{Survived}
14 years ago
Monday, May 25, 2009
Sunday, May 17, 2009
In trying to keep up with the missionaries that come into the office with a full cookie jar, we decided to drive down to Caserta by Napoli again this weekend to buy baking supplies at the Naval Base. There is a missionary couple, the Warner’s, in our mission stationed there, which makes it convenient to get on base. They are very hospitable and allow us to sleep over when we go their direction.
On Saturday, we toured the Palace: Reggia di Caserta, which is a sister palace to the Palace of Versailles. The entry way is very impressive, but the grand staircase, where the Lord and Lady of the Palace greeted their guests, is amazing. In true Will fashion, the “hat” pictures by the lion are some of my favorites. The hat belonged to Elder Warner, but Will had a lot of fun with it.
We are including several pictures inside and outside the palace. We walked for two hours to see all the rooms on one floor inside. The rooms are full of murals, framed paintings, some period furniture, and some tapestry. There was even a theatre room. In it was a huge display for the Nativity. At first it really seemed overdone, but when you realized that the artists’ intention was to show everything else that was going on at the time of the birth of Christ, the congestion made more sense. This display – behind glass – filled the entire room.
On Saturday, we toured the Palace: Reggia di Caserta, which is a sister palace to the Palace of Versailles. The entry way is very impressive, but the grand staircase, where the Lord and Lady of the Palace greeted their guests, is amazing. In true Will fashion, the “hat” pictures by the lion are some of my favorites. The hat belonged to Elder Warner, but Will had a lot of fun with it.
We are including several pictures inside and outside the palace. We walked for two hours to see all the rooms on one floor inside. The rooms are full of murals, framed paintings, some period furniture, and some tapestry. There was even a theatre room. In it was a huge display for the Nativity. At first it really seemed overdone, but when you realized that the artists’ intention was to show everything else that was going on at the time of the birth of Christ, the congestion made more sense. This display – behind glass – filled the entire room.
For all the grandness, it is all about show and not so much about comfort. We sure live a different lifestyle nowadays.
We have decided that Napoli is not our favorite spot in Italy. It is a dirty city and the air quality is horrible as they constantly burn their garbage, making the air smell smoky and you never really see the sun. Between the garbage everywhere and the graffiti, Italy leaves something to be desired in cleanliness. We are grateful we live in Rome. There is more to see here and the air and water are much cleaner.
We are sitting in on investigator’s discussions, trying to understand the Italian, and bearing testimony to the truthfulness of the gospel occasionally when the spirit guides us that direction. The work we are doing here is absorbing and varied, and that keeps life interesting. The gospel of Jesus Christ is true! We love to be working for the Lord in his vineyard.
We have decided that Napoli is not our favorite spot in Italy. It is a dirty city and the air quality is horrible as they constantly burn their garbage, making the air smell smoky and you never really see the sun. Between the garbage everywhere and the graffiti, Italy leaves something to be desired in cleanliness. We are grateful we live in Rome. There is more to see here and the air and water are much cleaner.
We are sitting in on investigator’s discussions, trying to understand the Italian, and bearing testimony to the truthfulness of the gospel occasionally when the spirit guides us that direction. The work we are doing here is absorbing and varied, and that keeps life interesting. The gospel of Jesus Christ is true! We love to be working for the Lord in his vineyard.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY
Happy Mother’s Day to all the great mother’s out there!
Being a mother is a rewarding calling, and you are all doing a great job!
This week has been a very spiritual, very busy, very incredible week:
Monday we attended a great DDM – a meeting for all the missionaries in our district. The spirit of cooperation, learning, and love was very strong there.
Tuesday we enjoyed Rome Zone Conference. We were in charge of the luncheon part of the conference. There we heard from our mission president and his wife. The assistants were in charge and had a great teaching segment. As they spoke, I listened, took notes, and wrote this poem.
Trust in the Lord
Trust in the Lord!
Difficult? No – necessary:
A needful necessity
To know He is there.
