Well we just have the greatest ward members everrrrr. On Sunday a few of
the kids came up to me and brought me into the kitchen to ask if this giant
chocolate turtle in there was for me. It said "Happy Birthday. Sorry for
the delay. To share with your companions" Clearly the kids were in on it, I
think the parents sent them to get me. So I think I've figured out it's the
Bishop's wife. Anywho, it was supperrr cute and sooo nice! Then one
morning we get a random call in the middle of our studies from a member and
he's like "ciao. Are you guys home right now? Am i disturbing you?
Okay, come downstairs." We come down and he hands us a bag and says
"for breakfast" And rides away on his vespa. And inside were magical brioches and doughnuts. It was
soooo good!!! Our members
are just SO GREAT. WE'RE SO SPOILED!!!!Anyway, that was just to describe the
title. This week was good! We didn't get a ton of lessons because we were asked
to work with the ward members and talk about the new Easter video ( eglivive.mormon.org just in
case you want to watch it in Italian ;) ) Anywho, so we saw sooo many members this week which was sooo wonderful :) This
video is great! Everyone watch it!!!
So we had a exchange/split (I'm not sure what you call
it in English... sorry...) This week with our STL's and I was in charge of
Trieste! GAH! But I did it!! Yay!! Saturday morning
we called that woman that I talked about last week that we met who has the
really serious addiction (sorry this is so broad. hashtag privacy. ) And she
canceled our appointment that we had had for that night, BUT! She told me that
she was talking to her friend and her friend was having a really hard time
lately. She was really down and sad and stressed and all that bad stuff. Our
investigator decided to pray with her, like we prayed with her when we first
met her. She prayed that her friend would have peace and everything would be
okay and after the friend felt very calm and felt a lot of peace. She told us
that we will for sure meet this next week and that she would bring her friend
as well and we could all talk together and have dinner. SHE'S ALREADY DOING
MISSIONARY WORK AND WE HAVEN'T EVEN HAD AN OFFICIAL LESSON WITH HER YET. I love
Brazilians.
Yesterday We were doing finding in a park and we were
talking to this very sweet woman from Romania and she agreed with what we said
about God is our Heavenly Father and we can pray to Him and have a relationship
and she was feeling it and everything. When we asked if we could pray with her
however, she was very against it. She was like "no, I'm not about that
praying in public thing. I have to go to work. I don't have time" all that
jazz. But we explained that it would only take a minute and we just pray from
our heart and we can pray anywhere at anytime. She finally was like alllllriiight sure. And we prayed
and after her whole demeanor
changed. She was nice
before, but after we prayed with her she smiled at us and said she had goose bumps and it was so
beautiful. She told us she was there at that time almost everyday and that she
would love to talk with us again. We've had experiences in the past and seen
how prayer can really change people, but it finally hit me in that moment why.
I never really thought about how that praying with us is people's first
experience actually having a conversation
with Heavenly Father. By agreeing to pray with us, they open their heart and
the Spirit can touch them. That's why prayer is so important. In our mission a
lesson doesn't count as a lesson unless there's a prayer involved, even if it's
on the street or on the bus. I'm really understanding why. It's interesting for
me, who was born into the church, that when people think of praying, they don't
understand that's it's communication with our Father in Heaven. They believe in
the recited prayers and praying to saints and whatnot. But they don't
understand that it's just like a telephone and you're talking to Heavenly
Father and He's responding. When we pray with them that's the first time
they've felt the Holy Ghost. It's interesting because for me, I feel normal. I
feel peace and happiness like always when I pray, but that's because I always
have the Holy Ghost with me. For those who have never felt the Spirit before,
It's a totally new, beautiful experience. Being a missionary has truly opened
my eyes to things like this, that I never thought about before, since I was
born into the church and grew up being taught and knowing how to truly pray to
my Father in Heaven. I love seeing the peace, hope, and happiness in people's
eyes after we pray with them. It's one of my favorite parts about being a
missionary. I LOVE BEING A FULL TIME MISSIONARY!!!!!!!!! Gosh dang it, I'm so grateful for
this beautiful time in my life. Thank you everyone for helping me get here.
Thank you for teaching me the right things and helping me to stay on the right
path. Thank you for your examples and for all your love and support. I can't thank
you enough.
Have a great Easter! Make sure to remember why we have
this holiday. Christ died for us so we can repent and be clean and live with
Him and God again. He was resurrected so we can be resurrected and become as
Him and our Father in Heaven. What great, amazing, miraculous gifts that we
continue to try to comprehend. I love each of you so much.
Sorry this email was all over the place. That's just my
brain :)
HAPPY PASQUA!! Oh, plus, Italy has a holiday on the
Monday after Easter called Little Easter (Pasquetta) How cute and fun is that?
Plus, sorry no pictures again this week. Last week the
computer at this internet place wouldn't let me send any and then deleted all of them. Yay! Again, this is why
we're in two. I just steal all my companion's pictures :) So I don't want to
risk anything again because that wasn't the first time it's happened! Fool me
once, shame on you, internet point. Fool me twice, shame on me. I've learned! So
you'll just have to wait a couple weeks and then I send lots from the church
computer! Woo!
Vi voglio un MONDO di bene!! Buona Pasqua!!
Con affetto,
Sorella Hawks :)
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