Famiglia!!!!!!!!!

Vi voglio bene!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mi mancate!

This week has been crazy! Crazy hard! So I got my new companion! She is nice and full of energy, like me. She also has a bunch of faith for Mistretta, which we will be needing this Transfer. I know you all know this, but man I love to be in charge, I am such a bossy lady and I love it! The contrast of being a shadow as a greenie versus the one who knows the city sun and the people is   big. I like being in the sun. I learned so much from Sorella Johnson and now I get to use it! 

I have been exhausted this week, I have never talked so much in my life! Plus it was in another language. My Italian is blooming, the gift of tongues is real! I have been praying so much for help in understanding these crazy sicilians and having them understand me and Heavenly Father is helping me so much. I am by no means perfect, I am now get excited to speak instead of afraid, I am now happy to mess up with the grammaticals so that I can learn the right way to say it. 

I had my first bidone (it means dumpster, but it means to get stood up). The other day. Our miracle girl Valentina, the one we met that had the friend whose mom killed herself, we set up an appointment to meet with her at the lungo mare, by the beach. Well, we got there and didn't see her so we called her. She answered, but pretended that it wasn't her than she and her friends in the background started laughing, then she hung up. My goodness, I was so sad, I was heart broken. At first I felt bad for myself, that I got stood up and then made fun of after wards. But as I said my prayers that evening to help me to feel better they started to change. Instead I felt like I should pray for that sweet Valentina, for the spirit helped me to realize that I am here to help her and that, unfortunately, she gave up a great chance to learn about the gospel that day. I then started praying that she will have the opportunity again and will not let it slip away or will not push it away. I felt this incredible love for her and I truly hope we can see her again and that her heart will be softened to feel the spirit and how this gospel can truly help her. 

We have been doing a lot of finding lately. Sometimes people are so mean! It was so discouraging at first. They think that missionaries are religious crazies, but we are normal! I feel pretty normal at least. I am just living my life in a way that I can combine my physical experience on the earth with my spirituality. Hopefully that makes sense, hey maybe I am not normal, but I am happy happy happy!

So Pasquale, our investigator, is awesome! He is so funny! Last night we were reading about the dream of Lehi and he was reading a verse then started making up his own story to it. Like, And it came to pass that they saw Sorella Comollo running away from the guy with the hatchet. It sounds weird, but it was so funny and we couldn't stop laughing! I am glad that he is learning to apply the scriptures to his life:) We were talking about the mists of darkness, which signify the temptations of the devil and how a mist is just air and it can be easily blown away. We think Satan is so powerful, it he is just smoke that can be easily wisped away. We have so much more power than we think! We can totally overcome addictions and temptations, especially when we include the Lord, for we can wave away the smoke, but he can blast it away if we ask him to!

I love the dream of Lehi. In Italian it says that the people who are steadfastly holding to the iron rod do not pay any attention to the people making fun of them in the building. Boy, did I need to read that! We have gotten made fun of so much this passed week. I just gotta keep pressing forward!

I love talking to people and finding their interests and applying the gospel to their lives!!!!!!!! When I was in Catania on Thursday we were on the bus and I started talking to this kid. He did not really want to talk to me, but I kept asking him questions, finally we got to the topic of cooking! He brightened up like a light bulb. We chit chatted about pasta and ragu, he gave me a few pointers on a suogo recipe and then I told him about a recipe for life, the gospel! He took the pass a long card gladly! When before he did not even want to talk to me.

This is the hardest work ever, not gonna lie. I am getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. I have to pray everyday for help to break out of my comfort zone, but when I do there is nothing better!

I love you all so much! 

Thanks for your great examples!

Talk to you soon and write you next week!

Love,

Sorella Comollo

Ciao!

Cari!

So lots of changes this week! Sorella Johnson is being transferred to Rome, she is leaving me, ah! We are going to Catania today to drop her off and pick up my new companion. Her name is Sorella Sobeck, she is from California and has been her only two transfers more than me. 

It is crazy to think Sorella Johnson is leaving! She has been such a great trainer and has taught me so much about how to be a missionary and about life. She will do great things in Roma 3, I know it! I am a little nervous thinking about doing everything without Sorella Johnson, but I know that this challenge will help me to put more of my trust in the Lord. Because I have been just leaning on her for help lately. 