He cares about us,
Truly, totally,
Unconditionally, amazingly.
Awake! Recognize His remarkable love.
Turn to the Savior.
His atonement is individual.
At one with Christ
For one – me! Incredible!
This mission is touching our lives for good. Our family members are being blessed. We love the Lord! You will never be sorry for following our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Wednesday we had received permission to take Sister Bennion and Sister Cheesman to Tivoli on their P-day to see that beautiful place. Sister Bennion goes home next transfer and she had never been there. We were grateful the president allowed us to take the sisters for this outing. We had such a great time with them.
Thursday an LDS couple from Kansas named the Littlewood’s visited the mission. Laurel and Michael wanted to see the temple site. As we took them there, we realized the gate was open as a worker was cutting grass there. We were able to onto the property and walk around. There is a fig tree, many olive trees, and umbrella pines. The temple site is on a rise of ground that will be very visible from the Porta de Roma mall and the GRA, a huge freeway that circles Rome. The Littlewood’s stayed with us on Thursday and Friday nights. Thursday night we took them to downtown Rome and saw Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and the Coliseum at dusk. We got some great pictures of these famous places lit up at night.
Friday we had a mini miracle in finding a referral that Elder Herrick had been looking for. Two numbers on his phone number had been transposed. It would have been easy to just say we couldn’t find the paper again with the referral on it. However, we looked and looked and finally did find the information we needed. Elder Herrick told me tonight they had been able to get a hold of him, and he is excited to have the missionaries come and deliver their message.
Saturday we went with Gesseppi, our Italian friend to the Borghese Museum in downtown Rome. He got us in free and we truly had the VIP treatment. This Museum is by far the most incredible museum we have seen. The sculptures and paintings inside are beyond compare. We were not able to take any pictures but we enjoyed it tremendously. It is mind-boggling what a true artist can do with a large block of marble.
Then, we attended the adult session of our Stake Conference in the evening. Elder Gerald Caussa – a native of France is now a seventy. He was speaking broken English, and being translated into Italian. At the end he said: “The future is as bright as our faith!”
Happy Mother’s Day to all the great mother’s out there!
Being a mother is a rewarding calling, and you are all doing a great job!
This week has been a very spiritual, very busy, very incredible week:
Monday we attended a great DDM – a meeting for all the missionaries in our district. The spirit of cooperation, learning, and love was very strong there.
Tuesday we enjoyed Rome Zone Conference. We were in charge of the luncheon part of the conference. There we heard from our mission president and his wife. The assistants were in charge and had a great teaching segment. As they spoke, I listened, took notes, and wrote this poem.
Trust in the Lord
Trust in the Lord!
Difficult? No – necessary:
A needful necessity
To know He is there.
He cares about us,
Truly, totally,
Unconditionally, amazingly.
Awake! Recognize His remarkable love.
Turn to the Savior.
His atonement is individual.
At one with Christ
For one – me! Incredible!
This mission is touching our lives for good. Our family members are being blessed. We love the Lord! You will never be sorry for following our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Wednesday we had received permission to take Sister Bennion and Sister Cheesman to Tivoli on their P-day to see that beautiful place. Sister Bennion goes home next transfer and she had never been there. We were grateful the president allowed us to take the sisters for this outing. We had such a great time with them.
Thursday an LDS couple from Kansas named the Littlewood’s visited the mission. Laurel and Michael wanted to see the temple site. As we took them there, we realized the gate was open as a worker was cutting grass there. We were able to onto the property and walk around. There is a fig tree, many olive trees, and umbrella pines. The temple site is on a rise of ground that will be very visible from the Porta de Roma mall and the GRA, a huge freeway that circles Rome. The Littlewood’s stayed with us on Thursday and Friday nights. Thursday night we took them to downtown Rome and saw Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and the Coliseum at dusk. We got some great pictures of these famous places lit up at night.
