Ciao Famiglia,
Well, I can’t believe how much the letters I receive have more updates on the sheep and turkeys, than on actual people!!! I swear if anyone is wearing overalls or heaven forbid...FLANNEL when I come back to America, I will get straight back on that plane and come back to Europe--Ha Ha
So this week was good. We are having a bit of a rough time though because for the months of July and August, EVERYONE goes to the mare. Sorry, the Sea that is. Ragusa is one of the tougher cities to serve in… in the summer, because we aren’t directly on the sea, so everyone goes to their sea house. Even pretty rough to get member appointments. We have been doing a lot of proselyting in Ibla lately, since literally MOST of the time, there are very few people out here in Ragusa. Tough to see investigators, and lots of tourists. Pazienza.
This week we had an appointment, and we had got caught in a lengthy street lesson---we were running super late, and on the opposite side of the city. PS. NEVER TAKE ADVANTAGE OF CARS!!!!!!!!!!!!! So we were like doing this speed walk thing to try to get to our appointment, and we saw a bus. I handed my companion my bag, and just sprinted along the side of this bus for like a minute haha I am sure i looked like such an idiot, but that is just part of the mission. So I get it to stop, and this bus you can’t buy tickets on the bus, so he’s like, up there (AT THE TOP of the hill) you can buy tickets. So I leave my companion in the dust, and start booking it up the hill to this little place to buy tickets. So I finally get there to get some tickets, and there are like a billion people in there. Meanwhile the bus is coming up near where we are. The bus stops in the middle of the road, because it knows we are getting tickets, and then after like a minute, he’s holding up traffic, he looks at me, shrugs his shoulders, and drives off. ohhhhhhhhh. Haha. Then, we get to our appointment, like 30 minutes late, and she wasn’t there. Dang it. Well, we taught a super good lesson to the lady on the street, so hopefully something comes of that.
Another funny story. So we were at a Bread store (don’t know what it’s really called in English, but picture like the little bread places you see on Beauty and the Beast, that’s the first thing that comes to mind when I try to describe it) and I start talking to this old man. He finds out quickly that we are not from here. So he is like "Vuoi una cartina?" that means--"Do you want a map" Then he walks out to his car, and starts getting something out. I heard something else I heard "Vuoi una gatina?" that means, "Would you like a little feminine cat?" Yea. So of course i thought that was a little bit odd he was just straight asking me if I wanted a kitten, and then was going to get one out of his car..but i was like "No, no ma grazie. ANSI, ci piaciono i cani" meaning, "no, thanks we're good, we actually prefer dogs!" he like looked at me, and then asked the question again, and i got it, and just laughed at myself for like 10 minutes, and so did he. It was pretty funny. Occasional mix ups always occur. At least I can laugh at myself.
Italians are one of a kind. i can’t even explain them. i LOVE them. So the other night we took a bus up from Ibla to Ragusa, to avoid the long climb, and this little old man Giuseppe Nobile age 78, comes up and sits in between us. He’s had a Libro di Mormon for years, and has known all the missionaries. He still is a tour guide of all of Sicily. He told us for 10 minutes, where to find the best pizza, gelato, and focaccia. He then walked with us and told us his life story for the next 20 minutes. We of course invited him to church, not really expecting this 78 year old man to come, but sure enough in he rolls the next day to Sacrament meeting!!!! Haha sweet. He also had brought us a brochure of Modica, a sweet little old town we went to today. It was gorgeous. I still can’t believe I got so lucky to come to the most beautiful place on earth on a mission. Despite the often concrete traditions, at least I can marvel several times a day on the beauty in which I am surrounded by. Best food in the world.
I love these people. I remember when I was set apart as a missionary, he told me that i would have a mantle of love on my shoulders for these people. I can honestly say I have that. I love them. The other day we had an appointment fall through. We stood for a minute or so, stagnant if you will, on the street corner. We battled to discern impressions coming from the spirit, or our own minds. Finally I just said Basta, and we went with one of our first impressions that came to mind. Often I feel it’s just a leap of faith into the dark, but like a friend told me in a letter recently "Often the things we regret the most in life are the things we didn’t do" So we decided to stop by a contact in a nearby cafe who we met a few weeks ago. So we went, and she wasn’t there. haha Got to maintain a smile on your face, ESPECIALLY when you just sat deciding whether something was a prompting, or our own minds, and we decided it was a prompting, then we follow it, and its a let down! Haha I testify that WE ARE LED BY THE SPIRIT!!!! So, we kept on moving forward. About 2 minutes later, I saw a lady walking towards me, and i got a really strong feeling that we had to talk to her. long story short, she had just lost her father a few years ago, and she broke down into tears right there on the street with us. She had lost her faith in a loving Father in heaven as a result of this experience. She saw the hope, in the plan of Happiness that we explained to her. I know we were led to Enrica, even though it initially seemed like a "let down" and we were trusting in our own judgement. We are led, when we qualify to be.
We are teaching a Pentacostal Preacher named Michele. He owns the internet point we go to each wednesday. This week was the first formal "appointment" we have done with him, where he came to our church, and we sat down and did a lesson. I have never been so nervous and felt so intimidated haha This guy knows the Bible like no ones business. It is a Biiiiiig issue for him that there could be another "bible" but piano a piano he actually opened up to it, and said at the end of the lesson " I can’t condemn this book, because it DOES testify of Jesus Christ, and i love Jesus Christ, so I can’t yet judge it." It was cool. He is a super promising investigator. But holy cow. I pray so hard that The spirit will just give me the words, because I often don’t know WHAT to say to some of the things he throws at us!
Well tutti, things are good here. The transfers just keep speeding up, its crazy. I truly am the happiest I have been in my life, even though this is the hardest thing i have ever done in my life. I love to just do whatever the heck i want. I see someone on the other side of the street, I’m like "hey, I want to talk to them" We cross the street, and we go testify of Jesus Christ. When else can you EVER do that, and get away with it. Without the tag, it would just be wierd. Its actually still pretty bizarre what I do every day, haha but I have kind of gotten over it and don’t even remember real life. Being a missionary is just normal for me now. Weird. im still me though. I wished the ward a happy 4th of July on Sunday during fast and testimony meeting haha and they all thought that was pretty funny. it was sweet. there was a baby blessing and we had like 20 nonmembers in church. You better believe that I like sprinted to the podium!!!! I felt the spirit so strongly. you just can’t deny the spirit when you feel it burning in your chest. It burns in my chest, thats how I feel it. Learn to recognize how you feel it personally, its a blessing to know what it feels like. I love you all.
Thank you for your prayers,
con tanto amore,
MONICA
....Sorella Miller
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