Addio Italia!

Cara Famiglia,

Merry Christmas!!! It was awesome to be able to talk to everyone yesterday. The Noda family had us over for Christmas and they are awesome! We were there all day and we watched The Emperor's New Groove in Italian and it was really funny. They also had a ton of awesome food, and Sorella Noda even got gifts for my companion and I! She gave Anziano Thompson a pasta recipe book and she gave me this awesome book of 90 Italian recipes that also talks a lot about the history of the various foods. It is awesome, I'll show it to you in a couple days!

This week the work went well. Actually great. Tony and Jacqueline are a go for baptism on Saturday which is going to be fantastic. It's going to be in Brescia since we don't have a font here in Piacenza. Unfortunately I won't be there! But Anziano Thompson is training so his trainee will be really lucky to come into Piacenza which is an amazing city! The work is going really well. We did Tony's interview and he is so humble and ready for the gospel, it's awesome! He reads the Book of Mormon every day and it just helps him feel the spirit so well. The Book of Mormon is incredible.

Then we also finally saw Esther again! She had been really sick which was a bummer but she has read all the way to Mosiah 7!! She puts up on facebook the stuff that she likes and her friends love the stuff she posts! She is so elect! Unfortunately her work situation makes it difficult to meet and come to church but she is so awesome. We will definitely be helping her to get to baptism.

We also had four people in church on Sunday which was really good. Three of them were husbands of sisters in the ward, and then also Cinzia came which was really good. Other than that we are just working with a bunch of potentials and there are some really cool people including some that have met with missionaries in the past. So pray everything goes well there!

I am really bummed for this weekend but also excited to come back and see everyone again. All I can say about the entire experience of my mission is that it has been one giant miracle. The most important thing I've learned and felt is the pure, complete love that Heavenly Father has for all His children and the importance of living the gospel of Jesus Christ. Whenever we are sad, discouraged, facing adversity, or even just going through the motions, turning to our Savior with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength will change everything. I'm grateful for all the experiences I've had in Italy, both good and bad, and especially for all the investigators, companions, members, new converts, and less-actives I've been able to get to know! The people of Italy are amazing, including all the non-Italians. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, and that it will help anybody who honestly reads it grow closer to their Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ more than any other book on this earth. It has changed my life! I love you all lots and thanks for all that you do!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Buon Natale!

Cara Famiglia,

Christmas is coming! It seems like everyone here is getting into the Christmas spirit with Pandoro, Pannettone, Christmas Parties, and lots of trees and lights. Those first two things are Italian bread treats that are typically common around Christmas, especially in missionary apartments as gifts from members. I will try to bring a Pandoro home, because it is delicious and I'm not a huge fan of Pannettone.

This week everything continued pretty smoothly, except that sickness is still afflicting a number of our awesome investigators. Esther is still pretty sick and also Maurizia couldn't come to church because of illness this week. We were also missing some other key investigators in church which was a bummer, but it was a good week nonetheless.

We taught Tony yesterday and he is doing awesome! He and Jacqueline are both so ready for baptism and will be baptized December 29th. They are both feeling a little bit nervous and excited but they will have such a great experience! It is so awesome to see them progress and strengthen their testimonies.

Cinzia is also doing really well, we taught her with a member yesterday and it was an awesome lesson. Members make such a huge difference in teaching, they help so much and it just makes everything better! She is progressing slowly and surely. The Book of Mormon rocks.

We are also teaching a cool Peruvian girl named Adelaide who has been through a lot of churches and has already read 11 chapters in the Book of Mormon! She is really cool but unfortunately we can only meet once a week since she is really busy. Everything else is fine and dandy in Piacenza, including the fact that it snowed this last week again and is really cold every day. I love it!

This week we had our awesome Christmas Zone Conference with the Wolfgramms! Anziani Wilkey, Scheurn, and I got to give our final testimonies. It was scary. But it was an awesome conference and I got to see a bunch of missionaries, including Anziano DeVincent! He is such a stud. It was a great conference.

During the conference an Anziano shared a thought about the greatest Christmas gift of all time, the Atonement. It's interesting to think about gifts given during this time, and he mentioned that Jesus Christ gave the gift of the Atonement, loving and bearing the sins of everybody even though he knew not everybody would receive it. I've been grateful to see that gift have such an effect on my life and especially the lives of others that I talk to and see every day. The Atonement really is the greatest gift we have ever been given. I know that it can help us through good and bad times and that our Savior Jesus Christ has a perfect love for every single one of us. I know that this is His church and that He guides His work and us missionaries. I love you all lots, and have a very Merry Christmas!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

P.S. I got all the birthday letters finally! Thanks to Bishop Higbee, Fratello Osguthorpe, Sisters Richards, Scheurn, Hanks, Evans, The Goodsells, The Smiths, and Ashley for their letters!

Snow Problem!

Cara Famiglia,

It snowed this week! It was pretty fun to bike around in and made finding work really interesting. We only got like 1-2 inches. Biking on leftover ice is quite the adventure too. I might be able to send some pictures of the snow.

We had a great work week! We had six people in church on Sunday which was really exciting. We should have had two more but they didn't make it. But it was a good experience for all of them.

Esther is still really sick and we couldn't see her this week and also Angelo and Paola are working like crazy so we haven't been able to see them in a while. But we are hoping they will still progress slowly and surely.

One sweet miracle happened yesterday! Tony accepted the 29th of December as a date for baptism! He seems really on board and is just doing great reading the Book of Mormon and feeling the spirit. He and some other investigators are coming to our Branch Christmas Party on Friday which should really help out a lot.

Not much else is happening. Everyone is excited for Christmas, they put up a big tree in centro and a bunch of lights! I might have a picture to send.

I was reading Alma 13 this morning and really liked verse 12: Now they, after being sanctified by the Holy Ghost, having their garments made white, being pure and spotless before God, could not look upon sin save it were with abhorrence; and there were many, exceedingly great many, who were made pure and entered into the rest of the Lord their God." I like the connection between sanctification and not looking upon sin save it were with abhorrence. I think we would do good to see at what point we stand on this and try to be more like our Savior! I also like that it gives hope by saying there was an "exceedingly great many" who went through this sanctification and entered into the rest of the Lord. I know that as we study the Savior and become more like Him we will be a lot happier. I love you all lots, and I know this is His work!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Miracles!

Cara Famiglia,

Well it is getting nice and cold in Piacenza. Although after reading Elder Richard's email [who is in Denmark] I probably don't have much to complain about. But we are staying warm and are teaching a bunch so it's not too bad. Today we had a good Pday, we went to Parma (which is a surprisingly cool, big, and beautiful city!) with the Anziani from Reggio Emilia and Modena. It was a good time. We saw some a cool opera house that got bombed in WWII and of course ate pizza.

