Week 77: the last week in the great Italy Rome Mission

Hello family and friends: 

This week was full of goodbyes. So I'll save you all the sadness and not talk about it that much. This was definitely my hardest goodbye of the mission. I would say Taranto was my favorite city. I'm also excited to see how all of you pronounce this city because I'm pretty sure you all say it wrong. We got to see mostly everybody I wanted to so that was a tender mercy from my Heavenly Father. 

Tuesday was my birthday and it was a fantastic day. We had lunch with the bishop and his wife. It was delicious. Bishop was teasing me beforehand and asked how I felt about octopus. Haha.. I'm sure I looked scared until I realized he was joking. His wife made me Tiramisu for dessert. And that was so good! They also gave me a cute little ceramic thing that is a symbol of good luck. It is only made in this region of Italy, and it is a typical "happy birthday" or "happy marriage" kind of gift. It was so sweet of them. 

We had a lesson with Cristina for the first time in 4 weeks this week. Probably mainly because I was leaving. But it was a really great lesson. We talked about the priesthood and relief society. She has been stressed recently just with working with all the lawyers about her ex-husband. But she should be baptized soon because of news we received yesterday. So I'll be praying for that. It was also when we went to that lesson that we learned who won the presidential election and I didn't believe them until I saw it on the tv myself. Everybody here in Italy is quite interested in what happens. We had quite a few people come up to us and ask us what we thought. But President Pickerd told us to respond like this, "we love and follow Jesus Christ.  We are in Italy to teach repentance and baptize converts." Haha... I don't think that is the answer the people wanted. 

We went to Fia's that night. She made Samoan pancakes again and hot chocolate and she had invited a friend over. We had planned to share the object lesson of the rocks and the sand and how if you put the rocks (the important things) in the jar first and then add the sand (less important things), it all fits and you have enough time to do everything. But if you add the sand and then try to put the rocks in, you run out of room. They both really liked that, and I hope it will help Fia to make the gospel a bigger priority in her life. Her friend also became a new investigator, so that was a cool miracle. We also met a solid potential on the way out there, so hopefully Sorella Keglovitz can continue to work with them. 

Thursday we went to the Casti's (bishop's parents) house and she made us her mom's minestrone recipe. It was super good! That was also the first time I ate soup on the mission. And it wasn't even really soup. It was more like goop with potatoes, beans, and pasta. But a delicious goop. :) That night at English course, a student brought me a cake for my birthday and then we took pictures. Another student gave me a really pretty scarf and then another gave me a watch. And Mariella, the anziani's investigator gave me a really pretty necklace. So I felt really loved. This other guy also told me that I need to eat more when I get home, and I was like, "sir? Do you know how much I have eaten this week?" Haha.. 

Friday, Anziano Friedman had designated this day as my death day. He had promised "the kids" to kill me good, so he made a coffin to take pictures. Haha.. Also, the death jokes had only just begun 2 transfers ago. We went to have lunch with Ettore again and he made a ton of pizza. 

Saturday night, Sorella Keglovitz and I went gelato hopping. I really wanted to bring some of the plastic spoons home that they use to give samples of gelato because they are square shaped spoons. So we had plans to go to 3 gelato places, try two flavors each, and then order a small cup for us to share. We did that twice and realized it would be easier to just ask if we could buy some of the spoons from them. They would ask how many I needed, and then they just gave them to me for free. Haha.., but we made some good memories. We obviously tried to talk to people as we went too, but everybody was super grumpy that night. 

Sunday was my last Sunday in this beautiful country and even though it took me awhile to get used to the church culture here, I will definitely miss it. I had to bear my testimony and I think that went well. I ended it before starting to cry. We went to the Mazzolari's again for lunch today. They also invited this American guy who is moving here with his family over. He doesn't speak Italian, so we translated for a lot of the time. We went home, cleaned the house, packed up my bags and weighed them... stressed out because they are really close to the weight limit, and then we left to go see an investigator. We barely missed a bus, but because of that we met this one guy who passed us while waiting at the stop, and then when we got on the bus, we met this 18 year Hungarian guy who knew the missionaries 2-3 years ago and who has studied the Book of Mormon a little bit. So those were some miracles. The bus didn't come while we were waiting and it was getting too late to go out to where she lives, so we headed home. We were waiting at a bus stop, and nobody else was there, so we were just talking and laughing when a guy walks up and tells us how he likes how we smile and laugh. His name was Josef and he wasn't from Italy but we talked to him for a bit too. 

And this morning, Mariella helped us get to the station with all my bags. She bought us cornetti, a pastry with Nutella inside, for breakfast. As of right now, it all feels like it's just another transfer. But I'm sure once I get to Rome and go to the mission villa, it will feel a bit more real. 

I found some good conference talks from a while ago about going home from a mission and the blessings we receive from serving a mission, and my heart was just full of gratitude for the opportunity I've had to serve here for a year and a half. It has been hard, but the good times always make up for the bad. And to prevent myself from crying on the train, I'll stop all the sappy stuff there. I'm just grateful for my savior, for my mission, for my family and friends, and for the gospel. 

See you all real soon!

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg
Missione Italiana di Roma

Week 76: salted caramel gelato, Italian cemeteries,

Hello friends and family: 

I'm sure you aren't all counting down for me... 😉, right? Haha... I still have one glorious week here in Italy, and I am for sure living it up. In a missionary type of way. Meaning mainly that I'm going to gain 10 pounds just this week. Haha... 

And to start with, last week, right before p-day ended, we had planned to get gelato with the district. Only the zone leaders ended up coming with us, but I got salted caramel gelato. And it was the most delicious thing ever. It was just the right amount of salt but sweet in every bite. Am I making you drool yet? Haha.. but seriously... I'm going to miss the food so much. 

This week, we had a bit of success with our less actives. It all started on Monday night when we went to see the Oliva's. Their phone wasn't working so we just stopped by, and only Sorella Oliva was home, which ended up being a miracle. We shared a nice message with her about Christ and about prayer, and she actually said the prayer at the end of the lesson because her husband wasn't there. And it was a good prayer too. More than just "padre nostro" (the prayer from the Sermon on the Mount). Last week when the sisters were on scambio, they went to see them and I guess Sorella Oliva thought I had left, and that made her really sad. It just warms my heart to think of all the little impacts I've made on the lives of people here through being an instrument in the savior's hands.

