12th Letter from Cuneo

Dear Loved Ones,

Where to begin? So much has happened this past week.

The baptism was the most stressful\most beautiful experience of my mission thus far. Even with all of our phone calls and preparation, nothing turned out as planned. Osagie called us half hour before and told us he could not make it. Apparently his train was cancelled, but he did not call us earlier. There was no way he could come unless someone drove to pick him up, and by then, he would not have enough time to make it home to the shelter in Mondovi....long story. Some of the members became heated with each other, debating about picking him up and starting the baptism late. Meanwhile, David was in the chapel waiting with his mom. This was her first time in the church, and David had only told his parents about his baptism (and any relation to the church) three days ago. You can imagine how surprised they must have been!! His dad is Catholic Catholic Catholic, and last that they knew about David's religious beliefs, he had been completely atheist. Therefore, they were shocked! But I think that his mom is a little happy that he is Christian now.

After a half hour of commotion, we trusted in the Lord and decided to continue with David's baptism. There was not very much we could do regarding Osagie at this point. I must admit, I was inwardly really frustrated at the way that some people were acting, and how nothing was going as I had hoped for. I felt like David deserved something more special than this...I prayed for charity and that he and his parents would be able to feel the Spirit.

Once the meeting finally began, a few ward members gave some beautiful talks, Sorella Ryan and I sang the primary baptism song. Everyone walked to the back of the church in a narrow hallway by the coat hangers and bathrooms to the set up font. It was not much, especially compared to the grandeur of a cathedral, but it was simple and beautiful. David beamed, and eagerly started into the pool, followed by Fratello Divitto. Within one minute he was baptized, completely immersed and cleansed from all of his sins.

A little bit later after David and Frtllo Divitto dried off and joined everyone in the chapel, David bore his testimony. I cannot describe in words how strongly I felt the Spirit, how strongly he was filled with the Spirit as he spoke. There is no doubt in my mind that David was one of the most noble followers of Christ in the premortal life. He has chosen to be elect, and Sorella Ryan and I are amazed. He has kept all of his commitments. He has studied the Book of Mormon every day, with real intent. He kneels in prayer every day, and has a deeply personal relationship with his Father in Heaven.

Here is something that he said in his testimony, "Over two months ago, I did not know what to do with my life. I was confused, and somewhat in despair. And then, one day on the way to work, I was sitting on the train and two people asked if they could sit next to me. They told me that day, 'We know that our message is true.' The best thing that they have done for me is encouraging me to read the Book of Mormon, and to gain a testimony for myself. I have done that, and I know it is true. I have never felt so much happiness or purpose in my life. I know God and Jesus Christ live, and that this is the church of Christ." He is a pretty tough guy, but he was extremely emotional during his testimony. He was saying the feelings of his heart, and every other sentence hide his head and cover his mouth trying to hold in his emotions. The whole branch felt the Spirit. He is an incredible strength to our branch!

I read a scripture this morning that perfectly describes my feelings. Alma 26:1-7. Even though I will not convert thousands of souls, or hundreds, or dozens, I feel as if I have. In reality, the Lord has. I am grateful that I have been able to witness David's conversion. Even though it was frustrating that Osagie did not come, or we have not baptized as many people as we had planned, as David was bearing his testimony I felt, "THIS is why. This is why I came here to Cuneo. This is why I came on my mission. It has all been worth it."

Even more, the following day we had Stake Conference in Allessandria, about two hours from Cuneo. David sat two rows in front of us with an amazing couple in our ward. I saw how happy he was, and feel that he will remain strong his whole life. He might serve a mission, he will be married in the temple and raise a family. He told one of the Elders last week, "I guess I know this church is true because I have this strong desire to share the Book of Mormon with my friends and family. That is kind of strange. " He already has a few good referrals for us to teach.

Wow, not enough time to relate it all! Osagie still wants to baptized, but right now we are waiting and praying concerning exactly what to do. It would be great for him to have a strong testimony and relationship with the members when he is baptized. 

To answer a few logistical questions! Christmas day- yay, I am excited for the big phone calls. Mom and Dad, I will let you know next week the times I will call! I am pretty free all day, it our choice. We will be eating with some members, but they would be delighted to have us call in their homes. I will ask if anyone has skype...

I am sad that Sorella Ryan is leaving. It is weird, and it makes me feel a bit trunky/happy that I am at the beginning of my mission at the same time! Wow, the mission is too short. I want my time to last forever. I love her so much, and have learned so much from her. I will tell her that you received her letter- she is a sweetheart.

I found out that my next companion is Sorella Willy! She's coming from Verona, excellent, musical, Utah missionary. I am excited to learn from her. She is a bit more serious, but very sincere and focused on the work. I bet she will have some great new insights to help us out in Cuneo.

Elder Oakes!!!!!!! What a stud muffin! I pray that you will have an incredible experience in the MTC in Brazil. Your experience will be much different than the Provo MTC and I am excited to hear about it!

I have the best family in the whole world. Bunches of amore,

Sorella Oakes

11th Letter from Cuneo

Diletta Famiglia,

MY GOODNESS!!!! There are soo many exciting things ahead of us! WEYLIN GOT HIS VISA AND FLIES OUT NEXT WEEK!!!!!! David AND Osagie are getting baptized this Saturday!!!! It will be a beautiful end to the transfer, and the end of Sorella Ryan's mission. I am sad that we won't be companions anymore...but such is life.

I am grateful that the Lord is over all and He has His own timing. For the past few weeks we have been trying to encourage ward members to fellowship Osagie. After talking about his situation in ward council more thoroughly, there have been three families who have invited him over for meals, and one of our members searched all Sunday night to find a shelter for him to sleep. To a certain extent, all of us know that Osagie needs to work hard for himself, but then again, it is really difficult for Africans to be accepted at certain shelters here in Italy and to find any sort of a permanent job. He tries his hardest, never complains or asks for help and searches all day everyday for work. What can he do? I am soo thankful for our ward members who are true christians, and are empathetic toward him. They are very different from other people you meet on the street, in general.

Their love and kindness toward him has made all the difference. Now that he has a place to sleep at night, he is less stressed and it has been easier for him to concentrate and feel the spirit during our lessons. A few days ago, we invited him to David's baptism. He became very interested and said, "When? Where?" We told him that he could also be baptized that night if he felt ready. He had his intervew last week and he is worthy in every way.

He smiled contentedly and said, "Yes, that would be nice." We felt joy and peace, and we know that now he is emotionally ready, his baptism will be a special experience for him.

To answer a few questions...sorry, I do not answer all of them...Christmas traditions in Italy? It is very similar to America, with presents and Santa Claus (Babbo Natale). They also have a witch named La Befana who flies on a broomstick January 6th and give stockings to everyone. They generally stay up all night Christmas eve, eat a lot of fish. Merry Christmas= Buona natale! Happy New Year= Auguri ! For Christmas day we get to sleep in as much as we want, talk to our families, eat or celebrate at someone's house, and attend midnight Mass. The day before and after are normal working days.

Sorella Ryan and I sang a few weeks ago at a multi-zone conference. We sang My Sheperd Will Supply my need. It was gorgeous!!! We sing a lot. Last night we knocked doors and no one wanted to talk to us, so we decided to try singing Christmas songs. It gave us a few openings and we were able to teach a small lesson. At the very least some people were able to feel peace and taste the Spirit. I do not know what I would do if we did not sing, it sustains us when the obstacles come.

Each morning Sorella Ryan runs to the "edge of the wedge." Cuneo translates to wedge because on the map, it looks like a slice of cheese. Even if we are tired, we keep running until we reach the edge, which overlooks a neighboring city. This has become our battle cry. We "yell", " to the edge of the wedge" which means endure to the end. We want to give it our all, and push the miracle fence a little farther.