Friday we had a mini miracle in finding a referral that Elder Herrick had been looking for. Two numbers on his phone number had been transposed. It would have been easy to just say we couldn’t find the paper again with the referral on it. However, we looked and looked and finally did find the information we needed. Elder Herrick told me tonight they had been able to get a hold of him, and he is excited to have the missionaries come and deliver their message.
Saturday we went with Gesseppi, our Italian friend to the Borghese Museum in downtown Rome. He got us in free and we truly had the VIP treatment. This Museum is by far the most incredible museum we have seen. The sculptures and paintings inside are beyond compare. We were not able to take any pictures but we enjoyed it tremendously. It is mind-boggling what a true artist can do with a large block of marble.
Then, we attended the adult session of our Stake Conference in the evening. Elder Gerald Caussa – a native of France is now a seventy. He was speaking broken English, and being translated into Italian. At the end he said: “The future is as bright as our faith!”
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Homemade Ravioli
Sorella Bennion and Sorella Cheesman wanted to make ravioli with a Chinese investigator we had all met at English class. We offered to have the missionaries cook the dinner and then teach a lesson to Lei Fon in our home. What a fun evening, and even though we only had a very poor rolling pin to use, we made delicious pasta. Some of the ravioli were filled with a spinach and cheese concoction, and some were filled with sautéed garlic, onion, and ham. We all helped with the preparation, cooking and definitely the eating. After the meal, the missionaries showed the DVD “Finding Happiness” on our computer, since we have no TV. Lei Fon was so excited to recognize Hong Kong in the DVD. We listened to it in Mandarin and then in English. The English version was filmed in the US. The church is so awesome! “It” cares about all people everywhere and encourages people of every language to find happiness and joy in the truth that the gospel of Jesus Christ teaches.
Friday was a holiday in Italy, similar to our Labor Day in the US and Canada. We finished up some work in the office, then went to eat Kabobs – so delicious – with the Pearson’s. A large pork roast is slow cooked on a vertical rotisserie. When someone orders a Kabob, the outside cooked meat is shaved off thin, served with lettuce, tomato, cabbage (green and purple) and hot sauce. In the afternoon, we had the day free so we visited Borghese Park for the first time. That is where the best museum in Rome is situated. We didn’t go into the museum, it was much too busy a day, but we walked around in the park and people watched while we practiced our Italian on each other. We are back to trying to study 2 hours a day. If determination means anything, we may get this yet. Even with what we know, it’s fun to be able to read signs, pick out familiar words in conversation, and make fools of ourselves trying to say something meaningful.
Saturday we had the car! Yeah! So, we headed north from Rome to Lake Bracciano, which we could see on the map. We ended up driving around the lake – which is quite large, but we got side-tracked as usual and ended up at Lake Martigano. There we hiked and sat in our chairs and people watched. It was a fun, relaxing day.
Friday was a holiday in Italy, similar to our Labor Day in the US and Canada. We finished up some work in the office, then went to eat Kabobs – so delicious – with the Pearson’s. A large pork roast is slow cooked on a vertical rotisserie. When someone orders a Kabob, the outside cooked meat is shaved off thin, served with lettuce, tomato, cabbage (green and purple) and hot sauce. In the afternoon, we had the day free so we visited Borghese Park for the first time. That is where the best museum in Rome is situated. We didn’t go into the museum, it was much too busy a day, but we walked around in the park and people watched while we practiced our Italian on each other. We are back to trying to study 2 hours a day. If determination means anything, we may get this yet. Even with what we know, it’s fun to be able to read signs, pick out familiar words in conversation, and make fools of ourselves trying to say something meaningful.
Saturday we had the car! Yeah! So, we headed north from Rome to Lake Bracciano, which we could see on the map. We ended up driving around the lake – which is quite large, but we got side-tracked as usual and ended up at Lake Martigano. There we hiked and sat in our chairs and people watched. It was a fun, relaxing day.