Happy November! Haha.. I just have to mention that November is my favorite month. My birthday, thanksgiving, the fall weather, pumpkins, sweaters, boots, and everything else good. So at least that helped balance my hyperventilating of it also being the month I go home. November 1 was All Saints Day, and the ward had a giant service project planned at the cemetery for both November 1-2 which was the day of the dead. So we spent a lot of time in the cemetery wheeling elderly people in wheelchairs around to the graves of their relatives. I think every single person in Italy visits the cemetery on one of these two days. We had some good experiences and it was nice helping people. I love old Italian ladies, because you know them for like 5 minutes, and they automatically become your grandma. They are just so caring and sweet. One of them was 95 years old, and we walked around for 30 minutes inside the cemetery looking for her husband's grave because she was lost. Her husband was in the military and passed away 53 years ago. I can't even imagine being a widow for that long. We also helped another lady and her son. Sorella K complimented her on her earrings and she wanted to know if we would be there the next day so she could bring all her earrings to give to us. Haha.. Italian cemeteries are a bit different than American cemeteries because they aren't underground. All the boxes holding the caskets are above ground and if you are rich enough, a family will have a sepulcher that holds all the dead bodies. One of our English course students took us to his family's sepulcher and it smelled quite lovely inside if you know what I mean. But I can say that I became a million more times grateful for the plan of salvation and for my testimony about the resurrection. Something about the bodies not being buried makes you think more about what is actually in those boxes and it is sad to think about. But the gospel brings so much hope knowing that someday our bodies will be restored to their perfect frame. 

We weren't able to meet with Gilda this week either, because the day our lesson was scheduled was all saints day and she had spent the day with her family. But, we will try again for this week and hopefully she will be available. Tuesday night, we went to English course and everybody knows I'm going home so they keep asking me how I feel. And really, it is just a big lot of mixed emotions. Haha.. 

Wednesday night, we went out to see Fia. We had a really great lesson with her about doing family history. Something I've learned during the mission is how when we take family names to the temple or even just go to the temple, we become savior's on mount Zion for those people. She was really excited about the book to fill out with all the information about her family. We also talked about how examples as parents/grandparents are the best ways to teach children. We invited her to show a good example of going to church and following God's commandments so her grandchildren will know what is truly important to her. She also won't let us leave without feeding us, so this time we ate chick pea soup and it was really good!

Because we had the service project on Tuesday and Wednesday starting at 8, we didn't have time in the morning to do our studies and there was a significant difference in how our days went when we studied and when we didn't study. Thursday, we had to go to the questura to pick up my permesso or my permission to be in Italy legally card. I don't know what you would call it in America. I renewed it in June, and I just got it. And the funny thing is that it expires on the 23 of November, so I have a new card for 20 days.. woohoo!

Thursday morning, we had district meeting. It ended up being short because we were running late from picking up my permesso. Then we had to run home, grab something to eat real fast, and catch a bus to the bus station to then take a bus to Cosenza. I didn't get to eat much which wasn't a bad thing, because as soon as we arrived in Cosenza, I was told Sorella Gl and I were going straight to a meal appointment. And this family's goal is to make every missionary fat. Haha.. so we ate a lot. 

Friday morning, we did some pharmacy finding because a member had given an employee a pamphlet there, but we weren't sure which pharmacy or where it was. So we asked all the other pharmacies, and we met this really cute lady named Roberta. She was probably 28 and we just started talking like we had been friends forever. She said the sisters could go back the next day and talk more with her, so that was a pretty cool experience. And then we made another contact. Sorella Gl thought I was a good luck charm because everybody was being so friendly to us. That evening, we caught a bus back to Taranto which takes almost 4 hours, so there went a good chunk of our day. Our zone is so big! 

Saturday, Fia had invited us to go play tennis with her. She's been planning this forever, basically ever since she found out I play tennis 6 months ago. But we finally made our schedules fit together. And it was so much fun. Sorella K played tennis in high school too, so we all had fun. We mostly just volleyed back and forth. And let me tell you, I was so sore the next day. Haha... Fia also made us Samoan pancakes.. and they were so good. Basically fried pancake batter with apple and banana inside. We are learning how to make them on Wednesday. 

That morning before we played tennis, we had barely missed a bus and I was worried we were going to be late, but God makes things happen for a reason. As we were waiting at the stop, this lady who came up to all of us sisters during the scambio before zone conference showed up and started talking to us again. She is the cutest, and she wants us to go to her house. We had tried twice and she wasn't ever there, but this time we were able to get her phone number. Her name is Marisa, so hopefully we can meet with her this week. She lives really close to our house which is also really close to the church. Perfect, right? Also, when we were done playing tennis, we went to the bus stop and the anziani's new convert was there. So miracles all over the place. :) 

That night, we went out to another city and there was some bus confusion about which company of buses leaves when and which tickets we bought, so we arrived at the appointment late, stayed late because Italians talk a lot, missed the last bus of the night from the company we bought tickets from, and so the zone leaders had to come rescue us. Luckily they were good sports about it, also because I promised them cookies. At least the lesson went well. We read the introduction to the Book of Mormon with them and invited them to read it. These 2 women are investigators from a long time ago. I've only seen them 3 times since I've been here, so now we just have to help them move along a little more speedily. 

On Sunday, we arrived in church and Sorella Mazzolari immediately called me over and presented me with the Swiss chocolate she bought for me at my request. They also invited us and the anziani over for lunch because nobody else invited us. They were worried they wouldn't have enough food because they had just gotten back from the temple the day before and hadn't done shopping yet. But believe me, there was plenty of food. If anybody wants me to cook Italian style when I get home, be ready for pasta, meat, bread, fruit, other sides, salad, and dessert and for your stomach to explode. Also, we will be going back to the Mazzolari's when we come back to Italy, family. They have already made me promise. They are basically my family here in Taranto. 

Sunday night, we did weekly planning. And we miraculously fit in everybody we have to see this week, so hopefully their schedules work with ours. Or else I'll be sad. My eyes even began to water as I began to think about leaving this city and these people. As excited as I am to come home, I do feel like I'm leaving my home (Taranto) to go to some dream like world that doesn't really exist. Haha.. 