I love you all very much, and I am so proud of each one of you. Keep working hard! Go to the edge of the wedge!

Love,

Sorella Oakes

10th Letter from Cuneo

Cara famiglia,

I hope Thanksgiving was wonderful! Sorella Ryan and I enjoyed some mashed potatoes and bread we made during our lunch break. It was great. Does anyone have any fun plans for the holidays?

A few quick updates-- Osagie has not been baptized yet, but he will soon! Haha, we do not know when, but it will happen. It seems as if he will end up telling us the day before. He is very unsure but he wants to be baptized. David is continuing to progress, he is worthy to be baptized this weekend, but we will wait until December 10th. He will be a wonderful addition to the branch. We have had three family home evenings within the past two week- they are the best! It is such a good atmosphere for investigators, great fellowshiping... and Giulia is about the same. She was sick for three weeks, and became soo thin and sickly, it was depressing. Her mom continued to smoke, so it was a miracle that she got over her illness. We pray for her.

This week we met with an investigator named Sandra for the third time. Even though we had tried to teach the Restoration to her the previous two lessons, we felt like we needed to review it again. As we explained about our living prophet and apostles, her face changed, as if everthing had finally clicked. She paused and then said quietly, "You know something, I believe you. I do not know why, but I know what you are saying is true. This is the church of Jesus Christ, the true gospel." She was so happy and she said, "Just now, I remember some other men teaching me back in my country in Ghana, and they taught the same thing as you. I know this is true because you people leave your homes and wherever you are in the world, you teach the same thing."

The Spirit was present in her living room, it was peaceful and sweet. She became converted because her heart was open. There was an especially pertinent principle that we learned that evening- the gospel of Jesus Christ is plain and simple. When it is taught simply, it has a great and powerful effect on others. I am so grateful that we taught the Lord's gospel in His words, rather than bringing in our own profound tangeants. The key to this woman's conversion was that we had taught the same gospel as the other faithful missionaries had in Ghana. As servants of the Lord, we are more powerful and united if we learn and practice the beautiful and precious gospel truths. The Book of Mormon, the standard works and Preach My Gospel contain all that we need to know. The Spirit can accompany and compliment our words if we try to speak the words of Christ.

I love you so much!

Sorella Oakes

9th Letter from Cuneo

My heart is full with gratitude and love today, especially after reading your beautiful emails. Wow, I am so proud of Weylin. I wish I could have been there for your farewell talk but I am out here in the battlefield cheering you on 100%! I will print out your talk and read it tonight, cannot wait. I look up to you so much, little/older brother.

Two updates as follows:

1) We will probably have Osagie's baptism next week. He is so unstable sometimes and it is really hard to see him. He is ready for his baptism but he is looking for a job and a home right now so he is really stressed. He sleeps in the cold outside the train station every night for a week. I cannot imagine how that would be. There is not much he or we can do to help him. He is a hard worker but as a foreigner, especially an African, it is really hard to find a job. Let us just say that Italians do not like Africans. We pray for him, and do not know how to plan anything for his baptism, but Sorella Ryan and I feel this strange feeling of peace and calm. We are doing our part and the Lord will do the rest.

2) WE HAVE A BAPTISMAL DATE WITH DAVID!!!! as of last Saturday! We had a lesson with some members and the Spirit was so strong. He will be baptized on the 10th of December if all goes well. He is really solid, and seems excited to become a part of the fold in Cuneo. I have never felt so much joy in my entire life. The Lord prepared a way for us to meet this 20 year old kid on the train a month ago. At the start I would have never thought he would even become Christian. His whole life has changed because of the gospel. He has so much faith, and each time we teach a new commandment, he more readily accepts it and commits to keep them. And our ward loves him already. Our branch president had us all over for family home evening and we taught the Word of Wisdom. It makes all the difference to have the support of the ward, and lessons in the presence of members!

Another miracle that I'd like to share briefly... yesterday morning Sorella Ryan felt the prompting to go visit a less active whom we have never met. Last night we took the bus to a small city just outside Cuneo, discovered that we were in the wrong place and that there were no more buses in that area. We walked for a half hour in the dark and cold, we were tired, but we practiced our Italian. When we finally found her apartment we knocked on the door. We met the entire family, her mom, her mom's boyfriend and her nine year old sister. Eleanora is about twenty four. After chatting for a bit we asked her about her baptism and friends in our ward. She and her mom were so sweet to us, very sincere and warm people. They mentioned that their brother had died last year because of heart problems. The mom opened up and cried. "Why does God let good people suffer. He never smoked, and he was a good person. I just want some kind of an explanation." It is interesting, as a missionary, you hear this question of the soul over and over again from people you encounter. Even though you may study the answers, and come up with some good responses...each time someone asks me this I am at a loss as to what to say. Nothing ever seems like enough, especially when someone is really hurting.

We paused and I said, "I have never felt what you have. But I know that Heavenly Father has. He allowed his only Begotten Son to suffer, and to die for us. That was real. And you have felt a bit of what He felt. Christ suffered for us so that we can receive His love and comfort." She seemed to believe what I said, but after a few moments, shook her head. "Maybe in the future. I need time to heal."

From day one, I have learned soo much about the love of our Heavenly Father. He extends his arm of mercy continuously to us, all the day long. He is always near, offering comfort and peace, but only we can choose to accept it. If we trust Him, we can have peace and joy in this life, and hard things will be possible to overcome, possible to bear in the meantime. I am so grateful for the promptings of the Spirit. Even though this family did not want to meet with us again, Sorella Ryan and I mourned with them, and gave them hope. That is our job. The Lord loves us so much.

I am so grateful for the times when I have "suffered" a bit in my own life. These experiences have brought me closer to my Savior than any of the other experiences that I have had. Well, with the exception of my visits to the temple. But when we are sick, or feel sorrow, it is easier for me to remember how Christ felt. What love. He endured to the end, and was completely faithful to us. The outcome was our salvation! Wow, so powerful. I pray that we will remember to always be faithful to Him in return, to never turn our backs on Him, to never take for granted His grace and mercy. We always, always, always have things to be grateful for if we just look outside of ourselves. There is a whole world of wonder and joy when we serve others and forget ourselves. I am so grateful for the times when the Lord has humbled me, and prodded me to continue to learn and grow. Sorry, blubbering on a little.

I love hearing updates, so keep sending them! You do not only have to send the happy news, I would like to be aware and pray for you all.

All my loves, hugs and kisses

Sorella Oakes

8th Letter from Cuneo

Quick updates about our investigators-

- Giulia- we have not been able to see her for a few weeks for various reasons. Last night we went to her mom's house, said a prayer, and knocked on the door. We said, "Hi, could we talk to you for just ten minutes?" Her mom just stared at us...The words came out of my mouth, "May we enter?" Whew, a little scary. She looked in my eyes with a blank face for a few more long seconds, and said "Okay, okay, come in, but make it quick". We said a prayer, opened her up a little bit, and then we could not get her to stop talking. I think she really likes us. But we wanted to respect what we had said so we tried to keep it short. We explained the Restoration in two minutes, and asked her what she thought. She is not interested in learning anything.Then we told her that Giulia is progressing so much, and has a desire to be baptized. This was a little scary, but we had prayed about confronting this for a few weeks now...it was a miracle. She said that she trusted our religion because she had seen how respectful the Veron family boys are, and how good the members are. She said that if her daughter continues to have such a strong eagerness to be baptized, that she would be okay with it. She also said that she would like to learn a little bit from us so that she can know what Giulia is learning.

