20 years and counting...

Ciao tutti!!!!!! Okay so this week really flew by. I'll just start by telling about last p day. I got to go to Milano and visit my favorite Navigli missionaries! So my ex-comp Sorella Tafur and Anziano Rios and his greenie! And of course, Nelson! And, like the cretin that I am, I took no pictures! I am doing really bad at that lately. But it was a good time.

One of the highlights from this week was definitely the youth activity, which is always the highlight of the week haha. We ended up playing volleyball again, which was pretty fun. I love these youth so much! 

Another super funny moment happened on Saturday. We had set an appointment with a less active member for 4:30 pm, but in the message we wrote 16.30 because in Italy they use military time a lot. Well Maria, the poor woman, read our message and thought that it said 6.30! So she was super surprised when we showed up to her house at 16.30 and she had curlers in her hair and was wanting to make us dinner (rip to the Dominican food that we missed out on)! So she's super cool, just like never comes to church and her 15-year-old son not really either. So we're doing this thought explaining the Book of Mormon challenge that we're doing to them, and we asked them at the end if they would do it. And Maria was like "yeah sure I'm down!" But Richard was like "Honestly, probably not." And we were like why not? But he wouldn't give us a straight answer. So his mom was trying to get an answer out of him, then he starts speaking to her in Spanish about how he doesn't wanna say and he'll tell her after we leave and all this stuff because he thinks we can't understand him. So I pulled a trick and started speaking to them in Spanish and Richard's face was literally priceless hahahahaha it was sooo funny. Well idk if he is gonna do the challenge but they came to church on Sunday! Yay!

Then on Sunday, I had the BEST BIRTHDAY EVER (being 20 is weird)! First, because of my dope companion (shout out to you Sorella Button) who made me pancakes with sparklers in them for breakfast at 6.30 and then had set up a surprise appointment for us with the Rodriguez family, and they all sang to me and Sorella Rodriguez made me a cake out of TIRAMISU!!! It was amazing and I was so happy. Then we saw the Brazilians to teach them Italian as always, and they had a surprise cake too! And they sang the birthday song to me in Portuguese! It was so00 cute. I love them so much!!!

We also had some weird member/less-active appointments this week that involved dead turtles, parasites, and brain vibrations. I wish I could go into detail but that would take far too much time so if you really wanna know, you can ask me.

English classes and serata familiare were lit this week as usual because we got some new English class students and people actually came to our FHE, so that was nice. Sorella Button and I have some good goals for this transfer, and we're gonna make this second one together great! We have so much energy together, which is great, but our poor Anziani hahahha. We're excited to put in some work and find some people to teach! Lodi is a really great place to serve.

Thank you to all of you who wished me happy birthday in some way, shape, or form! Y'all are the best! Vi voglio bene!

Sorella Henderson

20 years old on September 23rd

Tiramisu Birthday cake with the Rodriguez Family

11 months as a missionary...

Ciao tutti! This week has flown by! It was also full of some fun and some difficult moments. So stay tuned.

Well this isn't that fun of a story, but maybe last week I mentioned that we got 2 referrals from the Rome Temple Visitors Center that we were super excited about. Well last week after p day we decided to go check it out. So we rang their doorbell, and they answered on the little intercom thingy and told us they're not at all interested... So we're a little bit confused and think that they are too. Especially considering that they couldn't even see us but that's okay. Maybe sometime in the future they will be ready to accept the Gospel.

Well here's another story that's not that fun haha we had to drop our investigator, Monica, this week. We went to see her and asked her about why she thinks we come and visit her. She loves the Book of Mormon because it helps her grow her faith. That was cool to hear, until she explained that it helped her Catholic faith and that she will never not be Catholic and has no intention of being baptized. So we had to tell her that we can't come see her anymore. She said even if she found out that this is true church of Jesus Christ she wouldn't consider being baptized. Oh well. Maybe in the future she will be ready to embrace the truth someday.