Sunday night, we met with a less active who we saw another miracle with. She usually wouldn't ever let us in to her house. Whenever we went, we would literally stand in the entryway and share a spiritual thought. But for some reason, we got into her kitchen last night. We got to know her a little bit more, she said she would come to church, and she said a prayer at the end of the lesson. Miracles all over the place. 

Something I really liked from studies this week was a verse I read in 1 Nephi 21:13. It connected to Isaiah 44:23 in the footnotes. And it says, "Sing, O ye heavens; for the Lord hath done it" and I loved this connected with the idea that Christ completed the atonement. He did it. He already did it. How much joy and comfort that sentence gives me. He did it. 

I love you all! Have a great week! And I'll see you soon!

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma

Week 75: flu, scambio, zone conference, scopa, baptism, toilets, and Bari

Hello family and friends: 

Turns out that the common cold was actually the flu. So, just when I thought I was getting better and went out for p-day, we went home that night and I felt not so great. So we rested Monday night and Tuesday morning after our appointment cancelled on us. I wanted to get all better for the scambio we had on Wednesday and zone conference on Thursday. 

While resting, I had the chance to finish filling out all my death packet paperwork for my last interview with President. Good thing too because we got a call from the zone leaders Tuesday morning that said we were having our exit interviews Wednesday instead of when we go up to Rome. My heart stopped beating for a little bit when I heard that because I thought I had 3 more weeks before I had to think about my future. Tuesday afternoon came around and I was sick of resting, so we ventured out and made copies of this temple activity that Sorella K has. There are footprints that have scriptures and commandments on them and they lead up to the temple. We have been using it with members for a spiritual thought to help prepare everybody for the temple. After english course that night, I was dead. 

Wednesday, the Cosenza sisters were coming to do a scambio with us, but because it was interview day, the Crotone sisters ended up coming too. So we went on a trio scambio. The zone leaders or more specifically Anziano F was getting a kick out of who we were on the scambio with. Sorella Mc goes home with me and Sorella Cgoes home one transfer after us, so he was explaining that it was like dead with dead with almost dead. Nice, huh? They also calculated it out yesterday that I have
2.6 % of my mission left. We had a lot of fun on the scambio. We did house to house after the less active we tried to see opened the door to the building. We were like, "11th floor, last door", let's go! Haha... the ironic part is that the fourth floor, last door was the nicest lady. We also did some street finding by an elementary school next to our house. That was a good idea to find new families, especially right before lunch when everybody is picking up their kids. 

After lunch, it was just me and Sorella McKenzie on scambio and we basically talked in Italian for the whole time. It was a blast, plus we got to talk about Catania since she was there for 4 transfers. We had our interviews that evening and those were 45 minutes each. We talked to Sorella Pickerd while the other one was in the interview and I talked to Sorella Pickerd for the whole 45 minutes. So I spent a good solid hour and a half with our wonderful mission president and his wonderful wife. I just love them so much! The interview was pretty much "tell me about your plans." Me: *telling him my plans* "That sounds good. Here's some additional advice. You are great, and I know you will make good choices." So, basically I didn't have to worry about a thing, and I learned a lot from them. 

After interviews, we headed to the Dorgia's. They are a less active family who invited us over for dinner. Another member and her less active daughter came too, so it was a party. We learned how to play scopa while we waited for dinner to be ready. Scopa cards are from Napoli and there are a bunch of Italian card games you can play with them. Yes, I will be bringing some home. And yes, I will teach you how to play. :) We had a really great night and a fun time all together. And we ate way too much food! The other sisters on the scambio finally got to teach Gilda. Talk about a miracle! So now she is a new investigator and we will be working with her. 

Zone conference on Thursday was really great! It felt like a giant review of all of the past zone conferences which was kind of nice not to have something new thrown at us. But President Pickerd talked a lot about success as a missionary. It was nice to hear for me being one who maybe hasn't seen as much fruit on the mission as I would have liked. But success doesn't come in the number of baptisms one has. They sang happy birthday to me and the other missionaries who have birthdays this transfer, and then all the dying missionaries had to give their death testimonies. I bore my testimony on the 4 things that have really grown my testimony on the mission.. 1) Heavenly Father loves us and has an individual plan for each of us. 2) Jesus Christ is truly the Savior of the world, my redeemer, my brother, and my friend. 3) The book of mormon is true. We draw nearer to the savior as we read, study, and apply the things in that book. And 4) When we lose ourselves in the service of others, and more importantly in the service of our God, there truly is more of us to find. It went well, but the whole time I couldn't believe that it was already my time to stand up there. 

The anziani had a baptism Thursday night and that was a beautiful thing to witness. Cristina came and still wants to be baptized, but hopefully we can get her to act a little bit more. We haven't met with her for 3 weeks. Maria Grazia is awesome though and I have seen her progress so much from the time I got here to now. So happy for her!

Friday morning, we did weekly planning which went well. And that evening was interesting. We did some finding, waited at a bus stop, had a creepy guy start following us, stared at me for the whole 20 minute bus ride, finally got off, and then we went home to complete some area book updates instead of going to the military base to see an investigator because we had the heebie jeebies. Mom, don't worry. I promise I am safe. :)

That night, the handle to flush my toilet broke off. So Saturday morning after we had correlation with the ward mission leader, we went to a hardware store to get a new screw to fix it. I had to learn some new vocabulary for that adventure. The guy at the hardware store gifted us the screw probably because he felt bad for us. Then we got pizza for lunch and went home to eat it. And get a round of applause ready... I fixed my toilet handle all by myself. No, it isn't like an American handle so I actually had to use my brain to figure out how to fix it. I think I am now qualified to live on my own.

I've been studying the subjunctive mood this week for language study and I think I am finally understanding it. 17 months later. 

Saturday night, we went to see a less active. Her daughter that our lesson was actually planned for was sleeping, so we had to come up with something on the spot. We ended up sharing the story of Esther with her and watching the video Courage. We talked about how we have to have the courage to keep going forward in life with faith even when things don't go the way we had originally planned them to go. It was definitely inspired to share that with her, and it is always cool to watch the spirit work through us as missionaries. 