I am so grateful for the power of prayer, and the influence of the Spirit in softening people's hearts. We care so much about Giulia, and know that her involvement with the church, and saving ordinances could change the outcome of her future! 

Osagie is continuing to progress towards baptism. We feel a lot of peace and joy in him and his goodness.

David came to church for the first time!!! We have been working so hard to get the ward members to join us during the lessons with him, and it has paid off! They fellowshipped him so much at church and he loved it. He stayed by choice for all three meetings, and he grew so much. I do not have time to tell you any details, but last week was the best Sunday of my life. I had so much joy because he was happy and felt the Spirit so strong. It is so exciting for Sorella Ryan and I to envision his future, and all the potential that he has. I know that I am here for a reason in Cuneo.

I have a testimony of the Atonement. I have been allowing the Savior to change me from the inside out because I pray for correction, direction and help. I am so so grateful for His sufferings for me, and for all of us in the Garden of Gethsamane. I cannot express my feelings. I know that the Atonement is real, and that was and is the Son of God. I love the Book of Mormon more than I ever have, and I have found more joy in its pages than any other book. I learn so much from it, and I would not want to live without it. How blessed we are to have the complete restored gospel on the earth. Let us not take it for granted, because it can make our lives so fulfilling and satisying. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and I am so grateful for his service for the world and the Lord! The Savior lives, and we can change ourselves and make a huge difference inthe lives of others if we seek to strengthen our relationship with Heavenly Father. He loves us far more than we know.

All my love,

Sorella Quincy Oakes

7th Letter from Cuneo

Dear Family and Friends,

It is about time that I tell you about the best of the mission!!! I want to share a bit about three of our incredible investigators.

1. Osaggi-- we have postponed his baptismal date about three times due to not being able to meet with him, working with the Ward Council, and other complicated things...but for right now he feels good about the 26th. It is so neat to think about how we met him, and how far he has come. I do not even remember meeting him for the first time. Apparently we contacted him on the street a few months ago, gave him a BOM and got his phone number. For some reason I wrote his number on an index card instead of my planner. About a week later on Saturday night we were kind of discouraged because none of our many investigators were answering their phones or if they did, they said they could not come to church. Right before I went to bed I saw that index card on my desk and decided to try calling it in the morning. I am so glad that I did! We asked him to come to church with us that morning and were surprised that he said he would. We met him at the train station and walked with him to church. In time we have come to see how ready Osagie is to be baptized. He is very humble, has a deep understanding of the Bible and of Christ.

After meeting with him for a few times, he said that he had been going to several different churches for his whole life, and knew that none of them were completely true. Also, he has always known that he needs to be baptized by immersion, but has not been baptized yet because he has not found the right church. From that time until now we have had several lessons with him, encouraging him to continue to pray and read the BOM. Line upon line he has gained a testimony that it is a book of God and that he feels peace about everything. He is still expecting a bigger answer from Heavenly Father, but for now he is continuing forward in faith because of the Spirit that he feels when he reads the Book of Mormon. We are praying that the ward will feel more comfortable with him. He does not speak Italian very well, and is very shy. We have begun teaching an Italian course once a week, especially hoping that he will be there.

2. Dennis and Sandra--Miracle story! We met Sandra about a month ago on the street. She is a beautiful Ghanan, and after talking to her for a few minutes she seemed like the most golden investigator we had ever seen! We gave her a BOM and a Proclamation on the Family, and set up an appt. She cancelled a few times, and when we dropped by her house she told us that her husband said that we could not come visit her and that he had taken her BOM away. It was disappointing because we had felt prompted to talk with her on the street and had expected to teach her family.

Four evenings ago, we started our finding work off with a prayer of faith. After the prayer, Sorella Ryan looked at me and said, "Does anything or anyone come first to your mind?" "Sandra." She said, "Yeah, me too. Let's go." It was strange because she had told us not to come visit her again, but the Spirit had prompted both of us to try her again. It was a beautiful moment, because we felt peace, hope and direction from the Lord. When we knocked on their door, her husband answered the door. We talked for a good ten minutes, got him to open up, and were able to set up an appointment with them. We returned two nights ago, had a beautiful lesson about the Book of Mormon. Like most Africans here, they are very devoted Protestants, very practicing, good Christians. One of our new converts, Peter, is good friends with them so it is nice to have that connection.

It just goes to show that everyone has their own timing, and the Lord knows when that is! I am so grateful for the inspiration of the Spirit. What a gift, and privelege is it to witness the hand of the Lord, and the role of the Book of Mormon in peoples' lives.

3. My favorite investigator- David! He is a 20 year-old Italian. We met him on the train a month ago, and he asked to meet with us again. He has been an atheist for years. Very intellectual and turned off the Catholic church. At the beginning it was frustrating, because he would combat everything that we said. It has been hard for him to accept faith over science. We did not see a lot of potential in him at the start, but I am glad that we have continued to see him. We have had several intense lessons with him and the best ward members that we have.

It is amazing how much he has progressed in so short a time. It has not been easy for us trying to help him, or on his part. But we prepare our best for him, and he is very committed! That is a beautiful, rare quality for investigators to have. He has been reading the Bookof Mormon with real intent, and recognizes the Spirit that it brings. He asks great questions. We finally got him to say his first prayer two lessons ago. It was a beautiful, sincere prayer. I did a cartwheel in my apartment when we got home, I was so excited. Last night was our best lesson yet! He was very intense and said, "Now I know for certain that God and Jesus Christ are real. Now I just need to find out which church is right. I know that God will not tell me all at once, but I really want to know right now." I have not seen so much desire from anyone on my mission thus far. He prays on his own now, and it is beautiful to see the relationship that he is developing with Heavenly Father. I cannot believe how far he has come, and I am so grateful to be a missionary.

I love you all so much. All my prayers,

Sorella Oakes

Milan Italy Mission Blog

If you google Milan Italy Mission Blog you will see that there is some interesting information about the Milan Mission. Several pictures of Sorella Oakes are on the home page taken of the day in September when she arrived with five other missionaries. Her present companion, Sister Ryan, is to her left in the picture where the sorellas are in the front row. Sister Ryan is also in a cute video, whistling their mission hymn with one of her former companions.

Enjoy!

Lisa

6th Letter from Cuneo

We have hot water, as of Monday, so nice! We got our bike fixed last week. Luckily Cuneo is really small so it only took a half hour to walk to the shop. We have been having some wonderful lessons this week. We have a baptismal date with Osagie, a humble Nigerian. We have had a date for a month, but I wanted to wait closer to his baptism to let you know because there are many baptismal dates that fall through. I have been learning so much about how our joy does not depend on other people's agency.

This week Sorella Ryan and I have worked hard, struggled and suffered through some hard times. After a time, the Lord gave us some tender mercies that we had taken granted before. In these moments, I feel greater joy than I have ever experienced in my life. Discouragement is our worst enemy, and Satan is trying his hardest to get us down. But as Sorella Ryan says, "Let's get out there and kick satan's trash!" Haha. A little crude, but it is a pick up when we feel rotten.

My companion wants to be "the best trainer ever"and is trying her utmost to help me as a new missionary. She even wrote a list to herself a while ago entitled, "What I need to do better next time I train." She does not realize how incredible she really is. Here is a short list of my own that describes only a few of the ways that she GEMS me. It can be compared to the advice the President Hinckley gave concerning the three things that every new convert needs to remain strong in the church:

What every new missionary needs to remain active in the work-

1. A calling/responsibility- my trainer allows me to play an active part in finding work, making phone calls and teaching lessons, no matter "how important" these investigators are. Even though I make a lot of mistakes, especially in speaking the language, she gives me a soft and patient smile that encourages me and lets me know that I am doing just fine. It makes me feel valued and trusted when she does not stress about me "wasting time" during the lessons. My language skills have accelerated by doing this, and now we are able to teach much more smoothly together. Now the work can really pick up, because we are going at the same pace.

