2/14/2013 - Montesilvano, Italy

Ciao a tutti,

    Well I believe an apology is required here. Sorry I'm writing you so late. We had a special Zone Conference last week and Elder Kent Richards of the 70 came and spoke to us. He talked about a ton of really, really important stuff that I am totally bummed I had to wait til my last transfer to hear. Some real useful tools and advice for teaching and cool new stuff I had never tried yet. At least I still have another 4 weeks to try it all out though. We left late Tuesday night and took a weird little train out to the Rome 3 apartment. Anziano Wright and Anziano Wultzl (he’s Austrian) were there and took good care of us. They have a totally awesome apartment too. The only problem was the water heater was broken and we would have had to take freezing showers if it wasn't for me to save the day and use my good old handyman knowledge I picked up from the mission and fix the water heater. I'm so proud of all the random stuff I have learned to do on my mission like changing power outlets, fixing water heaters, plumbing, electrics and circuits and many other cool things. Of course I've become an expert at missionary work too but that's a given. So yeah, after that night we had to wake up at 4:30 in the morning to get a bus and arrive at the church building by 7. Arriving there I was able to run into a couple of my old companions that I haven't seen in a long time like Anziano Lacey. I was able to talk to the missionaries who are serving in Sassari right now and learned that Adhemar is still taking the lessons! His whole family got baptized as Jehovah Witnesses though.  He's still strong though. He still remembers me and wants my info so I was able to write a little note to send back to Sassari with Anziano Stevens who is working there. We got back late last night so no real time to do anything but return home. I've been going to Roma quite a bit these last few weeks but now I don't have to for the rest of the transfer. 

      As for missionary work I decided to give all the work to the other companionship so the greenie could have a good experience. Me and Whitfield are starting from scratch. We have already found a couple really good contacts though and meet one of them tonight so things are going forward. This transfer is blowing by a little fast.  Looked at my blog this morning too and saw that you already have my homecoming talk planned, on Easter! What a day for homecoming! Cool to think that the next week is General Conference too. Do you already have my flight plans? I'm praying I’m on a direct from London to LAX. That would be super convenient even if it’s a 15 hour flight or something. I want to have to pick you guys out through all those Mexicans and Chinese people holding up giant signs in the LAX international terminal. Make sure the setting apart is good and everything too. I need to go on dates and stuff haha. Just yesterday the mission presidents wife told me I was too skinny and I told her that I have to diet because in 5 weeks I have to start talking to girls again haha. Being towards the end of the mission is strange. It reminds me of how my trainer Anziano Medina was his last transfer. He gets married in April BTW at the Vegas temple. It’s strange how fast some things happen. I'm finishing strong though. I made myself have a rough situation this last transfer on purpose so I can keep myself working hard to the last minute. NO SLACKING AT THE FINISH LINE!!! And it doesn't finish here. When I get home let our missionaries know I’m ready to BAPTIZE the whole SCV!!! Woo!!! 

    Anyways, some serious things. I need a job when I get home, but that's not just something that happens overnight. The fact is, the sooner I get working back home the better. I'm gonna need HELP okay. I would like to know if you could start asking around already if anyone knows of anything, even if it's the most disgusting job ever. Even if it involves me commuting or even moving somewhere (if it's worth it) please help me out because I don't want to have to worry about this stuff yet while I'm still on my mission. Know that I'm willing to do anything and whatever gets me the most I'll take. I'll get right away on applications when I get home but still nothing beats getting into a job where you have connections or something like that. Get me into PWC with dad cleaning the toilets haha I don't know anything okay? Something that gets me a cool cell phone though like the one mom and dad have would be nice though. I got to hold a Nokia Lumia 920 the other day because a member had it, NOW THAT IS A SICK PHONE, makes the Galaxy S3 and iphone 5 look like baby toys. =) okay time to put my head back on.

    Well I love and miss you all. I hope everything at home is going well. I guess I'll see you in a little bit haha. Vi voglio bene!