Several members of the L’Aquila Branch, where the earthquake struck so hard, attended our ward today in Rome. The first sister to bear her testimony said: “I promise not to cry but it will be hard.” Then she started to cry. She had lost her home in the earthquake. They have been living in a tent city in L’Aquila. “Jesus Christ is our Savior. I love to nourish my soul with His teachings. Nothing is more important than my testimony of Jesus Christ and my family.” Several others added their testimonies that they had learned much through this terrible earthquake. In just a few hours, there was sustaining help from the church and the people of Italy. They bore pure testimony of the Savior.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
This past week we had Christmas twice. Then today we enjoyed a White Christmas!
1st: The President arranged for us to choose a framed picture of the Savior to put on our office wall. What a difference it makes to the atmosphere there.
2nd: The mission home purchased new living room furniture and it arrived Thursday. We had dibs on the old furniture and by Thursday evening, the assistants had hiked up three stories of stairs carrying the used furniture: a couch and matching chairs. Our bare apartment living room is suddenly full. Wow! And is it comfortable! What a blessing!
White Christmas: You guessed it – a baptism. It was a darling girl, just turned 8, in the ward. We were privileged to sit in on some of the lessons the missionaries gave to her. There were many family members there to observe baptism by immersion, which they had not seen before. Giada (said: Jaw-da) was the only one being baptized, and the program was very well planned.
1st: The President arranged for us to choose a framed picture of the Savior to put on our office wall. What a difference it makes to the atmosphere there.
2nd: The mission home purchased new living room furniture and it arrived Thursday. We had dibs on the old furniture and by Thursday evening, the assistants had hiked up three stories of stairs carrying the used furniture: a couch and matching chairs. Our bare apartment living room is suddenly full. Wow! And is it comfortable! What a blessing!
White Christmas: You guessed it – a baptism. It was a darling girl, just turned 8, in the ward. We were privileged to sit in on some of the lessons the missionaries gave to her. There were many family members there to observe baptism by immersion, which they had not seen before. Giada (said: Jaw-da) was the only one being baptized, and the program was very well planned.
Even before our three Christmas experiences, we were involved in a full, exciting week. Missionary transfers happen every 6 weeks in our mission. Will and I coordinate travel arrangements for all who are moving to different areas. Sounds easy – it is actually much more involved than it sounds. This was our first time doing this totally by ourselves. The Lord made us equal to our responsibilities. 18 missionaries were returning home after serving honorable missions. We met with them at the Villa, had dinner, and said a fond farewell. The 5 new missionaries coming into the mission were also fed their first Italian meal at the Villa, then trained for our particular mission and found out who their trainer was for the next six weeks.
Mermaid Grotto
The Villa Georgiana is also right in the town of Tivoli. It has several beautiful waterfalls, a mermaid grotto and a hellhole in a kind of cave at the end where the water rushes over huge boulders and falls into a pit. So very beautiful!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
We began our Saturday adventure with Will and I being escorted out of the metro by the police. I was trying to take pictures for Caden, our grandson, for his school project. Then I wanted Will to take pictures because it’s quite dark underground on the metro and I knew we would get better pictures with Will’s camera. We quickly learned that you are not to take pictures there. We were approached by an angry policeman who abruptly motioned for us to go upstairs with him. We could tell he was determined to get us out of the metro. Upstairs, he motioned to a picture of a camera with a slash through it, and spoke in clipped Italian. Unfortunately we could not understand him. Will finally realized that what he wanted was for us to delete the pictures. Will deleted his pictures. I tried to delete mine, but didn’t know how. Finally, he indicated it was good enough and let us leave. You can take pictures in any church here, but not in the metro. Go figure! It was an honest mistake; we did not know.
We went on to the Castel Sant’Angelo – a military castle by the Tevere River. Admission was free because it’s Rome’s birthday this week. We basically spent the afternoon there, wandering through this huge castle and looking out over Rome. Afterwards we went in search of a famous Gelateria called the Old Bridge. Gelato is a mainstay here on any excursion. Close by we found an open-air market and purchased two ties for Will. One had to be purple stripped. I will always think of Rome when I see purple clothing. We also found a fine oil painting of Venice for only 15 euro.
We NOW have curtains in our apartment in the bedroom and the kitchen. Sister Pearson has a sewing machine so I could remodel some sale curtains I found. AND, we have a picture on one wall – our new oil. It’s a bare canvas without a frame, but it’s great to have a picture up to enjoy. When Will went back to Utah, he brought back some pictures to frame and hang. Giuseppe, our Italian friend, insisted he would take them and frame them. We are not sure when we will see them again.
We are into missionary transfers again. 18 missionaries are going home. 5 new missionaries are coming to the Italy Rome Mission. Many companion-ships are being changed. We are in charge of setting up travel schedules in and out of Rome for all this movement. Last transfer, we were working with others – learning; this time the responsibility falls squarely on our shoulders. It is going to be a busy week!
We went on to the Castel Sant’Angelo – a military castle by the Tevere River. Admission was free because it’s Rome’s birthday this week. We basically spent the afternoon there, wandering through this huge castle and looking out over Rome. Afterwards we went in search of a famous Gelateria called the Old Bridge. Gelato is a mainstay here on any excursion. Close by we found an open-air market and purchased two ties for Will. One had to be purple stripped. I will always think of Rome when I see purple clothing. We also found a fine oil painting of Venice for only 15 euro.
We NOW have curtains in our apartment in the bedroom and the kitchen. Sister Pearson has a sewing machine so I could remodel some sale curtains I found. AND, we have a picture on one wall – our new oil. It’s a bare canvas without a frame, but it’s great to have a picture up to enjoy. When Will went back to Utah, he brought back some pictures to frame and hang. Giuseppe, our Italian friend, insisted he would take them and frame them. We are not sure when we will see them again.
We are into missionary transfers again. 18 missionaries are going home. 5 new missionaries are coming to the Italy Rome Mission. Many companion-ships are being changed. We are in charge of setting up travel schedules in and out of Rome for all this movement. Last transfer, we were working with others – learning; this time the responsibility falls squarely on our shoulders. It is going to be a busy week!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Written: 12 April 2009
Yesterday was such an excellent day. We had an Easter miracle. It was our Preparation Day and we were waiting at the bus stop to go to downtown Rome. We were meeting the other office couple at the church. A Filipino lady approached us and said she was a member of the church but was inactive. She had been thinking a lot lately about coming back to church. Fatima was on her way to work, but she rode the bus with us to the church to see where it is. She lives on our street – Renato Fucini. She had been ready to leave for work a half hour earlier, but was slow in leaving her house for some reason. We showed her the church and gave her an English Book of Mormon – the one I had been marking – and invited her to our scone night on Monday night. Afterwards, we were upset that we hadn’t gotten her phone number and address. But we felt strongly that the Lord’s spirit had prompted our encounter.
The day was spent pleasurably in downtown Rome. We had an Italian man with us who helped us understand much of the history. He took us to specific famous works of art and sculpture. After lunch we left Giuseppe and the Pearson's and hung out at Nouvana Square and Trevi Fountain people watching. It was a very relaxed day. We took a different bus back to Termini and then decided to take a different bus home than we usually take. As we walked to the bus stop, we realized that Fatima was there. Incredible! She rode the bus home with us, visiting together the entire way. She showed us where she lived and gave us her phone number. We showed her where we live. Fatima is going home to the Philippines for one month and when she returns, she has promised to go to church with us. The story is much more involved that this, but the important part is that she recognized the Lord’s hand in meeting us.
Yes, I am making scones for about 20 missionaries and investigators at our apartment tomorrow night. It will be interesting to see who actually shows up. I will make about 4 batches of dough and hope that is enough for everyone to eat their fill. Of course, we will have honey butter and jams for toppings and milk or water to drink.