2. Nourished by the good word of God- yesterday during our companionship study, I felt discouraged as we were talking about the results of this transfer. We had worked so hard, but a few of our baptismal dates fell through, ending up in 0 baptisms. At times it feels like all of our effort can be compared to building a sandcastle. No matter how tall, or intricate you create it, it just crumbles and melts into a pile of muck when the next wave comes in and washes over it. After it falls, it seems hopeless to rebuild it again. When I told my companion about how deeply disappointed I felt she turned to inspiring quotes from Preach My Gospel, from President Wolfgramm, and from letters of encouragement she had received. I cannot describe how much we bonded in that half hour. My testimony grew so much about what it means to be a successful missionary. My desire to keep working and improving as a missionary skyrocketed as a result of that experience. She was a minister of the words of Christ for me in that moment.

3. A friend- I love how she does not treat me as a greeny. She does not cling to her personal doctrine as an experienced misionary, but supports ideas and desires that I have in our work. Hugs and backrubs when my back is tight from stress makes all the difference. She lets me know her weaknesses and asks for my help and advice. This makes me truly feel like her equal and I feel good because she allows me opportunities to serve her as well.

Here is something that Sorella Ryan wrote in her email to Pres. this week. I love it.

I am so excited to tell you a little more about my adventures in Cuneo this week! I am glad that you got my letters, you are more than welcome to share them with each other since I do not have nearly enough time to write all of the things I want to the both of you.

My companion has been teaching me how to sprint. We go running in the mornings even though we are both tired and cold because it really makes a difference in our day. The one problem is that I am a long distance runner, and she is a sprinter and she's really good! We love getting a good work out, and usually on the way back home she looks at me at a certain point and says, "Ok Sorella, are you ready for a little sprint?" The first time she asked me I thought she was crazy! I was already so tired I didn't think I could hardly make it to the end without falling over! I told her this and then she explained that sprinting is good to work out different muscles and is important when you want a good work out. So we did it. We sprinted even though my legs were on fire and I thought I might fall over,... and it felt GREAT! Now we work in a couple sprints every morning. And there's a certain point when we see home that we automatically look at each other and say, "Ok Sorella, ARE YOU READY?" and then we run as hard as we can. The thing I love about my companion is that she always stays right beside me. She always says, "I really want to sprint, but I'm going only as fast as you go!" This pushes me to work hard for her but also to have unity. I have had other companions that would rather run a few blocks ahead of me because they dont want to wait for me, which is understandable, but I really feel the love from Sorella Oakes when she stays right beside me pushing me the whole time.
President, this is just like how we do our missionary work! I LOVE training because I love being with brand new missionaries who want to sprint their WHOLE mission. They have so much energy and faith and a great work ethic! Sorella Oakes IS this brand new missionary. I, on the other hand, am quite the opposite. I am a little tired, as much as I hate to admit it. Sometimes I feel like I might fall over. But Sorella Oakes wants to sprint so bad and knows that it is so good for us. She pushes me so lovingly and says "Ok Sorella Ryan, its time to sprint, but I'm only going as fast as you go!" We will sprint to the end together!

This is a long letter!!!! I am sorry.

All my love,

Sorella Oakes

Milan Italy Mission Blog

If you google Milan Italy Mission Blog you will see that there is some interesting information about the Milan Mission. Several pictures of Sorella Oakes are on the home page taken of the day in September when she arrived with five other missionaries. Her present companion, Sister Ryan, is to her left in the picture where the sorellas are in the front row. Sister Ryan is also in a cute video, whistling their mission hymn with one of her former companions.

Enjoy!

Lisa

5th Letter from Cuneo

Dear Family,

This week has flown by, and I have loved every minute of it. Even though there have been moments when I have felt guilty for making mistakes, the Lord has picked me up and told me that it is okay. There is repentance through the power of His son. He loves us so much, and wants us to move forward and be better each day. I have come to learn that a perfect mission does not mean being an excellent teacher right off the bat. It means to make a lot of mistakes, and to learn, to grow, to trust the Lord and to pray a lot. This is why our hard experiences become so beautiful to us. We grow so much in the process!

This week we have had a few priceless experiences that have strengthened our companionship soo much! For example, a broken water heater and a flat bike tire. These are two things which could very easily cause us to get frustrated and whiny, but once again, my optimistic companion has turned these situations sunny side up. We have been trying to get a hold of the man in our ward who is responsible for helping us with repairs, but in the meantime, we take turns heating large pots of water on the stove to do the dishes and take showers.

A few days ago, while leaving the apartment to go to church we discovered that my companion's front bike tire was flat. There was no way that we could be to church on time if we walked so we concluded that our only option was to share my bike. She sat behind me, tightly wrapped her arms around my torso and said, "I have full trust in you! Let's go, we can do it!"

We headed off, and I will never forget it. This is one of the highlights of my mission thus far. If I end up counseling with couples as a profession after my mission, I might consider having them do this exercise! There is no way that you can be contentious when riding a bike together, especially when there is only one seat. We laughed the whole way there and received many smiles. The moment that people saw us, they could not help but crack a smile. I am sure we must have looked like quite a spectacle, with our helmets and skirts, passing by them, one mile an hour up the hill. Success!!

My companion yelled words of encouragement when I was getting sore and tired. "You are so strong! Keep going, keep it up." She trusted me, and even though it was a little bit frightening when we went over the bumps, we were balancing together. I loved it! This is a simple example of how the "flat tires" in our life can turn out to really strengthen the unity of our relationships as we try our best to work through them. We can turn hard experiences into great adventures that we will cherish afterwards. We made it to church on time and had a wonderful Sunday.

This past week, I had a day that really strengthened my testimony of the power of prayer and fasting. The night before, as I looked over our scheduled lessons for the next day, I felt a little overwhelmed. Each one of our investigators seemed to have some huge obstacle that kept them from progressing. I decided to fast the next morning and to take more time to pray earnestly for help. Wow, the Lord blessed us with miracle after miracle that day. First lesson... it is usually really hard to have the Spirit present, let alone to have a conversation with this investigator because her two little boys are very wild. The lesson prior to that, they had been running around without any clothes on, and I was not really looking forward to trying to teach them again. This day was our first time coming in the morning. To our surprise, her boys were very calm. They colored quietly while we taught their mom. The spirit was peaceful and it was a beautiful meeting. It dawned on me- why haven't we been teaching her in the mornings? It makes so much sense, rather than coming at the end of the day when her kids are tired and wound up from being inside all day. We set our return appointments for this time, and felt relieved that one obstacle had been removed.

Lesson/tender mercy number two: one of our young, golden investigators wants to be baptized, but her mother is not interested in meeting with us. We are worried about upsetting her by setting a baptismal date or teaching her daughter if she is not okay with it. We made some brownies and prayed that this mom's heart would be softened and that we would get to meet her. After our lesson with the girl, in the presence of a family in our ward, they invited her over and we were able to talk with her. I think that the brownies made a big difference and she was very open to talking with us and wants to come to church another time. She was very happy to meet us and we knew that the Lord had helped her to soften her heart.

We taught two other miraculous lessons, and our investigators really progressed. I know that when I humble myself and admit to the Lord that I do not know what to do, it is okay. He is there to make up for the rest, if I kneel in prayer and dedicate myself to do His will. My desire and work are important, but above all, He is in control, and this is His work.