It was daylight savings here in Italy on Sunday. I forgot, so I woke up and got ready anyways. Once I realized, I went back to bed for a bit but couldn't sleep. Darn it. The one time I get to sleep for an extra hour and I ruined my chance. Haha... We went to stake conference in Bari. 5th time in Bari and it isn't even in the zone. I think I have probably set a new record. Haha. Stake conference was really great though, and I got an idea for my homecoming talk. 

Sunday night, we went and did some finding. We talked to this nice guy named Mauro and taught him about the restoration. Nothing came of it, but all his problems about the catholic church don't exist in the restored church of Jesus Christ. Hopefully he will discover that. He had seen other missionaries before, so someday he will accept the gospel, right? The less active we had an appointment with cancelled on us, so we went by the ward mission leaders since they live in the same building. The mom is 86 and she writes these hymns, and they were actually really good. If I knew how to compose music, I would write the notes out for it. They also fed us gelato. 

We had a great week this week, and we are excited to attack the next 2 weeks with just as much energy. We know we will see miracles if we give it our all. And I only have 15 more days to be a missionary, so we are going all out. :)

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma

Week 74: Roma, conferences, train rides, the common cold, and more fun adventures

Hello family and friends, 

What a week!? There were the highs and the lows and everything in between. 

One of the obvious highs was the conference we had with President Nelson, Elder Hallstrom, and Elder Kearon and their wives. It was phenomenal, and such a great experience. We all got to shake their hands and we learned so much. We left on Wednesday afternoon, arrived in Rome 7 hours later, stayed the night at the Michelini's (a senior couple again) with 4 other sisters (including Sorella Roberts-one of my favorites), and then left on a train again Thursday afternoon around 3. So, we spent a lot of time on the train traveling, but I can guarantee that it was worth it. :) We also got Napoli pizzas thanks to our beloved zone leaders who both happened to serve in Napoli and had connections. :) No complaints there. 

Here's for some of the things that I learned. 

Sister Kearon said:  "We must be anxiously engaged. This includes how we behave ourselves in public, on the train, on the bus... we should be prayerfully glancing around looking for those who are ready. There is a whole spectrum of being anxiously engaged. Where are you? And how will you become totally, completely engaged?

Elder Kearon said: "Know what it is that you need to do and act. Look up, look around. You are the Lord's messengers, ambassadors, servants, hands, and voice here in Italy. [looking around the room smiling] You must have been very very good in the pre-mortal life."

Sister Hallstrom: "I'm so grateful to be part of a church where every meeting, a testimony is born of Jesus Christ... in word and in song." 

Elder Hallstrom: "Never completely leave the mission. The core of who you are is what you establish now. It isn't a mask we put on for a year and a half and then take off when we leave, but it really becomes who we are."

Sister Nelson: "The Savior is really returning to earth. Do you get this? Okay, Wendy [Elizabeth]. It is time to kick it up a notch. If it wasn't on you pre mortal to do list, you don't have time for it now. Be aware of how you use your time."

President Nelson: "You are children of the covenant. You are not accidental beings. You have been reserved for this time and this place and even this mission for a reason."

And the apostolic blessing he left: "Feast on the words of the Lord Jesus Christ and you will become powerful disciples, exemplary disciples of him. Let this continue even when you return home. Safety in travels. Success in the work. Healing among such who need it according to the will of God. That you will become devout disciples. Proclaim his word with joy in your countenance. This is his church and his people. He lives." 

Other notes from him: he says thank you to all our parents because we wouldn't be here without you guys. :) ❤️ 

He read every single word and marked his new scriptures up in 2 weeks, which means he was pondering too. 

And part of our spiritual identity is what tribe we come from. 

Basically, he [a 92 year old man] stood at the pulpit for an hour teaching us about the Abrahamic Covenant. I learned so much! I obviously recognized the fact that I still have a long ways to go with studying the scriptures... especially with the Bible. Because I know like nothing.. haha.. 

It was an awesome conference! For the spirit we felt, but also for all the power of singing "Called to Serve" and the mission hymn as a whole mission. And for seeing all my favorite mission friends. I got to see some people that I haven't seen since we left the mission home at the beginning of our missions, both of my mission daughters, and other old companions. So much fun. :) Also, Dayana came at the end. And that was awesome to see her! 😊 

Other things from this week: we went to see the Oliva's. And they made us these baked apples. He basically cored the apple without cutting it, put it in a pan with some almond flavored water syrup and put it in the oven. Simple but nice dessert and quite tasty. Especially with cinnamon and sugar on top. :) 

Tuesday, we walked a lot. We did less active finding in the morning. And then we did plan of salvation finding in the afternoon which consisted of us walking all over Lama and all over Taranto. We also went to see Nicola. We showed him a video about following Christ, and he made it quite clear that he has no desire to follow Christ or change at this point of his life. Sad! We officially dropped him on Friday and now we have like no investigators. Haha... yay for more finding!

We started a new thing for spiritual thoughts at English course. We had each student write down a question on a piece of paper that they had for us about the church, and we are picking one question to answer for every spiritual thought we do. We had "Do you believe in the trinity?" this week. It is such a good idea to clear up misconceptions people have of the church and for them to learn more about it. 

Friday, we did a bit of finding and met a 16 year old girl named Rosa from Romania. She had a 2 month old baby named Raoul, who was the cutest thing ever. She even offered for me to hold him, and I had to say no... but hey, only for 3 more weeks. Then I can hold all the babies I want to. :) We shared a short message with her about the plan of salvation. She even gave us her address and phone number and we were going to see her again on Saturday. But turns out, the address doesn't exist, and she ended the call both times we called. Oh well, she will be more prepared the next time she meets missionaries. 

Friday night, we went to see Sorella Parabita and as we were leaving the hospital, it was pouring down rain. And we didn't have umbrellas. #geniuses So we waited until it slowed down a bit and then walked really fast to the bus stop which was thankfully covered. When we got home, I noticed my throat had begun to hurt... and so I almost believed colpa d'aria was real. That is the myth that if cold air blows on your neck, you get sick which everyone in Italy actually believes in. But nope... just the common cold from someone who was probably sharing their germs with everyone at the conference. 

