So we left the country today...

I learned that the Vatican is its own country. I thought it was its own city, but apparently its even bigger than that! This morning we went to the Vatican Museum and I got to see some cool history book stuff - the Sistine Chapel with all of Michaelangelo's paintings that he didn't want to do, the Pietà statue in the Basicila, statues by Bernini, lots of tapestries and art from many time periods, etc. It was a pretty cool Pday in Roma experience! We're doing internet in centro today instead of right by our house...and everything costs more in centro haha.

I can't believe its almost CHRISTMAS again!!! My 2nd Christmas as a missionary, and I can almost say that I spent all of 2012 in Italy on my mission. We already have transfer calls again on Saturday, Christmas (and SKYPING FAMILY!!!) on Tuesday...New Years coming up after that and the bazillion Italian feste that happen. We are very busy lately though which makes me soooo happy!!! Being busy is the best present I could have right now :)

This past week has had lots going on. We have had some bad luck with doors on the trains...we went to Anagni (FAR AWAY) to see one of our investigators, and the train stop is pretty small, and as we were trying to get off the train the door we were at wouldn't open! And then we realized there was a sign that said the door was broken (yeah, didn't see that in time), and by the time we tried getting to a different door the train started moving again and we missed our stop. So we got off on the next one, which thankfully was not far away. Sgrugola. What an awful name...but very appropriate for the literal HOLE IN THE WALL this place was...there were no train times posted, no waiting room, a big chunk of plaster fell off the wall before our eyes. And these days the transportation people like to go on strike randomly, so there are lots of cancelled trains...so we were waiting outside in the really cold for 45 minutes before the next train going back towards Termini came, and we had NO IDEA if it was going to stop at Anagni hahaha...we hoped. And we were saved!!!! We got to our appointment in one piece, very late, but it ended up being a great lesson with Diana with the spirit really strong. Satan has not wanted at many appointments this past week, becuase lots of things like this ended up happening haha. But anyways, that was a fun little adventure/detour in Sgurgola.

We had a great lesson with Dario this week! We've been teaching him together with his dad, Michele, who is the other sorelle's investigator but who all the missionaries love to pieces because he's an English course student and comes to church every single week and activities. But we know that they need to be taught separately because they're at very different levels so we finally got a lesson alone with Dario and it went really well! We talked to him about his belief in God, who he isn't really sure if he believe in Him or not. He does believe in God, he is also a little confused though. But we challenged him to come to church becuase he never comes becuase he always goes out dancing until like 5am Saturday night, so we're like "Dude, come to church with your dad! Make him wake you up!" And on Sunday he came with Michele!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He was at Sunday school AND sacrament meeting, and we were talking to him afterwards and he said on Saturday night instead of going out dancing with Giovanni (another english course student and almost'investigator!), he stayed home. He was feeling sad about not being out, so he read the BOOK OF MORMON to feel better, and it gave him comfort. We were like "YOU'RE THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!!" It was so great :) :) :)

We have a new investigator named Daniel from Sierra Leone in Africa, which I don't ever remember hearing about haha but thats where he's from. He's the one who approached us on the bus last week and wants to quit smoking. We had our first lesson with him and it was legit. We taught him the Restoration and asked him to be baptized at the end of January and he said he'd pray about it! We had another really short lesson with him last night (because he was an hour late...ahhhhh) and he's reading in the Book of Mormon and he said he thinks he wants to be baptized!! LEGIT. We'll see how it keeps going with him, to see if he ends up coming to church and such, but he came to the church for our lesson last night and we're really excited to see what happens. Africans are the best. Couple more stories with them...

Blessing is doing well and seems to want to be baptized. She's still very quiet, but she asks great questions. We taught her the Word of Wisdom yesterday and she asked "How do I resist temptation when I want to do those things?" She's so great! And we teach her with a recent convert, Doris, who I love to pieces her and her family (her husband's name is Monday...Nigerians have the best names!)

We also met Mercy this week, who's son is in the hospital and that's why they're here from Nigeria. Her son (his name is SUCCESS! Seriously, best names ever) had a sickle cell transplant and is not doing that well...we went to see him in the hospital and it made me really sad...he turns 12 two days after Christmas. But Mercy is great and we gave her a Book of Mormon and she wants to learn more. Pray for them because they need them.