We had the most wonderful experience last night with Giuseppe. Before we said the prayer he said that he wanted to tell us of an experience he had afterward. We were both thinking, it is either going to be a bad one or an amazing one. It was an amazing one! He told us about how he dreamed about asking a man were a street was and it was like he was asking through prayer and then he saw a light, he said like Joseph Smith did, and the man said that the way is with the missionaries and the gospel they are teaching and you need to keep going down that street. He said he woke up with the most exquisite feeling of peace and happiness and was even more excited to see us! It was a awesome, because we had spent a lot of time thinking about him this week and planning his lesson. We ended up deciding to keep it simple and do the third which is about the gospel of Chirst and give him a homework assignment of sorts. We wanted him to read 2 Nephi 31 and write some notes on the question, how can you follow Chirst more? Well, it was perfect, for it fit in perfectly with his dream and following the way of the gospel! We were so happy for him.

It was also incredible to see how he is changing. When we first met with him he was impatient and wanted to learn everything at once and was just looking for facts, he did not really listen intently to what we were saying, but now he is tranquilo, he listens intently and asks pertinant questions to the topic we are on. He is going to Milano for a conference for work and he asked us to help him find a church close to where he is staying. We found it on the google map (the church has the coolest website to find meeting houses!) and he called the bishop! He said that he wants to bring his collegue that he is going with. 

The companion of one of our investigators had a baby! She is the cutest thing in the world, only 2 kilos. Her mom, who is in active, is softening so much because of the sweet spirit that baby brings. I love babies and it makes me want to see Lena and Jimmy so bad!

I heard this story from Sorella Johnson. Sorella Johnson's brother's friend, while serving in Brazil, was walking across the street when a bus hit him. He hardly had a chance to live he had so much damage done to his body. Well, he is alive and progressing so rapidly that the doctors are amazed. A couple days before general conference they thought he was going to be completely paralyzed, but in just those few days he started to move a little more and then when in conference everyone sustained the prophet, he suprised everyone by raising his right arm to sustain him too. Now he is starting to learn to walk again. When I think of this I am just so filled with the spirit, inspiring me to keep going and working hard. This young man, instead of being depressed and sad and lamenting, why did this happen to me, I was on a mission, I was being good, why would God do this to me. He is showing great faith in accepting the trials that come to him and being an example that no matter what we go through we can be positive and go on.

Lots of people here have lost hope or are losing hope. We are working so hard to help them to understand faith. I know with all my heart that if we have faith in Jesus Christ we will be happy, happier than we ever thought possible in this world, no matter what.

Love you all and I hope you have a good week!

Love,

Sorella Comollo

Ciao!

Famiglia!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This week has sure been full of miracles! On Thursday last week we went to Sant'Agata to have a lesson with a contact there, she said that she would be there at a certain time, but then called us to say she needed more time to do some things. So we decided to do some finding around the area where she lived. We did some house and a girl, about 17 years old, let us in. We are doing a survey type of finding. So we asked her some questions and told her about who we are. She was so interested that we got talking more about what we believe. She paused for a moment in our conversation and told us that the mother of her friend from school commited suicide that morning and that it is interesting that missionaries came to her today. We taught her about the plan of salvation and she said she would read the material we gave her. She is excited to have us come on Saturday. This truly was a miracle. The Lord led us to that girl on the very day, in the very moment that she need support. Everything happens for a reason, our contact made our appointment for a later time than we had planned, we did finding at that palazzo instead of another one. I love God!

We had the best lesson with Giuseppe last night! We really got to get into the scriptures and talked about having a testimony and faith. He is so great. He came to church on Sunday and he told us how he loves it. How the people there are not perfect, but they are sincere and talk about how spiritual things can help us, with their heart. 

A member from our ward here in Mistretta sent a postcard or letter to you. His name is Antonio and he is so awesome. He needs some nice words and love, so if you want you can write him back! And it is cool since you speak Italian, so he can understand what you write:)

I am glad to hear you had a nice Easter! We spent it with the family of an investigator, Pasquale. We had lamb pasta and then lamb and potatos, yummy! The family was so nice to invite us. We also met Pasquale's son from his exwife. He is so cute, he is nine years old and loves the sister missionaries. We had a mini lesson with him about the tree of life and he wants to read the childrens book of mormon! We also went to Antonio's house. His sister made pasta with boiled egg, suonds wierd, but it was good. The best part about Easter was church. It was all centered around the resurection, of course. The branch President had people come up and share their favorite scriptures on this topic and bare their testimonies. I choose Mosia 16:8, it is good, you should read it:)

We had our interviews with President Kelly this yesterday a Paleramo. He is so nice! It was good to get some of my questions answered on how I can improve myself as a missionary.

I love you all so much!!!!

Have a good week and will talk to you next week!

Love,

Sorella Comollo