The work is still going well! We are doing a lot of finding work every day and it is great to just hit the streets and talk to people. There is no limit of people to talk to about the gospel. We have found a bunch of cool potentials this last week and the Lord is blessing us a lot.

Esther is doing well but we haven't been able to meet with her and she couldn't come to church because she was sick. Also we haven't been able to meet with Angelo and Paola since Angelo found a new job and is now super busy. However, we did meet with Tony, and he is awesome! He is just a stud. He and his wife are reading together from the Book of Mormon, and he says he just feels different when he reads or prays or meets with us! We are seeing him again tomorrow. One thing you can pray for is that he'll come to church! He is awesome though.

We had a really great miracle this week! We were talking to people on the street last Friday and we stopped and talked to this lady for maybe two minutes and just got her phone number. We barely talked to her. So we called her on Saturday and invited her to church and she actually came! It was awesome! She came to Sacrament Meeting and the members were so awesome at greeting her and we met her again on Monday. It was sweet, we are seeing her again tomorrow! She is really Catholic though, but she has a lot of potential.

I really love Alma 7; it is probably one of the most awesome chapters in the Book of Mormon. This morning I really liked verse 13 which says: "Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me." I liked the connection with some talk by Henry B. Eyring, where he talked about how Jesus Christ could have learned how we feel in our trials by revelation, but instead he chose to experience it himself. Kind of like the difference between knowing something by reading it in a book and by actually going through it. It's probably one of the most comforting thoughts of all time to know that Jesus Christ knows every single feeling we have ever felt and can help lift us in our afflictions. I have felt that many times in my life, sometimes without even realizing it! I know this is His work and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I love you all very much!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Merry Thanksgiving!

Cara Famiglia,

So this last week was Thanksgiving, as you probably know better than me. I enjoyed hearing about the usual Thanksgiving feast. Anziano Thompson and I had a nice Thanksgiving meal as well. We got pizza, kebab, focaccia, and gelato. It was filling and delicious, almost like a real Thanksgiving dinner. There might be turkey in kebab, I really have no idea haha. The weather is getting colder! For the past couple days it has been nice and cold and rainy. Fortunately we have had a bunch of appointments so we haven't been out in the rain a ton.

The biggest news this week is that Esther set a baptismal date for the 22nd of December!!! She is so awesome! We taught her for the third time and she had already read up to the book of Jacob in the Book of Mormon! And she said that when she reads something she likes she puts in on Facebook to share with everybody! It was awesome. We taught her the Plan of Salvation and she even said "Yeah, I already believed we existed before this life." It was freakin' sweet!

We also have been able to see both of the part-member families we are working with and they are both so awesome! They are really close to just being baptized and can add such a huge strength to the branch here. On Sundays the chapel is almost full, it is awesome!

This week I also got to do a scambio with Anziano Wilkey!! He is in my district and was in my MTC group and is probably the most humble kid I have ever met. And he's British! He is a stud. We had a lot of fun together and worked really hard. It was weird to think how long it's been since we were in the MTC together.

I really liked thinking this week about Mosiah 28:3 - "Now they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not bear that any human soul should perish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure endless torment did cause them to quake and tremble." It is so cool to see how their desires were completely aligned with God's to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of all men. And then just thinking about not all the success they had but also the trials and difficulties really gives a missionary strength and hope. I also really loved the cross reference to Moses 7:41 which you should all go look up! I know this work is the Lord's work and that he guides it every single day! I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Gesso!

Cara Famiglia,

So gesso can mean two things in Italian, either 'chalk' or 'cast' as in a cast you get when you get really injured falling off your bike! Just kidding, I didn't fall off my bike! Sorry to scare you on your birthday mom! Speaking of which, Tanti Auguri! I hope you have a fantastic day and everything goes perfectly! Also speaking of birthdays, say thank you to the Walton and DeVincent and Blake families for their birthday cards! They were much appreciated.

Today we didn't do anything for Pday except clean the apartment and take a nap. It was excellent. It is good to feel rested.

So the reason the subject is 'chalk' is because we tried it out as a new finding method this week. It goes like this: we get sidewalk chalk, go into centro on the main street, and start drawing out the Plan of Salvation. While my companion draws, I talk to people. It was actually a lot more fun than I thought it would be and a lot of people stopped to talk and look at it. It was fun.

Quick other cool note to Elder Goodsell in Germany. His friend Anziano Day is in my district!! I got to do a sweeeet exchange with him, he is an awesome missionary and a funny kid. We found a ton of really cool people.

As far as the most important things go, Valerio got confirmed!!!!! Woooo!!! He is a stud. He said he just felt 'benissimo' after the ordinance. We also gave him the special Liahona issue about Temples and he was really excited to do some family history work.

We also taught Paola again, and she is awesome! She loves reading the Book of Mormon but is a little nervous for baptism. Pray for her!

We also had a cool little miracle this week that shows how bravo my companion is. We got a bidone and so we decided to walk to the train station to check times for a conference we had to go to. On the way through some really empy streets we saw one lady so we decided to talk to her. Turns out she has been going to a lot of different churches and is just really searching for the truth! We have an appointment with her tomorrow morning so pray that it goes well! We are looking for a lot of new people.

Another cool experience we had this week was with the branch, which every year co-organizes a concert with this little city near Piacenza. We got to go and hear it and had a little information table with Books of Mormon and stuff afterwards. It was awesome because some of the people that performed (including one fratello in the ward who is a dang good opera singer) have performed at the Scala opera house in Milano! It was my first time hearing real Italian opera.

This week we had a sweet conference in Verona, and I wanted to share a spiritual thought from something President Wolfgramm shared. He talked about how when Adam was in the garden the Lord asked him "Adam, where art thou?" and "Adam, where goest thou?" He talked about how those are really important questions in our life; the Lord may obviously wasn't asking Adam where he was physically because he knew, but he was giving him a chance to be accountable and make an honest evaluation at what point he was in living the gospel. We could evaluate our spirituality and ask where we are, and where we are going. I'm grateful that Jesus Christ is the way and also the light, which gives us a pretty clear path to follow. I love this work, and I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Transfers!

Cara Famiglia,

Even though the subject says transfers, Anziano Thompson and I are staying the same! It is awesome! I am really glad he is my last companion since he is such a hard worker and an awesome missionary. Everything in Piacenza is going just dandy! Today we are in Milano for Pday though. We saw The Last Supper this morning! And now we are going to play soccer with some Anziani here in Milano. Hopefully it won't rain.

