Ciao!: Week 56: August 1 (Brindisi)

MANNAGGIAA

Hello everybody!! Okay so I want to first start off by saying that
M. was baptized! It was an incredible experience that I will never
forget and I am so grateful to have participated in the work of a lot
of other missionaries before me to help her make this special covenant
with our Heavenly Father. It was a special day and I will give more
details about the day, but leading up to the baptism and actually
getting her to the ordinance was probably one of the hardest things
that I have ever had to do on my mission. That's why the translation
of my title means "dang it!” ... Lol... this week was very different and so
I will do my best to explain. Also, today we are going to Lecce for
P-day which will be really cool and then later tonight we are going to
be working down there to help the elders there with some of their work. It will be
fun and I am excited to work with more missionaries because it makes
the work easier and fun.

Okay, so I want to start off talking about the baptism and the
preparation for it because to be honest everything that could possibly
go wrong went wrong. I am not saying that because I am not trying to
be optimistic, but I have never felt so stressed out in my life. So I
will start off by explaining Thursday. Here in Brindisi because the
church is so small we go to the ocean for baptisms because it is so
close and that is really the only option. How it works is our branch
mission leader (the ex-cop who we had a really good relationship with)
goes to the beach and finds a place and so Thursday night he picked us
up from corso to take us to the spot where he "found" for the baptism.
So I hop in the car super pumped and excited to go to see this spot
at the beach. As we are driving along instead of heading to the beach
he takes us to a park where we normally go to do finding. Anziano
Morlock and I were really confused and as we are walking to the "spot"
for the baptism or the “ocean," our branch mission leader was like,
"Now Anziani I don't want you to cause any problems for me with this
area that I have found... It is perfect for her.." So we are walking
and in my mind I was seriously so confused--why we are in the park?--and
as we walk to the center he walks right up to a fountain that's in the
middle of the park.. "Anziani this is the perfect spot for us.." I
look back at him and literally I feel sick as I say, 'Fratello, this
is a fountain.. She can't be baptized in a fountain.. And not only
that but the water is green.. And it's about a foot and a half deep..
LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME?”

I tried to remain calm as I explained that
it is not a good situation to baptize her in the middle of a park and in
a fountain. I asked why we couldn't do it at the ocean and he told me
that there were too many people and she would have no place to change. I
told him that the amount of people didn't really matter; other Anziani
have done ocean baptisms and have gotten over 10 new investigators
because people are so curious. Then the situation gets better... So now
our leader is mad at me because I don't like the spot for the baptism.
He then takes me to the "perfect and beautiful" place for her to
change which is where we walk through a broken chain link fence and
walk through the forest into an abandoned warehouse that looks like a
perfect film scene for Planet of the Apes or Walking Dead.. “Anziani,
this area is perfect for her to change!" In my mind: mannaggiaa..
"Fratello like I don't understand; this area is not a good area. She
won't want to remember this day; it will not be special." "Anziani you
are creating so many problems like what do you want me to do? I am
sorry but we are trying to be practical here..." What!?!?... So after
seeing the death-scene for the baptism Anziano Morlock and I walk away
super stressed and worried and basically our relationship with the
branch mission leader shattered as he is upset at us for not liking
the spot and being grateful to baptize M. in a green wading pool/fountain.

That night I called our branch president to explain to him the
situation and he agrees with us and tries to figure out a solution.
After a while he calls us back and explains to us that the baptism now
will be held in Taranto (which is about an hour away). Mannaggiaa...
So at least it's better than going to the fountain which is illegal
because the church does not own that area. On Friday we spent most of
the day on the phone and planning-- trying to now re-plan the baptism
that will be held an hour away. [Editor’s note: suffice it to say that things eventually and miraculously worked out, after so much continued craziness that I thought I better edit it down for posting to the blog! YIKES!!!!]

The baptism was really special. We were just really happy that we
finally got M. there [understatement!] and that all the Taranto members were there already
helping to set up and the missionaries from Taranto were doing their
best to help. M. was baptized by the bishop of the Taranto ward,
which is perfect because there is that support now and the spirit was
really special as afterwards she came out looking so happy and content
for the choice that she made. We then confirmed her there because
that's what our branch president thought would be best with the
situation of her parents and her really wanting to be baptized. It
was special to be able to stand in the circle and confirm her a member
of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Not gonna lie, I
was sad that none of her family came to support her in the end, but she
told me that if she could go back she wouldn't change anything because
she feels so happy and grateful. While we were talking, there was
a light about her face and she seemed different. It's hard to explain,
but it was very special. I am not really sure why every single thing
went wrong to have her to be baptized but I am grateful that it's
kinda like a candle in a dark room, ya know? The light always will
overcome the darkness.

Okay, I am sorry this email is so long.. This Tuesday we were able to
have a really good zone conference all together and meet with our new
mission president again. He is a really incredible man and I really
went to that conference having a desire to build my love for him and
trust in him and I really do now. During our interview, I could just
feel his love and he has a powerful way of teaching and giving
instruction. It was a very good conference and it is always great to
see my cousin, Anziano Cannon.

The other miracle that I saw this week is a family that we have been
working with came to church. I was giving a talk and they came to
support me and it was great because they were talking to the members
and they mentioned how they really felt something that touched them
during their talks and the meeting. We are going to be having a family
night with them this week and we hope all goes well because they are
an incredible family. I mentioned them a while ago--the son is 22
years old, a life guard and a singer and a dancer for like Broadway
kinda stuff. He is trying to get accepted into a school in New York to
learn more and he is Soo sick. There are restaurants in New York that
already play his music because he is so good. If you want to listen to
him, his name is Luciano Castillo. "What I Want.." is the name of his
album. He is a beast, and I love this family. I hope things go well
with them. [Editor’s note: I could not find this on YouTube…?]

Okay, so now for my spiritual thought. Something that has been on my
mind lately is following the invitation to come unto Christ. I was able to
give a talk on this yesterday. Something that I have really
learned is that it is a continuing process and I heard a quote that
really touched me from the Mormon Message called "Lift" talking about
service.. He says, “It's interesting the dichotomy between healing the
body and healing the soul. When we are healing the body it's always an
inward effort and we turn inward. When we are healing the soul turning
inward doesn't work. The healing of the soul is found in turning
outward to other people and helping them. As we do that, then we
ourselves can be healed spiritually." I have really seen this during
my mission, and before as well. As I do my best to turn outward to
others, just as Christ did, I can see in myself that I can and am being
healed. A big example for me is from when I was growing up. My family and I
would go and sing to people at the rest home for every Christmas. To
be honest, at the beginning when I was a kid, I wasn't too excited about
this. But, as I grew older and now looking back, I can tell y'all that
I remember the faces of those people and those stories that
they shared better than the gifts that I received on Christmas. I was happy
every time that we left and I know that this is what service is all
about. It heals us and helps me know that I can overcome my own
weaknesses and shortcomings and become a better person—a better
follower of Christ—and I know that as I continue to do so that that is
what Christ wants for me because he set the example.

I love you all so much. I hope y'all understand that I am not trying
to be upset from this week or what happened. Rather, with all the
things that happened that did not go as planned, we
really were truly led and guided by our Heavenly Father so that one
of his children could come closer to him. I am grateful for trials and
for these learning experiences because they really do help me to grow.
I love the mission so much!!!!

Vi Voglio BENE!!!

Anziano Spencer