Email - November 30, 2011 Buon Giorno!

Buon giorno tutti!

 I'm just havin' a grand ole time here in the MTC. I can't believe we're starting our third week today! Time is weird here. Someone the other day put it best when they said the days feel like weeks and the weeks feel like days. It's so true. I am learning SO much every day here and I have never felt closer to my Father in Heaven. I know that he his really helping me to learn the language and more about the Gospel constantly while I am here.

So, first, Thanksgiving. It was pretty great. It was almost like another p-day for us. We had a morning devotional and it was Russell M. Nelson. He talked about giving thanks. He talked a lot about how Russia was opened for the church back in the early 90s. And it was really quite an amazing story. Too long to type, but if you can find it anywhere, read it. Quite a miracle that was... Then after that we had our Thanksgiving dinner of turkey stuffing and potatoes! It was pretty good. Nothing like the Thanksgiving dinners we have at home, but I was grateful people were willing to come in and work on Thanksgiving so we could have that meal. We went around and all said what we were thankful for. Then we did a humanitarian project. The entire MTC participated and we made 8000 medical/injury kits that are being sent to Sudan. It was a great project for Thanksgiving day. Our branch was in charge of making the boxes. We got done before everyone else so we sang Christmas hymns until we were released. It was happy. Then we had a lot of free time/study time and we just hung out in our classrooms with our branch and played games and studied etc. Have I mentioned I love our branch? There are some amazing people in it. One Anziano, Anziano Mustafaraj, is from Albania. Yesterday at lunch he was telling us about some of the crazy things that would happen to him in Albania and the rough life he's had there (to give you an idea, he had a bullet wound...). It amazes me that he is here serving a mission. He's awesome. Then Thanksgiving evening, we just ate sack meals that we had prepared earlier and had an evening program. It was SO much fun. They had a little Thanksgiving pilgrims and indians skit, we sang "over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house we go," sang a lot of hymns, and then they brought out popcorn for everyone and we watched 17 Miracles. That movie is so fantastic. We all cried. But it was so fun being in the gym with all these missionaries on Thanksgiving. Much different than at home and I missed my family, but pleasant all the same.

So our last "investigator" is now our second teacher. He is awesome! We learn so much for him and he's really trying to help us become better teachers and missionaries and italian speakers. We started teaching a new investigator, Luigi. He's awesome. But it's hard teaching him because he's atheist. It's hard to convince someone to believe in God when they're so caught up in the logic of man. God doesn't work like that. So we're working together to help him. Any tips? Ye former missionaries? :)

My italian is getting better and better every day, I think, haha. I'm really doing my best to learn all I can and I'm studying hard. I LOVE studying. Sometimes I forget. But I really love it. There's so much I want to study but I feel like there isn't enough time! With trying to learn a language and studying what we'll be teaching and how to teach it etc. etc. it's hard to find the time for it all. But this last week during one of my personal study sessions I started reading "Jesus the Christ" by James E. Talmage. Have you read it?! I'm in love with it and I'm only on the second chapter. It is beautiful writing and so full of things I didn't know or realize. Read it if you get the chance! You're testimony of Christ will grow even stronger!

Sundays here are my absolute favorites. We get to watch Music and the Spoken Word with all the women, then we have Relief Society. This week the MTC President spoke. He had some really good advice for us missionaries. Then we have lunch, sacrament, then study time. After the Sunday fireside, they play different films you can watch. They're usually conference talks or church films. This week we watched The Testaments. I love that movie! My testimony of the Atonement grew so much after watching it. I feel that since I've been here, I've gained more of an appreciation and realization of what Christ went through for us, and I am so incredibly grateful for it. And I can't WAIT to get to Italy and tell them all about it!

One of our teachers loves talking about Italy with us, and every time he does I get super extra excited. They have amazing stories about the people of Italy and how wonderful they are! I can't wait to get to know them.

Another thing they've been really emphasizing this past week is how the Lord prepares those in your mission to receive the Gospel. I know that there are people that are ready and waiting for me, and all I have to do is find them and share what I know with them. That is such a happy thought!

I'm running out of time, but I love you all and I hope you are all well! Thanks, family, for all the DearElders! Those help me a lot while I'm here and I love hearing about you! I'm hoping I'll have time today to write you all back individually. Love you!!!

Sorella Forbes

A brief testimony in italian cuz I said I would: So che questa chiesa e l'unica chiesa vera, e che Dio ci ama. So che Gesu Cristo e il mio Redentore e Salvatore, e sono grata di Lui. Nel nome di Gesu Cristo amen!