So the work is still going awesome. Kind of a bummer was that Valerio didn't show up to church to get confirmed! We were kind of freaking out. But he just kind of had some last minute doubts or something, but we saw him yesterday and he is definitely committed to the gospel. He'll get confirmed this next Sunday. The biggest thing we are trying to do now is get him to wear a suit to church haha.

We are also still teaching Lalit, Tony, and Paola although we haven't been able to see them this past week and none of them came to church. It is tough to meet with people who are really busy with work. But we had an awesome miracle find this week! The Zone Leaders came and did a blitz scambio here in Piacenza, and Anziano Hardy was with my comp. They found this Ecuadorian lady named Ester who is married with a son here in Italy. Her entire family are members and live in Utah. We taught her and her husband a first lesson on Saturday and they are just so awesome! They are really searching for the truth. We taught her again Monday and she had stayed up til 2 am reading the Book of Mormon and the Restoration pamphlet and highlighting what she liked. She read 13 chapters! It was amazing. She is so awesome. Hopefully we can set a baptismal date with her by next week.

Other than that everything is going really well in Piacenza. The weather isn't too bad. We also had a good cleaning on Monday where we threw out a ton of old furniture and broken stuff from our garage and apartment. We actually have a little 'scarico' right across the street from our apartment where you can throw away old furniture, appliances, etc. and so we started bringing stuff over there. After we had brought a big wardrobe, a mattress, and a bedframe, they told us "Okay guys, that's enough for today." We were shocked to find out that at the dump here in Italy there is a limit of stuff you can throw away in one day! So we had to go back yesterday morning and we'll have to go back again tomorrow and maybe Friday. Missionary apartments have a lot of junk in them.

This week my companion was finishing reading the Old Testament and we were talking about some sweet verses in Zechariah(who?). In Zechariah 13:6 it says:

6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.

It reminds me of when Jesus said "Greater love hath no man than he that layeth down his life for his friends" or however it goes. I'm grateful for the fact that we can truly come to know our Savior and what he has done and still does for us. I'm grateful that through him we can be the best person possible. I know this is His church and that this work is true. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Baptisms!

Cara Famiglia,

Well this week was just fantastic! It was rainy and cold but everything turned out really well. Piacenza is full of miracles and everything is going great. Today we went to Bologna for P-day and it was actually a cool city, we saw some good stuff. The sad note was the last letter of Elder Dickson! I can't believe he's going home! It is scary how fast time flies. Tell him he had a beast mode mission.

As the subject line attests, the number of baptisms that took place for the Piacenza Branch this week was more than one! Rosa, Gianpaolo's wife, got baptized! And also Valerio!!! He had his interview Thursday and passed. We were going to have it be this next weekend but since we already had to go to Modena anyway for Rosa's baptism our Branch President recommended we move it up and save a trip for the members! So we had a bit of a last-minute organizational scramble but the baptism went really well. Valerio got baptized and afterwards bore his testimony and it was really great. He loves the Book of Mormon and is glad to have finally found the truth after what seems like a lifelong search. A lot of the members are really warming up to him too, which is cool. He will receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost on Sunday!

Other than that we are still teaching a number of people. We haven't been able to see Angelo and Paola recently but Angelo came to church on Sunday and he is still awesome. It is tough to meet with them sometimes 'cause of work schedules and stuff, but they are great. We are also still teaching Lalit, the kid from Nepal. He also really likes the Book of Mormon and wants to be baptized but his family is kind of against it. Pray for softened hearts!

My spiritual thought this week is a quote from President Monson's conference talk 'Consider the Blessings' from the most recent conference. After talking about a number of simple but powerful spiritual experiences he says:

"I never cease to be amazed by how the Lord can motivate and direct the length and breadth of His kingdom and yet have time to provide inspiration concerning one individual—or one cultural celebration or one Jumbotron. The fact that He can, that He does, is a testimony to me.

My brothers and sisters, the Lord is in all of our lives. He loves us. He wants to bless us. He wants us to seek His help. As He guides us and directs us and as He hears and answers our prayers, we will find the happiness here and now that He desires for us."

After reflecting on some of the more pivotal spiritual moments in my life I found that they were for the most part simple answers to prayers, even if the answer came a long time after the prayer. I know that our Heavenly Father has a great love for every single child and he knows us perfectly. I am grateful that he knows what is best for me and what will bring me the most joy. I know this is His work and that He guides it constantly. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

A Plethora of Pictures from Piacenza (and Pisa and plenty of peripheral places), plus pizza!

Benjamin's captions are included.

American Military Cemetery in Firenze

Anziano Benson and I at our favorite Pizzeria in Siena. I may have sent this picture before.

Anziano Thompson and I!

Me in Pisa

Botticelli painting in the Palazzo Farnese

Church where they announced the First Crusades (there is a funeral going on!)

Cinque Terre

Fratello Rotelli and I in the church in Siena, he was the Branch Clerk

In front of the Siena Duomo

Knocking doors in San Gimignano

Me and Sorella Feri, the Relief Society President

Me with Simone Rotelli, who was a counselor in the Siena Branch presidency

Painting of David with Goliath's head

Pizza. If my recollection is correct, it was a four cheese pizza. Delicious.

Streetlight decorations lining the streets of Siena for the Palio. Viva l'Oca!

The chapel in the church here in Piacenza

This is of me at the Palazzo Farnese with a skyline view of a church in Piacenza

This will be on the cover of my autobiography when I'm President of the United States

Teaching in the Rain!

Cara Famiglia,

It's raining a lot here! Although I probably have no right to talk since there is a hurricane going down on the east coast. We hadn't even heard anything about it until last night when we were teaching a part member family. I'm grateful that everyone is doing alright! It was also really sad to hear about Chris Lewis, that is such a bummer. I was always impressed with his testimony and commitment to the gospel, and I'm especially grateful for all the times we got to go home teach him and learn from him. He was awesome!

Happy Halloween! Today we toured Piacenza a little bit, we went to a place called the Palazzo Farnese where they have a bunch of art, including a painting by Botticelli that was really cool. There was also a great one of the giant battle in the Bible where Joshua stops the sun so the battle can go on. Then we went and saw the church here in Piacenza where the Pope signed the document that authorized the first crusades. There was actually a funeral going on though, so we didn't really get pictures. Italy is awesome.

This week the work continues to grow! We are seeing a lot of progress in our investigators. Also, Gianpaolo got baptized!!!! It was really cool, even though I barely know him haha. He had a really great baptismal service and this next week he is going to baptize his wife. The unfortunate thing is that since there is no font here in Piacenza, we have to do baptisms in either Modena or Brescia. Fun stuff.

