September 7, 2011

Buon giorno tutti!

  It has finally started to cool down here in Piacenza!  In the mornings when Anziano Wilkins and I run it has started to feel cooler so we're doing better.  Although, it's not cold enough for all of the Tiger Mosquitos to go away.  I don't know if I've told you about those.  They are basically the most evil thing on the face of the planet.  They're just like regular mosquitos except for their tendency is to bite you 5 or 6 times in a row, and their white and black striped (hence the name "Tiger", or in italian "le zanzarre tigre").  My first couple days in Italy I woke up with 5 red mosquito bites right in a line on my forearm.  Anyways, within a couple weeks it should be too cold for them!

   So this last week there were some great happenings in Piacenza.  The Lord has blessed us in some very very interesting ways.  It is a mission goal to teach 20 lessons every week, a goal which Anziano Wilkins and I had struggled to meet until this last week.  Our Area President, Elder Kopische promised us that if we taught 20 lessons every week our baptisms would double and we would see miracles.  With everyone gone on vacation it was very difficult to get 20 lessons with solid investigators who made solid progress towards baptism.  Anyways, this last week we had just committed ourselves to doing it, no matter what.  By Sunday night with very little time left before we had to be back home, we had only taught 18.  We met one of our investigators in the park to teach him right as it started to rain.  We had an awesome discussion with him.  Then as he left under his umbrella, the rainstorm turned into a tempest.  The park was emptied within 20 seconds.  We knew we still lacked that last lesson for the week and were about to turn in.  But we knew we had to do it, so we strapped on our battle-bike-helmets and mounted our 2-wheeled-steeds and set off into the rain to find that last person who we could talk to.  We had ridden maybe 30 yards and around the corner walks one of our investigators who we hadn't been able to reach in 2 weeks.  We slid to a stop and asked if we could teach him.  So we stood under the pouring rain for the next 15 minutes and shared our testimonies of the Book of Mormon, the weather conditions obviously adding to our conviction that the book is true, as we were not going to leave.  What are the chances that we would just find him 2 weeks later under the pouring rain, when there was not a soul outside.  The 20th lesson came by a miracle. 

   Like promised, having taught 20 lessons last week, we have been seeing so many blessings.  We have found a couple very strong investigators who are all very possible (and we think probable) converts.  There is a man named Biju, a cristian man from India.  Then there is Sassan, a former Muslim from Iran who is searching for the truth (who has a date to be baptized October 8th).  Also, there is a young man named Jonas, a Pakistani med student (who used to live on the street where Osama was killed) who we soft-invited to baptism and he accepted.  We're taking him to a baptism in Modena on saturday so that he can see what it is like.  Who says we don't do missionary work in the Middle East? 

   Anyways, we've got to go so I will sign off!  Mom, can you let those select few who I wrote to know that I wrote them?  In your birthday email to Elder Olsen, wish him happy birthday for me because there is no way my handwritten letter will get there on time :/

   Okay, love you all and will hear from you next week!

July 15, 2011

Proctor Family -

This week has been so crazy! There's been a lot that's changed since the last time I wrote you. I can't even start to tell you about the miracle that we saw yesterday night! Okay maybe I can...
Monday night Anziano Minà and I were teaching a lesson to an investigator when we received a phone call from our Branch President, President Malderizzi. I took the call out into the hall and he proceeded to tell me that an investigator of 2+ years, named Nicola, finally decided that he wanted to get baptized the next day. He began investigating the Church forever ago, has given 2 talks in church, comes to church every week and even has a "calling" in Sunday School. He's read the Book of Mormon, D&C, Pearl of Great Price, the Bible and a bunch of other Church literature, a few times over, at that.

Missionaries all around the mission have taught Nicola all hoping to help him to see the importance of being baptized, but he refused to. Anyways, President called us and told us that something inside of him had clicked and we needed to have our Zone Leaders on a train that instant to Piacenza to do the interview that night. He told us that we had to make all the baptismal preparations for the next day. It was the most hectic 24 hours of my life, I think. The next day at the baptism Nicola was very emotional... It was fantastic to see him so touched by the Spirit. His friend Lucia spoke about their friendship and the long path that he had taken to follow the Savior. He just cried and cried. Finally, the time came to hop into this rickety portable font with President Malderizzi. It was a beautiful baptism.

To think that we were blessed to see the fruit of more than 2 years worth of missionary work is so amazing. He was confirmed a member of the Church and given the Gift of the Holy Ghost on the spot because he leaves today for America. In fact, he leaves today to go to BYU, in Provo. It would be so awesome for him to meet our MTC instructors who go the Y and speak Italian. He definitely needs some friends there in Provo!

Unfortunately, I no longer am with Anziano Minà. He was space transfered to Torino where they don't ride bikes. We're always on bikes here and it makes it hard for him because he has asthma... So I lost my Italian companion :/ Shucks! That's okay though because now I am with Anziano Wilkins who was the group ahead of me in the MTC. President Wolfgramm made me the Senior Companion even though I've not even been here 2 months. We are the youngest companionship in the whole mission! He is a super awesome farm boy from Idaho, and we're going to kill it together. He is full of energy and all he wants to do is work hard. My type of guy!

We're going to have another baptism this Saturday! I think I've already told you about Winter from Ecuador, haven't I? He is so ready. He told us that even though the baptism is at 5pm on saturday, he's going to be dressed in his all whites and waiting by the font at 3 o'clock. He's so great. And hilarious too ha.

I haven't yet recieved anything from anyone at home but I'm sure it will get here soon. I affectionately(?) call Piacenza "il buco nero." The black hole! When the Kraegels come to Park City you should have them write me a little note here on the email. That would be fantastic to hear from them. I haven't heard from Uncle Bill in forever! That's pretty scary about that Elder in Guatemala with the lions... it wasn't Searle was it??

  Also, I just sent a letter to Grandma and Grandpa last week. I sent one to Dad also with an experience I wanted to share, but it's for the both of you to read together. Thanks a bunch for all of the support that you give me. I love you all so much and miss you every day. I know that the Lord blesses each one of us to be strong, and to press forward. I am so blessed to be a missionary here in this beatiful country!

-Anziano Proctor