I giorni del Merlo

Letter 20~

The best way to break a fast. A freshly made personal pizza. This one is melanzane- eggplant.Yep I ate the whole pizza.

Exploring Rome during P-Day

The end of January/beginning of February is the coldest time of the year here in Rome. We woke up yesterday morning to a layer of ice/hail/snow stuff all over the ground. This cold time is called "i giorni del merlo"- The Blackbird Days, according to a little old lady in our English course. She's my primary source of knowledge on all Italian cultural things:)

We woke up yesterday morning to "snow!" Okay it was just a ton of leftover hail.

THANK YOU DEVENEY JENSEN your coat saves my life!

This week was a great one! We are really seeing progress with the investigators we have.

First off I LIVED ONE OF THOSE STORIES THEY TALK ABOUT IN SACRAMENT MEETINGS! Okay here it is.

A couple weeks ago doing finding we met MARIA, a lady from Capo Verde who had friends there that are members of the Church. We asked her if they seemed happy to her- she said they were very happy people. We asked her if she wanted to find out why!

She has like 94 jobs so last week we met up with her while she was grocery shopping for an elderly lady she takes care of and gave her a Book of Mormon in her native Portuguese.

This week the only time she could see us was the bus ride between two jobs so that's what we did! We taught the Restoration in a jampacked bus, crowded up against the door with a raving crazy man sitting next to us. But the Spirit was still there! And we asked her if she started reading the Book of Mormon- she was already in 2 Nephi!

When we got off the bus we said a prayer before she had to go. 
Then she says "If I told you guys something, would you believe it?"

"Last Friday night I had dream of 2 people, 2 people from a Church. I kept asking them what they wanted, and they wouldn't say. I woke up the next morning and told my sister, and she said 'You always have weird dreams.' 

Then that day I met you two."

THAT REALLY HAPPENED.

In other news HOSSEIN is loving the Book of Mormon, he's almost done with 2 Nephi now and LOVED 2 Nephi 2: 27.

Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. 

And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, 

or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; 

for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.

He loves the idea that we have the free agency to follow God or to follow the adversary, to choose freedom or to choose bondage in sin! And he came to Church again this Sunday!

And our Romanian investigator NICO! 

At the Romanian/Moldavian Culture Night, a Relief Society activity
 that we went to with our Romanian investigator Nico! 
Sorella Clyde and another sorella she was with on scambi with met Nico doing
finding one evening :)  Nico is our best friend!!

This Saturday night was the Romanian/Moldavian Culture Night activity put on by the Relief Society, and Nico had gotten himself invited last Sunday when he came to Church.

It was AMAZING! The Romanian and Moldavian sisters were in traditional dress, they did this whole history and cultural presentation, they sang traditional songs (Nico was quietly singing along). Then they put on some music and started doing these traditional dances-- and grabbed Nico and pulled him in to dance too!!! We couldn't believe what we were watching-- our investigator was dancing with ward members! Then there was tons of delicious homemade traditional Romanian food. Nico had the time of his life, and so did we!!! He's been completely taken in by the Romanian/Moldavian "group" in the ward. He came to Church yesterday and when we left he was still chatting with them!

 a picture of Nico dancing :) 

Nico (and consequently us too) had the time of his life at the Romanian party! 

He is now totally a part of the Romanian/Moldavian crew in the ward, they've completely taken him in!

Also I just hit about 4 1/2 months in the mission- which means that I am a quarter of the way done! It's crazy how fast the time has flown.  I love it so much and sometimes I forget that I wasn't always a missionary! So happy to have this opportunity to serve the Lord. All my love to you and yours, hope you're all staying warm during these giorni del merlo!

Con affetto,

Sorella Frandsen

brianne.frandsen@myldsmail.net

Sorelle Missionarie Frandsen

Via Villata, 28

00166 Roma, ITALIA 

Puedo practicar espanol con Hermana Quezada y su amiga, nuestra investigadora, Livia.
Las quiero! Ellas vienen de Peru.

Rome is lovely in the evenings!
Pday wanderings around the city

Il Convento dei Cappucini. It's this former monk convent
place where this monk a couple hundred years ago took
all these old skeletons of other monks and decorated
rooms super elaborately with the bones.
It's like creepy art.
(No pictures allowed inside so Mom please supplement
 with google images :)