Alex, the Ukrainian guy, is awesome! He believes the Book of Mormon is true but is still waiting on a concrete solid answer and a direct answer on baptism before he takes the big step. It is tough because he has learned everything we have to teach and is moving back to Ukraine on Saturday. But we have his info to give to the missionaries there and found out the church is right by his house in his city there, which will be great. He is a stud.

Another couple we are teaching is Angelo and Paola. They are both from Ecuador, and have two little daughters! Angelo was baptized about three months ago, and Paola just recently started meeting with the missionaries. It was really cool in our lesson yesterday to hear her say "I can already see the difference in my life from reading the Book of Mormon." But she smokes and is kind of hesitant to set a baptismal date. But they are so awesome!

Valerio, who I don't know if I talked about in recent emails, is getting his baptismal interview tomorrow! We hope he will pass! He is such a cool guy and just looooves reading the Book of Mormon. Every time we assign him chapters he calls us the next day telling us what he thought about them. After yesterday's lesson we forgot to give him stuff to read and he called us a couple hours later and reprimanded us for that haha, it was funny. If all goes well he should be baptized November 10th.

Other than that nothing much is really going on. The weather is getting slightly colder but it's not so bad because fortunately we just have a ton of appointments to run to! Missionary work is so great when it is the busiest.

So this week we also had stake conference, broadcast via technology to our branch here in Piacenza since Verona is a two hour drive away. One of the former counselors in the Stake Presidency talked a lot about David in the Old Testament, and so I decided to re-read some of his story today. I love the verse that describes when he faces Goliath:

1 Sam. 17:45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

It is a pretty epic story that exemplifies the strength of the Lord that is with us as we face trials. I was also thinking about it more since in the art we saw today there was a big painting of David holding Goliath's head. But the point is, God will help us face the impossible trials in our life! Obviously David was the favorite to lose, but he won because of his faith, diligence, and obedience. I know that as we follow Jesus Christ and His gospel we can have the strength of the boy David and overcome any doubts, discouragements, or difficulties that we face. I know this church is true. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Piacenza = City of Miracles!

Cara Famiglia,

Welcome to Piacenza! This city is awesome! The work here is going amazingly. It is awesome! We are so busy with appointments and stuff we have barely had time to do finding work. Piacenza is a bike city too, which is really nice.

Well I will run through our awesome investigators! Gianpaolo is an awesome Italian guy. We went to his wedding on Saturday where he married Rosa. He should be baptized this week and then Rosa the week after! They have been taught everything and are ready. Gianpaolo is Italian and his wife is Ecuadorian. They are really cool. Another awesome investigator we have is Alex, who is from Ukraine! He even understood when I said hello in Russian(Thanks Diana!) He is a Seventh-day Adventist, but is really loving everything we teach and even came to church on Sunday! It was an interesting experience haha. We are also teaching a really interesting guy named Valerio who is a 60 year old Italian man who used to be Shinto but now really wants to change his life! He loves the Book of Mormon and came to church on Sunday and loved it! He and Alex both have baptismal dates for the 10th of November! The work here is so good!

We are also teaching some other cool people including Silvia, a student from the English class who's looking for real happiness, and Betty and Daniele, who are a family from Cape Verde in Africa. All these people are super cool and it is awesome to work with them. The work here is just on fire, and everything is going well. I have never had so much work to do!

We had a really good zone conference this last week too, and they highlighted a quote that I really enjoy from Preach My Gospel. On page 19 Boyd K. Packer quoted says: “True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior.” It really is true! I'm grateful that the gospel really addresses every single concern we could have about becoming our best self, that's why we constantly need to study it every day and apply it in our lives, so that every day we can try to become a little bit more like the Savior. I know He is the perfect example and I'm grateful that every moment of our lives we have the opportunity to choose to become more like Him. I love this gospel and I know this work is true! I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Birthday Space Transfer!

Cara Famiglia,

Ciao Siena! Ciao Piacenza! I love that you can use the same word for goodbye and hello in Italian! But yeah, I am now out of Toscana and in the great city of Piacenza. It is basically halfway between Modena and Milano, and in fact the district is us, Reggio Emilia, and Modena, so I will finish in the same district I started in! My companion Anziano Benson went to Busto Arsizio!!!!! He is so lucky, that city rocks! My companion now is Anziano Thompson, who is also from Idaho Falls(in fact he went to the same high school as Anziano Benson), and who is in his third transfer. He did his first two in Busto, so it has been cool to hear what was going on there.

Seeing as how I literally just got here this morning, I'm not super up to date on the work but I can just say that it is stellar! Piacenza has seven baptismal dates and a ton of investigators! When President called to tell us where we were going he said 'Piacenza is leading the mission in baptismal dates' and in the rest of the district there are seven other dates. So we will have our hands full! My companion is awesome, I can already tell!

Thanks to everybody for the Birthday wishes! Special shout out to Grandpa and also the Benson family who sent me a really great card. I hope they know how awesome of a missionary their son is and how much he is going to tear it up in Busto.

My spiritual thought is really simple, but I really loved President Eyring's talk from the Sunday Morning session of Conference about the 'pavilion' blocking us from God. I would also cross-reference Elder Holland's talk and encourage us all to leave our nets behind and join the cause of Christ with all our heart, might, mind, and strength. I know that this decision we make will change our lives, and as we pray 'thy will be done' we will find our lives more fulfilling than whatever we could fill them with. I love you all lots, and I know this work is true!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

General Conference!!!!

Cara Famiglia,

GENERAL CONFERENCE! It's like Christmas as a missionary. It was crazy to hear the age change for missionaries, and I'm looking forward to seeing all the missionaries that will now be coming out, I expect a lot more! It was a really really good conference, I will give a report later on.

The work in Siena is going really well, we are still working with Selifa and Noeline. Noeline is doing especially well, as we taught her twice with a member this week and she watched some of General Conference and liked it! We also watched the Restoration movie with her and it really helped her understand a lot. She is excited to prepare for baptism on October 28th!

Also this week I got to do an awesome scambio in Pistoia with Anziano Gibbons! He is also from Idaho Falls and is an awesome missionary. We taught a guy on a well, that is a first in the mission! We didn't have a talk about living water though. But it was a really fun and successful scambio. We placed a Book of Mormon with a cool Italian lady and also taught a nice Muslim man from Morocco who was also interested in the Book of Mormon.

