** SAN REMO, ITALY **

 

 

** Email 1/8/14 **

I'm dippin out!


Going to the beach!! San Remo! Everyone I tell says ohhh how beautiful! It's a small beach town near France, with a tiny branch. The coppia of sorelle only opened 2 transfers ago. I hear the biggest music festival in Italy is in San Remo in Feb! Wooh hoo! Also, my friend Anz. Betchi is going down there with me and will be my district leader! Also heard that my good buddy Anziano Murphy is the new Zone Leader there. I am only a zone away from Torino, so if they do a conference I will see some of my old people. Oh and I am in a trio again! Super weird, maybe I am the problem child and completely unaware haha. Bottle breaking a girl that just finished getting trained and another girl is coming from another city. Both of them will be the youngest girls I have ever served with, I don't even really know people in their groups because they are 3-5 transfers behind me. Sucks getting old! But I am excited. Def bitter sweet to leave Torino. Especially because we have had so many miracles here! We have 4 new investigators in like 4 days, all of which are member referrals. We had a crazyyyy miracle with an older lady in our ward teaching her neighbor, then Francesca's mom! Then the aunt and cousin of a family in the ward! Also, my dear Palomino family who are pretty much reactivated now, their little girl is going to get baptized in like 3 weeks!!! I set the date and won't even be here! Last night Sorella Palomino and her son came to FHE and she told me and Astel how much she loved us and just like how she told me last time that we were a big help in their fam coming back to church and she cried! Mannn. I am always worried about me loving people way more than they love me, but I really feel the love from our members and investigators. I cried walking out of FHE with our whole gang. It was so sad. Bergamo flashbacks. Side note I was able to talk to Ylenia for a minute on the phone! It was sooo great. Oh I forgot to mention Astel is getting transferred too! A Milano! So little Gross is holding down the fort here. 

I have so many photos this week it's impossible. So many goodbyes and from our zone meeting and pday last week! I will try to send some good ones. 

Well, love you guys! 

Time moves pretty fast, if you don't stop to smell the roses once in a while, you could miss it. (name the movie).

Slla Gillette

** EMAIL FROM 1/1/14 **

Managee. Buon Anno!


Eccomi qua. So many things so little time. Allora, Holidays were splendiforous. Super stoked I was able to rock it in Torino in a trio for the feste. Last night we had a small new years party. AKA Peruvian dancing fiesta. Some missionaries are like, 'idk if we can dance', and I'm like 'Salsa yeah!' So it was super fun. Picked up some sweet moves. Scherzo. Then the Italians and fireworks is like me late at night on an energy rush. I kept hearing booming and I was like that's it I gotta see it! So we went outside and there were big suckers RIGHT outside our house haha, a tree almost caught on fire. IT. WAS. EPIC.

 

Had some phenomenal lessons with 3 of our investigators who all prayed for baptism specifically. They are so close I can smell the chlorine! One of them, our little Ettore, has been feeling really lonely around the holidays. Super sad. At the end of the lesson I was asking him to pray in specific for the baptism date, because he was so wishy washy and has a hard time focusing so I was pretty adamant, as you can imagine. He lightly laughed and nodded and was like 'I need to write your prophet and tell him Sorella Gillette is the best missionary ever. I'm serious.' Haha it was really sweet, he prayed for it tho! 

 

I just love our people soooo much. I just want to stay and see everyone get baptized! Hermis knows I might leave and gave me a cool Peruvian keychain. Getting showed a lot of love lately from our peeps! 

The Palomino family has been pretty active the past couple weeks!!! Miracles! We were sitting in front of them on Sunday and the Dad passed us and his family the sacrament! Holy Horchata I got glossy eyed. 

 

Watched the Resto vid in Spanish twice in one day, lately I feel like I am serving in Peru, and I am okay with that! They have this egg\potato caserole thing that is just like egg or potato salad. With some veggies and tuna. MANGO it is so good. 

 

50 lbs here I come! Side note, idk if I mentioned that my companions bleached my hair and some chunks were pretty jacked, so I have been rockin beanies lately, well they fixed it up! Dude I am so blonde now haha. 