Love,

Sorella Quincy Oakes

4th Letter from Cuneo

Dear Family,

I love you sooo much! Here is part of the letter to my mission president this week. I wrote good letters that I will send in the mail today. The others should be arriving soon.

1. GEM: Describe one thing your companion did for you this last week that made you want to be a better missionary: One of my favorite things about my companion is her ability to be enthusiastic and excited about everything! When we are tired in the middle of the day she literally waves her hands up in the air and yells, "Yay, we get to go teach so and so!" or "I am so excited to...". She makes missionary work more fun. She is a great example of what it means to endure to the end-- enduring to the end with gusto and joy in this marvelous work. When I feel tired or discouraged, she makes me laugh. No matter what the situation, she focuses on the postive and has a plan for how we can improve next time.

I have one small, insignificant experience with her this week that occupies my mind. We were bundling up before we went out into the cold. She cannot stand the cold, but I remember her sighing, and then laughing and exclaiming, "I love the winter because I get to wear my beautiful scarves! I am so excited to go outside, I am!" While she was simply trying to encourage herself to do something she did not want to do, this made a big impression on me.

Her positive attitude prompts me to wake myself up, physically or emotionally, shake the dust off my feet and to "give it my all". She has taught me a lot about how we can "act for ourselves and not be acted upon". If we give our best to the Lord and then look up we will recognize his miracles and tender mercies that surround us. When we have this attitude of gratitude, the Lord is pleased with our hearts. At the end of a long day we feel a warm feeling of contentment that it was indeed another successful day.

2 MIRACLE: Describe one miracle that occurred this past week; something that increased your awareness that God is directing your work:

This week we taught our first lesson with a brilliant little girl who is nine years old. Brilliant meaning she has a radiant spirit! Although her parents are separated and her mother physically abuses her, she is strong and is drawn to the truth of the gospel. She is next door neighbors with an inactive family in our ward. When we went to go visit this family, we were not expected to get such a golden referral. This little girl wanted to bear her testimony on her first Sunday in church, and volunteered to give a talk in the Primary presentation this upcoming week. As we taught her in their home, I was amazed by her comprehension of the things that we taught her about Heavenly Father and the Restoration.

My testimony was especially strengthened concerning two things: the elect openly accept the truth because of their faith and works before this life, and the influence that one of these noble sons or daughters of God can have on so many others! This girl has already had so much influence on reactivating an entire family with six children because she wants to go to church. They have taken her under their wing and now are attending church with her. I have a testimony that Heavenly Father sends some children to help their parents come to Christ. This is the case with this noble spirit. We pray that her mom will eventually be open to listening to our message as well and that she can experience the peace that only comes through the Atonement of Christ.

Through this experience with this young person, I witnessed that Heavenly Father is over all! He provided a way for one of His suffering children to receive the Gospel, to be surrounded by a family that loves her, and in turn for that family to be strengthened in their testimonies as well.

Love,

Sorella Oakes

3rd Letter from Cuneo (including pictures!)

This week Quincy wrote mostly brief, personal letters to each family member. She spent most of the time uploading pictures to forward to us.

The following are descriptions of some of the pictures with a little story. I'm still learning how to add the pictures, so I cannot figure out how to resize some of them after I uploaded them to her blog. If I could change it, the picture of her with the other missionaries in the piaza would be larger, and the parking lot would be smaller. She entitled the picture of herself on the bike (with helmet) "So Stylish!" It is darling, really!

Our apartment is huge and really nice, even though our water heater is broken, and half of our showers are cold, tutto bene! All is well. It is a beautiful apartment. In the past two or three companionships lived in it when more missionaries were assigned to Cuneo. However, less than a year ago they opened it up only for one companionship of sorelle at a time. We have it all to ourselves! Three bedrooms...one for drying clothes and pamphlets and Books of Mormon, another to sleep and study in, and the other with all our clothes. I get two huge closets. We love it!

The Bertone family without her husband. She is the best member missionary ever! She gives us great referrals and goes with us during lessons. We have found that this makes all the difference to have members with us during lessons. They can really fellowship and connect with our investigators, especially since they are older and have experience with marriage and family. They are also all converts so they have that perspective as well. As Elder Ballard said, even though less than ten percent of investigators are found through referrals through members, about half of these referrals are baptized and remain active in the church! Even though Cuneo is small, Sorella Ryan says that out of all the wards she has been in, they are not as racist (concerning Africans especially), and almost every member is really open to coming to lessons with us! Such a blessing. Our greatest successes continue to be when we have member present lessons. Great tip, W for the near future.

This is our balcony view. Last week we moved our mattresses and slept under the stars. It was wonderful! It is getting too cold to do it again but great memory.

2nd Letter from Cuneo

Dear Family,

What an incredible week. Time and time again we see how the Lord blesses us with miracles right after we push through great obstacles. It is truly a pattern! I will tell you about a few of the many people we are working with, a little about my companion, and a little about Cuneo and Italian culture.

1 There's an inactive man who attends our English class on Fridays. He's very kind, very educated. He just recently overcame cancer and lives alone with his tiny, adorable dog, a chihuahua, named Olivia. She is his constant companion, and he takes her everywhere. She is so small, still and quiet that you would hardly even noticed that she exists. Hahaha, it sounds like I was describing the Holy Ghost. Comunque, anyways, this dear man knows that the church is true and that he needs to keep his baptismal covenants by continuing to read the scriptures and by coming to church. But, he refuses to come because he cannot bring sweet, innocent little Olivia. He gets defensive, sometimes angry when we tell him that he needs to come to church. He says that everyone judges him and that he cannot leave her alone. He cannot leave her in the car for a few hours, trust anyone enough to babysit her, etc. Finally, we felt the Spirit prompt us to say to him, "You know, we think that Heavenly Father cares more about you being in church and partaking of His blessings than you staying home just because of this problem. It would be fine for you to come for a few weeks and bring Olivia with you on your lap. Let us come together, and we can talk to our Branch President in church." He came up with more excuses. The point is this...all of us have little things in our lives that we hold on to, and we do not want to let go of them. Tiny things that maybe are not necessarily bad, but distract us, or keep us from doing the things that we should. We deny ourselves the blessings that Heavenly Father is anxiously awaiting to give us. They seem huge to us, but in reality, they are insignificant and are holding us back from progressing. Little things do make a great difference! What is the "Olivia" in our personal lives? Is it a cellphone, Facebook, or maybe choosing to hold a grudge against someone who offended us. Heavenly Father does not justify in commiting a little sin. As Prophet Monson powerfully stated "The commandments are not suggestions, they are commandments." I have been trying my best to let go of the little things that I do each day that hold me back from being exactly obedient to my covenants or promises with God, and I know that He has poured out his blessings on me, my companionship with Sorella Ryan, and in the success in the work!

Yesterday was probably the best day of the mission thus far!!! The day before was hard. We did all we could. We prayed, followed the Spirit, opened our mouths and poured out our souls to invite people to receive the Savior into their lives, but they would not listen. This happens every day, and it is incredible how we move on, and continue to trust in the Lord and rejoice in his work. While it is devastating to see unhappy people not accepting the joy and hope of the Savior, we realize that many do not recognize us as His servants right off the bat, so they do not realize what they are missing out on. Sometimes it is pretty funny to see the looks people will give us. I am sure we seem very different and strange, approaching them with skirts, helmets and a huge grin, "Hi!!! How are you?". A few nights ago, we had a lesson that did not go very well with a woman who has been an investigator off and on with missionary for eight years. It is complicated. Everyone has a story...anyway, after a day of cancellations, rejections and this lesson, we were pretty discouraged. But we trusted the Lord will lead us to prepared people if we press forward and do not mumbled.