It was funny though. On Sunday, I didn't want to bach anyone because I was sick. Don't know how to spell that. Not Bach like the composer but with a ch sound at the end. Haha.. the kissing of the cheeks. But everyone was telling me, "I've bached people my whole life and never have I once gotten sick from it" and I was just thinking that they need to go back to biology and learn how viruses spread. Haha... 

Saturday, we had a pass off lesson with the anziani for a woman named Francesca who lives alone, so it would be better if the sisters teach her. That was a roller coaster of a lesson. She is pretty catholic and doesn't really want to change religion. 

Time for a rant: this is something I've seen throughout my mission.... but you can't just sit around doing the same old things in the face of problems and hope that your circumstances will change. We are people to be acted upon. We have agency to act for ourselves. And often Heavenly Father won't help us change something that we can change on our own. We can't allow ourselves to become victims to our situations and expect Christ to come in, put a bandaid on, and make everything better. He wants us to put effort in ourselves and he will come and help us with everything we can't do alone. Okay... rant over. 

Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon consisted of me resting, sleeping, watching movies, drinking lots of vitamin C, blowing my nose, and coughing. But I feel much better today. 

Sunday, we had a multi stake conference with the Palermo Stake and the Puglia stake because the district of Calabria is combining with the stakes to dissolve the district. It was a great conference and we got to hear from President Pickerd and Elder Dini Ciacci of the area seventy. Temple update as far as right now: President Uchtdorf said it won't be ready this year in August. And when President Nelson came he said, "the temple will be ready when the members are ready." The challenge for the members right now is even though the temple won't be ready at the end of the year, they should all be worthy to have a temple recommend by the end of the year. Pretty cool. 

Gilda and Cristina came to the conference. And one of these weeks, Gilda will become an investigator. We just have to meet with her!! Haha.. we also went to the ward mission leader's house for lunch. And it was delicious as always. It was said at the conference yesterday that it is impossible to cook Italian food with American ingredients. So I will try my best when I get home, but I can't promise that anything will be as good as what I have eaten here. 

A scripture that touched me this week is 1 Corinthians 9:16-17. Go look it up. But it talks about the difference of preaching the gospel because we feel like we have to and preaching because we want to, and the different rewards we get. I hope we can all find true joy in sharing what we believe with the people that surround us. :) 

Well, I love you all! I hope you have a wonderful week! 

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma

Week 73: wild dogs, Chinese, finding, more finding, and the MIRACLE of the week

Hello family and friends:

This week definitely ended better than it started. But I can't tell you the miracle without all the opposition. :) So be patient. And don't skip ahead. 

On Monday night, we had planned to go see Fia after p-day ended. She kind of lives in the middle of nowhere and we soon discovered how dark it was out there without lights. And we ran into a few wild dogs. But no harm done. They ran away from us. We had a great lesson with her about the importance of reading the Book of Mormon and how we come closer to Christ as we read it. She also made us dinner and it was this really good chicken and potato dish. And then we had to wait out in the pitch dark for a bus to come. It kind of felt like Harry Potter #3 with the thought of wild dogs and everything. As we were waiting for the second bus to get home, we met this really cute 18 year old girl named Sara who definitely surprised us because she speaks perfect English. We invited her to come to English course and sure enough.. her English teacher is one of our students. Haha.. the cool thing is that she taught herself English through listening to Michael Jackson songs. She is really cute and we hope to meet up with her sometime and maybe teach her about the gospel. :)

Tuesday, we had district meeting in the morning. We got to know all of the new missionaries and then each companionship did a training using a section from Chapter 8 of Preach My Gospel. It was really good and just reminded me of the importance of setting goals and then working towards those goals with honest effort and then getting help from the Lord. We all have areas in which we can improve on, and the Savior is always willing to help us. After DDM, we went out to lunch at a Chinese buffet. I don't think I've ever seen people eat so much sushi. I didn't eat any... but news as far as that... I ate two cocktail shrimp! And it wasn't even that bad. 

Tuesday afternoon, I called a bunch of people to set up appointments for the week. And everyone either said to call back or try again next week. So frustrating! Because of that, we had a lot of open time in our week to do some finding. 

That night, we went to see Nicola though and had a good lesson with him. He was feeling a bit down because of family stress and other trials he has in his life right now, and we were able to testify about how the plan of salvation helps us to have an eternal perspective in life, and how even when things don't go how we want them to, we can look forward with an eye of faith. 

Wednesday morning, we did some house to house (casa a casa). And I can honestly say it is probably my least favorite thing to do ever. So unnatural... haha. But we had a conversation with an agnostic about how the Book of Mormon is the proof that Joseph Smith was a prophet. We talked with an atheist for a while but he was not budging on his opinion. And a chubby teenager opened the door in a skimpy boxer... and that is it. I think he was more embarrassed than we were. 😂 

That afternoon, we went to centro to walk around a bit and talk to people. We were denied a few times and then we talked to a guy named Abraham from Syria who seemed interested in English course. And we talked to another guy named Luigi who we talked to with for 30 minutes. He gave us his phone number and address and he lives in Bari so we gave them a referral. Good thing he doesn't live here, because he texted us the next day and said he was in love with us. Haha.. then it was cold... and we just happened to pass by a chocolate shop/bar. So we decided to get some chocolate and some hot chocolate. I love Italian hot chocolate. It is thicker and is more like pudding. Mine was chocolate with berry flavoring. So good! 

That night, we went to the church to finish area book iPad training, but we had forgotten that there was an activity that night with a lot of people who weren't members of the church. Some kind of presentation about communication and how we can become successful. My favorite part was an analogy used about the Chartres Labyrinth found in some church in France. Look it up and then maybe you will understand my thoughts. :) 

We come close to where we want to be. Then we must move away from our goal, and again we come close again. Again and again, this process happens until we reach our goal. The closer we get to the goal, the more complicated it gets. 

Thursday morning, we did less active finding. Both of them didn't live there. And I was excited because I found a leather shop, but it wasn't actually that exciting. I guess I'm kind of picky about my leather. That afternoon, we went chiropractor finding because Sorella Keglovitz needs one, but after talking to a ton of people, we think one doesn't exist here in Taranto. Haha.. then we went to English course. Which is always a tender mercy for those weeks where appointments aren't aplenty. 

