Awesome and Busy Week!

This week has been so busy and so Awesome. 

Today being P-day our district decided to go clothes shopping in Parma. That was really fun. Italian fashion sense is wild. I have seen some really cool things and some really ugly things on those shelves and somehow the Italian people can pull it all off. Let me give an example... In Italy, brown, and fur, and puffy jackets are all as chic as they day they were introduced and sometimes all three in one outfit.

Some of my favorite people here are the Old Grandma Italians. We visit one, Sorella Libé every Sunday and give her the Sacrament and leave a spiritual thought with her. She talks a lot and is always trying to give us candy and sugary stuff. Last Sunday she gave us so many sweets that I thought I was going to die if I ever saw a grain of sugar again and then we went to another appointment we were given more sugar... I was swimming. I thought I was on the brink of Death. But she told me last Sunday "Sei più bello oggi da settimana scoursa (You are more beautiful today than last week)" She went on to talk about all of the biking around we do and how Italy's air is good for the skin

We have a new investigator, Giovanna. She really is in need of the direction and peace that comes from the Gospel and we are happy to give it to her and help her along the way. She was a really cool find. We met her on the street and she told us at our first meeting that she hadn't originally been planning to go the route she did to meet us but something told her that she had to go that way and she also said that when we parted after a brief exchange, she was left wanting to know more. We have taught one lesson with her so far and she wants to bring her mom to the next lesson. Wahoo!

Last night we also found a man named Angelo who we might start meeting with who seems really Awesome.

We have a couple of investigators that we see several times a week. There is Maurizia who is from Cape Verde and speaks Italian and Portugese (and finally came to church with her sons and daughter and had a great time because our Branch is fantastic at helping people feel welcome!!!) Her husband is Muslim and is always back in Africa doing his job as a salesman. She is really lonely and has a hard time trying to take care of all three kids alone. But she is really receptive. We have Cinzia who is really awesome. She was in my basic English class last week. She always gives us lunch appointments and we see her all the time because she loves our Branch and our Branch loves her. At the Baptism my second day she bore her testimony and that was really cool to see. She says she feels Peace and Joy when we are all around and she likes The Book of Mormon a lot and she finds comfort in the Scriptures but is trying to sort it all out as she was raised Catholic and really likes to pray to Mary. 

We are also helping our Branch President with getting people to come back to Church. We are working really hard to strenngthen less actives and New converts and find new investigators. Appointments have been hard to come by lately and the past few days, Anziano Thompson and I have both been sick. Him more than I so we have only gone to our appointments because its cold in Piacenza right now and the mission president doesn't want us to get worse. Speaking of... in Italy they have this belief  in this thing called culpa d'aria or a falling of air. They believe that if the wind blows and hits the back of your neck, then you could get sick. So they wear scarves all the time to make sure that they don't get that. And Sorella Libé is always mad when she sees me without a scarf "You will get colpa d'aria! Mark my words!" 

It is fun here and I am well taken care of. We eat well. And I can get a pretty good week's worth of groceries for 20-30€. Anziano Thompson and I have just figured out how to make soup and now he's obsessed with it especially because of his cold.

Through all of the colds, and the skinned knee that I got the other day on my bike, and Language issues, we have the satisfaction of knowing that we are doing the Lord's work and that we have the great opportunity of finding and teaching his children here in Italy. It is tough work, but it is vale la penna (worth it) to be here and serve and learn and teach. Italy really is bomb. The people are great and I just know that I was called here for a reason. I love you all and I hope you are all well.