And then the morning came! Wow, what a day. We were completely obedient, and had our hearts set on doing the will of the Lord. In the morning we stopped a beautiful Nigerian woman on the street with her two young children. She was incredibly humble and kind. She gladly accepted our testimonies about the plan of Salvation and Jesus, said she would read the Book of Mormon and set up a return appointment. It was as smooth as molasses. The most golden contact thus far! I am so excited to teach her family. Her husband, her and three children. It has been a personal dream/goal of mine to baptize at least one family on my mission. We find many Africans who are willing to meet with us, and are very devoted to Jesus, but she was especially interested and...I cannot describe the feeling. The Spirit was sweet and we knew that we had found someone. In fact, we found out last night at the church that one of our best friends, a new Ghanan convert, knows her. Coincidence? I think not. We continued our work throughout the rest of the day. It really dragged. Not very fruitful at all, until the evening came! We found a young man who was very humble and willing to talk to with us and said that he is good friends with a young couple in our church. Again, we knew it was a tender mercy that the Lord had placed this guy in our path. There are hardly any members in our area, so it is extremely rare for someone to even know what our church is. So many people do not want to talk to us because they think we are Jehovah Witness. We set up an appointment at these members' house. He studied religion a few years ago, and wanted to be a priest...long story short, he did not become one. We can see how the Lord has been preparing people to receive the word.

Then, two minutes later, we bumped into an incredible family. An Italian family in fact! Most Italians are a little harder to crack, but they asked us who we were, what do we believe? They listened to our words so intently, their countenances were so eager as if they were drinking water for the first time in years. I do not have time to tell how incredible our experience was. But I love them so much and am so excited to teach them. Two families in one day! Truly, we have tried to convince people to learn more about the gospel, people who drag their feet and do not want to change. Yesterday I witnessed the miracles that if we do what the Lord wants us to do, He will prepare a way. To paraphrase, If ye being wicked know how to give good gifts unto your children, then how much more will your Father in heaven give to them that ask.

The Lord blessed us with people who are ready to accept the word with full heart. It was relatively easy to talk with them, and they understood the Spirit.

My companion loves to sing! Sorella Ryan studied voice at BYU-Idaho. She is from Canada. We sing all the time together and it has been so effective in touching and opening hearts to receive the word. We were placed together for a reason and we are so grateful for each other. We laugh while we work, and rejoice in the Lord!!! He is all knowing, and loves us so much! He listens to our prayers, and counts all the little things we do each day. He sees when we smile at someone in hopes to brighten their day. He is grateful when we look out for each other.

Cuneo- probably more like down town Los Angeles, but apparently it is considered a small town in Italy. We are surrounded by tons of beautiful green mountains. We are super close to the French border. We talk with a large varitety of people each day. People who speak French, Romanian, Ukrainian, Spanish, Italian, and Arabic. There are a lot of Muslims and Catholics and very few Evangelists. We have Books of Mormon in all sorts of languages. I will try to get pics, this computer will not accept mine....sad.

Sorella Oakes (O-ah-kes)

1st Letter from Cuneo, Italy

Carissimo famiglia,

So much to tell! I only have half an hour...let us just say there have been quite a few obstacles this morn to connect to this site. it will be better in the future, hopefully. The flight was long, but i loved it. i spoke to an atheist, austrian man on the flight from chicago to frankfurt. He was really sincere and nice and i had a chance to bear my testimony to him that even tho he does not know God, Heavenly Father knows him perfectly and loves him. When I looked in his eyes, I was calm and confident, and I think it touched his heart because he could tell I knew it was true, without any doubts. It was good for him to see that mormons are normal and respectable people. He was impressed with the Anziani and Sorelle...the food was really plush and the airplane was huge! Two stories high, three big aisles wide. Luckily he knew how to speak english very well.

On the flight to Italy, I sat next to a real Italian man. He was a bit older and we talked in Italian the whole flight. It was amazing- I understood most everything he said and I was able to talk much faster, calmer and smoothly than ever. I felt the Spirit really stronger and I think he did too. He was humble, and the conversation quickly turned to religion. He said that he was Catholic but not practicing. This is the case with almost every catholic I meet. There are certain things that do not make sense to him about the church and he does not believe its true. Therefore, he does not believe in God. Also, very common here, especially with the youth. But I would consider many people more agnostic than atheist per se. They are looking for the truth but do not know where to find it. This is where the servants of the Lord come in. If they will listen to our message, the humble will feel the Spirit, and experience hope in the word than they can know for themselves, with surety that there is a Heavenly Father in heaven who loves them, and that He has restored His truth and authority to the earth once more to guide us. We need not be in the dark anymore. What a great and exciting word we have to spread!!! We need to rejoice and lift our voices so that all can hear...so that those who are searching for hope and truth of Christ can have it in its fulness!!!

Anyways, he was very open and sincere and I taught him about the apostasy, restoration and recited the first vision for him. He seemed to understand with his mind and his heart. I looked in his eyes with confidence and joy and he seemed to be touched by the Spirit. I asked for his info. He gave me his and his sons number and address. Hopefully the Anziani in Pavia will teach him. He said that he would like for them to come teach him. I explained to him about hte Book of Mormon, read part of the intro, invitation in Moroni 10ç3 through five. Haha, these keyboards are a little different. And he held it in his hand like it was atreasure. He kept reading different parts. I told him that I would give it to him if he promised to read it and ask in prayer if it was true. He paused, and said he could not because they were my nicer ones...I did not have enough room to pack a spare in italian in the airport. He said that I needed them to teach, they were marked...but I said that if he promised to read them I would give it to him. He looked seriously in my eyes, shook his head and said with commitment yes. Little did I know how precious a response like this would be. Haha. I felt good about it like he really would read it. He said, I will promise to read it all, but I wil not promise to believe. I will pray and try. I explained what it meant to pray with real intent and made some promises. Really good first experience with Italians. In retrosect, it was a great tender mercy of the Lord right before I flew into Milan.

We were greeted by our President Wolfgramm, Sorella W, the Aps and some Sorelle that work in the main office. So warm and friendly!!!! They greeted us like family and I felt at home. We had a few initial meetings that day at the mission home and dinner that night with them at their home. They are wonderful, incredible people and inspired....I could not ask for a better group of missoinaries or mission president. So uplifting, positive, and inspiring. We need to have that kind of attitude here in Italy. There are friendly people, but there are also many miserable people. They think we are really weird, maybe even crazy because how happy we are. I admit, we are not always the most fashionable people. Haha. This morn sorella Ryan and I road our bikes back from the grocery store, full with bags, skirts and helmets. Wow, I love riding my bike here! Let us just say that it is an adventure here...Grandpa Garner should not come here because I know he would have a heart attack. I am so glad that I rode my bike soo much before I left...really good practice.

Every person that I have met, esp catholics completely agree that the bible has been changed by wicked men and that the truth of God is not complete or on the earth. Whenever we explain this part, they all shake their heads in agreement. It is hard for them to believe in a living prophet. In fact, many people laugh out loud at the idea and think we are crazy. Every person struggles with the idea that we can know for a surety that God exists and if...anything, any moral and principle is true in this life. They say, only God knows these things and all we can do is hope, believe and find out in the next life. I am so grateful for the security that I have. I know, because the Spirit has borne testimony me everyday when I feel peace in my heart, when I am filled with confidence and happiness even though there are wicked things in the world.

Ah...I have some pictures but there is no one available to help right now...i do not know how to because everything is in italian...i promise next time to send some good ones.