We saw 2 baptisms on Sunday and we went to the Roma 1 church and Giovanni (our almost-investigator) and Michele (other sorelle's investigator) both came and it was great! One of the baptisms was the husband of a member. Sorella Ivory was who he needed, and it was really amazing to see him give her a huuuuuge hug after he was confirmed - Slla Ivory was with me in the MTC and it's incredible to think about how long ago that was and all these people that we've been able to help and serve. That family is going to the temple to get sealed together in a year. Incredible. :) The other baptism was a man from Egypt. The gospel is for EVERYONE!!!

No more time. HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! BUON NATALE!!! We're going to an American family's house for Christmas which will be so much fun!!! Vi voglio bene!!! :)

Love, Sorella Sobeck

Sorry the picture thing isn't working either - I want to send pics but the computer doesn't want me to...

Thanks for the Christmas wishes!!! And congrats to Sean and Sarah for their new little baby!!!!

SGURGOLA...stupid train

Hole in the wall

...but it paints music!!

My glasses hahaha

Basilica

Vatican museum

DaVinci code?

Love my sorells :)

Crazy bus people!!!

Ok...so being in the ghetto of Roma...there are some really sketch buses. We had a cool experience yesterday on the 105 (there are always more foreigners than Italians on this bus...ALWAYS) where an African approached us becuase he saw Jesus Christ on our nametags...started talking about how Jesus is his personal savior, and he apologized that he smelled like smoke becuase he wanted to quite smoking, how he met missionaries in Sweden a year before...yep. That was really cool. We told him "Yeah...we can help you." But then later on that same bus there were a bunch of high people who were shouting at each other from across the bus...one in particular was really funny...he kept touching the bus - the ceiling, the sides, the windows. Oh my. Don't do drugs.

We gave a Book of Mormon to the husband of one of our investigators. He is now an investigator too. We taught them the gospel of Jesus Christ, and at the end Diana left the room and we were talking to Adalberto, the husband. We tried to give him the book, and he said no thanks and started talking for 20 minutes about why he believed what he did, that he didn't read books often like his wife, etc., etc. But then at the end of his monologue (that is usually how Italians speak - very one-sided haha), he looks at us and says "Give me that book. I'll read it." Sweeeet. Later he showed us how he wrote his name in it, and he promised to read some. Hahaha I love the mission so much and all these cool and funny expereinces where people really start to develop trust in you when you just listen to them and what they have to say, and then respond with positive feedback adn solutions.

We got a new invesitgator named Blessing! People from Nigeria have the best names. She is the wife of a member, and their neighbors are also members who we see regularly becuase Doris is a new convert as of the summer. So we are now teaching Blessing and she's been to church 4 weeks in a row and she loves it. She's really quiet but is starting to open up more and ask good questions. We invited her to baptism and tried to set a date, but it was her husband, Ike, who said he wanted her to wait longer. But we are pumped to have a solid progressing invesigator in the works.

I had to go to the Questura again last week and I hope it was the last time I ever have to go back there! To be legal missionaries have to get a permesso di soggiorno, and usually they're only good for 1 year. So this is my second time around doing this process - it takes a lot of time. You have to go the post office one time to turn in a bunch of papers and then get an appointment for fingerprinting. They you go for your appt at the Questura, often a couple months later, and then a couple months later you have to go AGAIN to pick it up when its ready. It's a long process. I don't think mine will even be ready to pick up by the time I leave Italy haha, which is why I'm hoping that was my last time there. Vediamo. It was freeeeezing cold when we had to go really early to get my fingerprinting done. At least it was really well organized at the Questura...its just always waiting for the bus that takes forever here in Rome. Man. But...it all worked out. And we came home and drank some good hot chocolate..

On Saturday we had a Mormon Helping Hands service project! It was legit to be able to participate with the Rome stake and help clean up a park and a trail - it reminded me so much of stake service projects at home cleaning up by the Clovis trail. We had to leave super early, and it was a bit chilly, and then we were outside all day raking leaves and sanding/painting park benches, finding beer bottles, etc. It was a really fun day and there were people who weren't members who saw us all working and decided to come help us and wear the Helping Hands vests too! Cool experience!! I LOVE service projects. Always have, always will - I think they're so much fun and a great way to get involved.

