Seven: June 19, 2013 Milano

I am in Milano!!!! WOO HOO!!!

Ok I'm just going to jump right into it.  I don't have much time -

I'm in Milano. My first area!  Cimiano Milano is my church building and its actually where we all met out trainers.  So, I didn't go anywhere, just stayed put.

My trainer, Sorella Hoppe, is German: she speaks German, English, Spanish, and Italian (and REALLY WELL too).  When I saw her, I knew she'd be my trainer, because Satan tried to tell me I wanted something different, like that I wanted to be in a fancier place like Como and not the city.  But, I don't.  I WANT TO BE HERE!  Milano is great.  It's so beautiful. Sorella Hoppe (hope-uh) really is the best.

We live in a little neighborhood, very typically Italian. Our apartment is beautiful.  We live with 2 other sisters, Sorella Lopez & Sorella Bollwinkel.

Our ward has 150 active members.  Sorella Hoppe and I are opening a coppia (companionship) so basically, we're opening our portion of the area.  There are already missionaries in Milano 2, but we are opening our area...pretty cool.. Starting from scratch-ish.  We spent the first 4 days just doing a member map and an inactive list.  It took a long time but we are much more organized now.  We had a lesson on Monday!!!!!

She is a 40ish yr-old woman who wants to learn English but is open to the lessons.  We met with her and I tried to recite the first vision in English and I couldn't remember it in English! HA HA! Solo in Italiano!  We are seeing her again tonight and we will give her il Libro di Mormon and one in English too.  She speaks English so well.  I don't think she is just meeting with us because of English.  I think the Lord is guiding her to the missionaries (the other sorelle taught her once first) so that she cant hear the gospel.

We also met with a less active family last night.  They are from the the Phillipines.  They speak English, Tagalog, and Italian.  Both lessons we had this week were bilingual.  Seriously, they were really good lessons.  The Spirit was present both times.

We met a man at the l'Ufficio Postale (post office) today and he was a Jehovah's Witness...he kind of wanted to "bible bash" and it was really frustrating because I didnt know what to do, and I should've just borne my testimony but I couldn't get it out.

We did Casa in Casa (knocking doors) on Saturday or Friday with a member, and it was interesting.  No one really wanted to talk to us- everyone here thinks we are Jehovah's Witnesses (Testimoni di Geova,) but they don't wear tags.

I guess I'm surprised.  There are so many Latinos here. Tanner- its like being in Uruguay all over again! Except everyone speaks Italian. It seriously is very similar, just more developed I guess.  I love it!  There are gellaterie everywhere.  We went to a gellateria today - 30 minutes ago actually, right next to the Duomo and it was awesome.  And we ate Panzerotti.  YUM!  like a fluffy puff pastry with stuff inside.


We had zone conference yesterday! WOW! It was awesome.  It's President and Sister Wolfgramm's last one, so it was a little bittersweet but it was really powerful.

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I seriously love being here.  Its great.


SOOO humid!  We only have fans in our apartment so we wake up pretty soaked in the morning and when we are walking outside we get pretty soaked again.  But its ok! I'm from New Jersey, I know humidity so I ain't sweating it....HAHA!  see what I did there?


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Church on Sunday was awesome, a full chapel, the members are great!

There isn't much else to tell you.  I just want to work on being more spiritually in tune and more willing to talk to everyone.  We sit on the metro and sometimes we don't talk to anyone and I want to change.  I want to be fearless and more like Christ.  I'll get better, I really just have to follow the Spirit and DO.  I don't want to go home feeling like I wasted this precious time.  I am trying to get better and change.  I've started carrying a Book of Mormon facing out in my hand so that people know we are different...(actually everyone stares at us anyway...it's odd but funny, I just smile).

When Sorella Hoppe talks to people, she is fearless.  She just says what she wants to say and (sometimes people tell us "vai vai", which is the 'tu' form of go...it's pretty rude), she's just like, ok fine but God loves you! ha ha She's the BOMB!

I want to do that with everyone.  Its almost been a week.  We have a mission goal for 15 lessons and I hope we can make that.  I'm sure we can.  I just want to keep getting better.

This is seriously the best.

Being here in Italy doesn't feel strange, odd, different, foreign...it feels like home.  I don't feel out of place...I do feel lost sometimes but that's because I don't know where anything is. ha ha.  I feel great, I wake up in the morning and I'm not surprised I'm here.  I'm in Italy...just like I should be.  There's nothing weird about it.

Not all the food places in Milano are that good btw, because Milano is kind of touristy...kind of ha!  It's touristy, you have to know the right places.  The best food I've had was made by Sorella Hope, and at the Panzerotti today and the gellateria today also.  Don't get me wrong, its good!  But today was gooood!  The apples, man!  The apples are delicious!!! SOOO GOOD!  Green apples here are sweet too. They're juicy and the peel is crisp.  There are NO water fountains anywhere so it's hard to get cold water unless you buy it.  I still have to find a water bottle.  I should've kept mine from the MTC.  I'm always thirsty!  Ha ha.  We can find one here easy. I just haven't really been looking.

The water didn't use to be drinkable so everyone drank bottled water, but it's OK now ...people still drink bottled water though ha ha

At least that's what I heard.

This is awesome.  The Elders are so nice too and helpful.

The traveling elders have been over the past two days building shelves and a bunk bed for the other sorelle and they are very nice and respectful.  Our anziani in our district (Anziano Hansen and Anziano Poulson), they are so supportive.  It's just great.  Sorella Lopez and Bollwinkel are a lot of fun too!  Its just all around good.

If I were to complain about ANYTHING it would be this...
I want to work more
My feet hurt from walking
There is not much cold water!

Ha ha ha.  I'd say thats a pretty OK list, if you ask me!

This really is the best.

I'm sorry that this letter isn't much either. but I'll send pictures!

Love you all

Ciao for now

Six: June 5, 2013 MTC

Ciao la mia famiglia carissima,

Come state? Tutto bene??

I loved hearing from you and getting the videos of Georgie! They are so cute.  Thank you!
Thank you for your constant letters!

Thank you for the pretzels, the card reader, the clothes, the loves, the pictures!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

Although we do not speak every day, I feel your love and I know I am not left alone!

I was so excited to hear about the 40% of the missionary being sisters!  I made up a song a while ago:
Sister power
keeps me save from sin
Sister power
is the power within!".....wow....so different from the original! lol

Italian is awesome. One of our investigators has a baptismal date! WAHOO!
(We teach our teacher who act as investigators they taught)

I ALMOST FORGOT THE COOLEST PART!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!!!

WE GOT TO SKYPE WITH A REAL ITALIAN!!!!!!!! WE TALKED TO SOMEONE IN ITALY!~

IT WAS SOOOO COOL!  Ok, so his name is S and he is the member that went to the lessons with Fratello J when he taught a woman named R. BUT! S is the name of our investigator here.  So we are teaching the woman named R, but to keep privacy or whatever, our teacher changed the name to S...but the secret's out, so so much for privacy!  whatever....i hope you understood that.


SO basically, life is great and I am SO excited to be a missionary!


I love you all...


Mom you are amazing and so strong.  You are wiser than you think, more special than you know, and better than you believe.  Don't doubt yourself...because that is doubting God. He made YOU to be the way you are.  You are His creation and HE LOVES YOUUU!!!!!  I hope you know how much you are loved, by sooo many!

You are all prayed for. 

Tanner I hope you are really liking your programs. It sounds great!

Eva, I hope you're comfortable at school and you're working hard.

I love you!