Finally a fun story! So on Saturday night we had a meal appointment with a less active/kinda new convert family in our ward. They're from the Philippines and super cool! They wanna come back to church, so we have started working with them. This is the first time we had gone over there to eat, and when we arrive she tells us that 10 more people are coming because it was a birthday party for her husband, Jofel! So a bunch of Filipinos and even some members show up, which was cool and the food was good. Then, as all Filipinos do, they broke out their MASSIVE karaoke machine and disco ball! And everyone made us sing us a song so Sorella Button and I sang "The Prayer" by Josh Groban hahaha it was super funny. We left after that haha. It was super fun though, and they came to church on Sunday! We were happy about that.

We have been working hard this week to hand out a lot of Book of Mormons with this challenge of 21 days that the Europe area is doing. We have had some really successful days and some not-so-successful days. But that's missionary work, and we don't let it get us down. I know that there are people prepared for us to hear their message here in Lodi, they might just be hiding right now.

Time is flying by. I can't believe that I've been on my mission for 11 months and that I turn 20 on Sunday! It's a strange feeling but also brings a lot of possibilities. I love my mission and wouldn't rather be anywhere else! Don't forget to keep reading the Book of Mormon! Vi voglio bene!

Sorella Henderson

Milano Est Zone Conference: August 31, 2018

Cinque ragazzi escono

Ciao tutti! Holy this week flew by again! Time seems to fly by faster when you're serving in an amazing city with an amazing companion. Speaking of time, I think that I blinked too much this transfer because it's already time for transfer calls! This Friday or Saturday Sorella Button will find out what's going to happen here in Lodi for next transfer! Weird.

Here are some highlights from the week:
1. Eating at Steak-n-Shake with Rey, Marcos, and Ezequiel from the ward. I walked in and it looked so much like AMERICA with a drinking fountain with ice in it and everything that I wanted to cry!!! It was soooo good but way more expensive than America. 
2. Doing service at Bergognone, which is an art school for disabled/special needs adults. We help them do art, which is fun, but those poor students that I have to help... I'm so bad at art!!! Hahahaha
3. Bowling with the youth on Friday for our activity! Neither I nor Sorella Button won but it's okay because the Anziani didn't either haha.
4. Giving out 2 Books of Mormon with the Book of Mormon sfida in just 30 minutes of finding! That was a miracle! 
5. Making brownies with the Brazilians during our weekly Italian lesson.
6. Doing finding again just a couple days after our dope experience for 2 and a half hours and only 2 people talking to us. They are from Nigeria and accepted a Book of Mormon. We have a goal to give out a Book of Mormon a day during this time of the challenge and we have been succeeding so far!
7. District meeting yesterday and learning how to make yummy Swiss bread for lunch.
8. All our English classes because our 2 students are funny (we need more students lol).

Well that was my week basically! It was a good one. We are just working hard on finding people to teach and building up the ward here at Lodi. There is so much work to be done, but the Lord has helped us and sustained us so far! We can see miracles every day if we look for them!

I encourage you all to participate as well in this challenge that the Europe area is doing! It's so cool! You can find it in English online. I wanted to share with you all the scriptures for Day 2, but it's really long. It's Mosiah 4:1-21. Go read it because it's really good! The accompanying question is "How can I find joy?" These verses give us a really good formula for how to find joy every day in our lives, no matter what is going on around us.

Vi voglio bene! I love hearing from all of you! Have a great week!

Sorella Henderson

Steak n Shake with the YSAs

Rotten food stinks.

Ciao tutti!!! Well this week has been crazy busy and super fun! We saw some cool miracles and were able to serve some people, which has been a good opportunity. Last Wednesday was Sorella Button's birthday, so we went to Lecco and looked at the beautiful Lake Como and kinda explored. Then we went back and visited the Brazilians for dinner. Brazilians sure know how to do a birthday party! They are so much fun! They were singing like crazy haha it was so much fun. I just wish I spoke Portuguese haha.

On Friday we had Zone Conference, which was a really cool experience. We talked about not following the crowd and following the promptings of the Spirit instead. That was a really cool topic for me. Sometimes it can be hard to follow the Spirit, but every time we do we are blessed with more spiritual experiences and more responsibility. Life sure is easier with the guidance of the Spirit. We should do all we can to always be worthy of His presence.

So on Sunday we had to present this challenge to our ward in third hour called The Book of Mormon 21-Day Challenge or something like that (I don't actually know what it is in English.). This is a challenge that we are doing in the Europe area for the month of September. In Italy, it starts on September 10. Basically, there is a bookmark that you can find online and print with 21 questions of the soul, a scripture that answers the question, and a citation from a General Authority. It's super cool! It's just supposed to help us deepen our testimonies of the Book of Mormon. It's also a super cool way to do missionary work and share the Book of Mormon with your friends! We can also share the videos and scriptures on social media. I would encourage you all to participate or to participate in whatever they are doing in America. I know they are doing something but it's different. You can look it up on lds.org or on Facebook! Make the Book of Mormon a bigger priority in your life! If you don't read it every day, start now!

On Saturday, a member in our ward asked us to go over and help his wife clean their fridge that had been broken. So we went over to her house, and she did not know we were coming. At first, she didn't wanna let us in, but when she found out that we came to help her clean, she looked like she was gonna cry. And let me just say, the house was literally in chaos. Rotten food everywhere, the kids' toys, and 2 crying babies attached to their mom so she literally couldn't do anything. We cleaned her whole house for her, which was a cool experience. She was so grateful. I really felt so much love while I was cleaning for her. Tip: Never turn off the electricity in your house for a 3-week vacation if you have a fridge full of food.

We also had an awesome lesson with Johnson on Sunday! He came back after 2 weeks and had read so much of the Book of Mormon and so many questions! He literally wrote down 2 pages of questions. And they were all really good. He has so much potential. We have been in touch with him every day answering more of his questions. He's probably the coolest guy I've ever found on the street here in Italy haha.

So on Saturday, the Anziani's new converts called us to talk. They are leaving the church. They  were baptized just 3 months ago, and they are letting little things that people have said to them destroy their testimonies. It is really sad to see how the situation has progressed. It just goes to show that we have to always be on our guard. Nothing anyone could say or do is worth losing our testimonies and the opportunities that we have to receive eternal happiness and be with our families forever after this life. The people in the Church aren't perfect, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ is perfect and His Atonement is infinite.

Well I don't have much more time! And I've already written so much. This week was so crazy; I wish I had the time to write about everything that happened. But have a good week and make sure you read the Book of Mormon this week! You are all amazing! Vi voglio bene!

Sorella Henderson

p day trip to Lecco

"taking a dip"

Sorella Button's Birthday party with Brazilian members

Partying with the Manicobas

Italian Mafia and Ultimate Frisbee

Ciao tutti! Well another week has come and gone by really fast. Today is p day and also my sweet companion's 20th birthday! So we are headed on up to Lecco for p day today. Something notable is that the weather has really cooled down this week and you don't feel like melting every time you walk outside! It actually gets pretty cold here at night now. So that's been a relief. And people are back from vacation! We went and did finding in centro yesterday and there were actually people out there! So it's been a solid week. Other than the fact that Sorella Button and I both got sick but we are on the way up from that. 

We had so many meal appointments this week! We made enchiladas with Fanny on Monday, a little less active lady from Argentina that doesn't speak much Italian haha it was soooo yummy. We also ate some fake waffles and tiramisù. And we got a referral from the Brazilians last Wednesday!!! They are my favorites. We taught Italian to them and their friends on Sunday, and we had an appointment scheduled for a family home evening on Monday with their friends but their friends had to work so we just did it with the Oliveiras instead. I love them so much!

So last Friday, at our youth activity, we played ultimate Frisbee, which was dope. Until Sorella Button's phone got stolen!! We searched forever for it. But then things brightened up when 1. At the McDonald's drive thru they gave us 2 extra gelati for free! And 2. We hopped on over to the police station the next morning to file a report and her phone was there! We don't know exactly what happened, just that it was a miracle.

I just wanted to share with y'all a scripture I found in my personal study the other day. 3 Nefi 5:13 "Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have everlasting life." 

