Week 16--October 26 (Terni)

Waazzuppp my people!!

I hope everyone had a good week! I heard Donald Trump is winning in the polls? Is that true lolol? This week was a pretty good week, I had a lot of very different interesting experiences that are cool, and other things happened that are just straight up weird.

So there have been just some super weird people coming to English Course lately. A couple of them are these two ladies that to be honest are disgusting. I know that sounds horrible but they are definite Cougars and were trying to flirt with me and Anziano Palazzo which was super awkward. And then after class we were talking to S. (insane guy that I taught a lesson to while sitting on his bed.. More details on him later) and he told us they were transvestites. Ummm WHAT?!? Soo I don't know if they were women, or men.. Or what.. Anyway on Saturday we were doing finding and I saw one of them in centro. And I was like ohh noo not again so me and Anziano Slade tried to like avoid her and we thought we did but then all of the sudden I hear this high pitched, "Ohhh Spennceerr" and I was like gosh dang it. So we turned back and she/he/I honestly don't know bached me (kissing on the cheek thing, can't wait to start a trend of that in America hahaha) and then talked to us for a little. The person was with a man though so I am really hoping it’s a woman. I will see her/him/I don't know at English course again so more to come on that. Lolol

Our investigators are doing really well for the most part. H. is coming along, he had a hard time understanding the Word of Wisdom though but he told us he prayed about it so hopefully he will be able to realize why it's important and how it can bless him. We also got a new investigator too!! We found him doing street and we invited him to English course. He was a little confused on the days I guess because he showed up to the church on Friday instead of Thursday but there was an activity going on with some guy talking about the Illuminati, Isis, umm what? And all this other stuff (gosh I love Italians haha) and he stayed and was interested. So we started talking to him and he said that he is actually looking for Jesus Christ (hallelujah!!) in his life and we had a good lesson with him! He told us that he suffers from depression (it seems super severe too), so honestly he is just like the perfect guy that needs the gospel in his life. It also made me realize how much of a support system and friendship the church actually is cause he told us that he doesn't really have any. After the lesson he gave me this huge hug and kinda just held me and like nestled his head against me.. And then was like thank you! Thank you my friend! I didn't mind though cause if I can have this 60 year old man be happy and realize that he is loved by God and Jesus Christ then it's all worth it and that's what I am supposed to do as a missionary.

Another interesting thing that happened was on Sunday because of the time change. We set our clocks back an hour and I had the most amazing sleep ever cause we got to sleep in for an hour!! Oh it was so amazing, first time since I entered the MTC. Even though we still woke up at 6:30 lol. So what happened is we were doing our studies and we get a text from one of the members and he was like "Anziani where are you.. Church started 15 minutes ago?!" And so we were like WHAT?! So we like went to church as fast as we could and what happened is our clocks reset automatically as well so they were two hours behind and we didn't even realize it. Oh gosh the members thought it was hilarious cause obviously it was an accident, and I gotta say it was so nice to get 2 hours of extra sleep without even meaning to haha. Won't get that for the rest of my mission but that's okay haha

Other than that we have been doing a lot of teaching and finding. The work is picking up for us, and there have definitely been hard days but when those happen, there is always something nice that happens that makes you realize there is a God and he does love us! THE CHURCH IS TRUE!

For my spiritual thought this is something I have read from a talk on patience because I have realized how awful I am at being patient with myself and so I am really trying to develop it. It's from a talk titled Never Give Up by Elder Joseph B Worthlin-

Secular history also teaches the principle of perseverance. Winston Churchill is well known for his determination as the leader of Great Britain during World War II. On one occasion in his later years, he returned to a school where he had studied as a boy. Before he arrived, the headmaster told the students, “The greatest Britisher of our time is going to come to this school, and I want every one of you to be here with your notebooks. I want you to write down what he says, because his speech will be something for you to remember all your lives.” The elderly statesman came in and was introduced. His glasses were down on the end of his nose, as usual. He stood and delivered the following words from an immortal speech that he once gave in Parliament. He said, “Never, never, never give up.” Then he sat down. That was the speech. It was unmatched (see “These Are Great Days,” in War Speeches, ed. Charles Eada, Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1942, pp. 286–88). His message was indeed something to be remembered by every boy who heard it and by each of us. We must never give up, regardless of temptations, frustrations, disappointments, or discouragements.

So I am doing my best at being patient with the language, investigators and other things and just trying to persevere and Never Give Up!!! 

I love you all!!!

Anziano Spencer

P.S. Okay so we went over and had dinner at S.'s house (the crazy guy) cause he invited us and we were hoping maybe his mother would be interested. Anyway, right when we get there he was like don't worry don't worry at all guys. And then we walk in and he goes in and opens one of the doors to a room and started screaming/hissing/weirdest noises to like his cat. It was the creepiest thing. So yeah then we had dinner there. Intense.

These pictures are from Tristan's Pday trip to Spoleto, Umbria this week: