July 31, 2013 - Hot in Italy!

CIAO ALL!!!

Buon giorno from italia!!! 

My companion from Verona, Sis. Mistura and
the Rome Temple under construction

 (warning: <i'm using an italian keyboard for the first time and it is quite difficult, so beware of strnage words and incoherent phrases...)

well, it's officially been a week here in <italia :) AND IT'S HOT. But honeslty <i can handle it dureing the day, its just at night that is hard. well, it was hard... okay story. so, for the first four or five days, <i couldnt sleep at night becuase it was too hot to fall asleep. i probably got about 2-4 hours eac night, which made being a misisonary very difficult. but then, <i put my mattress on the floor in the doorway and slept with my head outside on the balcony and it waws way better, i only woke up once i think. also, i could see stars!! pretty cool.

Sleeping quasi-outside

i ate at an italians house for the first time on sunday! it was incredible. i have no idea what i ate. lamb maybe? i hope. and some veggies and something else, i don't know haha. but everything is so good. and it's so beautiful!!! this place is the strangest place i have ever been but the people are the nicest and friendliest people i have ever talked with, even when they don't want to hear our message. okay i have no time, but here's my address:

sorella patterson

Via delle Querce, 4
65015 Montesilvano PE, Italia

just real quick: we taught one man and something funny he said about the elders and their suits: that he'd only worn a tie twice in his life: a marriage and a funeral!

So, <i can speak very well. I can get anything across that I want to, which I am so greatful for. the only problem: <i can't understand a thing! THey use some dialect here that even my italian companion has trouble understanding sometimes. So <i am constantly lost. but I can pick out words here and there, so im okay :)

my trainer/companion is from verona: sister Mistura. She is great! she speaks almost no enlgish, so that's been interesting :) She is 19, and was the first 19yr old in the mission. 

my old companion is in lisdapoli, which is pretty colse to rome so <i think i'll see her at zone conference next month. i miss her a ton.

so, in italy all the water you drink is bottled. and there is natural water and frizzante water, which is absolutely horrible. just remember to read what the bottle says. or ask someone...

um...

yeah it's really hot

Also, i love teaching!! teaching anythin. lessons, english, anything. Definitly my favorite part of the work!! 

um...

okay well my time is almost up, but take care all!! <italy is awesome!!! the people aer incredible and i still can't believe i am finally here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

with much love,
Sorella Patterson
oh ps i'm in Pescara :)

Editor's note: I looked up Pescara, Italy

Pescara is the capital city of the Province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo region of Italy. As of 1 January 2007 it was the most populated city within Abruzzo at 123,059 residents, approximately 450,000 including the surrounding metropolitan area. Wikipedia

1. Area: 12.74 sq miles (33 km²)

   Weather: 83°F (28°C), Wind N at 4 mph (6 km/h), 41% Humidity

   Province: Province of Pescara

 

 

 

July 17, 2013 - Travel Plans!

Buon Giorno!!!

Come state?? Tutto al posto qui!!

I cannot believe I will be in Italia in a week from today. It absolutely blows my mind! We leave Tuesday 8am ish... okay I'll just tell you how it all works:

So we leave the MTC @ about 8AM and drive to the airport in SLC for our flight to Dallas (I'm comin' home!! ;) ha!)  where we will connect with our next flight to London (!!!)  where we will connect with our last flight to Rome !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). We haven" theard anything about our visas yet, but in the MTC no news is good news. I am pretty sure mine has come through because I have been assigned to be the travel leader for 11 missionaries, including myself. They are not all from my district, but I know them all because they are in my same zone in the MTC. I wish my whole district was traveling together, but we don't until the flight to Rome, so that will be a fun flight! At least my companion is on my flight plan so we'll be together the whole time. Oh, also, all the missionaries in the MTC going to either misison in Italia leave for Italia on the same day. There will be no Italian speakers at the MTC when we leave!! At least not until the next day when I suspect the new ones will arrive. I'm not gonna lie, I'm probably going to cry (a ton) when I leave my district. We are so close! I seriously love them so much. Hopefully I will see them again in Rome. :)

My Italian is coming along! I can keep up a good conversation with other American speakers of Italian. I'm sure when I get to Rome, it will be totally different!