On Sunday we got to watch the Christmas devotional from the First Presidency which was really good. I love the church :)

It's been a good week. It's geting so close to Christmas time already and things are going to be busy with activities and at the same time probably slower with the work, but we'll see what happens. I heard that an investigator that I worked with the whole time I was in Mistretta, Giuseppe, has a baptismal date for December 22nd, so I'm praying really hard for him and that he'll do it!!! I'm so grateful for the gospel and for seeing people change for the better when they realize how much God really loves them and wants to answer their prayers.

Have a great week!!!!

Love, Sorella Sobeck

Andrea - Ciao! I'd love to hear from you! My address is::

Sorella Sobeck

Piazza Carnaro 20

00141 Roma (RM)

Italia

Oh dear...SNOW

Helping Hands

:)

It's getting cold.

So I know I'm not in Siberia, but man its been a bit chilly this week.
I bought these thick tights from a Chinese store and I wear them all
the time...December has arrived and with it winter and lots of rain.

I've enjoyed this week. I feel like we've been running around like
crazy people (but what else is new, especially in Rome when we have to
take the buses and such everywhere from one side to the other). I did
scambi (I think its called exchanges in English) with Sorella Smedley
on Thursday adn it was fun to work with her for the day. We even got a
bidone and then bought some coke and soccer stickers to make us feel
better haha. We had a party with English course on Thursday evening
also to celebrate Thanksgiving with them (a week late) and we all
wrote things that we were grateful for :) I love that holiday.

Our ward is soooooo diverse. WE have members from so many different
countries, and there are many people from South America. On Friday
night we went to see a less active member who is from Brazil and
married to an Italian who isn't a member. We ate dinner with them and
it was a good experience. She's legit. We weren't planning on eating
with them, so we ended up getting home really late, but the COOLEST
thing happened on the way home. We left her house at 9.00 and headed
to the metro. We got on and it was really crowded and we were
standing. I saw a guy reading a book and it looked a lot like the one
I was holding in my hand. I motioned to Slla Openshaw, who was on the
other side of our compartment and told her to look at him...she got
the funniest look on her face. I started talking to the guy to see his
book, the BOOK OF MORMON, and asked if he was member. He's not. He was
given the book 1 year ago, has read it twice, and said he reads it to
feel calmer...he's going through a pharmacy program now and went on th
emetro to read it to feel better because he doesn't read at home.
Coincidence?? HECK NO. I will never believe in those again after my
mission. He wouldn't give us his phone number, but I know we were
supposed to come home late that night so we could get on the metro and
remind him that there are missionaries who want to help him understand
that book a whole lot better, along with a bunch of other things.
Really cool experience.

And it was followed by another one the next day when we were waiting
for the ghetto yellow train to go near the church. There weren't many
people around, but there was a creepy older guy and a younger girl.
The young girl was looking at us, and I wanted to invite her to
English course, but then SHE approached US, started talking to us in
English to see if she could stand by us and not by the creepy old guy
(umm, yes please), then asked if we were Mormon. Apparently she lived
in Las Vegas with a host family who is Mormon for a year, went to
church with them, has been to a temple open house, and has a BoM in
English. Now she has one in Italian :) SO COOL. She also wouldn't give
us her number. But from these 2 experiences I really know that
Heavenly Father puts people in your path that he wants to have contact
again with the church...we were the first missionaries she had ever
seen in Rome, and she lives super close to the church. Again, no such
thing as coincidences.

We had Zone Conference yesterday. I love being in Roma. All the
anziani from the Napoli zone come up, and we got to have zone
conference at the church and then all go (in 2 groups since there were
so many of us) to the Villa to eat lunch. Legit. The best thing was
that while walking there we all got caught in a rain storm. I'm sure
we were quite the site...a big group of missionaries running the
streets of Rome to get cover becuase none of us had umbrellas haha.
Hilarious.

I love the mission. It's full of wonderful experiences and memories.
During Christmas time its so great to be able to concentrate fully on
Jesus Christ and what He did for us...and to bring that message to
others. It's hard to be away from home, but wonderful to help other
families feel that joy. I love my Savior!!!

Have a happy week everyone!!!!

Love, Sorella Sobeck

Late night chip run??

Zone Conference at the Villa

Sorelle in Roma 

A bunch of us who would be finishing the mission in March

TEMPIO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hahahaha Smed

Hot spots on the kitchen floor...falling asleep during exercise...whoops

Crowded trenino and creepy blue-hood guy haha

MY FAVORITE

Love Valentina!