"What Desireth You All?"

Email: June 26, 2013

Genova raelly is beautiful, just a big city which I dont like much, but hopefully it will grow on my. Working in a ward is nice too, well not like a utah ward, we have maybe 90 people every sunday. Iits nice as it it not hot, well compared to the other mission cities. Sucks to serve nella missione Italiana do Roma! Its like a biillion degrees of hottness down there! Genova looks WAY different than what I am used to though, all my other cites were deffiantly influenced by eastern Euopean culture and archatecture. (ps, sorry my spelling sucks, the Italian has just made it worse....)

Well when Anziano Russel M Nelson came and I was able to go as he came to my zone, he talked about the basics and strethening the local members through doing the simple things. Then he mentioned missionary work and basicaly called all the members out for not doing their part. It was cool, all us missionaries just nodded our heads in a greement. But about the technology....we are not so lucky as Other missions. No ipads for us, as of now, future, who knows! He also mentioned that the Lords work is still being done in the 20th century way and there are going to be some excited changes in missionaray work to make everyone in the 21 century. He left it at that and he wouldnt tell us any more! So its super exciting to see what happens hre in the near future!|

Well no pictures today but next week you will have some fantastic ones. We are going up into the mountains sorta for come cool pictures of the entire city. 

Well i dont know why but I dont really feel like writing today so this will be short.

Had district meeting, the capi zona were not there as they went to the San Remo district, so it was Anz. Smith and I and le sorelle-Sorella Jameson and Sorella Lemos(from Argentina) Our distirct "battle cry" is COSA DESIDERI! 1 Nefi 11:10. Its all aobut figuring out our personal desires and then our simpatizanti desires. We are going to do so by asking "perchè" all the time. I now answer the phone when a district member calls by saying "cosa desiderate?" (what desireth you all) 

had an amazing last zone confrence with president and S.lla Wolfgramm. They have such strong testimonies. Loved it. Plus, our zone was the last zone, so we got the best zone confrence! 

We set a baptismal date for Mario, our equadorian (from Equador....) investigator for the 20th of July! The capi have a baptism the 6th, if passes the interview and the sorelle have onthe last week of the trasfer, the 27th. Whoo! Baptisms! 

Didnt attend any missionary training meeting about new technolgy....but we have heard the Lords work is being moved from the 20the to the 21st century in the very new future!

Its not that hot, I am used to the humitity, Genova has one of the mildest summers in Italy so I got blessed with a good city for the summer and just hope I get amild city for the winter! I can not do a snowy rainy winter again!

Roomates are super great! It is so much fun and I love them all, the capi zona are super bravi! Love it! 

We are on buses all the time. No bikes. I miss the bikes, expecialy the near death expericanes of just riding through town everyday, it was part of the mission fun! hahaha

ps, I hate contacting people on buses, its so awkward for me! Anziano Smith is really good at always talking to people on the bus so he is a great help. 

Ciao!

il vostro missionario, 

Anziano Edwards!!! 

La vita e fragile; Maneggiare con la Preghiera

Email: June 19, 2013

I am doing super duper! Anziano Smith is a great missionary and its fun to work with him.

Pictures are of a random fountan in the city, Anziano Gibbons(glasses) and his companion Anz. Hatch(tall) who are the capi zona and my companion Anziano Smith in the back. We live in a brand new appartment all together. 

We are the missionaries in Genova 1 and we also have two sisters, so 6 missionaries in our ward, yeah, no more branches! The other ward, like 30 min to the other side of the city is Genova 2 and they have three anziani and two sorelle, so 5 missionaries. Genova 2 always have more investigators, batptisms, and lessons. But we have made a deal that we (Genova 1) will be more successfull in the work this trasfer! 

Well, Genova is gigantic! I panic because its so big! haha, I miss my little bike cites and small braches. It is nice to be in a ward, (90) people in church. Church=45 Italians, 40 Equador people, 5 from peru. Then the random eastern europe member. So many south americans, and only 1 African. This city is just different. I am used to Itlaians, and africans with the occassional south american. It will be great. Genova is all south americans, and I love them! 

Favorite food would be a lasagna or carbonara pasta and of course a big plate of tiramisù! Favorite dring would be orzo every evening and sometimes for breakfast or ACE(a type of juice that stands for vitamin A, C and E, its carrots, lemons and orange juices, buona!) 

Portofino is in the zone so we will probaly go, I heard cool things about it. Pisa is not in my zone :( so I will not be going there for now anyways, maybe in a few trasfers. 