So, today is my last P-Day in the MTC! My companion and I have spent a good chunk of the day trying to teach ourselves how to play "Nearer my God to Thee" on the piano. Our teachers say that in Italia, not many people play the piano so we want to have a couple of hymns down in case they need someone to play in church. Any advice on a crash-course in piano playing??? :)

Well, I have to go, but I love you all!! Thank you for the letters and packages!!! They help a TON!!! My next email will be from Italia!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ciao for now!!

Sorella Patterson

July 10, 2013 - Patriotic Awesomeness



The Best District Ever
Anzianos Kenney, Stout, Garner, Duffin, Robison, Bee,
Rutledge and Phillips
Sorellas Patterson and Viazzo



Italia!

Buon Giorno, tutti!! Come state?? Io sto bene, grazie per chiedere :)

Has it really been a whole week?!?! Time is FLYING!!! I can't believe I leave in like two weeks!!

Yes, all my district is going to Rome. There is one other district going to Rome as well and 3 districts going to Milan. My companion and I are the only sisters going to Rome!

THE FOURTH OF JULY WAS AWESOME!!!!! Sorella Viazzo's mom sent her a package with some candy just for me. One of our Anziani got a package with a bunch of little American flags, so our district was very patriotic. We had normal class and stuff that day but then we had a devotional that was super patriotic and awesome and then we watched 17 Miracles and THEN... we got to go out and watch the firework show!!!!!!! It was incredible!!!!! (Also, we got to stay up late for it :) ) Anyway, it was an awesome experience for so many reasons. We got magnum ice cream bars, we were there with just a ton of missionaries, we had glowsticks (!!), and at the end of the show someone started singing the National Anthem and it picked up until at least 1000 missionaries were singing, hands over our hearts, watching this spectacular show. Just awesome.

I got a package from my mom this week too!! THANK YOU!! My district loves all the food and goodies we get!! Everyone shares; we are a pretty tight group. Our roommates are kinda jealous of how close our district is. :)  ALSO.  I have the best mom ever. So remember back when my straightener broke? Two days after I sent that email, I had a package with a new CHI!!!!!  BEST MOM EVER. Me and my hair thank you a TON. Thank you for the pictures of everything, it's SO good to see all of y'all. I get to print them out, so I'll have them forever. The parade looked fun! And tell Jared to stay away from girls.

So, cool experience this week. We went to the TRC (Training Resource Center) where real people come in and we get to teach them in Italian. This week, we taught an older woman from a couple cities away who served in Milan (that's how she learned Italian). So in the TRC, these people don't pretend to be someone we are teaching, they just volunteer to come in, being just themselves, and we teach them whatever we want or feel inspired to teach. This time, we had been planning lessons just 10 minutes before for some of our "pretend" investigators, and Sorella Viazzo came across a scripture that we really  liked. We didn't think too much of it, because we had planned to use it the next day. When we got in there and were talking with her, we asked if there was anything we could help her with. She said she had a big decision to make. We talked about it for a while and how she'd been praying about it but didn't feel like she'd gotten an answer yet, and then Sorella Viazzo felt impressed to share that scripture with her that we had just barely come across by "accident". Definitely not an accident. It was Doctrine and Covenants section 98 verses 1-3:

Verily I say unto you my friends, ^afear not, let your hearts be comforted; yea, rejoice evermore, and in everything give ^bthanks;

2 ^aWaiting patiently on the Lord, for your prayers have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, and are recorded with this seal and testament—the Lord hath sworn and decreed that they shall be granted.

3 Therefore, he giveth this promise unto you, with an immutable covenant that they shall be fulfilled; and all things wherewith you have been ^aafflicted shall work together for your ^bgood, and to my name’s glory, saith the Lord.

We had the lady read it out loud and when she was reading it, she began crying and said that was exactly what she had needed to hear.

