Thursday, March 26, 2015

Vi voglio bene! (I love you!) - March 26, 2015

Hey, Everyone! 

So, answers. Sorella Mantz's friends who came to visit us were simps she's had in Genova. We're allowed to keep in contact with people from past areas through letters, so I've already written a letter to M back in Milano :). Yeah, we can listen to conference live here, but we still have to be home on time. Sorella Mantz said what usually happens is that you'll watch both morning sessions and the Saturday afternoon session sometime on Sunday, but that we probably won't get the chance to watch the Sunday afternoon session. Since there are so many Africans here who speak English, we'll hopefully be  able to watch Conference in English :)

So, last Thursday morning, we had to run to the Post Office and while we were waiting there, we met and talked to a super cute lady named L. We had a prayer with her and got her contact info, so hopefully we'll be able to see her again sometime this week! We also saw D that night. She's in a rough place in her life right now and she's starting to really see how the gospel could bless her life. She's willing to be baptized, but she doesn't want to set a date because in the past she had a bap date and missed it, so she doesn't want to set one this time until she fells certain she'll make it. But she has a ton of potenial, so we're excited to continue to work with her. 

Last Friday, we met our landlords who are a super cute old couple and helped us understand a phone message that we were having trouble with because the person spoke Italian too fast. They were really cute and said they wanted to take us out for coffee some time, so maybe we'll have a lesson with them...about the word of wisdom :). Then we saw A. She's really sweet.

The next day, we went out in the morning to try and do some pass bys of ex simps and less active people. We unfortunately didn't find any of them, but we met some new people and had lessons with them and also ran into a member, so that was fortuitous. It's cool to see that even though our plans don't work out the way we'd thought they would, our hearts were still in the right places and the Lord guided us and put people in our paths with whom we could speak. That night we also went out on splits with some young women from the ward. It was cool to see them so willing to go out and do missionary work on a Saturday night. 

Sunday, we had church (of course) and that night there was a party for a returned missionary. The ward asked us to sing a song, so we did Army of Helaman. The RM said she'd be willing to go out with us sometime, so that's pretty cool. She just got back from the Lisbon Portugal mission (maybe she knew Lauren :)).

Monday, we saw a really cool member family. The little boy was super cute, he kept on saying "I'm going to serve a mission, I'm leaving soon and I'm going to Peru." That was really cool. He's super young (I think5 or 6) but he's already a really good example for his other siblings. 

Tuesday, we saw a potential simp in the morning, M. She's from Africa. She has a little boy and she's really cool! She speaks English pretty well (usually with Africans you have to use an "African voice" which is super stacatto or they won't understand you) we set a bap date with her! That was super exciting. She's come to church twice already, that was how we found her, she's the friend of one of the anziani's simps. So we're really excited to be working with her!! That night we saw S again. She's really cool. We read the scriptures a little and talked. She totally agrees with all of the church's teaching and believes the Book of Mormon and everything, she's just hesitant about being baptized becuase she was already baptized when she was a baby. But, she's a super awesome person and we love seeing her. 

Yesterday was Sorella Nilsen's halfway mark in the mission, so we celebrated by setting up a little gravestone for her with her name and geting a little round cake shaped like a hill and telling her she was over the hill. Typing it out, it sounds kinda mean, but it was just an inside joke and she loved it. We say that when you go home from the mission, you're dying. But there is life after death.

That afternoon, we went to the University to help out a member couple who were doing a presentation on our church, it was super interesting, but kinda weird. We're just not used to teaching in a lecture style. luckily, there were a ton of missionaries there, so I didn't have too talk to much. Also, at the end, when it was all finished, Sorella Mantz and I totally started bowing our heads to end in  prayer. We forgot in wasn't a normal lesson and it was super weird. :)

But yeah, that was our week. Whew. Also, don't know if you guys already know this, but there will be a series of short films coming out starting this Saturday about Easter and Christ. I think it's called Because He Lived in English. It's supposed to be super good, so y'all should check it out! 

Anywho, It's been a great week. I'm super grateful I get to be here and I'm grateful for everyone's love and support! Have an amazing week! Vi voglio bene! 
Love, Sorella Snow 

Sunday, March 22, 2015

So vediamo (So let's see) - March 18, 2015

Buonasera!

Hey, y'all! So, it's been a crazy week with lots of exciting things happening!