So conference was truly awesome! I really loved President Uchtdorf's first talk. It was really cool to just think of life in a different perspective and how it illustrates the principle of 'acting' and not 'being acted upon.' I liked this quote:

Life is not meant to be appreciated only in retrospect. “This is the day which the Lord hath made … ,” the Psalmist wrote. “Rejoice and be glad in it.”

I know that as we do our best to follow the example of our Savior Jesus Christ and love every day as much as He did we will not have the regrets that President Uchtdorf talked about. I am grateful for the Savior's example of loving, daily, constant service and hope I can do better to follow Him. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Transfer Win!

Cara Famiglia,

Transfers! Oh man. Fortunately neither me or my companion is getting transfered, we get to stay in Siena and see more miracles happen! The work here is going really well and every day it is awesome to get out and do missionary work. We finished the 12 week training program so we even have an extra hour now to be outside! Birthday time! Happy Birthday to Dad on October 2nd!! Woohoo!! Also Happy Birthday to Jason Richards on Oct. 1st, Aeldste Richards on Oct. 3, and Emily Evans on Oct. 4th! There are a lot of birthdays in October!

The work is going really well and is progressing. We are still teaching Selifa and Noelli(I don't actually know how to spell her name! haha). They are progressing and Selifa really wants to be baptized. We finally got another copy of the Book of Mormon in French too so now they can both read on their own! We have also been fortunate enough to have members help us out at almost all the lessons, which helps immeasurably. Members make a huge difference in the lessons and in anyone's progress in the gospel.

I also had a really cool opportunity this week to contact a referral from my good friend Aeldste Richards. A guy he taught in Denmark moved to Firenze to go to school, and we had a surprise opportunity to work for an evening in Firenze on Saturday night! So my good friend Anziano Warren and I went and found him and he is awesome! And it was really cool to be able to teach someone that one of my best friends taught! I will try and find a referral for him!

I had forgotten to mention that this last week was the Firenze District Conference, and we had a visiting Area Seventy, Elder Clifford Herbertson! We got to go to a really good training for Priesthood leaders in Pisa and hear him speak. It was awesome! He gave a really cool thought that I would like to share. His son had a really powerful Harley-Davidson motorcycle and was going to make a long trip. Anziano Herbertson compared that to the Holy Ghost. Seeking and following the promptings of the Holy Ghost is like riding the motorcycle, but choosing not to seek and follow it's promptings is like walking to your destination while pushing the Harley-Davidson alongside you, it just makes things harder. I really liked that analogy and am grateful that the scriptures and prayer help clarify the voice of the spirit, that is the most important voice we can listen to in this world. I love this work and I love this gospel and I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Going on in so great a cause

Cara Famiglia,

This week was sweet in Siena!!! We had a bunch of cool miracles that we saw and the work is going really well. Also the weather is now perfect and General Conference is coming up! It's like Christmas! Speaking of holidays, I think Elder Goodsell forgot my birthday was October 19th, not September 19th, but I thank him for his birthday wish nonetheless. I sent him a letter a couple months ago but I got the address wrong or something so it got sent back. But I will write him a letter today. I also got a sweet letter from the Blake family! They are awesome!

This week we were finally able to make contact with Anna Maria again! She is awesome. We talked to her on the phone, and then her mom kind of dropped us and hung up. But then she called us back and said she wanted to meet again. She wants to be baptized but has to talk to her mom about it. She is super brava.

We also had a sweet miracle find this week! We were knocking doors down some random street and just happened to stop Selifa. She is from Togo and is a student here at the University. She's been in Italy for three years. She used to be Muslim but then converted to Christianity. So we talked to her about the Book of Mormon and set up an appointment for the next day. She even said "I have a friend I can bring too!" So we went the next day and taught Selifa and her friend Noelli(sp?), also from Togo. Now they both have a baptismal date for October 28th!!! They are really cool, and in between the first two lessons she read all the introduction stuff plus four chapters of the Book of Mormon! And we brought Bianka to the second lesson and she and Selifa instantly became good friends. It is awesome! Members make such a huge difference in the work.

We also taught a really cool kid from Cameroon named Crèpin. He was only in Italy for a week but it was a really cool chance to give him a copy of the Book of Mormon and commit him to read it. He seemed really excited to hear about it and hopefully will have a chance to meet missionaries in the future.

The branch is doing really well too, and with the BYU students here now the chapel is always full. They are also really helpful and willing to come to lessons with us and a lot of them speak really good Italian. Two of them gave talks on Sunday, and they were phenomenal!

This week I was reading talks in preparation for General Conference, and I came across a gem in a talk from Boyd K. Packer. He says: "If someone is looking for a church that requires very little, this is not the one. It is not easy to be a Latter-day Saint, but in the long run it is the only true course." (Guided By the Holy Spirit, April 2011). I am grateful for the constant sacrifice involved in serving in the church of Jesus Christ, because it helps us learn to become more like our Savior. I know this is His church, and that the Book of Mormon is the true word of God. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

P.S. Big thanks to Aeldste Richards for the referral! Hopefully I can find him, but if not some missionaries will.

20 Lessons!

Cara Famiglia,

Well well well. We got 20 lessons! It was really awesome because it had been a good long while since the goal had been reached. We worked really hard and things are looking up. Also the weather is perfect now!

Unfortunately, we have been out of contact with Anna Maria for about a week. She didn't make it to the appointment we had set up on Friday and then she didn't come to church, and she hasn't been answering her phone. Bummer. But hey! We will find out what is happening eventually.

We also found this really cool American girl named Sarah, who is a student from Chicago here until November. She was really interested in the Restoration lesson and the Book of Mormon, and it seems like she is really looking to develop her relationship with God. We should be seeing her later this week and we will see what happens. It was strange to teach in American english though.

We are also teaching a cool Bolivian kid named Victor. He's 18, and he's kind of reserved but I see a lot of potential there. He is reading a little bit in the Book of Mormon so we will see what happens.

We finally got out to visit Sorella Lunghi! That was really cool. She lives in a really picturesque town north of Siena. Basically it is just tough because she works on Sundays and also there aren't really buses from her town to Siena on Sunday morning anyway. But she is really nice and it was cool to have the connection there. I showed her a picture of mom and she said she remembered her!

The bad news of the week is that for the second time of the mission our fridge is broken. If Anziano Kimball is reading this, I hope he knows that we are not eating leftover rice though. We are getting a new fridge on Monday. Woohoo!