God knows HIs children. He knows exactly what we need and He will answer us in His time. I am so grateful Sorella Viazzo and I got to be instruments in His hands that day! It was incredible!

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is so real. It is so perfect. It is the only way to find eternal happiness and joy and I testify to you all that it is and can be a blessing to you in your life!

I love you all, I hope you are all well, can't wait to hear more about your lives!!

Love,

Sorella Patterson

Week 3 - July 3, 2013 - I love being a missionary!

Week 3 - Mom will need a translator now!

CIAO Y'ALL!!!

 

I'm going there!

Some of us in our District


 



Crafting! Mom would be so proud!

Me!



My companion and I



I love being a missionary
 



Stolen map from these guys

Come state?? Bene, spero!!

I don't know if I've received my visa yet... I haven't heard anything...

WOOHOO for Faith and Jonathan!! So happy to hear they have set a date! Also, if you make cakeballs anytime soon, my district would like to put in an order... Also, there's 10 of us, just so you know...

Speaking of Hawaiian Falls, I sent y'all a letter. I hope you guys got it!!

Tell me all about the new missionaries in the ward!

Haha, to all my friends: this is the only time I will give you permission to add my mom on facebook. Do not abuse this opportunity by sending/receiving any embarrassing stories or pictures of me!! ;)

This week in the MTC:

1) Honestly, not much crazy happened. I'm starting to get used to it. The cycle is getting easier. I'm still tired 24/7 but it's becoming bareable.... okay I can't spell anymore in English. Italian spelling just makes more sense!

2) Actually, the past few days have been a little hard for me. I just need to learn to rely on the Lord more. Sometimes I just get so caught up in needing to do things perfectly that I forget that it's okay to make mistakes and learn from them. But I am improving. I'm just not where I want to be yet and it bugs me sometimes, but I know I just need to have a little more patience with myself. I think I am most hard on and impatient with myself, which is silly because honestly I know the language better than anyone in my district or anyone in the 6 districts going to Italy. Now that's not to say I am any smarter or any better or that I study any harder. It is honestly by the Grace of God that I took Italian in college for a year and a half before I came here. I thank Him for that on an almost daily basis.  But I just mean that I have no reason to be worried. I just need to lose myself in the work and become converted to Christ myself, then I can help others to do that.

3)Mom/Matt, guess what????? One of my teachers is David Jeter. Recognize the name?? He is from the Beaumont area. I think we went to the beach with his family and the Simiskeys one time. Small world! Tomorrow, I'll try and take a picture with him for y'all. Also, I'm going to bring a picture of Matt to class for him. He wants to see what you look like.

4)DebbSTAR!!!!!! Congrats on your call to Brazil!!!! You're a rockstar!!! Also, I just found out who Fabrizio is. Evreyone here goes by last names, so it took a while. Ma penso che sia Fratello Cena, no? Lui e' il insegnante di un altro distretto, ma l'ho visto pochi tempi. Forse sara' un po' scomodo ma non me importa! Gli diro' della tua chiamata. Anche, ho visto il mio amico brasiliano... Ma certo lui lavora qui!! Ma ho visto tanti amici, lavorando o servendo. Sempre e' bello a vederli. Mi manchi! Ti voglio bene!

5)Last Friday, there was a soccer game here between the Rome missionaries and the Milan missionaries... Obviously it was all in good fun so it doesn't really matter who wins.... The result: the Romans stole the Milano's map of Italy out of one of their classrooms and put it our own classroom. Our teacher said that was good ;)

6)Sorella Viazzo and I are trying really hard to not gain weight at the MTC (and in Italy). Our new motto: Forte Testimonianza, Forte Corpo. I'm not as good at this as she is. I don't like running all that much. We made a deal though: either two laps around the MTC, or one lap and I do 40 push-ups. Guess whose arms are sore now?

7)

 

Our district is trying hard to get better at speaking Italian outside the classroom. Our new motto: Italiano o morte.

Gotta jet, my scripture to you all: Colossians 2:5. Vi voglio bene!!!!

Sorella Patterson