Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Szeged Week Fourteen (Week 63)

Hey everyone! What a fun week it has been! We've been so busy.
We had Zone Conference last week in Buda with President and Sister Smith, the APs, our Zone Leaders, and the Sister Training Leaders. It was super awesome and I got so many answers to my questions that I've been having. One of them was actually pretty fun: I have been here for like a year now, but I have never really known how to use a fire blanket and I've been too scared to ask someone. So, Sister Smith was going over "household topics" and asked if anyone had any questions. In front of everyone I asked how to use a fire blanket. And guess what? There were other missionaries that had no idea how either! So, congratulations Hungary Budapest Mission, I just saved like fifteen missionaries from a certain fiery death. Hooray for Blond Questions! Don't be afraid to ask them! 
But other than my obvious lack of household appliance knowledge, I am doing super great! Szeged is doing soooo well. The weather is HOT. I am SWEATING. I am LOSING WEIGHT. Life is splendid. 
Guess what? On Saturday, we had Sport Nap. We usually play soccer, except they call it football over here. Awkward. Anyway, I scored a goal. Heck. Yes. 
I bought a tank-top for next summer that says: "I <3 Nothin". I have officially transformed myself into the equivalent of a fourteen-year old white American girl. Speaking of that, Elder Mellor had his very first Vanilla Bean Frappucino from Starbucks when we were in Budapest. He loved it. 
As you can tell, this email is very scatter-shot. This is what happens when I forget my planner with everything written in it!
Oh, here's something cool. So we have this new investigator that comes to church like every Sunday. We met with him after his work one day and chatted about the Book of Mormon. It was like our third program with him and I asked how his reading was going. He said so good and that he feels so good when he does it. I love that answer. I pointed out that that is the Spirit that he is feeling and that it bears witness of truth. Pushing it a bit more, I asked him if he thought the book was true. He said "As far as I have read, it is true." Feeling a little more egged on, I threw a bapdate out at him, asking him to be baptized if he knew the book was true. He said of course. He didn't want a date yet, but he said in the fall sometime. It was pretty cool!
Still loving life. It's getting so hot. My trainer goes home in like two days, talk about weird. He's a good kid! At church on Sunday, I met with one of my oldest friends in Hungary: my very first Hungarian I met in a program, my friend "G" from Szolnok! He was in Szeged to meet with the visiting Stake President, because he's going to Freiburg! When they say they're "going to Freiburg", it means that are going to the temple to get our their endowments! When I walked into the chapel for church that day and saw him sitting down, I started tearing up. He came up to me with this huge smile and just said "I'm sure you can understand what I'm saying now!" It had been one year! I'm still in shock.
Missions are full of these types of miracles. You find yourself stressing, praying, fasting, and crying over your investigators. Their problems become yours. Their trials become yours. You work so hard to see them through. Sometimes they can't make it through, or it isn't their time. And sometimes, they gloriously succeed, and they hug you until you can't breathe and say "thank you" a billion times in your ear and you are an emotional train wreck. 
It was hard saying goodbye to him again, but he'll be ok :) He has his faith. 
I loved my week! Find a reason to smile, because life is just a weird adventure sometimes, and you gotta smile to make it through alive! Have a great week everyone!
:) 
Sok Szeretettel,
Elder Giacalone

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