 
Last Thursday, we had a zone training with about 20 missionaries there, and we got some pretty exciting news! The Italy Milan Mission will be receiving iPads to use in our missionary work!!! Elder Bednar will be doing a training on how to use them while he's here with us in April and then we'll receive them sometime after that conference! But we're all super excited for the chance. We were told that we are 1 of 15 missions who are getting the chance to try this, so we can't wait! After zone training, we saw a simpatizzante named J. She's from Africa (there's actually a TON of Africans in Torino and there's several in the ward) so we teach her in English. She's seems really cool and we're hoping to meet with her again later this week.

 

Mmmm!  That looks delicious! 
 
Friday, we went in the morning with one of our less active people, A, to the doctor and then had lunch with her. She's really cool and has a really strong testimony of the church. That night we saw another simp, D, whom I think has realized that she could really use the church in her life but is kinda dragging her feet on putting it into to practice, but we think she's starting to have the desire to come, so vediamo!

 
Saturday, we saw another simp named s, she seems like a really awesome person but she hasn't been coming to church lately because her friend's in the hospital and she's been going to see her Sundays.

 
Sunday, some of Sorella Mantz's friends from Genova came to find her in Torino, so we saw them and it was really fun. They were super awesome, they gave us a bajillion presents.

 
Friends from Genova
 
Monday, we saw A, another member, and we stayed with her for lunch and then watched Finding Faith in Christ with her, and I kinda accidently fell asleep, but the lights were out and I was tired, so don't judge! :) Anywho, after we went to find another African lady who is less active, named J. She was really cool, but she only had five minutes, so we had to keep it really short.

 
Tuesday, we unfortunately got a bidoni (when you get to someone's house for a set up appointment and they aren't there) so we had to do finding in the rain for an hour or so. That was a little rough. It rained a ton the last few days here. It makes finding kinda hard. But we had another appointment that night and then ward counsel, which was a little crazy.

 
"I found the Tangled flower!"

 
Today, we took it easy. Sorella Mantz had a Skype interview for college stuff, so we just stayed close to home all day and relaxed.

 
Questions: Yeah, St Patrick's Day is recognized here, it seems like they have a party every single day here! Someone at Ward Counsel did try to pinch us, but we narrowly escaped.
 
I seriously love Torino! I was sad at first to leave Milano, but it's really cool here! There are so many things to go do and see and I love living in four and Sorella Mantz rocks! So, I'm super happy!

 
I love you guys! Thanks for the letters! Hope you all have a fantastic week!
 
Love, Sorella Snow

First Week in Torino - March 11, 2015

Buongiorno!
 
So, really quick questions! Yep!  I'm in Torino, and I have no clue, what it's called in English :) We're pretty close to the Alps, we can see them from the city. The city's really cool, a little bit different from Milano (the metro is way nicer cause the Olympics were here) but I'm kinda used to city life now, so I'm happy :) There are two wards in Torino, we're in Torino 1. They all seem super cool. There are a lot more Africans here and a little bit less South Americans in the ward. There are two other sets of Anziani in the ward. Sorella Mantz is awesome! She and Sorella Kynia Carter were comps, so, I was super excited to be with her, and it's rocked so far! Also, we live with two other sorelle, so that's super exciting! It's really fun to live in four and I'm super happy I'm getting the chance to do it! Yeah, a train to the Rome temple would take about the same amount of time as the one to the Swiss temple for the people in Milano, but they're excited to have one in their actual country! We went to the museum at Castle Sforesco again. They have different exhibits with paintings or a furniture one and so on. They didn't have any primary artists featured, but they did have an unfinished sculpture by Michelangelo and a ceiling painted by Leonardo da Vinci. Haha, yeah we're allowed to go to museums, they want us to get some culture!
 
Whew, okay, so this has once again been an insane week!

Last Wednesday, we spent most of it doing things to get ready for the transfer to end, like packing and cleaning and so on!

Then Thursday, we had transfers! I went to Milano Centrale, where I hung out for a few hours until Sorella Mantz and I could catch a train to Torino! We made it back (despite a broken down train and having to catch a bus and metro to get home) then went out for a dinner appointment. Then we got lost getting home again. We didn't make it home till after 11 that night, so, I was pretty dead :).