Sorella Ryan is the best!!!! Really, i am amazed with how blessed am I. Better than my mtc comps...i do not know how that is possible, but we are best friends. She is from Van couver Canada, a voice major...i would best describe her personality as the girl on tangled!!! Super positive, energetic and driven, but also very experienced and wise. She has been out for a little longer than a year and speaks italian really well. There have been miracles in meeting and teaching people this week in Cuneo. French people, africans, italians....I love it. It is hard but I have the best comp. Greatest miracle is I am so calm. My comp is surprised with how well i have adjusted to all the changes and so am I. It is a complete fulfillment of the promises in my setting apart and I am doing all that I can by having faith to help the Lord make His promises come to pass. I feel at home here. We are the only missionaries in this area. It is a huge area, but we try to do mainly tracting in the street and in the park is best. Casa per casa is not very good so we do not do that often. There are only fourty people who attend church so we are trying to focus on strenghtening the ward. It was fun going to church! Loud, especially in relief society, hahaha. Everyone interrupts each other...very different from the sweet sisters in Provo utah, but this is the culture here. The food is wonderful...so much fresh bread. It is very expensive though so we cannot buy a lot. We do not have many dinner appts so i definately do not have to worry here about gaining weight. Good thing huh!

All my love,

Sorella Oakes

MTC Letter #8-Final Post from MTC

Caro Famiglia,

Thank you for all of your letters and love! Marshal, Catalina, Marin and Capri- I loved loved your drawings! You are so talented and I felt so happy. I will be writing you your own letters and sending them today. Dad, mom and Weylin, and Grandparents Oakes and Grandparents Garner as well. Your letters are a strength and light to me!!! What wisdom. I'm so blessed to have an incredible family like you.

Recently, I've been "beholding" all of the blessings that the Lord has given me. Last night was our last tuesday devotional inthe MTC. Right before we entered the gym (conference area), I said a silent prayer to Heavenly Father to have one of the quorum of the twelve apostles speak to us, if it was His will. I felt like we would. And we did.

Elder Ballard came. I felt the Spirit as we spoke. I cannot describe how I felt/feel when I feel this Spirit in my heart. At this time, it is a deep impression of peace, reassurance, confidence, yet great humility. I am weak, but the Lord is with me. His Spirit will be my constant companion and will tell me all things that I should do if I remain close to Christ. I just feel good. Sometimes, when I feel the Spirit, it is exhilirating and awakening...:) many times literally! One of the greatest miracles I receive each day is how I can remain awake and do so much each day. I know that I could not possibly do even a portion of the work that without prayer- I'm praying every hour for the Spirit and to be able to remain alert.

Concerning Elder Ballard's talk, he spoke words that came straight from God, and many of them were just what I and all of the departing missionaries needed to hear. I'll send notes by mail, along with Elder Holland's notes. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to hear the witness of an apostle of Jesus Christ, and to be in his prescence. Even though he is merely a man, he has consecrated his life to the Lord's service and speak's in His Holy name. I know that President Monson is our living Prophet on the earth today, and that His words will guide us, protect us, and greatly bless us. Think of all of the centuries in the history of the earth when men and women did not have access to hearing the words of the Prophet, or ever seeing His face or hearing his words. Think of the times of apostasy, when the people were so wicked/disobbedient to God's commandments that He had to take away His Prophet from the earth. It was only a few years ago that the mass media has become available, that we have the capacity to watch general conference and to hear the voices and lovely words of the Prophets and apostles of our Savior Jesus Christ! I am so excited to watch general conference...we'll see what will happen in Italy. I might watch it the first time in Italian.

We have the Book of Mormon. I love the Book of Mormon. The fulness of the gospel and plan of salvation is contained in the Book of Mormon. I testify that it contains the testimony of ancient prophets who lived in America. Their bore their testimony with their lives and many of them died for this great cause. They were men of God, and they lived for the success of our day. Joseph Smith was a simple and humble young man who prayed near his home to know which church to join. He prayed in great faith, and he did not cease to pray until he received an answer from God. He had read James 1:5 which promises all that if you ask God in faith, believing ye shall receive, it shall be liberally given unto you.

I testify that he did receive an answer. God and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph in the sacred grove. Joseph saw their perfected and glorified bodies in the flesh, "brighther than the sun". They spoke to Joseph, and called him by name. Heavenly Father had a plan for Joseph Smith to be the next prophet for our dispensation, as prophets of old.

Joseph Smith eventually restored the fulness of Christ's gospel, priesthood and authority on the earth. Today, there are many faithful men and women who seek the truth of God in their lives. There are people in Italy who are ready to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our living Prophet, (who is the Prophet for all of us, even those who don't believe), has called apostles to go to all four corners of the earth to spread the word. That Christ atoned for our sins and earthly pains, and that He lives! He rose from the dead, and His work is not yet finished! There are still many who have never heard His truth, but are waiting to receive it.

The Prophet and apostles have called thousands of missionaries to assist in this work. What a priveledge and an opportunity it is to a part of it all. This is the Lord's work, and He is in charge of it all. I merely represent Him, and receive a portion of His Spirit, so that I may convice others of His glory and of His love. Next week, I'll be boarding a plane and heading to my assigned area where Heavenly Father/ Prophet Monson has called me to serve. I'll open my mouth and testify of Christ, I'll work night and day to serve others. Watch out Italy, here we come!

I love you all so very much,

Sorella Oakes

MTC Letter #7 (Quincy wants #6 for family only)

Carissimo famiglia!

What a great week! I feel like I am about ready to go to Italy. I cannot wait to give everything I have to serve. I love being a servant of the Lord! My Italian and everything has really picked up and I'm feeling like I can actually express my personality and speak with greater ease in lessons. The Spirit is the best teacher, and He is helping me to become a better teacher as well...everything summed up, things are starting to really click and I want to sprint. I"m so joyful. Ah, my english is suffering but I'm kind of happy to start forget it and become an italiana.

Mom- that package made me so happy! Haha, that bow was really big. It looked like a hat. In one of the new sister orientations in the MtC that we have on sundays, the presidencies' wives instruct about how to dress, and to take care of ourselves. It reminded me of one girl who stood up and asked "Is this bow that I'm wearing too big?" The sweet sister didn't know how to respond so she said, "Why don't you pray about it". It was really funny. Anyways, and that pie!!!! I cannot tell you how happy I was, I gasped and told me my sorelle, "We need to keep this between us, because this is one of my grandma's precious boysenberry pies! Is it okay if we don't share it with any of the other sisters?" So, we had a pie pact in the hall last night, Sorella Nilson, Camp and Rust(my porteguese sister). We all agreed it was divine. It was heaven for me because it was just like home, just like every birthday.

Last week we received seven new sorelle headed for Italy, six for Rome and one more for Milan. We have three new anziani. The sorelle are incredible incredible women and I love them. The sisters giong to Rome do not know a lick of Italian but they will learn quickly because they are very diligent and ask us questions all the time. We love them so much. Interestingly, the one going to Milan has also studied Italian at BYU before receiving her call. I think that sometimes Heavenly Father blesses His daughters who desire to serve full time missions by sending them where their heart longs to go. I feel that way personally, but at the same time, I know that He has perfectly orchestrated people to be in my path here, and in Italy. People, my brothers and sisters whom I am supposed to meet and help. I cannot wait to go home to Italy! My heart is overflowing with rejoicing and excitement. I don't think I'm really nervous- wow, what a blessing. I know that the Lord is with me. I am weak but He overrules all, and He loves and protects His servants. With God, all things are possible.