Friday morning, we did weekly planning. And that was really good except for Cristina calling us to say that she was sick and we couldn't come anymore. Golden, right? Haha... but we did some more finding. More specifically video finding on lungomare, basically a big sidewalk next to the sea... I guess like a boardwalk? Haha.. and bus finding on the way out there. We also talked to quite a few people, but nothing ever went anywhere. At least for now.... who knows what seeds we planted for the future? 

The coolest thing that happened that night was going to see Sorella Parabita in the hospital. There was one other lady in the room with her and her caretaker. And they wanted to watch the video we showed Sorella Parabita too. The caretaker had actually come in contact with the missionaries before. And we were able to sing "I am a Child of God." It was just a super cool experience. Missionary work in the hospital! :) 

We had an appointment with Elena on Saturday, but then she called and said she needed to run an errand for her brother but that we could meet later. So we just moved our finding plans up a bit. We went to a park and talked to all of these old people. And then another park where we met these really cool teenagers who were interested in English course. Sorella Keglovitz is awesome and will just walk up to anyone and start talking to them without hesitating. I'm definitely learning that from her. What is the worst they can do to you? Say no. 

We ended up telling Elena that we would take a break because even though she continues to say she wants to be baptized, she refuses to accept any of the other basic doctrines of our church other than Joseph Smith and even that, she doesn't understand it all the way. I began to understand that she likes us to come over and talk about religion, but she doesn't want to change her ideas because of all the research she has done in the past. Sad for us because we love her and only want the best for her, but hopefully one day, her research will lead her back to the Book of Mormon and the priesthood authority that opens the doors of heaven. 

Saturday night, we went and saw a less active. I think we waited for the bus to get out there for an hour and a half.... but we had a nice visit with her. We think we figured out one of the reasons why she is less active. So now we will be able to help her more. And she gave us yummy gelato. The bus came in time to get us home in time, so we ended up having a good night. 

Sunday, we had the primary program. And that always makes my heart melt. I love hearing little kids speak Italian. We sang Army of Helaman with the kids and most of the parents were crying. I imagine they were just fast forwarding through the years of when their kids would be like us. :) 

Are you ready for it now? So we were invited over to a member's house for lunch. And in the car on the way there, they told us that they had invited a friend of the husband over and his family for lunch too, and that they knew we were coming as missionaries and they wanted to know more about the church. So during lunch, the members did a great job with testifying of the blessings they have received from the church and afterwards, we were able to teach the restoration. It was a powerful lesson and they were so open. We didn't have a Book of Mormon with us, but that actually worked to our advantage to get a return appointment. So we will meet with them again and the member family on Friday when we get back from Rome. And we were able to have 3 new investigators and a future eternal family to teach (Mom, Dad, and daughter). So exciting!

It was a testimony to me that Heavenly Father knows us. He knew how hard it was sometimes to go out and talk to people after days and days of getting rejected. But he blessed us for our diligence and obedience even when it was hard. We are looking forward to teaching them more. :) 

Other cool things: every night about a month ago, missionaries in the Italy Rome Mission say a mission prayer at 10 o'clock. Sorella Keglovitz and I started to sing the mission hymn before we pray and it has been a really cool way to end our night. We are to pray for the faith for every companionship to have one baptism per transfer. It is a pretty cool idea/tradition. 

Well, I love you all! I hope you had and that you will have an absolutely wonderful week! 

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma

Week 72: Bari adventures, transfer calls, transfers, true joy, last transfer, and potential investigators

Dear family and friends: 

This week was beyond crazy, so buckle up and get ready! Monday night, we drove out with our ward mission leader and his wife to visit a couple who lives outside of town to share a message about our new ward mission plan. We got lost on the way out there because their address wouldn't show up on Google Maps and nobody wanted to ask for directions...but once we finally arrived, we had a great lesson with them and invited them to use their interests (specifically in family history) to help people outside the church with their genealogy. The spirit was definitely there, so that was a good experience. Then as we were drinking water before we left, our phone started ringing... and everybody knows what that means! TRANSFER CALLS! 

You all are lucky that we now receive transfer calls at the beginning of the week, so you don't have to wait until the end of my letter! But drum roll please.... I am STAYING in TARANTO! I have probably never been so happy in my life! Sorella Gochnour went to Ragusa in Sicily to be with an Italian companion and I'm so excited that she gets to spread her wings! This transfer was a little weird, because almost everybody who was training stayed in their city and all the greenies were the ones who moved. My thought process is that Heavenly Father wants them to spread their wings now so they are ready to train faster. My new companion is Sorella Keglovitz! She is in the same transfer as Sorella Hess, so she hits her halfway mark soon. She is 23. She also served in Catania... so guess what we've been talking a lot about... CATANIA! Haha... it has been fun to reminisce with her and get updates on all of my favorite people. Other things about her... she is from Grants Pass, Oregon... she is really good at telling stories and is a BEAVER FAN. I told her she could stay. :)

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Tuesday, we had a wonderful DDM where we talked about all of our insights from conference. Anziano Friedman was kind of stressed out the whole time because he is the new zone leader (our other ones either died or changed to being AP) and he is in charge of all the travel plans and there were some crazy ones. We made a Nutella crostata and that was really good. Don't worry, I'll make it once I get home for all who have watering tastebuds. :) We ran an errand out to Auchan to check to see if they had desks/wardrobes for the new anziani arriving in Taranto. And Sorella Gochnour had to pack. 

Wednesday morning, Sorella Gochnour left on a train to Foggia, and I had to go to Bari because my new companion wasn't arriving until Thursday and that is where the nearest sisters are. I guess you could say we are empty nesters now because our kids both left and with them leaving, our district became full of old retired folks. Haha.. there are now 3 new anziani in Taranto who all die in the next 2 transfers, plus Anziano Davidson who dies with me, and then me. 

So, I got to spend the day in a trio with Slla Embley and Nelson. Sorella Nelson was headed to Catania, so I basically just talked about Catania all week! We went to get focaccia with a member and her giant golden retriever and that night, we went to see another member and ate panzerotti from Bari. But I think the ones in Taranto are better because they are just baked and not fried. The fried ones are really heavy.. 