Then Friday, we went in the morning to help this member who wanted a recording of an American woman's voice for his movie. So we did that and he told us the plot of his movie and it seemed pretty cool! It's about World War II and how prejudice still exists to this day about Germans and their part in it. So we were super psyched to be a part of it, plus he said he would give us free copies, so that rocks! That night we had English course and it was super fun, the people there seem cool.

Saturday, we did a ton of Area book, because they just opened here last transfer, so there's still a lot of organization to do.

Sunday, there was church and it was the Festa Della Donna, so basically a day to celebrate women, so everyone kept on congratulating us on being women. So that was fun :)

Monday, we saw An... a less active member and Ad... another less active member, and they seem pretty cool, I'm excited to get to know them more!

Tuesday, we did pass bys and calls and more area book and a little bit of finding. I'm not a huge fan of finding, but I think I'll probably get a lot better at it after this transfer. :)

Today, we met up with the Sorelle from Collegno, Sorelle Stott and Burgess (I was with her for a week in Cimiano at the beginning of my second transfer in Italy :)) and we went to this church up on a mountain that we had to ride a tram to get to. It was super pretty.
Sorella Burgess and Sorella Snow

Sorelle Snow and Mantz at the church



 
"BEHOLD YOUR MOTHER"
 

"I realized that there was this perfect pillar of light, so I made Sorella Stott go sit in it"


 "I went and sat in the light too, but I'm not blonde, so I don't look as angelic." 
 
But, yeah, I'm super excited to be here in Torino, I'm excited to be with Sorella Mantz and to meet the ward here! I think it's gonna be a good transfer!

I love you guys and I hope you have a fantastic week! We plan on doing internet at about the same time next week also, in case you wanted to try to email back and forth at all :).

Have an awesome week!
Love, Sorella Snow

Pictures from Sorella Nedelkov - March 2015

The following are some pictures that Kim got from Sorella Nedelkov before the transfer and what she has to say about them:
"Us walking down a sketchy highway to try and get some where"

"Told you I was a perfect angel!"

"Us rocking out to karaoke...I seriously kill karaoke"

"Us with Wildon at the museum"

"Mirror Selfie (kinda looks like the Mirror of Erised from Harry Potter)"

Monday, March 9, 2015

Transferred to Torino - March 4, 2015

Ciao, famiglia! 

So it's been another crazy hectic week here, but we're loving it! 

So, questions and answers! Yes, Fortunately, I did survive the transfer! And it is transfer week! Aaaannnnd, I'm being transferred out of Milano to Torino. I was super bummed at first, because I wanted to be able to stay here and see Marlene baptized and I've grown to love these people so much, but I know that it's the Lord's will and that there are more amazing opportunities and people waiting in Torino, so I'm excited now! My companion will be Sorella Mantz, who is actually one of Sorella Kynia Carter's previous collegas, so I'm excited, I've heard amazing things about her! (I can't remember if I mentioned it, but Sorella Nedelkov is also one of Sorella Carter's old companions, the one she had right before she came to Milano!) And Sorella Nedelkov is going to stay here and train! She's super excited.
 
Anywho, the man who we met on the bus and who came to church, we couldn't set an appointment with him because he's a single man, but we're passing him to the anziani, and hopefully they'll be able to meet with him! 
Yeah, the closest temple for people here is the Swiss one, it's just 3 or so hours by train, but it's pretty expensive, I've heard. 

So, last p-day, We went to a museum with a member here who can get us in free, so that was super fun. That night all of our appointments canceled, so that was brutal. That happened to us a TON these last few days, but it's okay, we stayed positive!
We're mummies!

Just a normal day in the life of an Italian  missionary!

Hmmm...
 

Thursday, we saw a less active woman in our ward and visited with her for a little while, we also saw Marlene and had English Course. 

Friday, we saw Rosa again, our new convert and then we had an appointment with a family of exsimps we'd found doing area book and it was pretty good, they told us we could come back again, but the mom also asked us if we'd take her daughter to school for her next Monday... We couldn't politely get out of it, so now we're taking a little girl to school! 

Saturday, was transfer calls day. So, usually, people who are getting called to leadership positions get calls in the morning and everyone else gets theirs during lunch. But today, Pres had to make some last minute changes for some unknown reason, so we were all on edge all day waiting for our calls. We finally got them at 10 at night!
Waiting for transfer calls is hard...
Sunday, was crazy, we were trying to run around and meet with people so that I could say goodbye to everyone and make last minute appointments with simps and less actives so I could see them one more time.
 
