Good News

Hello!
Hey good news! Randomly all 3 packages showed up! One of my packages got opened by the Italians and checked. I’m sure they took a little candy and then taped it back up and left the rest. I really was glad to finally get something haha. I was so excited and thank you so very much. I was so thankful because the gloves that I bought were not cutting it. It’s just too cold. Winter is full on here and we got snow and negatives here Negative C that is not F. But humidity is terrible! So cold! So thankfully I got my packages. Loved the candy.  Man I miss American candy. They think Italy does everything great but the truth is they could learn many things on making candy and pastries. Kind of a bummer to learn that we do it better haha. Oh well enjoy the world in its fullness.. Eh don’t worry about not getting anything here for Christmas, really. I think the money in the account is much better. I will figure out something to do with it. For the first time in my life I don’t know what to do with $$$$, I don’t really want/need anything. Nothing here seems cheap enough. It’s all out of the sky prices. Soccer jerseys are like €80 or $100 US dollars so I think I’ll just get some cheese and crackers and be Wallace and Gromit haha. Everyone just sells wine and cheese and that’s it around here haha, so looks like I’ll just stick to that. . I will definitely find something to buy. Maybe some snow boots because my toes are falling off.

So surprise surprise. I managed to get hooked up with a member here who is an American. He went back to the states for Christmas with his whole family... so I managed to sneak some goods back with him and he is sending you all a package :)Don’t open till Christmas. I also mailed an explanation of who gets what in just mail letter style. Protect what I sent you mom because it’s the best you can buy here in Italy! The girls got there’s so just take it and run. Quality not quantity is what I got you and Dad. And girls I just got you some yums haha. Shhh don’t tell the kids. Just put it randomly under the tree and without and markings and see what happens when they find out I sent an entire package haha. All the way from Italy, well kind of. But anyways there you go, Merry Christmas! I did get grandmas letter and I have been enjoying learning about the Savior everyday! It’s great.  Thanks Grandma.

The work is accelerating and YES we are having a baptism!  M______ is 100% locked in. We had a good number of suspicions about him and that he wouldn’t actually commit to challenge 100% but this week he bore his testimony to us and told us that he’s joining for a lifelong commitment to the church so we agreed that he’s ready! We confirmed that he has devoted his life to this promise and covenant and he will be baptized on December 22. Merry Christmas! I honestly couldn’t ask for more. That’s all I want for Christmas is a baptism. Santa came early for me I guess. We also had a miracle referral from the Lake Como Anziani and we got this super awesome elect guy and his family. He is honestly one of the nicest people you will ever meet. He even drove 20 min to pick us up which never, ever, ever happens. Usually people are like “Hey come over,”and then we go all the way out to their house in a rain storm and they kindly are not there, then they hang up the phone on you when you try to call, so let’s just say this guys is amazing. He has real intent, it’s just a matter if he wants the blessings of the gospel or not. He has 2 super cute little daughters who are just like Bre and Anni. 5 and 11 years old and they know a little bit of English so they try to talk to me from what they learned at school. Haha such a great family. The wife is super nice, but she works a lot at night to help the dad out since the economy here is terrible and there is just poverty and homeless people everywhere. Super sad. You would think that it’s not like that, but there are just endless people searching for work and don’t find it since they can’t speak Italian. Many immigrants are here since it’s the only country with open borders to migrate. So well it’s a mess. But I’m thankful for what I have and we are being blessed at this time with so much. The work is getting better and we went from teaching 2 lessons to 10 lessons a week and we are getting stuff done! Also since we didn’t have any work to do we went on a reactivation spree. We reactivated 1 family, 1 man, we are working with another family right now to get them back to church, and in the other family we have 2 more to help as well. Most of them have been coming more often, but not consistently. We are so blessed and I think I should say I didn’t reactivate them but really the Lord did. He just put the missionaries there to help these people and really I didn’t do anything. I just invited them to change and see the blessings they are missing out on.

 We were going to go to Switzerland today but we couldn’t go because some of the other Anziani who planned to go didn’t have enough money. But we might go next week if it’s still good weather. I get to Switzerland free since I have a train pass for all of Lombardia which is Milano all the way north to Lake Como I can use any train or bus. Glad to hear all is well. Any snow sticking yet? Well that’s about it and things are going good. I love you all and will talk to you next week.

Anziano Benson