Today is Easter Sunday and we had 6 of the missionaries in the district over for Sunday dinner. It was a fun afternoon and evening. I think they were all glad to have an Easter dinner appointment.
Love, the Sommerfeldts
PS Our Internet has been down and I couldn't post the blog. Everyone went on Easter Vacation - even our Internet.
The scone night went great and Fatima showed up, for which we were thrilled! It's Tuesday night and we are madly baking cinnamon rolls from left over scone dough. I made 6 batches instead of 4. If I can keep Will out of the cinnamon buns, it will be another miracle. The missionaries coming into the office are really getting spoiled.
Yesterday was such an excellent day. We had an Easter miracle. It was our Preparation Day and we were waiting at the bus stop to go to downtown Rome. We were meeting the other office couple at the church. A Filipino lady approached us and said she was a member of the church but was inactive. She had been thinking a lot lately about coming back to church. Fatima was on her way to work, but she rode the bus with us to the church to see where it is. She lives on our street – Renato Fucini. She had been ready to leave for work a half hour earlier, but was slow in leaving her house for some reason. We showed her the church and gave her an English Book of Mormon – the one I had been marking – and invited her to our scone night on Monday night. Afterwards, we were upset that we hadn’t gotten her phone number and address. But we felt strongly that the Lord’s spirit had prompted our encounter.
The day was spent pleasurably in downtown Rome. We had an Italian man with us who helped us understand much of the history. He took us to specific famous works of art and sculpture. After lunch we left Giuseppe and the Pearson's and hung out at Nouvana Square and Trevi Fountain people watching. It was a very relaxed day. We took a different bus back to Termini and then decided to take a different bus home than we usually take. As we walked to the bus stop, we realized that Fatima was there. Incredible! She rode the bus home with us, visiting together the entire way. She showed us where she lived and gave us her phone number. We showed her where we live. Fatima is going home to the Philippines for one month and when she returns, she has promised to go to church with us. The story is much more involved that this, but the important part is that she recognized the Lord’s hand in meeting us.
Yes, I am making scones for about 20 missionaries and investigators at our apartment tomorrow night. It will be interesting to see who actually shows up. I will make about 4 batches of dough and hope that is enough for everyone to eat their fill. Of course, we will have honey butter and jams for toppings and milk or water to drink.
Today is Easter Sunday and we had 6 of the missionaries in the district over for Sunday dinner. It was a fun afternoon and evening. I think they were all glad to have an Easter dinner appointment.
Love, the Sommerfeldts
PS Our Internet has been down and I couldn't post the blog. Everyone went on Easter Vacation - even our Internet.
The scone night went great and Fatima showed up, for which we were thrilled! It's Tuesday night and we are madly baking cinnamon rolls from left over scone dough. I made 6 batches instead of 4. If I can keep Will out of the cinnamon buns, it will be another miracle. The missionaries coming into the office are really getting spoiled.
Monday, April 6, 2009
This past week has been very different. Last week Will was asked by President Acerson if he would be willing to fly back to Utah with an elder who was ill and needed to return home. Of course Will said he was happy to help however he could. It was all a little vague and we weren’t sure if it would happen or not. Then, Tuesday evening, about 9:30 the assistants showed up at our door and said that Will would be picked up at 6:30 the following morning so he could be taken to the airport. We had been at English class at the Church and also our cell phone wasn’t working. As it turned out, the elder had a seizure the next morning and so even though Will was picked up at 6:30, I still wasn’t sure if he had left for the states until I arrived at work.
The flight home was a little insane as Will and the other elder had to change planes in New York. City. Actually they had to take a taxi to New Jersey to continue on their flight home. The other elder was so weak when they arrived in Salt Lake that Will wheeled him out in a wheelchair to meet his family. His mother burst into tears when she saw him. This elder, a super missionary, is 6’1” and weighs 95 lbs. He is a very sick young man.
