Hard day's night....

So this past week flew by!!!! It was crazy! Work was really hard this week and we got lots of rejections. Our work kind of crashed and we dont have much to work with but that is ok because we still have franco. He should get baptized in a few weeks. He is making great progress. So that is great. We also have an investigator from cuba named Yasmany. He doesnt speak italian, only spanish soo I have brushing up on my spanish haha. Its fun. Other than that our source of investigators is dying out. Out persian investigator is still doing well we just havent been able to see him lately but he is soo iterested I think that Anziano Money and I wil stay the same for next transfer as well. I dont have any feelings that say he wil get transfered. He is afraid that he might get transfered, but he doesnt want to leave because he has only been here for 3 months now. This upcoming transfer is our mission presidents last full transfer which is really sad. I really like president Wolfgramm. We will have a new mission president in July so that's weird. I am doing great. I see you guys got an email from the people that I translated for. IT was ridiculous. 16 Americans came to our branch on Sunday and I translated for 11 of them. The translators here don't work fully yet so I had to sit behind the and translate to all of them it was crazy. We have had Americans in our branch 4 times now and I have had to translate every time, but that is okay because I like to translate, it makes me pay attention to what is going on. When I don't translate there is a higher chance of me not paying attention haha. I hope all of you all well! Have a great week! Anziano Collins

La Bella Toscana...il posto migliore

Hello Everyone! We had a great week! It went by really fast.I feel like I was here emailing you alll, a day ago. All is well. We had taught tons of people. So the person that I mentioned iny my last email, (the one I said was from prussia), He is actually from persia and it so legit! He is progressing and really wants to read the book of mormon and is looking for more peace in his life. We meet with him twice a week and he is amazing. A lot of investigators cannot see us this week so we are going to have a lot finding work. We have a senior couple that is helping us out here in firenze and they are amazing! They are the tonon family. They come from torino. The wife cooks amazing food and gives us food often. They also help us with the missionary work a lot. They are here for a year and a half to help reacctivate members here in firenze. The meeting we had with Anziano Allen was amazing! He taught us so much. I feel like my whole world just got flipped upside down! I don't think I have ever been humbled as much as what happened. We are really pumped for the new way we are going to do missionary work. We are focusing on faith and how we can help them develop faith. (through pray mainly) and then we teach them how to pray and while doing so you ask them things they are thankful for, what they want to ask from god and what not, while we do this we get to know them very well and we connect with them. I tried it yesterday while I was on a scambio with an assistant(there are two missionaries who are assistants to the president) and it was awesome.. The people were more open and they felt the spirit. It was really cool. Last week we went to siena and it was amazing! I love TOSCANA! Jeremy DeReus was right when he said Toscana was the best place on earth. We drove down from milano on Monday to firenze and the sights were AMAZING! Nothing beats the toscany hills! Wow it was amazing. the following pictures I will send are form our siena trip! Love you all! Anziano Collins

What city am I in??????

Hello everyone This past week we did two scambi, so I was in the other part of firenze and I was also in another city called prato! It was a lot of fun. It is really tiring being in tons of cities in one week. It makes time fly!!!!! We have had some cool stuff happen! We have found 2 new investigators this past week which was awesome! One of them being Prussian. That is pretty cool. too bad it doesn't exist anymore. Our investigator franco is progressing very well now. We just have two things to help him overcome and then he can get baptized. He is excited about it! Other than that we are still looking for people. Being with the young men is a lot fun! We are going to be teaching them how to live missionary life, so we will teach them how to sow, iron, cook and what not. Next week will be fun, we will do a scambio with the assistants and we will have my first consiglio!!! Consiglio is when the zone leaders meet with the presidents, because of distance we only do it once a month. The scary part about this consiglio is that there will be a general authority at this consiglio. Elder Allen. The head director of all missionary work that speaks with the prophet on a weekly basis. No pressure. I am going to get my boxes broken! Conference was really good! We got to see all the sessions except the Sunday session. They focused a ton on obedience and missionary work! I am doing really well! I cut another finger but this one is not bad at all. Last week we went to piazza Michelangelo and we saw AMAZING sites of the city! I will attach some! We will be going to a city called siena today. It is supposed to be a beautiful city. There is a city right next to it where one of the twilight movies was filmed. It is one of the oldest cities that is still in original form in Italy. I hope all is well!! Have a great week!

Bikes, trains, and shenanigans.......

Hello everyone! We have had a good week! We have been working hard. We did a lot of finding work but we haven't found anyone. One of our investigators, Franco, is doing really really well! He is such a miracle. He was found by Anziano Money(my comp) and Anziano Niccoli(Anziano Moneys old comp). He was really cold at first to them when they knocked at his door but he let them in and talked and no he is taking off! What made him keep seeing us is the good feeling he gets when he sees us and when he reads the book of Mormon! He should be baptized soon. We have to help overcome a few things and he will be ready. Its crazy because he would be the last person ever that I thought that would ever get baptized! It's awesome! We had a really good lesson with him the other day. So, I almost destroyed my ankle yesterday. We were flying down a hill and my ghetto bike tried to kill me. What happened was the chain popped off really hard and fast while I was pedaling really fast, with the momentum and the way the chain popped, my ankle just rammed into the circle spiky thing were the chain usually rests on and it hurt so bad. It cut off some skin and I had a half sprained ankle. It stunk. Luckily it is okay now, I iced it last night and there is little to no swelling and I walk fine. That would have stunk! Life is out to get me apparently! I am glad everyone enjoyed the picture of my finger. It is ton better now! I am just waiting for the huge chunk of skin to fall off. I was in Pisa!!! unfortunately I have not seen the tower yet, but I will see it! Today we are going to see David, and go up the duomo! That will be cool! Enjoy the pictures of firenze! It is a really beautiful city!! Love you all!