On Thursday, we were in the middle of all the transfer excitement and everybody was coming into the Bari station at different times. So I think we walked back and forth between the station and their house like 4 times. It would have been 5 but then Sorella Embley and I waited at the Burger King and ate lunch instead of walking back to the house. I ended up having to stay longer in Bari because Sorella Keglovitz didn't go up to Napoli the day before and ended up having to travel up on a bus. So I just got to be in the midst of everything crazy during my last transfer day. 

We got to go to English course that night and the advanced students have been begging to have the sisters teach them again so we decided to switch from teaching basic to advanced. And we spent the majority of the time talking about why we chose to serve missions, and what things we have learned on our missions. The thing I shared that I've learned the most about is being selfless. I've learned that the more I seek to make others happy, the happier I become. But when I always check to see if I'm happy, I'm not. 

Friday morning, we went down to centro to buy monthly bus passes and we got on the bus after talking to this cute 18 year old girl, I realized I forgot my wallet, so we got off at the next stop, went back to the house, waited at the bus stop, talked to someone else and the excursion that was only supposed to take an hour ended up taking all morning, but we got good potentials out of it. So we are excited to follow up on them this next week. 

We met with Nicola this week. He finished reading the introduction of the Book of Mormon and some of the testimonies at the beginning. He also is trying to stop smoking because he has health problems. And he said he would come to church if it rained. But it didn't... I wasn't sure if praying for it to rain was going against someone else's agency. Probably not because he could choose whether to come to church still whether or not it was raining. I'll pray for it to rain this next Sunday. Haha... 

We also went to meet with this less active couple where the wife is not too fond of us coming all the time. And I guess the husband didn't tell her we were coming, so she kind of cussed us out when we first arrived according to him. I don't know Italian cuss words... but by the end of the lesson we had with them, she had invited us over to pranzo sometime. So the spirit really can change people's hearts. :) 

We had a lesson with Cristina on Saturday morning. I guess she thought that I had left and so she was really sad. But when she opened the door and saw me, she was SO happy! She just gave me the biggest hug and wouldn't let me go. We had a great lesson with her about the plan of salvation, temples, and family history. She still wants to get baptized and was telling everyone on Sunday that she will get baptized as soon as her situation changes. So good news there. :) 

That night after we did weekly planning, we went to the church to do Area Book Planner training. We have FINALLY been authorized to use the area Book planner app on our iPads starting October 1. So I get to use it for a solid two weeks... haha.. :) It is such a cool tool, and the church is so technology forward. I'm pretty sure the apostles know more about technology than I do at this point. 

Church was really great on Sunday. As much as I love general conference and hearing those inspired messages, nothing beats getting to partake of the sacrament on a normal Sunday. The relief society lesson we had was also very good about our commitment to God. 

This is what I loved from that lesson, "The Lord revealed in the preface to the Doctrine and Covenants that this is the "only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth." Then he added, "with which I, the Lord, am well pleased, speaking unto the church collectively and not individually" (D&C 1:30). This should raise a question in our minds of eternal significance: We know that this is the true and living church institutionally, but am I a true and living member individually?

… When I ask, "Am I a true and living member?" my question is, am I deeply and fully dedicated to keeping the covenants I have made with the Lord? Am I totally committed to live the gospel and be a doer of the word and not a hearer only? Do I live my religion? Will I remain true? Do I stand firm against Satan's temptations? … " 

Then Gilda, Cristina's friend came again, and she wants to meet with us finally! Cristina talked it up about how when we come to her house, it is like angels coming. So now we have a high expectation to fulfill. But we hope that will finally happen this week. 

Then we went to pranzo with the Casti's, one of my other favorite members. They were literally the life savers of the week. We wanted to have a lesson with these investigators we haven't seen since I first arrived here, but the only day they could do it was Sunday and that is the only day the buses don't run from Taranto to San Giorgio. So there was a problem, but the Casti's were totally willing to help us out. They fed us pranzo, drove us to the appointment, Sorella Casti stayed for the appointment, and then they drove us home. I love them so much! They were literally our heroes! 

Then we had a lesson with Elena. It was probably the shortest lesson we've ever had with her. We talked about the importance of the spirit in learning about spiritual things and invited her to put as much effort into reading the Book of Mormon as she does reading other spiritual books. And then to pray before and after she reads. 

So today marks the beginning of my last transfer, and I am feeling good except for having a whole bunch of mixed emotions about everything. I'm pretty sure this transfer is going to fly by though because... this week is the only normal week we have. Then next week, we go to Rome for the mission conference, the next week we have zone conference and stake conference, the next week we have scambios in Cosenza, and the next week, we have my birthday... and then I'm home. 

Well, I hope you have a wonderful day and week! Life is good over here in Italy and miracles are happening each and every day! I truly have learned that joy is found in Jesus Christ and when we are in the service of others. :) Love you all!

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma

Week 71: beach, general conference, cabbage, scambio, and mozzarella

Hello family and friends, 

I forgot to mention this in my last email, but last p-day we went paint balling and had a barbecue at Mariella's (Matteo's mom) for Erika's (his sisters) birthday. (Hopefully you remember who Matteo is. His family are the anziani's investigators and are amazing. Someday, they will be an eternal family, so they are like the miracle of our time here in Taranto. And I say "our time" because we started out teaching Mariella and the anziani with Matteo and told them to teach them as a family. But they love all of us and I love all of them. Plus Mariella is our student for English course and we eat at their house a lot.) It was really fun. The paint balling was not my favorite, but now I can say that I tried. "I'll try anything once" is a phrase I'm adopting from my beautiful mission daughter Sorella G.

After p-day, we watched the women's session of conference. And I loved all of it. Some of the things that stood out to me though was how our kind words can propel the sails of another person in challenging times. How we shouldn't focus on the golden windows of someone else's house. The imagery of the master healer. How we as women need to study out the temple ordinances and covenants to have the power of God with us. And that there are more ways to see, hear, and feel something than with our eyes, ears, and hands. 

