Another week camping, the Natale family, new apartment

Anziano Neff and Anziano Barnes in Pavia

New apartment in Pavia

Ciao! Another fun week!  We still don't have electricity or gas, but that's okay!  Members have given us food every day this past week (except last wednesday) - so we've been able to eat!  Luckily, the electricity should be arriving within the next couple days, and we've been authorized to buy a microwave (most missionary apartments don't have one), so we'll be able to have a refrigerator and a microwave to try to cook with.  It's better than nothing!  Our apartment is finally coming together.  We should finish unpacking boxes today (we had to wait because we needed people to come to install and put together all of the stuff - the last of it will be done today: the oven, sink, and washing machine).  Finally, a house of order (it's starting to drive me crazy - I wonder who I got that gene from...)!

Daniel is doing really well.  It's a very interesting situation.  He wasn't able to come to church last week because he had to work (he got a call from his boss on saturday saying that he had to come - if he didn't go he'd lose his job).  He apparently worked something out with his boss so that he shouldn't ever have to work on sundays again (that's at least what it seems like), but now he's working a lot more during the week.  We haven't been able to teach him at all this past week.  However, he is making amazing progress by himself.  He finally, last Friday or Saturday, began reading the Book of Mormon every day - actually studying.  When we talk to him on the phone (that's actually another cool thing - he likes to call us every day to talk to us), he gives us a detailed, perfect explanation of what happened in the chapters he read and what he learned.  His attitude about things seems to be changing.  Hopefully things will work out with his job and we'll be able to continue to help him to baptism.

The friends of the Virzo family (their last name is Natale, which means Christmas!) are also doing really well, especially Paolo (the dad).  Sister Virzo told us that Benedetta (the mom) talks to her every day and is absolutely amazed with her husband.  She asks "what have you done with him!?"  Sister Virzo keeps on explaining that it wasn't them or the missionaries, but that it was God.  The Virzo and Natale families all went together to a stake Primary activity in Milan.  They had an amazing time!  Even Paolo went, and while he was there he helped some other men work on the roof of the chapel!  Paolo also came to church!  Benedetta and the daughter, Francesca, didn't come, however (apparently there were relatives over - at least Paolo had his priorities straight!).  It was cool that he came because he usually has to work on sundays (he actually owns a casino type place...) but he made a ton of arrangements to not have to work and to come to church.  He is really making some big changes in his life!  One more cool thing - we found out that Paolo and Benedetta were preparing to get divorced (they weren't getting along very well), but now, their relationship and the strength of the whole family is getting better - hopefully we can help them stay together!

I was able to do a scambio with Anziano Mauldwin (the super happy guy from my district in the MTC)!  He's still the same happy, always laughing and smiling, missionary!  We had a lot of fun together and we were able to learn a lot together about being as diligent as we can, finding joy in it, and creating spiritual experiences all over.