Monday was the day we had to drop a little Italian girl off at school. So, the mom told us to be at the house at 7:30, and we live an hour away from them, so we woke up at 6 to get out the door super quick to get there on time. We got there, and the little girl was still asleep! So we had to make her breakfast, help her get ready  (her school requires her hair to be put up so we and to do her hair for her) and then get her to school. It was... strange. But she's a really cute little girl and it was a new experience, so we had fun. Then later that day we met the other daughter in that family to teach her English (we do that a lot, help people with English homework) and then saw Giovanna that night.

Sorelle Snow and Nedelkov with Giovanna
Yesterday, we saw Sorella G in the morning and then went to the M--a's for lunch. It was really fun. They made us pastelle, which is an El Salvadorean dish and then empanadas with a banana filling for dessert. It was super good! Then we went to see the M--o Family  ( Rosa, Katy and Sabrina) and then FHE! It was super fun but really sad because I had to say goodbye to a ton of the members there. It was a bummer, but they made me promise I'll come back, so I'll see them again!

M--o family

Our district this transfer

Sorelle Nedelkov and Snow with Giulia and Nai
Anywho, that's my week! 

Thanks for all of the letters! You guys rock! I'm super excited for the chance to meet new people and serve in a new city! I hope you all have an amazing week! I love you! 
Love, Kim

Buhm, Buhm, Buhm - Another Week Bites the Dust - February 25, 2015

Ciao, Tutti

So, It's been another hectic week and time is flying here, hence the title of this here email. 

Last Thursday, We started off the day with an appointment with a new convert in our ward, Rosa. It's always beautiful to see her because she has a strong testimony and so much love for the Savior, she's an inspiration for me. Then we had a lunch appointment with the M family, which was really fun. They are a less active family that we've been working with since I got here, but in the last two transfers, they've been doing really well and have been coming to church regularly, so I'm really happy to be witnessing their progression in the gospel! That night we had English course, and before it started, three young women in our ward surprised us and threw confetti all over us in honor of Carnevale, which happened last weekend. The Carnevale in Venice is the really famous one that everyone knows about, but it happens all over Italy, and little kids were running around in costumes and it was super cute! 

Friday, we had another lesson with M and we really had a breakthrough with her! We addressed a lot of her concerns about baptism and she told us that she's officially decided that she'll be baptized in April, at the latest. We're really excited for her! She's making a ton of friends in the ward and is feeling the spirit so strongly.

M gives us sooo much  food!
That night we also went and passed by the B family. They were people on our ward list who nobody knew who they were. So we went and they were super happy to have us and an awesome family, I'm excited to work with them!

Some super cool paintings on the sides of buildings we walk past on the way to Lydia's house:

Knock! Knock!

I have a thought...


I can feel the heat...

Dancing and singing in the streets?


Saturday, we saw Gaia and Giovanna again and had a beautiful lesson. Then we saw Amelia that night, a referral from the M family. We had a really good lesson but we might have to pass her to the other missionaries. Then we went to the birthday party for a little girl in the ward, her name's Princess. It was super fun and there were 30 people packed in a teeny apartment and karaoke. We loved it!

Sunday, we had church and a random man who I had talked to on a bus a few days earlier showed up! So that was really cool! It's rare for that to happen! Then we saw a few members  that night. 

Monday, we saw Mary and her daughters, Melany and Merisa. They're a cute little family and it was a really good visit. 
We found Lorenzo Bartolini!  (Shout-out to fans of Letters to Juliet)
Tuesday was kinda crazy. We had to go out into a paesino (which is like a little suburban area) of Milano to find a potential simp. But paesini are crazy and difficult to navigate, so we spent two hours trying to find her. Eventually we did and it was a good lesson. Then we had another lesson that night with the M family and FHE. It was a really fun day, but we were super busy. 

Anywho, that was our week, a ton of appointments! We were super busy but it was really fun! 

Thanks for the Emails and love guys! You're all amazing and I hope you have a spectacular week! I love you! 
Love, Kim

Here are some pictures from zone conference on February 17th:
Milan Ovest Zone


Sorella Yost & Snow


Sorelle Snow & Skinner