Where Am I???

Ciao from ROME!!!
    Literally im sitting right now in Rome writing this letter.  We are going to walk around central rome today for p-day.  Im pretty much stoked for this.  It seems so unreal!  I dont know what all we will see but next week i will send you all the picutres.  Its going to be great.  I have so much to say this week so im going to just jump right on in. Its been a great week!
 
    Ok, so first, Lidia's baptism!!  I am so grateful that i was able to stay in Catania and leave on such a good note.  It was perfect.  Let me tell you a funny story about filling up the font though.  Ok, so we, the sisters, had never filled the font in Catania before.  So i was on the phone with the anziani while they were giving me directions.  We were already a half hour behind in filling up the font!  I did everything they said and then we just had to wait for like 4 hours to fill it up.  Ok, so then Sorella LeCates goes in to check the water (after an hour).  Only to find that yes the water was warm but it was only like an inch high!  Then it dawned on me... I didnt think about a plug so that the water would stay in.  The anziani didnt say anything about it so it didnt phase me.  Haha.  It was such a stressful but funny moment.  We fixed the drain and then decided to wait an hour and decide then if we were going to need to use buckets and help fill it up.  In the mean time it was raining outside and we put the buckets outside to catch the rain.  Haha.  SOOOOOO dumb.  There was like nothing when we went to check them.  But we took a picture to remind us of our brilliant idea.  Anyway, everything was ready to go by the time everyone arrived for the baptism.  She was so happy and excited.  It was all perfect.  Not tons of members came but there was a good showing and they all brought some sort of treat to share at the end.  I know Lidia was really touched by that.  Then she was confirmed the next day in church and she is officially a member of Christ's church!  I will attach some pictures of it if i can figure it out here.
 
     Next, my last sunday in Catania was really sad!  I LOVE that i was there for so long.  I have really good relationships with so many people in that ward.  Starting with the bishop.  He is such a spiritual great guy (its his counselors that have crazy missionary plan ideas).  Anyway, im sitting in church and thankfully i was listening.  Bishop gets up to give his talk and he says, " This is sorella buma's last week and so i want to ask the sisters to come sing hymn 100 and then I want to ask sorella buma to leave us with her testimony."  Haha.  So spur of the moment we get up and sing.  I really enjoyed it actually.  And my leaving testimony was just so much easier than my first one in the ward.  Our bishop was all choked up though.  And then after church he kept saying bye and thank you to me and finally he said he just had to leave or he was going to start crying.  I hated saying bye to all the members.  It was really hard!  It was just a huge realization of how much i have grown to love these people.  I will be so happy when i get to go back and visit them again!  Another story from sunday.  This time in the Sigonella ward.  Before church the first counselor asked sorella askew if she would bear her testimony on how we know if something comes from God because the speaker didnt show up.  SO they announce sister askew and then they announce that they would like to hear my testimony too.  So i bore my testimony on the Book of Mormon and how it was written for us to apply it in our lives today.  The first counselor gets up to give his talk and says that he really felt like someone that day needed to talk about the BOM but that morning he had changed his topic that morning because he didnt feel like it was him that was supposed to give a talk on that topic.  He said how grateful he was for that little experience of how involved the Lord is in our lives.  Then after church he thanked me for following the spirit.  It was such a testimony builder for me, too.  Mostly to realize that even when i dont have some huge overwhelming feeling the spirit is prompting me.  I get frustrated sometimes that i dont feel like im being guided by the spirit like I want.  It was an experience i needed to help remind me what it really is like when we are being lead by the spirit most the time.

        Then Monday was my big day!  I flew to Rome.  Man, trying to get my bags to be 50 pounds was a JOKE.  I was so stressed.  I put all my books in my carry on and it weighed like 60 pounds.  Thank goodness nice people on the plane helped me get it in the overhead thing...  It was the weirdest thing saying bye and then being by myself.  I felt completely out of place and like everyone was looking at me.  I really didnt know what to do with myself.  Then i got to the airport and Sister Kelly had told me to go up to departures because its easier for the assistants to pick me up there.  Apparently she didnt pass the memo on though.  Haha.  SO i was just standing outside waiting by myself for like 30 min till they finally decided maybe i was somewhere else.  But, i got here safe and sound monday afternoon and i love it!  I love Ladispoli.  Its so close to rome but its just a smaller, quieter city.  We live right by the train station and its small enough that we can walk anywhere in about 30 min.  I think im going to love my time here.  The only thing is that i was used to HOT catania and its cold here!  SO cold.  I dont even want to think about January here... It could be bad.  My companions have recieved all their packages here so you can send them straight to me here.  It takes about 2 weeks to get here so not too bad.  Oh and about my companions.  They are AMAZING!  Sorella Heiner (From Mesa AZ) is newer than me in the mission and is doing so great.  I love her!  Sorella Foote (from Reno NV) is leaving to go home in 2 weeks and is an all-star.  I have never meet anyone that loves what they do so much and is totally and completely herself.  I have a good 2 weeks to learn everything i can from her.  Its going to be great.  I love working with them.  its going to be so interesting seeing what is going to happen next transfer...

      One last experience and then i really have to end this.  There is a lady in the ward named Francesca, about 70, that is in a care center dying on cancer.  She has been less active for years but the ward has been great and someone is with her every morning and night.  Our time with her is our service for the week.  We went there yesterday morning and it was one of my neatest experiences.  Just to watch this person who knows they are going to die and is SO sick and tired but is so happy and loves her time that she gets to spend with the sisters.  She was an artist and so everytime the sisters go she teaches them some new thing about drawing.  WE sang with her and helped her eat and brush her teeth and just talked to her.  Honestly, i was holding back tears the entire time.  It was just such a spiritual experience for me.  I was so touched by her.  We go every tuesday morning and im so thankful!

     Other than that, i have to go now.  SO I CAN GO SEE ROME!!!!  Haha. I feel like im living in a dream.  Getting off the train the other day to see Francesca and there was Saint Peters.  I only saw the top but this whole thing is just surreal.  I love what im doing and where i am.  I am so grateful every day for the plan that heavenly father had for me.  I know that we are asked to do hard things but he makes it possible.  Thanks for everything you all do for me!  I pray for you always.

Love,
Sorella Chelsea