The summer is here! No AC just fans, but its not too bad....yet....hahaha 

Every Thursday evening we help serve food to the homless for service. Its a bunch of fun, those people are so greatful and its always funny because the people are just some of the funniest people I have ever met. Love it! 

Missionaries do not pay tithing unless they somehow have an income. We are all suposed to pay fast oferings every fast sunday for the cost of two meals, All the missionaries I know pay a fast offering, it is supposed to come out of our missionariy funds so I dont know why you wouldnt pay it...it just holds back all the blessings if you dont pay!

teaching the word of wisdom (wine and smoking) and chastity is the hardest for people to gain a testimony of. 

The adderss of the curch is via Ceccardi 4 (it is a big bussiness building and the chaple is on the second level and partialy on the thrid) 

Well you are all awesome and  keep on keeping on! Till next week. Ciao!

Remember, " La vita è fragile: Maneggiare con la preghiera" ( said by Pres. Monson I think....)

Anziano Edwards 

Leaving Places Better and Stronger Than When You Arrived

Email: June 12, 2013

Well just found out that the member who is going give us a ride to the train station this eveing will be at the appartment in an hour and I am not 100% packed. I am getting trasfered to Genova 1. There are two branches in that city. It is known for its greet pesto on focaccia. Buona!

I will be bottle breaking Anziano Smith...if I remember right...Bottlebreaking means I am his companion after he is trained, so he is in his third trasfer, just finished being trained. I will be living in 4 with the zone leaders. I will be district leader of my apartment and a copia of sorelle. All the membes say I am so blessed to go to Genova. I am excited but SO SAD to leave. This branch and city means everything to me. Darmaris will be baptized on Sunday afternoon, the 23rd, which I will miss wich is one of the reaons I am so sad. I have been blessed to have known her and seen the change in her life. William I cried when we went and ate lunch with him today and I gave him pictures, a letter, and a tie of mine. He is the coolest person ever. I am sad to leave Leo, the coolest 2 year old kid ever! I love that kid! He is the perfect son, secondo me. He is the funniest kid I have ever met. The branch president thanked me because I have been the best misisonary according to him that Udine has had in a LONG time. So I must have done something right. Anziano Paganos new comp will be Anziano Memott, he is currently in Verona as the zone leader. He is one of the best in the mission secondo me.

My train leaves udine at 7 tonight, we are staying the night in Padova, catching a 7 am train to Verona where Anz. Pagano will get off and meet his new comp, then I will travel to Milano alone to meet up with two other missionareies who are getting transfered to Genova too and  us three will travel south to beautiful Genova. Crazy train rides!

My bike works and the day when we had only one working bike, picture attached we rode to gether on one bike, Anz. Pagano peddeled and I just sat on the back.

President leaves the first week in July.

I LOVE YOU ALL, SORRY THIS EMAIL SUCKED.

Ps, on sunday anziano russel M Nelson came and spoke in Padova,. Willaim and Darmaris both attended and they loved him.

Ciao!

Anziano Edwards

ps trasfers are so dang stressfull when you have to take a billion diffeerent trains, trains get canceled, and the sorelle in my district have train problems! AHHHH this is awful! I cant explain all of the trubble but we re not taking a train this evening but one early tommmorrow morring to verona then to milano alone then to genova. Trains in Italy are so confusing!

Here are some pictures as we have a minute until the member comes to give us a ride back to our apartment for the evening.

I wrote down what pictures I wanted to send home but forgot what they are of so good luck determining what they are....

Sorry again that email sucks this week, next week will be better.

I am super great, and the saddest to leave this wonderful city.  When assistents called on monday will trasfer calls, they said I was leaving Udine and I literally screamed NOOOOOO!!!!!!!! Cool thing that the assistent said, was, if youa re sad to leave your city, that must mean you are leaving youir area stronger than what is was when you got there. I feel that I did my part by strenthening Udine for the better. All the members really thanked my and basically all said the same thing that I was what the city needed to get back rolling and having the success. Udine the past year has had a lot of missionaries in their last few trasfers so they werer 'trunky' and didnt work as hard as they should have so the work suffered. I have promised myself not to be that missionary. 

continued.....

Well on sudday anziano Russel M Nelson came to padova and we attened. I shook his hand and all of us missionaries in the zone took a picture with him, I wil send that picture next week(my zone leader has it on his camera) He is awesome. 

He hinted that the way missionary work goes will be changed significantly for the 21st century. We bugged him but he wouldnt tell us what specifically is changing! The suspense!!!1

Ciao!

COOLEST SUNDAY EVER!!!!

