Another great week! I keep loving Sassari more and more. I'm lucky because I'll have my interview with president the day before transfer calls so I can basically beg him to stay. Not really, but I'm tempted to!
Well the end of last week was full of a lot of service. In fact, we practically spent all day Saturday working for some members digging holes and building an oven. We were greatly blessed Thursday and we picked up a new investigator named Rosemary from Haiti. She was taught by missionaries in the past and is interested once again so we had a great lesson with her.
Easter was fantastic! Church was wonderful and I taught a Gospel Principles class on the Priesthood which was perfect for our investigators who came so they could understand the literal power of God. Our members here are some of my most favorite people ever. We got an invite from one of our English course students (in the picture she is the lady on the far left in the tan) Lorenza. Her husband, Sergio, picked us up in a nice BMW and took us to their nice house. Looking at pictures around their place we found out that Sergio played professional Italian soccer for about ten years I believe! He's a stud. We ate an awesome Easter lunch with them, their twenty-five year old son Antonio, Lorenza's mom, and her aunt and uncle. I felt so Italian in that setting and we had a great time. We ate some delicious lasagna and lamb. I always feel weird eating lamb, but this time was different. I like the taste but I feel so bad eating a baby lamb! We ate the meat and stuff, and then the "delicacies" came out. Let me describe to you what I saw: on this plate was a lamb's cooked head, about the size of my hand, cut in half. Everything was still there, the eyes, whiskers, teeth, but the worst was the brain. I don't know what is wrong with me but I really wanted to try that brain just so I could write today and say that I did. So yes, I ate lamb brain. It's gross, enough said.
Here in Italy the day after Easter is also a holiday, even more so than Easter itself. Absolutely everything was closed and so it was a day set aside by President Kelly for us to do some deep cleaning in the house so our house is now spic and span!
I want to share a quick story:
This is a little dumb, but I learned something from this experience. I have been studying a lot on improving oneself and developing talents. As I was taking my lunch break on this cleaning day, I was doing some extra studying, and then I looked across the room and saw three random tennis balls sitting in the corner. As I was contemplating the things I had been studying, I thought, if I can learn how to juggle in thirty minutes, I can prove to myself personally that I can do anything (as far as missionary work goes). Well I grabbed the tennis balls, and I started with one, just getting my mind used to the motion. I went and grabbed the other and tried it with both hand, throwing one ball in the air, and as it fell throwing the other one in it's stead. After I got used to the motion I proceeded to use all three, but I found myself chasing after the fallen balls every time I threw them in the air. I then realized that I needed to have patience and to continue to believe that I could learn how to juggle in a half an hour. After some very embarrassing mishaps, I got it down, and in nearly exactly a half an hour I learned how to juggle. I know this is a random situation, but it was a testimony to me that we can really achieve anything we desire if we set our minds to it, even if it's something small like juggling.
Tuesdays have become my favorite days because they are the most busy days we have now. We taught Adhemar in the morning with a member regarding prayer. All Adhemar needs to do is keep praying, and he will receive an answer. He is doing great and is seeing a lot of blessings in his life.
In the afternoon we taught Margherita and her family again with Fratello Murgia. Let me make a quick note and talk a little bit about him. I have never seen somebody more willing and more helpful to help missionaries. He does his absolute best to magnify his calling, and is humble, and attentive to the Spirit. I love him so much. Together we taught the Plan of Salvation and how we can live together with our families forever. The lesson went really well and teaching families is the best!
Before English course we taught Maurizio with Fratello Murgia again. In Preach my Gospel it says to read the Book of Mormon with your investigators if they haven't read, and Maurizio has been busy with his new job so we read the first chapter of Nephi with him. It was such a simple lesson, but I felt the Spirit so strong as we discussed Nephi's beginning testimony. We had planned to teach him the Plan of Salvation also, but the Spirit led us to do this instead, and I'm grateful for the Spirit's guiding influence on us for our needs, but more importantly the needs of our investigators.
Maurizio is so prepared spiritually for the Gospel. I love him so much! He is getting ready to do the necessary things to be ready for baptism. He really wants to serve a mission also. I'm sure by the next time I write we will have a baptismal date for him.
English course was so much fun and we spent about half the time with them asking me questions about the church. Those English lessons are the best! It was really cool because the things we talked about during the class tied in perfectly with the things that Anziano Hill taught for a spiritual thought.
This week will be a little crazy because we have zone conference, and then we are doing this surprise member missionary training meeting in Oristano. Tonight we are blessed to have the opportunity to go to our branch president's house for an evening with them and Maurizio. Maurizio loves President Murgia so much and looks up to him so this will be perfect. They have five kids like us and are so cute! I'll take lots of pictures for Morgan, Brooke, and Heather's sake!
I love you all so much! Thank you all for everything you do for me! I love you Dad, I love you Mom, I love you Morgan, I love you Brooke, I love you Heather, and I love you Greg! Have a great week! I want to share a little spiritual thought that has stuck with me from conference. Elder Holland said powerfully,"...surely the thing God enjoys most about being God is the thrill of being merciful, especially to those who don't expect it and often feel they don't deserve it." Let us always grow a humble desire to have this beautiful Christ-like attribute and be always ready to forgive others, and to most importantly be ready and open to always show our love for them who have need. The Church is true. I know it and feel it everyday. God our Father lives, and Jesus is the Christ! This little testimony I leave in His sacred name, our Brother Jesus Christ, Amen.
Love,
Anziano Clay Lacey
P.S. I just started Jesus the Christ! Elder Talmage has made me want to take a break from Italian and learn English! Yikes! Love you all!!!
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