get it I will write her back:) Thanks!

So this week was hectic and lovely! I feel like my Italian is getting a tad better, only the vocabulary, my grammer still is not so great. I feel like I study it lots and then when I am in the moment of speaking to someone it all goes out the window and I probably sound like how indians sound to us, "how you? me happy." etc (I do not think that that is super PC to talk about indians, o'well:)) Anyhow, my companion and I have been struggling this week. She is getting really frustrated with her language skills and how she can never remember what she learns and then when I speak to her in Italian she gets annoyed that she cannot understand, then I get frustrated that I cannot practice my Italian and it goes on. But no longer is it like that! The Lord loves us:) I have been praying super hard to love her more and be her friend and have lots of patience and my prayers are being answered! Now I cannot help but  get super excited when she starts to speak even a little, high fives and hugs all around when she said in Italian for the first time, without looking at her notes, "Devo andare al bagno addesso!" Plus she got a blessing last night and it was a beautiful blessing of comfort that even comforted me:) Week three is going to be good I can feel it!

Thanksgiving went well, the food was disgust.... I mean great! And I was so grateful for it! Elder Russell M. Ballard came and gave a talk. It was cool because he mentioned the word for thanksgiving in greek is euchoirso, or something like that, which stems from the same root as eucharist, which is like the sacrament wich means sacred mind so during the sacrament you should be grateful. It reminded me of Dad and how he knows all the roots of words:)

So, remember how I told you I was the coordinating sister, guess what my job is??? It is to support the lovely sorelle in my branch, which there are only 6 and they are the ones supporting me and I am incharge of making sure there is a sponge in the bathtub in the handicap tub! What a responsibility if I do say so myself;)

Thank you sooooo soooo much for the yummy bread! You are so sweet to think of me:) I gave some of it to an Anziano from England, I think I told you about him, he has never had pumpkin bread before, those crazy brits!:)

So I must tell you the revelation I had while memorizing the first vision in Italian, which I receit beautifully. I always thought of the first thing God said to Joseph Smith was this is my beloved son hear him, but actually he calls him by name first! The first thing that God says to Joseph Smith is his name!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That is so incredible to me! God knows us, he knows our esigenze (needs), our hearts and our names! This made me think of how we start our lessons, in Preach my gospel (which I think everyone should start studying because it is amazing!), we start with making sure investigators and people in general know that they are children of God, that he loves them so much and that he knows their names and circumstances, then we start teaching about Christ and all of the happiness that comes from following him. Just like in the first vision, God calls him by name and then introduces Christ. I love the Gospel and all of the pensieri it gives to me!

I will tell you, going on a mission is a lot harder than I thought. Sometimes I get discouraged because I am not good at organizing myself to study or I do not know how to respond to our "investigators" in Italian. I have realized that I am super hardheaded(Dad was right all these years;)) and I want to do it my way, but it does not work that way, because without the help of the spirit their is no way I could last. I am so grateful I have been humbled to realize I do not have to do it all, I can lean on the Lord, while still working hard, to guide me.

Hopefully this all makes sense!:)

I love you all so so much! I pray for you always and think of you sempre! You are the best! Thanks for all of you support!

Love,

Sorella Comollo!

Eva's First E-mail

Oh sweet sweet Mamma and family!!!

I loved all of your emails! You should start using dear elder .com, it is super easy and free. You just write an email and the MTC prints it out the same day, if you send it before noon, and I get it with my mail:) You are so funny mom! Thanks for making my sound like a Micky d's commercial. I am glad you like to sit in my lovely room and think of me. I am just so great aren't I?!jk!

This week has been bittersweet. I have been truly humbled. I came in thinking that I would be so good at everything, Italian and teaching included. Well, my teaching skills need improvement I really have to study the gospel vocabulary and Italian grammer. It has been hard getting organized. Last night Elder D. Todd Christofferson came and spoke to the missionarys. His talk was AMAZING. One thing that stuck out to me is that when you are busy and doing something, be sure to recognize the fruits that are yielding from your work. This week I have felt busy all the time, but as I analyze my fruits I realize I do need to change what I am doing while I am busy so I can see the fruits of my labors. I need to increase my knowledge of PMG and of Italian. I also learned that if you pray for the spirit to help you change so you do see more results that he will help you:)

 I have never prayed some much in my life as I have this week! Mostly because here at the MTC we pray for everything, before we use the gym to exercise, breakfast, lunch and dinner, before starting class, or a fireside, before we start to practice teaching, before we do companionship study, before we do personal study, before we leave our room for the day, before we go to bed. I love it! The spirit is so strong here because of it, it is so exciting to see everyone so happy and working so hard!

I love my district so so much! We have only known each other for a week, but it feels like we are family. It was hard yesterday though because one of our elders was sent home. Even though I only knew him for a few days I was so close to him. We would always make each other laugh and helped each other with the language! Our branch president told us it was a blessing he came here for the short time he did because it gave him the courage to go to a priesthood leader and start the repentence process. And the elder said that he is going to go on his mission again, only when he does he will by truly ready. Even though I felt like a member of our family was gone and there was a hole in my heart, I am so proud of that elder and I am so grateful for the savior and the healing that he has given to us through his atonement.

Oh my goodness I have to tell you about my first morning last Thursday! It was awful, I accidently set my alarm for five in the morning instead of six, darn those face clocks. My alarm is so loud it woke up all of the five other girls in my room! I felt soooooo bad! Thank goodness everyone is so forgiving here!:)

My companion and I are getting a long pretty well. We are not as thick as thieves, but we are functional together! I think as time grows on and as I pray for more love for her we will be great chums! I am glad she is my comp though because she is miss workout! She gets up at five thirty and does like 100 push ups and sit ups and lunges. So I have been getting up too and doing it too...well not 100;) Plus when we go to lunch she eats so healthy, so I copy her:). I have been depriving myself of BYU chocolate milk, but I know it will be worth it!:)jk

I only have like three minutes left on the computer:( I want to write so much more! I will write you a letter too! I got you and dad birthday presents!

I love you with all of my gradually becoming healthy heart! I miss you lots! I am so happy you are my mamma!

Tell dad I love him so much and I pray for him everytime I pray, which as you see is a lot!

Love you! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

Love,

Sorella Comollo

PS there is an Anziano from England and he is teaching me cool english words, here is one. You are the don!

She's Off!