Rain! Rain!

What a week! Where do I start?!
These past few weeks we have been trying to work with the members.
Since we are opening up the area, they have been tons of help! And this branch is great! Most of them are RMs and they want to make their little branch a ward so badly! They are 95% active! Which is crazy, but true! And we have been going to member's houses about three times a week to do a special lesson with them. It has to do with a map, and praying....and that is all I will share, because I don't have much email time....but it is amazing and we have already found lots of people who are so ready to hear the gospel!....Anyway...we were on our way to a member's house and we had to take the bus to get there.

(Buses here...and maybe in America, I don't know...have these little red buttons that say STOP and you can push it when you want to get off) We pushed the button way to early and got off a mile or so away from the members house. Oh well....we will just walk! <---- bad idea. Two minutes later it started pouring rain! And we were in the middle of nowhere! (yes mom, I brought the cute umbrella that you bought....but the weather here is bipolar and I didn't know it was going to rain that day!) So we ran ran ran and finally found a house!

In the rain!

 We went under their porch for cover and called the member to come pick us up. Unfortunately Italians are deathly afraid of rain....so she couldn't come until it stopped raining. At least we got to have a lovely chat with the people whose house we were at! And to answer your question dad....he owns a dairy right down the street! They have cows here, but not the same as us! I can't believe it was already time to brand cows again! Wasn't that just yesterday?! And it has been raining off and on, but I so desperately wish I could send it to Arizona! You are in my prayers!

Also this week we got a new mission president! And we had zone conference! It was so fun to chat with all the other missionaries! ....So I guess at every zone conference everyone gets a newsletter and it has pictures of all the new missionaries coming in and pictures of all the missionaries leaving. Every time somebody knows  that they will be training they always make guesses for who they will train, and at zone conference, I had every single sister come tell me they just knew they were going to be my trainer! Must have been the great photographer who took my senior pictures (wink wink mom).

So today for Pday we came to Rome to do some sight seeing!  Right as we arrived at the Spanish Steps we realized we didn't have our phone! And we had been all over Rome today so we really didn't know where it would be! So we were freaking out and started going back to all of the places we had been and we had no luck! We were meeting one of our investigators here in Rome to do a lesson with a lady who speaks his native language and we had no way to call him and meet up! And ecco! Miracle number 1.... we found him! So then he is coming with us to try and find our phone and we still can't find it! So he offers to call it as the last option....he calls it and guess who answers....the Sister Missionaries of Rome 2! They just happened to be at the bookstore that we were at and they just happened to need to get a hold of us right after we left. They called our phone and heard it and was able to get it before someone stole it! So we made it to our appointment on time, received our phone, had a great lesson with our investigator (who brought a friend....who loved hearing about the gospel and is coming to church this week...with another friend!) So today has just been a miraculous day!

The Spanish Steps

I finally got your letters yesterday! And they made me so happy! I was seriously crying with tears of joy! And they were just falling like a waterfall and my companions were all worried about me....but I shared with them the story you included and it has all given us so much motivation! It really helped me realize just how grateful I am for this gospel and for the happiness that it brings to families! I am so grateful that I can live with  you guys forever! Being away has really made me realize just how much I love you! And I miss you so so much!

But....I would rather not be with you guys for 18 months so that I can help other families be together forever! I also got a letter from Sister Haws (Kaeli's cousin on a mission in Fresno, CA)! And she included a talk titled "The Fourth Missionary". It talked about how there are 4 ways to serve a mission....starting at the worst and leading to the best. And I wish I could share with you all of the great things he said, but there is one thing that I want to share that I hope you can all relate in your own lives. D&C 4:2 counsels to "serve with all your heart, might, mind, and strenght". For some reason a lot of times we get in the habbit of finding ways to serve or work or read our scriptures...and only putting all your strength and might into it. You do it with a grumpy attitude, or do it just because it's what you have to do! But I am here to tell you, that it's a waste of time! If you don't serve (or go to work, or be a friend, etc) with all of your head and your heart in it,  you aren't going to learn a darn thing! You are going to spend all your time and effort, and come out not growing, because you just went through the actions. So put a smile on your face and get your head in the game! The game of life! Because there is no rematch and this is our time to shine! This is our time to grow! And every single time you think a good thought, do a good deed, ect., you are headed one step closer to Christ, which is the direction that we all need to go! It doesn't have to be a big thing....Christ doesn't expect you to be perfect all at once, just strive to be perfect at one thing at a time and you will change. When you are doing the right things, change is good! It may be scary, but it means that you are growing and that you are changing to become like Christ!

On a scale on 1-10 I miss you guys a 3,274! And I hope you have a great 4th of July!! Good luck to Trayser! (Trayser is entering some races in the 4th of July rodeo.) Dont get hurt! And I will be having my own barbeque here during Pranzo! I bought hamburger, chips, buns, ketchup! I even have a red white and blue outfit ready! Also...I am so proud of all of your missionary work!! Keep it up! And I still haven't watched that video yet, but hopefully this week!
And I will try and write replies to your letters this week!
Hey Colten...do you hate your favorite sister?! Tell me all you have done to my room! Write me a letter!

Ti Voglio Bene!
Sorella Wiltbank