The spiritual thought comes from 1 Nephi 4, a very famous chapter since I started the Book of Mormon over again this week. In verse six he says: "I was led by the spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do." Then in the footnote it has Hebrews 11:8 where it says "By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went." And then in the footnote for that it has 2 Chronicles 20:12 "O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee." I love the examples of prophets who act in faith not completely knowing beforehand the things which they were doing, but trusting in God and seeing it work out in the end. I especially liked the reference in Chronicles, that reminds us when "our eyes are upon [God]" it doesn't matter as much what else is happening because we will be on the right track. I know the Book of Mormon is true and that this is the greatest work I could ever be doing. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Life in the Mission

Cara Famiglia,

Life in the mission is very good right now, but it is always so unpredictable. We always see great miracles but then there are always some disappointments. Oh well. The weather is perfect right now and there are endless people to talk to, it is great! Today for PDay we are going to San Gimignano, which apparently has the world's best gelato. We will see!

Anna Maria almost dropped us! It was crazy. We had a member coming to our appointment with her and ten minutes after the appointment time we gave her a call. She didn't answer. Then she called us back! She said "my mom doesn't want us to meet anymore, I'm sorry, I can't come anymore!" And we were like "you can decide for yourself, come on!" But she dropped us, and it was a huuuuuuuuge bummer. Then, ten minutes later she called us back and said "I changed my mind, I'll be there in ten minutes!" So we had a sweet lesson on the plan of salvation with a member and she knows the Book of Mormon is true and wants to be baptized on October 14th still. However, she didn't come to church, so we are wondering what happened. It is kind of up in the air.

We haven't been able to meet with Rodrigo since our last lesson about two weeks ago. He is really busy with soccer and school, but hopefully we can see him sometime soon. He says he is still reading the Book of Mormon though!

Other than that we are doing a lot of finding work but finding some cool people, including Pasquale who is a student from Salerno. We talked to him on the street yesterday and are seeing him again tonight. He is a cool kid. We are working really hard to find some solid investigators and the next branch president, so keep praying for us!

This week I have pondered a lot about the spirit of revelation, which fits well with Dad's institute lesson! David A. Bednar gave a sweet talk on it in the April 2011 Conference, with a money quote from Joseph F. Smith: “Show me Latter-day Saints who have to feed upon miracles, signs and visions in order to keep them steadfast in the Church, and I will show you members … who are not in good standing before God, and who are walking in slippery paths. It is not by marvelous manifestations unto us that we shall be established in the truth, but it is by humility and faithful obedience to the commandments and laws of God”

I'm glad that the Lord lets us learn "line upon line...precept upon precept" as we come to know spiritual truths through the spirit of revelation. I know that as we diligently seek him with effort and faith, we will come to know our Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus Christ. I know this is His church, and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I love this work with all my heart. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Siena is on Fire (not literally!)

Cara Famiglia,

The weather is perfect in Siena and the work is going really well. Today we had a good Pday with the Anziani from Prato, where we got to go in the Duomo and see the floor that is only uncovered for about a month each year. It was really cool, the entire floor is like one giant mosaic and very detailed.

We have three baptismal dates! They are all for October 14th, which is good because it gives us a good amount of time to prepare. The first is Anna Maria who is progressing really well. She came to church on Sunday and loved Relief Society! It is cool because when she gets baptized it will be really good for Sorella Feri (the Relief Society President) because right now she is basically the only Sister that lives in the city of Siena and not like an hour away. She enjoys reading the Book of Mormon and really feels a difference in the message we bring, it is really cool.

There is also Rodrigo, the 14 year old Bolivian kid who is a lot like Joseph Smith. He is doing really well and likes reading the Book of Mormon a lot too, but plays soccer on Sundays which might be a slight obstacle. We still have to teach him about keeping the sabbath day holy and we will see what happens.

The last one is Luca, who is a really cool miracle but probably the least secure of the three dates. On Friday night we were sitting in the park making calls and he stopped us and said he had met the missionaries about 10 years ago. He didn't remember much though but when we taught him the next day he told us he had been praying a couple years back to find the right strada and when he met us he felt like it was the answer. We really focused on the authority for baptism when we taught him and he understood and accepted a baptismal date, but then the next day he went to another church for services. Doh! We will see what happens.

Other than that we are working with some other cool potentials, including a guy who has never met with missionaries but has read the Book of Mormon and admires Joseph Smith. We were so shocked! It was really cool to find him though.

This week we had a really good conference which had a stellar quote from a Henry B. Eyring conference talk about service in the Priesthood, although it basically applies in any gospel service:

We are to learn our duty from the Lord, and then we are to act in all diligence, never being lazy or slothful. The pattern is simple but not easy to follow. We are so easily distracted. Studying the daily news can appear more interesting than the priesthood lesson manual. Sitting down to rest can be more attractive than making appointments to visit those who need our priesthood service. 

When I find myself drawn away from my priesthood duties by other interests and when my body begs for rest, I give to myself this rallying cry: “Remember Him.” The Lord is our perfect example of diligence in priesthood service. He is our captain. He called us. He goes before us. He chose us to follow Him and to bring others with us.

I know that as we "remember Him" in all that we do we will be blessed with the strength necessary to bless others. I testify that Jesus Christ lives and that he is our Savior. I know the Book of Mormon is true, and that this really is the "only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth." I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Miracles!

Cara Famiglia,

[Photo not taken by Benjamin]

Well I don't have much time to do email, today we are in La Spezia. We went to Cinque Terre for Pday, which is arguably the prettiest spot in Italy. I don't quite have enough time to send pictures so for now you can look them up. We are on our way to Milano because there is a conference for new missionaries tomorrow. Also quick shout out to Elder Dickson in Mexico, I got his letter! It was awesome. I laughed a lot at all the things he wrote, and I sent him a really good return letter but after placing it in the mailbox I realized I forgot to write 'Messico' on the envelope. It might still make it?

The real story is that this week we got blitzed by the traveling assistants, and we saw a ton of miracles. Everything is going really well! I was with Anziano Osborn who is in the group above me and we had some sweet success finding new people, including Eugenio, a student who is studying Anthropology. He let us in as we were knocking doors and we had a great lesson. We also taught Bismar and helped him see what he was missing out on by not reading the Book of Mormon and praying about it, and he is progressing now. We also taught Gerald, a really cool guy from Johannesburg, South Africa who is here studying. He had a lot of great questions and was interested in the Book of Mormon.

Then Anziano Benson and Anziano Sciarretta also had a bunch of success. They set a baptismal date with this new investigator we have named Anna Maria. She is a typical Italian lady from Siena and is doing really well. We brought our Relief Society president to the lesson and they hit it off. She has a baptismal date for the 29th of September! They also found apparently the Bolivian version of Joseph Smith, a kid named Rodrigo. He is super elect and is going to be baptized for sure.