I am so proud to be a missionary! Sometimes it feels like a really big job because people's eternal lives are on the line. But I have seen so many blessings from my missionary work, and I love having this calling. I just love Lodi so much. Every area I get transferred to, I love it more and it takes less time to love it. Time is flying by too fast! Thanks for reading and hit me up with emails. (: vi voglio bene! Ciao!

Sorella Henderson

Driving

Lecco View

10 MONTHS flew by like....

Ciao tutti! So my second week in Lodi was awesome! I am really getting to love it here and getting adjusted to a new city has been pretty easy. It is still August, so there are not many people in church, all the people we are teaching basically are out of town, and there is practically no one outside but we are almost to September! Which is crazy because I hit my 10 month mission mark last week! Time really is flying by and every transfer just goes faster and faster.

This week we played 4 square for the youth activity and that was dope!!!! It took Sorella Button and I back to our MTC glory days haha. The youth in this ward are super cool. I also got to know more of the members this week at various appointments and at church, and I love them all! A little Brazilian girl got baptized in our ward, and she is so cute! Everything in the program was done in Portugese because they don't speak Italian, and it made me wanna learn it so bad!

We also got to meet with a guy named Johnson on Sunday. I found him doing finding my first day in Lodi. He was super cool and super interested in finding out the truth. But he lives in my old area! So we are gonna have to pass him off to the Anziani in Navigli. We also had a really awkward pass lesson with the Anziani this Saturday that was just cringeable and not at all well-planned. But that's our bad. But at least Danilo is still interested even if after the awkward lesson.

I love being a missionary! Time is going too fast! I love being able to devote all my time to the Lord and be bold with people. Because this really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I'm so grateful that I've done it! This week I want to challenge you all to give up one extra thing to the Lord this week. Just one thing. And I know that you will see the blessings from it. Vi voglio bene! 

Sorella Henderson 

Ferragosto

Ciao tutti! Well, I forgot to send you all my group email from last week, so I have sent you all that one as well. I was just so busy being TRANSFERRED that I forgot! Yes, I have now been in Lodi for a week, and I absolutely LOVE IT. It was really hard for me at first to leave Navigli because I loved it so much and all the people there, especiallly our investigators, but the members in Lodi are so amazing. I haven't met most of them because literally everyone goes on vacation in August, which means we are doing a lot of finding and other things and no one comes to English class, but the people that I have met are so cool! And half of the ward is from South America too yay.

Best things about Lodi so far:
1. No sounds of sirens and car horns all day and night.
2. We have a car!!!!!!!!!!
3. My comp! Sorella Button is a beast. We were in the MTC together, and I just love her.
4. The city is really, small but the center is SO cute! It looks just like the Italy that I imagined before my mission.
5. Somehow I end up having gelato given to me every day since I've been here which can be a pro or a con depending on how you look at it.

Con:
1. It smells like cow manure sometimes. ):

As you can see, from my list, Lodi really is awesome! I got to do new driver training on Monday, and the office anziani (which are the Anziani in my district and ward that we serve with) wanted to see how we drove, so I got to drive a car for the first time in almost 10 months! I was a little nervous, especially because we were in Milano, but it all came back to me. I missed driving so much! Right now Sorella Button is the designated driver because she has been here for a while, but if she leaves next transfer, I'll drive. Woooo.

I have met one of our investigators so far (the rest are on vacation), and she's named Monica. She's blind and speaks perfect English and Spanish, but she's Italian. And she loves the Book of Mormon! But she also loves the Catholic church. So it's a little hard. But we are working on her, and now that she finally has a copy of the Book of Mormon that she can read with her braille reader, she loves to read it! She's pretty cool.

Yesterday we had our semi-annual mission cleaning day because today is Ferragosto, aka one of the days a year that ALL OF ITALY IS CLOSED. So we cleaned for 5 straight hours and by the end Sorella Button and I wanted to die but our apartment is so clean! 

Okay there is definitey so much more to say but I won't say it because this email is getting long. But I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Sorella Henderson

New companion in Lodi, Sorella Button

Sorella Button knocking doors

Lodi Centro

First gelato in Lodi

Best Granita ever!