      Con amore, Anziano Kyle Hill

2/7/2013 - L'Aquila, Italy

"These are all fotos of L'aquila where we went while doing a scambi.(splits) About 5 years ago it was totally annihilated by an earthquake. Walking through all the streets there felt like you lived in a post apocalyptic world. There isn't a soul outside, its super quiet and everything is destroyed. I learned that smart cars are so eco-friendly that after about 5 years of abandonment plants grow out of them like the one in the photo. Whole buildings collapsed. The castle was still intact though and its huge.

2/7/2013 - Montesilvano, Italy

"Me and my passion that not even the mission can stop!!  Found the guitar randomly in the apartment. Can only play on P-day"

2/6/2013 - Montesilvano, Italy

Ciao a tutti,

       So we had transfers this week. Looks like I'm finishing in Pescara. I am opening another companionship here at Pescara. My companion Anziano Whitfield arrives tomorrow. We were in Roma this morning and last night to get Anziano Alessandro's new companion Anziano Fossa (he's a greenie). All 4 of us will be here at Pescara. Anziano Whitfield is only one transfer younger than me in the mission so after I leave he will have little time in the mission left. I'm starting from scratch here in Pescara now because I decided to give all the work to the other companionship. Since Alessandro is training I figured it would be better for them to have a bunch of stuff to do so the new missionary doesn't get discouraged right off the bat. I hope Anziano Whitfield doesn't mind. It will be a rough last transfer but I can deal with it. Six weeks of breaking my back makes the race all the more worth it. 
       We had an interesting experience yesterday. There is a family that we found last week going door to door and we had our 2nd lesson with them yesterday. Before we left the husband said he wanted to ask a question, looked at his wife, and then turned back to us and said that they had the strangest sensation the last time we were at their house and that after we left they felt a strange sort of inner peace and all their worries went away for a little bit. They wanted to know what it was. I whipped open Galatians chapter 5 immediately and asked them if they felt any of the sensations listed under the "Fruits of the Spirit". After responding "yes" it was time to lay down some invites to pray and read the Book of Mormon  We left Alma 32 (it gets them every time) and we can expect baptismal invites the next lesson. =) BOOM!! man do I love missionary work!!! The Spirit does it all. You just gotta have some faith and preparation and he does the rest. 
       Our baptism got postponed but its no big deal. There were some "minor technical difficulties". So we will have to move it back a couple of weeks. Maria Luisa is still awesome and still totally wants to be baptized, so no worries. She is the daughter of the Bishop of another city in Sicily and step sister of our ward mission leader so she has many links. We have a general authority coming to speak to us next week in Roma too, Elder Kent F. Richards of the 70. It's gonna be exciting.  I love when we get training's form the general authorities. 
       Well I gotta go. I love and miss you all. Hope you have a great week Vi voglio bene.
     
 Con amore, Anziano Kyle Hill

1/30/2013 - Montesilvano, Italy

Ciao Tutti,

        Now you have a whole bunch of fotos to update my blog and facebook so I hope you are happy =) I wasted a ton of time uploading all these photos and sending them that I actually am left with very little time to write you. I wrote Mike a nice long email though about his mission call. I'm super stoked for him. He is gonna love England  I have met so many R.M.s from England here in Italy and all they say are really good things about the people there. Mike won't have to worry about starving to death in branches of 10 people in little tiny towns. He will eat a lot of potatoes, roast and fish. haha, not quite lasagna, pizza, and exquisite pastas but still good anyways. 

          I'm sorry I'm sending you such a short email. Not much has happened this week anyways other than Maria Luisa will be baptized on Saturday if everything goes to plan. I'll try and get some more pictures next week of members and stuff here in Pescara, also of the baptism.

        I hope grandma was okay with me waking her up at 2 in the morning, I send my apologies. It was nice to have 4 minutes to talk to her though. (he had to call about college applications & I didn't hear the phone ringing so he called his grandma Carolyn) I miss all of you so much. I don't want to leave though at the same time. I'm gonna miss Italy. It's so beautiful here and the people are awesome. I love everything about it and it will be really REALLY REALLY hard to leave. My visa and documents don't expire until April 2014 so I can leave and enter Italy and even work here as much as I want for another whole year. Maybe I'll take my wife or someone back here one day. If I can manage to get married before April haha. 

         Well that's about it for now have a great week and I love and miss you all a TON! Vi voglio bene.

          

         Con amore,   Anziano Kyle Hill