I would invite everyone to read 4 Nephi again and see what happens when the happiest people of all time turn into super unhappy people in just a couple pages! It is a good reminder to be humble always, never thinking to ourselves that we've "made it" in anything we're doing. I know Jesus Christ is the perfect example of humility and following his example brings joy. I love this work and I know it is His work. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Pictures! Woohoo!!

I can't send it home, but I also have a video of the blessing of the horse of the Contrada del Drago! It was awesome! The priest splashed holy water on it, and then he touched it with the case that holds the thumb of Santa Caterina! It was sweet! Then he said to the horse: "Vai, e torna un vincitore!" which means "Go, and come back a winner!"

1) Me with the Oca flag before the Palio
2) Anziano Benson and I at our favorite pizzeria here in Siena with the best view of the city ever!
3) The head of Santa Caterina from the 1300s
4) The horse before it's blessing
5) Me!
6) Me again!
7) Inside the Duomo on the day of the Palio. It was awesome!
8) Me under the Oca flag in the Duomo
9) Waiting on the campo for the Palio to start
10) Me, Anziano Benson, and Matteo (new convert from Livorno living in Siena for a couple months) on the Piazza watching the Palio opening ceremonies!
11) Us with a little flag of the winning contrada after the Palio
12) Me on the track after the Palio
13) Kind of a bad picture but it's me with the tie that Anziano Richards sent me from Denmark with a view of the countryside in the background.
14) Pubblicità for The Dark Knight Rises ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!

Palio Adventures!

Cara Famiglia,

For another year the Palio is no more in Siena! Although this most recent Palio will live on in infamy! During the second turn of the race six horses fell down leaving only four to finish. Valdimontone, a contrada that hadn't won in 22 years, pulled out a stellar victory. The race was a lot more exciting than the last one to be honest. Other interesting note: we were actually right by the drain at the bottom of the piazza with just a couple people between us and the fence. In front of us there were a bunch of kids that were watching over the fence to see everything, including a 10 or so year old German kid. What happened, I didn't actually see, but Anziano Benson describes it like this "The valdimontone supporters as they saw that they were going to win, seemed to appear out of nowhere, and proceeded to tear the kid off the fence and throw him on the ground without a second thought." The poor kid was traumatized! He was crying afterwards. Seriously, these people are nuts for this horse race!

Other than the Palio the work is always progressing, although that isn't necessarily measured by outstanding numbers. We are teaching Chiara, who is still facing some serious economic and spiritual difficulties, but she is really visibly changing as she accepts the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is awesome to hear such sincere prayers! We are also teaching a cool guy named Bismar, he is from Bolivia. I may have mentioned him last week, but he apparently almost got baptized in Bolivia about 10 years ago but then moved. Now he's here in Siena, although he works in Firenze all week so we can only see him on weekends. But he is a stud.

We also had a cool finding experience the other day. Actually finding work in general is just better lately. We are seeing a lot of success from varying things up. Anyway, the other night we were out and it was kind of late. Anziano Benson felt like we should go down some side streets that I honestly wasn't too excited about because it was off to the middle of nowhere Siena. But we went and we ended up at a big, nearly empty piazza in front of a big church. There weren't very many people but we started talking. We ended up finding a really cool student named Andrea, who is this girl from Mexico City. She actually lived in Houston for a year so she speaks almost perfect english and was welcoming to see us again to get a copy of the Book of Mormon. We are teaching her tonight so pray that goes well.

This week my spiritual thought is an invite to read the 'Pray with Faith' section from Chapter 4 of Preach My Gospel. It is probably one of the most inspired things I've ever read! Then do the prayer evaluation activity on pg. 95 and see how you can improve! I would say one of the toughest but most rewarding testimonies I've had is my testimony of prayer, how it is a literal conversation with Heavenly Father and I'm glad we can pray about anything anywhere at anytime. It is unbelievable. I know that God answers prayers and that his Son Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. I know this is His church. I love you all!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Palio 2.0

Cara Famiglia,

It's Palio time again! Siena is alive and there is tension in the air again. I am really excited and fortunate to be able to see both of them this year. It will be awesome!

The more important thing is that the work here in Siena is having it's usual ups and downs. We were working with this awesome 21 year old girl from Napoli, and she was doing really well. We taught her some good lessons and she was really searching for peace. But then today we got totally dropped by her through a text message which was a major bummer. We don't even know what happened but it's always sad when someone chooses to stop investigating the gospel. Hopefully in the future she'll have another opportunity to get to know the church.

We are also still teaching Chiara, the Sri Lankan woman who is super elect. She is still going through a really rough time and her family/economic situation is not really improving. But it is awesome to see the happiness that she shows when she learns about the gospel or comes to church. When we first met with her she was sad all the time, but now she smiles! It is amazing.

Last but not least is our Chinese friend Kellan. We found out he is moving to Firenze in September for some art school there, which means we will probably have to pass him to the Firenze Anziani. But he has come to church six weeks in a row and so he's doing well. We are just trying to organize a time when we can get some Chinese translators to help him understand everything, but he has definitely received a warm welcome to the church and the branch here in Siena.

This week I was impressed with the idea of a 'broken heart and a contrite spirit' and the 'heart and a willing mind' that the Lord requires to participate in his work. It is interesting to think about what it really means to have all those things specifically in our lives, since I would guess the feelings are unique in one way for everyone who has them but also somewhat universal. I would hope that every day even in a tiny little way we can commit to the Lord that we will show forth our 'broken heart', 'contrite spirit', 'heart', and 'willing mind' through the actions we perform throughout the day. I know that every day as we act like Christ and think more about others' needs than our own, we will see that we are happier and have a greater desire to serve. I'm grateful for the opportuntiy to serve the people here in Siena and invite them to come unto Christ. I know this church is true!

I love you all!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Miracles in Siena!

Cara Famiglia,

Another week in the mission always equals another week of miracles. This week it was really hot, but the work of the Lord moved forward. We saw some really cool miracles.

The first was a referral from a new convert, a Sri Lankan woman named Chiara who has been here in Italy for 20 years. She literally came out of nowhere, but when she says "We can even meet every day if it means I can get baptized faster" should tell you how elect she is! We have set a baptismal date with her for the 26th of August, and it will be a great day. She is so ready for the gospel and so humble. She is also going through a really tough time with no job and some family troubles, and it's somewhat tough to teach her because she doesn't have money to buy reading glasses so she can read the Book of Mormon. But we are helping her out and she is loving everything and the spirit she feels. Missionary work rocks!

