"Ciao
Mom and Everyone!
It
is good to hear everyone is doing so well. Dang, I just realized that all
my nieces and nephews are going to be so old by the time I get back...that will
be weird!
Yes,
I got my ATM card and I have activated it, but I have not yet recieved my
contacts. I will be checking at the mission office today to see if they
are there. I have my fingers crossed! Many people have told me not
to worry about it because I look good in glasses...but I'd definitely be a lot
more comfortable without a weird metal/glass/plastic contraption on my face!
Anyway,
this week was pretty awesome. We had Stefano's baptism on Saturday!!
WOOOO!!! It was great! The Spirit was really strong and it was
amazing to see how excited and ready Stefano was. He was definitely an
example to me, and I've learned a lot from him. I feel like he was the
one teaching me, and not the other way around. When we confirmed him on
Sunday, he could hardly keep still in his seat. As soon as they called
his name, he basically bolted up to the front of the room before the bishop was
even done speaking! (I will try to send some pictures of the baptism in this
email)
Other
than that, it was a pretty normal week. We had DM on Monday in Ladispoli,
and once again went to Serrata Famigliare (family night) with the Fresta
family. I have decided to start learning some Italian songs on guitar.
Carmello told me he would teach me.
Speaking
of which, you should look up Carmello Fresta on youtube! Haha he has some
pretty hilarious videos and a few pretty good songs. (he's not the best
singer, but he knows how to write music). If you get the chance, try to
find his song "Porta mi con te" or in the English Translation
"Bring me with you". I'd say that's his best one. He also
has a bunch of just funny videos of him and his brother. So, if you want
to know the kind of people I'm hanging out with all the time here in Italy,
those videos may be a fairly accurate representation.
Random
event of the week: My companion and I were walking on the road that goes by the
beach down to Gasparri (where many of our members live) AKA the Ghetto of
Ostia, when we were approached by the RedBull girls at the pier. They
gave us free Italian RedBull and some kind of Mozarella chips that were SO
FREAKING GOOD. I have one thing to say about the cheese here, some of it
is just absolutely disgusting, but Italian Mozarella is fantastic.
So
far, I haven't had any experiences with anyone getting angry with us or anyone
who doesn't like the missionaries. The people seem very warm and friendly
here. In fact, we had a nice old catholic lady approach us the other day
and just tell us how much she loves us and she knows we are doing a good work.
Basically what I'm trying to say is, Italy is freaking sweet! I
love the people, I love the work (even though my feet hurt and of course its
not easy), and I love the Gospel. The church is true and I love you all!
Until
next time,
Love,
Anziano
Jared Burnham"