This week for DDM, we had a council about repentance. It kind of turned into a discussion about the refiner's fire towards the end. And Anziano F. shared an article found in an ensign from 2014 called The Jadeite Cabbage. It tells of a sculpture made out of jade. But the master sculptor used a piece of jade that wasn't worth very much because it changed colors from green to white and had cracks. The master turned this piece of jade into this beautiful sculpture of a cabbage and used the cracks to make the piece of art look more lifelike. In my head after the council, I likened the cracks to our sins that we have repented of. We don't usually forget our sins and the remains are still there so we don't sin again, but to Heavenly Father, our sins are used to make us more perfect. He takes us, the cracks and all, and turns us into a beautiful sculpture. He doesn't see those cracks as something that makes us worth less. He sees those cracks being used to make us who we are and they help us become who we are ultimately supposed to become. Go read the article. It might make more sense that way. 

Tuesday afternoon, we took a bus to Crotone. So that took a majority of the afternoon. (4 hours) They played a movie halfway through the trip and blasted music the rest of the time and when we arrived, I had the biggest headache. I don't know how I am going to survive the real world. 

So I went on the scambio with Sorella C. and she happened to be sick for like the 5th day in a row. So I got to be her indoor buddy for a few hours. We still went out and worked and saw miracles though. The one that stuck out to me was with this guy named Michele. When we first sat down at the table with him, he seemed a bit rough and tumble. He was drinking, smoking, and had tattoos all up and down his arms. But he was so prepared for the gospel. He actually lives in Como, but travels down to Crotone once a month for work. One of his work colleagues was at the table with us and has talked to Michele about religion before, and then we showed up and shared the restoration with him. He took it as a sign that God was calling him and he agreed to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it. We also got his phone number to give missionaries up there. Such a cool experience to watch God really soften someone's heart. 

Thursday morning, we woke up early to take a bus back. Another 4 hours there. When we got back, we went to see Elena. And I can't say it was my favorite lesson of the week. Haha.. I feel like we've had the same lesson with her every week for the last 4 months I've been in Taranto. Let me just admit now that I still need to work on patience, and leave it at that. Thankfully my companion went back to the basics and invited her again to pray to know that this church is the only church that has the fullness of the gospel, and that Joseph Smith is a prophet who received the authority from God to organize his church again on the earth. She said she would, for the last time, so we'll see if she does. She came to conference on Sunday and was amazed that the conference center is bigger than St. Peter's. 😂

Something cool I learned at English course this week is that there are two ways to ask someone to say a prayer. "Dire la preghiera" and "fare la preghiera" which translates to say and to do/make. As a missionary I always use "fare la preghiera" and one of the students was like, "in Italian, we don't usually say that." But then someone explained, and I liked it. They said, "dire la preghiera" is for when you want someone to say a prayer that is written already. But "fare la preghiera" is for when you "create" a prayer according to them. Which is what we do. Isn't Italian so cool? :) No one else probably cares about that. Haha...

Friday, we went to have our famous mozzarella filled lunch. And we ate a lot. And it was very cheesy, but also very good. Except the green beans because she put mint leaves in them. We shared a thought with them about prophets and general conference. Everything we said the mom translated from Italian to Tarantino to the daughter. It was nice to get to know the family a little better and learn some Tarantino. :) You have to love how every city has a different dialect. And people who live in the old parts of the city usually speak that instead of Italian. 

When we left, we waited at a bus stop for an entire hour. Now that it is September/October, the buses actually attempt to follow the schedule again, but that day someone wasn't doing his job or several people. 7 other buses were supposed to pass in that hour. No harm done since there was a bench and a nice woman named Tonia to talk to. This lady used to have missionaries visit her all the time when she was a young mom. And she said she enjoyed when they came over, but when we asked if we could come and find her sometime, she said she was too busy. So I invited her to come to church if she had a Sunday free. 

That night, we had a relief society activity called, "Noi con Cristo" (Us with Christ). It was focused on the purpose of relief society and how we become like Christ by serving others. The ward has been raving over our violin and piano talents ever since we played in sacrament meeting. So we played again for that activity. Mariella made the cake with fondant, Cristina came, and I think another investigator came of the anziani's if I remember right. So it was successful. Oh, also all of the investigators bore their testimony during the meeting too. How cool is that? :) 

I also recruited people to pray for me to stay in Taranto. Everybody kept saying that I can't leave because it doesn't make sense for me to go somewhere else for the last 6 weeks of my mission. And I've been praying fervently to not leave either because I love the people here so much and I want to be able to say a proper see you later. But in the end, I'll go where the Lord wants me to go because he knows best. So we get calls tonight and you will hear next week from me either in a new city or still in Taranto. :) 

October is here. I don't really know where September went. And I think October will go fast too because of general conference and we all get to go up to Rome again for another mission conference on the 20, because guess who's coming?! President Russell M. Nelson, Bishop Gerald Caussè, Elder Hallstrom, and President Kearon. So cool, right??

Saturday morning, we had a lesson with Cristina about following the prophet and general conference. We listened to a talk with her from the last conference and we talked about her situation. She is SO SAD that one of us could be leaving. So in her prayer to start the lesson, she prayed for us and our future families. Haha.. I just love her so much! She definitely has a talent for making people laugh. 

Conference was so good! It is basically like Christmas for missionaries. New reading material! :) haha.. And I am so grateful my native language is English. It is such a blessing that we have the technology to translate the conference in a ton of different languages, but it just isn't the same. I love to hear their real voices. I think some of my favorite talks have been President Nelson's, President Uchtdorf's, Elder Hales, Elder Cornish, and Elder Andersen's. I don't have my notes with me, but I loved how much they stressed that God loves us, and how precious the knowledge we have in this church is. And they definitely took us back to the basics. :) We haven't watched the last session yet, and I want to watch the Sunday morning session in English. But it was all so good! Members made us lunch and brought it to the church so we could eat, so that was really nice too. 

And today, we took advantage of it being AFTER conference and went to the beach. We got to put our feet in and now I understand why everybody just spends their summer at the beach. I would too if I lived here as a normal person. Taranto is known for their beaches for a reason. :) So beautiful and the water is so blue and so clear. 

Well, I hope you all have a lovely week! God loves you! 

Con amore,

Sorella Flansberg

Missione Italiana di Roma