Finger cutting, beautiful city, lots of meetings....

Hello everyone! Well transfers for the lack of better terms....sucked. I will explain. I had to travel by myself to firenze. Well with the luck we had at reggio, while fixing my razor that fell off the stick I slashed my index finger on my right hand. It was pretty bad. The second it happened blood just started gushing. I never felt pain because my body went into shock. Soooo 2 hours before leaving I do this and I had to carry 2 very heavy bags myself. Well after almost passing out(I had the symptoms that I was about to pass out so I laid down and took deep breaths), and after cleaning up my finger with 3 gauze pads because the blood kept coming, I was able to travel. Of course the ticket I had to get was one where I would have to change trains.....well on the first ride I had stand out with my luggage in the train because where the seats where I couldn't fit my luggage and I wasn't going to leave them so I stood up the hold time. Then I had to constantly move my bags because of people having to get through and what not. And I kept accidentally using my right hand and hurting my finger. Then it was time to get off and change trains. So I get off barely and I see the amount of steps I have to go down then up to go get a new ticket and then do the same amount of steps to be at the train platform. Of course there where gypsies that were there so I couldn't take a bag down the stairs and leave the other one up there and then get it after taking down the other. So I had to go down the stairs with both really heavy bags. I was sweating and struggling the whole way, before half way I was almost done. I was so tired from the traveling, the stress, and the nausea from slicing my finger open and what not. Then some girls seeing my struggle without asking grabbed one if my bags and helped me. It was really nice. It made me think about the atonement of Christ, when we are at the edge, tired, exhausted, having tried our best, right when we cant do it anymore he is right there to help, to comfort, and to carry. So I made it firenze!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is an awesome city! I love it. The accent is crazy!! when you say a c sound that doesn't have an e or i behind the c sounds like an h. It was so hard to understand at first. AT first I didn't think it was Italian!! We have tons of work to do to help out the 2 branches here so We had tons of meetings with the sisters to organize everything. After tons of meetings the work is coordinated and moving really well. I hope everyone is well! I am sorry if I do not respond to anyone's emails...I have received A lot so it is slightly overwhelming to respond to all of them plus I'm slower at typing because of my finger... It is doing a lot better and is healing well I still cant put too much pressure on it yet. love you all!!!! enjoy the pictures. the first is anziano devincent and I together as the wounded comps and the other two are of my finger!

Benvenuto al sud! (welcome to the south)

Well the feelings that I have had all transfer has become true! I am being transferred. Despite going to the most coveted city in the mission, I am still sad to leave. The members here are really cool and I really liked my comp. Well I am guessing that you want to know where I am going! Well I will be going to...............Firenze...in american(I say in american because many Italians think that we Americans speak american not English) I am going to Florence!!!!!!! Its crazy because I will going to firenze alone. We will go to bologna to pick up anziano Devincents comp and then from bologna I will travel alone to firenze. weird stuff! I cant believe I am going into my 5th city already!! That is crazy! I cannot believe it. Well this past week we finally got out to talk to people. IT was hard at first but We talked a good bit of people. On Saturday we had an older missionary couple from the mission check our apartment and helped us fix a few things. Many of you will not believe this but they said our apartment was the most clean apartment they had seen in the mission! that's right! I can clean and keep my stuff in order! Haha The mission really does change people I guess! I am doing well. I am sad to hear the passing of our grandma. I know that god lives. I know that this life is not the beginning and it is not the end, and that God has a plan for us even after death and that if we live in a right way we can live with our families forever. I comforted to know that she is no longer suffering from the sicknesses that she had! I hope all of you are well! I will let you know how everything is in my next city next week!

Just when I thought I had seen it all.....

Well I am sure you all have heard what happened this past weekend but I will make an account of what happened comunque. So, Saturday morning I got a call from my comp while we were on scambio(I was in paicenza and he was in reggio) a 9 am on Saturday. He told me that they were in the hospital. He had an allergic reaction to some food which caused his ears to turn red, his lips to swell, and red rings round his eyes. So took the train as soon a possible to get to reggio. Once I got to the hospital he was admitted to see a doctor. While with the doctor, he was given medicine. Apparently he had not eaten much that morning, and the medicine he took was so strong that he passed out. Luckily the floor caught his fall and he went head first. So, he had to get some stitches to patch up the cut on his face. Then they had to do an xray to see if everything was fine. It all turned out to be good. So They had him on a stretcher for awhile. When they went to do a controllo(ummm in english it would be a check up), the doctors had him stand up but he wasn't feeling it and passed out again. So they kept him over night. I had to all the Anziani from Modena to come up and stay with me. It was weird because I went to church with a member who picked me up. While at church I did not have my companion. Man was that weird. I don't know how Return Missonaries do it because that was realllyyyy weird! Through all of that I was only left alone once for about 40 minutes. So that really took up our week. We have been stuck inside ever since. I cleaned our kitchen for 6 hours yesterday, so that was fun. We will find out about transfers on Monday or Tuesday so I will let you all know next week what will happen. Other than that I don't know what else to write about. We have a new investigator who is really awesome! We are excited to work with him and see where it will go. Also, we got a new phone and it is a touch screen phone! When we got it, I was shocked! The church really wants to have some nice stuff! Love you all!