Email: June 5, 2013

Well I dont know when Presidente Wolfgramm and Sorella Wolfgramm are going home...I thought it was the end of this transfer, so the 15th of June but other missionaries said he is leaving in the middle of next trasfrer. I will find out when I show up to the next zone confrence and see who is presidnent haha. He goes home somtime in the near future......boh!

Well it got warm finally! Its not hot just warm an a billion percent humitity! Im some what used to it but ask me again during Augut with 100% humidity!

Pictures are of my and Anziano Moh, who is the other district leader in Gorizia. We were on scambio and we took a picture of this gigantic bridge and really wanted to jump in....the water was so pretty! The second is of the welcome to gorzia sign, yeah pointless I know

Well my bike is in the repair shop. Yesterday morning I got approved for a new bike and was able to spend up to 90 Euro for a bike, I talked the gut down from 100 to 60! It was a used bike obviously but amazingly good. Well....it broke about 6 hours later so its back getting fixed for free because I argued and said I wasnt going to pay for it to get fixed. They finially agreed with me haha. The bearings went out on the peddles and so they stoped turning, thus, the  tire wouldnt turn, then me not going anywhere. Great fun with misison bikes! You have to love them! .....or just 100% hate them and just wish your family would send you your bike from home....please? hahaha

COOLEST SUNDAY EVER! Fast and testimony meeting was awesome and my mind almost blew up becuase at the end it was just the best thing EVER!!!! The members had good testimonies but then DaMaris, our simp gotr up and blew my mind! She is a member just with out baptsim, she is SO COOL! I love her! She got up and told her story that she drove past the church three times then just decieded to walk in becuase of the "voice in her head" The Holy Ghost! And loves the Book of Mormon and loves reading it for an hour every morning before work becuase it makes her happy and it applys to her life. Some of her quotes becuase I was basically writing down everything she said.

"She sees the bella differenza" now that she meets the missionaries and reads everyday.

"feels somthing she never has before" "the anziani, anziano Pagano and I, really care about me" "I know my prayers are heard and answered. That God wants, and is helping me with the parola di saggezza" She wants to "be the best she can be, the best DaMaris possible" "thke lord is helping her in her familiy and stoping her temptations" I just about died when she stood up to go and speak because I knew it would be great but she blew my mind! She is the coolest person ever! I cant even begin to describe the difference in her life and how much she cares about us, just becuase we care about her SO much! The last lesson on Sunday, we asked her if she read ,which she always responds, "yeah of course!" It almost seems pointless to ask her is she s keeping the commitments haha, but on Sunday, she said NO to the Book of Mormon reading! |Yeah I about had a heart attack! Then I said Perche?! and her response was "no becuase last lesson you told me I had to read the magazine, the Liahona confrence talks, and so I read it for the last two mornings" She is so great! She has finished the Liahona and is back to the Book of Mormon, and loved the Liahona as it "related to her and everyday life" Of course! Its the words of ture living day prophets! This church is true and changes lives!

ps, DaMaris brings us home made corn bread cookie things becuase she doesnt know what else to do to show her apprciation and love for us. she says its the only way she can pay us back for all we ar donig for her :)

To make it better, after Damaris talked, our newest member, William, gets up to finish off the time. He says he is so happy to be a member becuase of him, DaMaris found the church. William also said "I am so blessed to have the preisthood becuse its Gods power" He told the story that he found the church becuase his friend in Bari, a city in southen Italy, when he went to visit was meeting with the missionaries, he then got a little pridefull because he got baptized a month before his friend. It was kind funny, but just shows his dedication to the Lord and His true gosple. 

I was talking to an old man on the street, the first thing I noticed was his cool wool tie, I asked it I could trade ties with him, then he proceeded to untie his tie so I started to untie mine too to trade. Then he tells me to stop and just gives me his tie as long as I promised to tell all my friends in America that it is 100% Italian wool tie. I agreed and took his tie. Cool stuff happens when you are nice and friendly. Kinda like when we said hello to an old lady and asked if we could cary her speza, groceries, she said no but gave us a big chocolate bar! so fantastic.

We are teaching Maris, a lady who stopped us on the street, speaks, poor Italain and even worse English, she is from Gorgia, and we have one member who speaks russian so she traslates for the lessons. It so fun to teach her as most of the lesson is all traslated.

The district is great, we have had 30 new investigators and two bapatisms! Both of Italians! Baptismal interviews are super fun, expecially becuase the sorelle investigators are always super smart and have the strongest testimonies!

Well, I love you all!

Caio!

Anziano Edwards & Anziano Moh