18th Letter from Varese

Cara famiglia,

Question- was there an earthquake there in the US this week?  We have had quite a few ones this past week. We live on the 10th floor so we can feel and see everything swaying a lot. It's really fun!

So something I learned this morning. Do not try to show your companion caprera cartwheels in your apartment, especially in a tiny apartment. I kicked my ankle against the shelf and got a biggg blue bruise. Miracle- after putting it up and wiggling my ankle it is gone. There is a tiny bit of purple left and I am walking as if nothing happened. Stupid mistake, lesson learned, I won't do that again. :)
 
So many things have happened this week. We began teaching an x investigator of the anziani, named Giorgio. We found him doing area book, gave him a call and he was very willing to meet us. As we talked with him we found him to be a very respectful, intelligent, honest man who has been prepared by the Lord. Let me tell you, he idolizes one of the missionaries who served here in Varese, Anziano Dean. I know him a little bit as well and he is an excellent missionary. Almost every other sentence Giorgio would make a comment about how Anziano Dean taught him how to pray and brought him to the light of his faith now. In the end, his wife was not too happy about him being associated with the LDS church, for some reason and they began to attend the evangelist church. He is very content with his pastor and the congregation where they meet and loves reading the bible. Giorgio told us that the past six months he really developed a relationship with Christ and he feels like his life has become more beautiful than ever before. There is not time to relate more about him, but after a few lessons with him, he still would not keep his commitment to read the Book of Mormon. My heart was broken. We had told him so many times, "just read for 10 minutes a day. This is the only way you will know for yourself of the validity of what we are telling you." He told us that he wants to read the entire Bible first to see where all the gaps are, and then read the Book of Mormon. Even though we only met with him three times I came to care about him so much. It makes me feel sorrowful to leave him be for the future missionaries, but it is the right thing. Patience, patience, patience. Trust in the Lord. He takes care of His children.

I am grateful for all that I am learning about relaxing, letting go of things that are out of my control and being cheerful in the Lord. I felt the grace of the Lord enter into my heart, give me peace and liberate me from spiritual and emotional burdens. I grew my testimony of the reality of the atonement and how it applies to my daily life.

 Carina moved to Peru Monday without letting us get a chance to say goodbye and get her contact information. I pray that she will get in touch with the missionaries there. She probably will, seeing that many of her family are members in the church. Once again, I am learning a lot about trusting in the Lord to take care of her, and do all the things that are not in my power. I love Carina so much!

   I do not know if I told you..Dominga is finalizing her divorce so that she can marry Massimo!!!!!!!! We had a very spiritual lesson with her and another awesome member (Sorella Omer) yesterday about the temple. Dominga wants to be worthy to enter there and do baptisms with Sander next year. It's wonderful to imagine what will happen in their family five years, ten years from now. I have faith that they will oneday be sealed in the temple for time and all eternity. An eternal family. I will let you know how our first lesson goes with Massimo on Friday.

  Well, Richie is right on track for his baptism this Saturday! A funny thing that we discovered yesterday- he really is an African prince. Sorella Mcnamara has been joking with me for the last few weeks about her suspicions of him being an African prince. He won't tell us where he lives, or let us meet his mom, he dresses in really nice clothes, he has this big dream about playing professional soccer rather than following his mom's counsel to get an education. We have made up this whole story about him, how he is secretly really rich and lives in a mansion in Varese and does not tell anyone because he wants to live a normal life. Yesterday he was feeling kind of down and at the end of the lesson we jokingly asked him if he was a prince. He laughed a little bit and said, "well actually, I am a prince. My father was a king of our tribe...." Haha. he went on to explain more about his life in Africa.

   I am so happy to serve with Sorella Mcnamara. She makes me laugh and the love the work. We(I) are getting better at teaching together. Her Italian is getting so well and our English is going down the drain! Mom I might need to attend English lessons with your first graders when I get home, okay?

  Well, if I go home at 11 transfers school would have already started for two weeks, so I will be staying for 12 transfers, returning around the beginning of March. That will allow time to spend time with Mom, visit California and dad and prepare for spring semester. Other than that I do not know what my plans are, but I just wanted to give you a heads up. I am grateful I still have quite a bit of time left here in Italy! I will be staying here in Varese with Sorella Mcnamara for one more transfer. It will be the best one yet!



   I love you so much!
    Sorella Oakes