Last fast sunday morning, the MTC held our monthly devotional in the morning, when all the MTC presidency members and some of their wives speak to us. A few hours later we had fast and testimony meeting in our branch. The whole day was a spiritual feast! From some of the talks from the devotional, as well as last night's devotional (Elder Jensen spoke), one thing that particularly struck home for me was that we/I as missionaries need to improve our teaching skills. WE have a testimony that the gospel is true, WE know, WE feel...but how can we improve our skills so that we can help our investigators to feel the Spirit. I've been studying and practicing lots of different things this week. Asking inspired questions that provoke thought, how to simply explain doctrines and relate things in an appropriate way to them. One reason why I think singing invites the spirit so strongly is because each person has the opportunity to raise their voice and participate. When we as individuals participate in the gospel/a lesson/bearing testimonies, it is most edifiying. One of the greatest ways to strengthen one's testimony is by bearing it out loud. Therefore, how much will it strengthen an investigator's testimony if the missionary simply talks on and on about his own knowledge without giving him to opportunity to speak. It will do absolutely nothing for them.

From my studies and these speakers this week, it is also essential to be a master discerner. To discern their needs, their faith...by the meanings of the things they say, explicitly and unexplicitly. By the things they don't share, but you can see in their eyes. Wow, I am so grateful that I did not go on my mission earlier. I can see in retrospect how much the Lord was preparing me by all of the things I did before. My callings in YSA helped me to reach out more, know how to conduct meetings and love people, and to feel more confident and less nervous. Sunday school teaching- I only taught like four times, but the things I learned are so precious to me. I really learned how a good teacher knows how to lead discussions by asking excellent questions, and talking as equals with people, rather than simply sharing deep doctrine and personal testimony. People really appreciate and respond to that, and it is much more edifying. My major- wow! Family science has been so central to every principle of the gospel, especially in the world today. I can't share a portion of the things I've learned. My job as a secretary- learning how to start conversations and get to know and love people from scratch. Building trust is keyas a missionary. By charity, others can discern/recognize the Lord's true disciples. Weylin- the Lord has a perfect plan for you. I'm so excited to hear about how you are preparing. My fratello in the Lord!!!!! Let's go, and give it all we have. What an incredible and glorious adventure.

I love you all more than ever. I know that Heavenly Father will bless us greatly for forgetting ourselves and submitting to His will. We love Him by obeying His Spirit, and sharing His gospel with others. This is the greatest way we can bless others and help them to have peace and joy in this life. Have a wonderful week! If you get a chance, write to me and share the things that you are learning about how to be a good teacher. I'm sure I could learn a lot from your insights.

Love, Vi voglio benissimo.

Sorella Oakes

Week 5 of MTC

Dear Family,

I can't believe it's been five weeks. I've loved the Mtc, but at the same time, we're all ready to leave and get to Italy. When I first arrived, I felt such a powerful surge of the Spirit- I'd never experienced such a strong feeling of the Spirit before in my life. The first two weeks were filled with new experiences. Growth, adjusting, struggling, loving, basking, stretching, being low and becoming high through the mercy of the Lord. Wow, my english is...hope you can understand this letter.

Ivo came back with Silvana this week! Even though we'd asked him for a little Italian snack, Silvana had made us an entire dish of lasagna just for us!!! It was absolutely divine- a small taste of true Italian food. We were so flattered and appreciative that they had gone to the trouble to do that for us. Our teacher later told us that he was surprised that they had gotten by security because visitors are not allowed to bring us food. I think it's because they don't want it to become a distraction for the missionaries, and some elders might feel bad if they don't receive food in the TRC. We did receive special permission to eat it in the lunchroom later. Both of our Italian districts shared. Anyways, enough about the lasagna. We invited Ivo to join Silvana and us in one of the rooms. He was very very trusting and open with us. He even brought a big coffee table book of Italy. He showed us every single picture and talked on and on about his hometown and their traditions. All throughout the hour, my sorelle and I kept wondering if we should try to share our testimonies or bring up the gospel, but the Spirit kept restraining us. He and his wife needed to receive our pure love and we needed to respect his desires. At the end, we asked if we could say a prayer and he immediately closed up again...Silvana gave a beautiful prayer. In the middle she began to cry. Her heart aches because she wants to be sealed to him for eternity so badly and for him to receive all of the blessings of the gospel. Ivo is a good man. We have been praying and pondering a lot about him lately and have felt that the Lord greatly desires for Ivo to help him in this great work. He is a strong, firm man, and could have a great great influence on many people in the kingdom of God. We feel peace and great hope for him, and trust in the Lord's plan and timing. Ivo needs to exercise faith, and only he can do that. At the end of our visit he greatly complemented us for our goodness and service. It was interesting...he counseled us to be bold and confident in teaching people and sharing our beliefs in Italy. You could tell he has a testimony of missionary work and its importance. He even explicitly said that he's witnessed how families in the gospel conquer their hard hard trials with security and peace. He knows its true. I think he's worried about losing his idenity and link to italy and his heritage if he "gives in" and becomes baptized.

I've learned a lot this week about measuring progress and receiving further instruction from the Lord:

- setting daily goals is vital. It is much much simpler to accomplish my goals if I focus on small things each day. Elder Zivic of the 70 spoke to us last night for our devotional. He told about one progressing investigator who struggled with giving up coffee. The missionary simply challenged him to not drink any coffee for one day. The next day, he asked him if he could do it again. Slowly, but surely, the man was freed from his addiction.

- we must ask Heavenly Father for the things that we need and desire. As I have asked more specific questions, I've received more specific and meaningful answers. I now keep a separate personal prayer journal. I write down my questions that I ask Him, and as I pray, I keep it close to my bed. As I pray, I seek to slow down, and to ponder about what things He wants me to ask. The purpose of prayer is to make our will the same with Heavenly Father in the name of Christ. Prayer is a form of work. (Bible dictionary on prayer). As I ask questions, I am learning how to pause and wait for impressions and feelings. I have had prayers where I have a distinct clear thought enter my mind and I know that is my answer. Often times, I receive some inspiration but feel as if He wants to give me more instruction later, when the time is right. Most times, He gives us revelation by increments. As I read the Book of Mormon, many many of my questions are answered.

- learn how you personally feel the Spirit and receive daily, personal revelation. I have learned that I personally receive revelation and understanding by writing a lot in my journal or on a piece of paper. As I write, thoughts enter my mind in the moment. I say a quick prayer with a specific question in mind before I study my scriptures and as I study, I become in tune with the Spirit and it is absolutely amazing what I learn. One of my companions receive a lot of revelation by simply pondering. She'll sit and look around the room for ten minutes thinking. I think the key for all of us is to have a prayer in our heart, be pure, teachable/humble and worthy to receive the Spirit into our hearts AND we need to be still. We need to set aside time each day to be in a quiet, secluded place so we can hear the sweet, still small voice.

My testimony is that God is the best teacher there is! No matter what our profression, our talents, our pursuits, our everyday questions and problems, we can go to Him and receive the best instruction. The instruction that money cannot buy. He is teaching me Italian! His spirit increases my understanding, and quickens my comprehension and capacity so that I can do His work. He speaks all languages. He created all things. He's the greatest artist, mathmetician, scientist,etc. All things denote that He lives and He orchestrated a perfect plan for us. We just need to recognize Him and open our hearts to receive His love and istruction. With Him, we can become better and grow more than on our own! Elder Nelson is an amazing example to me of this. He is one of the most accomplished and well-known men in the medical field for his contributions to heart surgery/replacement. Read his bios on Lds.org! simply amazing how He gives all his credit to the Lord. His testimony of the power of the priesthood is being the greatest way to heal the human body...I esp liked "Applying Divine Laws" and the article about Obedience. Must reads!!! Only through Jesus Christ can we be saved and he can do nothing by himself. He is a living apostle on the earth today.

All of my love,

Sorella Oakes