Will didn’t fly out of Salt Lake to come back to Italy until Saturday morning. Needless to say, he has been a bit tired since his return. He was in Utah just long enough to try and get his internal time clock changed to Utah time and then flew back across the world. He was able to talk to Bret on the phone and see several of his own children and grandchildren. In fact, they had a traditional family Easter Egg Hunt on Friday. Will was also able to attend an endowment session at the Draper Temple with Jim and Maray. No one was more surprised to see Will than our sweet little neighbor Norma, who lives across the street from us in Draper.
While Will was away, I had a P-day and Cam Ballantyne was in town with some friends. Cam is Peter’s brother. These four young adults were good enough to put up with my company during Saturday. As I traveled downtown to meet them, I was kicked off the bus twice because there was a Communist demonstration going on downtown. When I finally did meet up with them, we took a tour of the Coliseum and the Roman Forum. The tour guide was very informative, even though you had to listen pretty closely as he was speaking fast, broken English. It is really warming up here and the day was a gorgeous one. After treating everyone to gelato at the end of the afternoon, rain clouds were sputtering and I rode the bus home while Cam and his group returned to their lodgings for a nap before their night rendezvous.
Sunday morning, Will arrived about 8:30 at the airport. He slept on and off a good part of the day, trying to get turned around the right direction once again. In the evening, we invited the other mission office couple over to the house to watch the Saturday morning session of conference on the computer and have dessert with us.
Then, early this morning, about 3:30 we experienced an earthquake here in Italy. The epicenter was about 70 miles from us in L’Aquila. Our missionaries there were not harmed, but many lives were lost and much damage sustained. We felt our entire apartment building swaying back and forth for about a minute.
So you can see that we do not lack for adventure. Hope you enjoy the pictures and are maybe even checking out a little Italian history.
Love and Hugs,
The Sommerfeldts
The flight home was a little insane as Will and the other elder had to change planes in New York. City. Actually they had to take a taxi to New Jersey to continue on their flight home. The other elder was so weak when they arrived in Salt Lake that Will wheeled him out in a wheelchair to meet his family. His mother burst into tears when she saw him. This elder, a super missionary, is 6’1” and weighs 95 lbs. He is a very sick young man.
Will didn’t fly out of Salt Lake to come back to Italy until Saturday morning. Needless to say, he has been a bit tired since his return. He was in Utah just long enough to try and get his internal time clock changed to Utah time and then flew back across the world. He was able to talk to Bret on the phone and see several of his own children and grandchildren. In fact, they had a traditional family Easter Egg Hunt on Friday. Will was also able to attend an endowment session at the Draper Temple with Jim and Maray. No one was more surprised to see Will than our sweet little neighbor Norma, who lives across the street from us in Draper.
While Will was away, I had a P-day and Cam Ballantyne was in town with some friends. Cam is Peter’s brother. These four young adults were good enough to put up with my company during Saturday. As I traveled downtown to meet them, I was kicked off the bus twice because there was a Communist demonstration going on downtown. When I finally did meet up with them, we took a tour of the Coliseum and the Roman Forum. The tour guide was very informative, even though you had to listen pretty closely as he was speaking fast, broken English. It is really warming up here and the day was a gorgeous one. After treating everyone to gelato at the end of the afternoon, rain clouds were sputtering and I rode the bus home while Cam and his group returned to their lodgings for a nap before their night rendezvous.
Sunday morning, Will arrived about 8:30 at the airport. He slept on and off a good part of the day, trying to get turned around the right direction once again. In the evening, we invited the other mission office couple over to the house to watch the Saturday morning session of conference on the computer and have dessert with us.
Then, early this morning, about 3:30 we experienced an earthquake here in Italy. The epicenter was about 70 miles from us in L’Aquila. Our missionaries there were not harmed, but many lives were lost and much damage sustained. We felt our entire apartment building swaying back and forth for about a minute.
So you can see that we do not lack for adventure. Hope you enjoy the pictures and are maybe even checking out a little Italian history.
Love and Hugs,
The Sommerfeldts
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