 

I LOVE THE MISSION!!!! Menomale. 

VVB.

Sorella Gillette

** EMAIL FROM 12/26/13 **

Buon Natale!


Well I actually get to send home photos this week, yippee! I have taken a lot recently so I am stoked! 

 

So much has happened this week but now that I am here I can't remember. Got to skype the folks which was amazing! TEMPIO here we come! I don't even know who my parents are anymore. 

 

We at yesterday afternoon at the Epicoco's, then at night at the Dallon's. Good food! HashtagGetFatQuick. Then today we are going to another member's for lunch and then dinner. Today is Santo Stefano, quindi a holiday for a saint the day after Christmas. 

 

I got to watch Anastasia Christmas Eve on our ghetto small dvd player at the house, it went by too fast. Then we went to midnight mass! It was sickkk. There was a little organ player, felt like Phantom of the Opera, too bad I haven't seen that tho.

 

I am glad I stayed in Torino for the holidays. Love my companions. Had a great Christmas party on Saturday and there were so many less actives and investigators of ours that even tho we are in 3 and split up there wasn't enough of us to cover everyone! MIRACOLI. 

 

Hope you all had a splendiforous Natale and thanks so much for being so great. Eat an onion bagel for me. 

Vi voglio un sacco di bene. 

Ciaozies, 

Slla Gillette

**Email from 12/18/13**

Baptism, American Junk Food and Love!

 

RANCESCA GOT BAPTIZED!!!

It was indeed a miracle. Hands down one of the best moments of the mission, cioè my life. Me, Astel, Gross and Condie were all in the side hall watching her get baptized by Anz. Colemere, and when she came up out of the water and back to us we hugged her and she cried and pretty much bore her testimony to us. It was beautiful. I couldn't stop smiling. I said the closing prayer and even said words can't describe how happy we are. That was probably one of the strongest moments I have ever felt of the spirit and just how much love I have for her. Grateful grateful grateful.

During her interview a couple days before she bore her testimony and said how much she loved me and was grateful and was hoping I wouldn't leave, made me get a little choked up!

So it's been a very high chance that I would be space transfered, since being in 3 is not super normal and whatnot, EVERYONE thought I was out.

I AM STAYINGGGG! I am so happy!!! President at the conference was like "well, I don't want to ruin any of your Christmas plans", and I was like "I am so happy!" He said "Good, I like happy."
But the scare of me leaving really helped me to know how much people loved me! A lot of the young women and some members and investigators were saying they would pray for me to stay. They all were texting and making an effort to see me too. One of the people I have been teaching since I got here, my sweet little peruvian man was like, what about the 28th? You won't be here? (That is his baptism date and I am surprised he remembered and made it out like he really would get baptized that day!) And he was so sad that I could be leaving.

It gets worse\better. We visit one of my favorite innactive families, the ones who barely speak italian so my spanish is improving. They actually came to church Sunday! I told them during our visit that I might be leaving, they were like that's it we are going to buy pizza! So they get us pizza and make it a little festa! The 2 little girls are Peruvian dancers and they do a dance for me! Then  they are like 'close your eyes' and they brought out this GIANT stuffed dog with a huge card that said "Sorella Kassi" and they all signed and decorated it. Then the mom in broken Italian told me how much she loves me and is grateful for me and how I was so consistent and persistent with her family. I started crying. I told them I never cry so they did a good job. When we left their house I balled like I did when I left Bergamo. My companions haven't seen me cry so that was funny. I sleep with that stuffed animal every night now.

Seriously tender mercies. I didn't think the people here loved me as much as I love them, so it was a great week of cheesy love.

Even tho the members love us, we still haven't been invited anywhere for Christmas! But neither has Sorella Walch and her companion in Vercelli so we might all kick it.

Buon Natale!! Vi voglio un sacco di bene!

Sorella Gillette

 

 

 

 

 

** 12/11/13 EMAIL **

FORZA ITALIA! RIOT!