We've also been having a lot of success finding with the most recent finding fad in the Italy Milan Mission -- the whiteboard! We have a little whiteboard and we write a yes or no question (our most favorite recently is "In these days does God still speak to us?") and just go around asking people. It's a really great way to break the ice and we always have great invites to people to hear more about the Restoration. It is a great way to switch things up.

We are still teaching Kellan although we are still trying to find a translator. We have a number of possibilities, the biggest problem is just scheduling.

Other than that everything is fine and dandy. It seems as though the Lord is blessing us in the month of August, when most people see the opposite because everybody in Italy goes on vacation for the entire month. The work is always increasing though. I am really happy here!

I am a big fan of some hymns recently. I have especially liked Lead, Kindly Light. Here are the lyrics:

1. Lead, kindly Light, amid th’encircling gloom;
Lead thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home;
Lead thou me on!
Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene—one step enough for me.

2. I was not ever thus, nor pray’d that thou
Shouldst lead me on.
I loved to choose and see my path; but now,
Lead thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will. Remember not past years.

3. So long thy pow’r hath blest me, sure it still
Will lead me on
O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone.
And with the morn those angel faces smile,
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile!

I especially like the second verse and the power we have in turning over our heart to the Lord. Yesterday in Interviews Sorella Wolfgramm gave an awesome training about living a Christ-centered life. I promise that as we give everything to the Lord we will be so much happier and really reach our potential as children of God. I love this work, I love this church, and I love the Book of Mormon. I know these things are true. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

It's Always Sunny in Siena

Cara Famiglia,

Well it is pretty hot in Siena. Although it isn't too bad because in Centro the streets are narrow so there's shade most of the time. But it is going really well here. Today we actually got hooked up by one of the BYU students who's doing his internship at the Palazzo Pubblico; he got us into the museum and up the Torre del Mangia for free!! We even got to cut the line! It was awesome, definitely one of the prettiest views I've ever seen. Mom would've loved the art tour he gave us too, he is studying art history at BYU so he told us all about the frescoes. Also later today we are going to play soccer with Kellan, the BYU Students, and some members. It will be awesome.

The work is continuing to grow, this week we had some really cool miracles. The first was that we were finally able to get an appointment with a potential investigator that Anziano Minà and I found. His name is Aldrin and he's probably 20, a student from Gabon in French speaking West Africa. He's only been in Italy nine months but he already speaks fluent Italian, along with French and English. He's a really smart kid. We taught him a lesson about the Restoration and it was one of those lessons where you suspect the investigator of reading out of Preach My Gospel because they are so elect. He is kind of like a French West African version of Joseph Smith. He is going to read the Book of Mormon and he accepted a baptismal invite; the only problem is that he along with most people in Italy goes out of town for the month of August. We will see where that goes.

The other cool miracle was with a certain Signore El-Nabawy, from Alexandria in Egypt! We met him at a piazza one night and set up an appointment for the next evening. We gave him the Restoration pamphlet, chatted a little bit in Arabic, and he's a very interesting guy. He owns a pizzeria on main street in Siena where his son and daughter work, and we're actually trying to help him find an apartment for them because right now they are sleeping in the pizzeria. He even came to church the day after our first appointment and enjoyed it a lot! He is a really nice guy and now whenever we walk by his pizzeria at night he always offers us free pizza!

This week I think an interesting thing to ponder is the idea of true joy. I wish I could just list all the scriptures that contain the word 'joy' but the email would never end. I did really like this one from Doctrine and Covenants though:

 61 If thou shalt ask, thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things—that which bringeth joy, that which bringeth life eternal.

I am grateful of how all the sources of joy eventually lead back to our Savior Jesus Christ and his eternal sacrifice that makes the purpose of this life to have joy obtainable. I am grateful for you all and your prayers and also the prayers that I've seen answered here on the mission and throughout my entire life. I love this gospel, and I know the Book of Mormon is true. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Wu mun shu, Chuan djtsao shu! I want to open China to missionary work!

Cara Famiglia,

Well I hope Matt Gong doesn't hate me for the transliteration of the Chinese phrase in the subject line. It is currently the only Chinese I know. What I think it means is "We're missionaries from the church" or something. Either way, whenever we meet Chinese people on the street we say it to them and they understand who we are. I mention this because this week we have run into a lot of Chinese students that are open to the gospel.

The first is Kellan, who it is still very difficult to teach because neither of us speak Chinese, and he speaks little English or Italian. But we managed to talk a lot about the importance of the Book of Mormon these past couple lessons and re-set a baptismal date for the 19th of August. He is bravo, we just need some way to make sure he understands everything we teach. Fortunately we got a bunch of pamphlets in Chinese now so it should make it easier to teach.

We also found on the street the other day a Chinese student who goes by the name of Pietro. We fixed a tentative appointment for the next night but it wasn't really sure. Then the next day he called us and was like "Hey I want to bring a friend when we meet tonight!" And we said "Great!" So he brought his friend Giovanni (also Chinese), and both of them are awesome! Pietro is Christian but wants to strengthen his faith, and Giovanni is on the border whether to believe in God but asked those questions that make you want to be a missionary like "What is the purpose of life?" and "What happens after this life?" He is what we like to call a "golden investigator."

We also met a cool Chinese kid named Tino to whom we left a pamphlet of the Restoration in Chinese. Later we called and asked if he read it and he said he liked it! We are still trying to see him for an appointment though.

Other than that we are also contacting people of many different nations; you probably hear anywhere from 10-15 different languages on the streets of Siena every day between foreigners and tourists. It is awesome. I love Siena!

I liked a thought in Alma 44 this week:

4 Now ye see that this is the true faith of God; yea, ye see that God will support, and keep, and preserve us, so long as we are faithful unto him, and unto our faith, and our religion; and never will the Lord suffer that we shall be destroyed except we should fall into transgression and deny our faith.
5 And now, Zerahemnah, I command you, in the name of that all-powerful God, who has strengthened our arms that we have gained power over you, by our faith, by our religion, and by our rites of worship, and by our church, and by the sacred support which we owe to our wives and our children, by that liberty which binds us to our lands and our country; yea, and also by the maintenance of the sacred word of God, to which we owe all our happiness; and by all that is most dear unto us—

I liked the source of their faith, from things like the support of the family, their 'rites of worship' a.k.a. ordinances, and by their desire to live a free, happy life. I know that this faith gives us increased purpose, direction, and security in this world that every day seems to need a bit more of it. I am grateful for the opportunity to see people change and grow through the gospel, including myself. I know that this church and the Book of Mormon are true. I love you all!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Pictures of the Palio

For background on what the palio is, see its wikipedia page.