Well you heard it folks, Italy as a whole has been in rebellion since Monday. Monday there was a huge strike and nothing was open and there were people blocking off streets and stopping cars all by our house. It was so cool!! Coppers and Swat and fights about to break out. I was so excited. Anziano Johnson said I would be the crazy that jumps in the crowd yelling Forza Italia! hahaha. yes. I hear downtown is worse and especially more north, yeah rebellion!! 

So monday was our district meeting and Sorella Condie and her comp couldn't get back to Collegno after because no buses were going, so they had to spent the night! It. Was. Awesome. We did a Blitz in our area so Condie and I went together. She was singing "Guess who's back..back..back..back again.." haha. It was so great to be with her again. I love her. 

This has been one of the slowest weeks of my mission. Last pday all us girls kicked it and it was by far one of my fav pdays ever. 

So let's see, Sorella Astel and I chuck Lindor chocolates at the wall like we are pitchers to soften up the chocolate. Sorella Gross and I had a mattress war yesterday morning like Sumo wrestlers. We played hide and seek with the Sorelle and it was the funniest thing with 5 people. Our house is seriously a maze with tricks everywhere. Sorella Astel and I trapped Gross in the bathroom using 2 mattresses, 3 chairs and a christmas tree. 

Finally got to visit one of my favorite inactive families after a long time. I cried in the lesson, the mom is having a hard time being here in Italy, their whole family is struggling. It was a really strong lesson. Then she took her two girls to the Primary activity last night and we are seeing them tonight. 

Also...WE ARE HAVING A BAPTISM! This saturday we hope! Francesca's interview is tonight! I still can't believe it, but I think that is just how I am about the big moments haha. Constant state of shock. 

Pray that it will happen! 

Thanks for all the emails!!! 

Vi voglio un sacco di qualcosa buona haha. 

Sorella Gillette

*** 12/3/13 EMAIL ***

Cocopelli!

Well, my new compie Sorella Gross speaks Navjoo. Idk how to spell it. But it is sick! She grew up on an Indian Res and pretty much has the most interesting life. I have a feeling my Mom and her would really get along haha. 

So this trio is pretty awesome. It's like a big hang out. But contacting is kinda weird. Funny story. So as we all know I am a big prankster. Well joke is on me. Sorella Gross was telling us yesterday how she has an epipen because she is allergic to radishes haha. So she takes it out and it starts talking and beeping about injections. She comes at me out of nowhere and attacks me with this epipen, I am confused, running around the giant living room around chairs and our ghetto Christmas tree (which is being held up by a giant roll of paper towels.) and at first I am like is she serious? Is this real life? Am I about to be injected with whatever epipens are made of? I don't want to get shot? So sorella Astel is just laughing and I am a little concerned haha. I hear it say 'Injection in 5...4...3...' So I am pushing her off me and we end up like wrestling on the floor and I had to kick her off me and I ran and hid in the bathroom.

Pretty traumatizing. 

Well. Turns out it was a training epipen and not real. They felt bad that they actually put real fear into my soul haha. 

I figured out Sorella Astel is writing home about this story at the same time because she is just creepily laughing to herself. If only you could see my face. :| 

Miracoli! Well my dearie investigator who has had one problem from the next about baptism I am pretty sure will finally get baptized the 14th! We went to her house the first time yesterday to meet her grandparents, they actually were okay with us coming over, and a few days ago she brought her older sister to a lesson and she became a new investigator and is okay with her getting baptized! So if I happen to leave in 3 weeks for the crazy space transfer that is happening, I will be here for the baptism!

I have been praying for that so much and I have been fasting today and yesterday for it, and immediately my fast was pretty much answered but I didn't realize it till later on in the day. Sometimes I just don't recognize the answers I do get, or realize that they are answers. Another thing I have learned in the mish is that I am teaching people how to do all of these things when I am not good at it myself. But you know what they say, you learn the most when you teach. So moral of the week, try to practice what you preach? haha punny.

Allora, today we are having a pday party with all the sorelle, dance party at our house! yay Jerico road! hahaha. Man I miss music lol. 

Vi voglio un mondo di bene! 

Sorella Gillette