Photos from Siracusa

Our favorite member, Fillo Maranci.  Anziano
Anderson heading to Messina.

The Siracusa District
Add names

With our favorite member

Furia overlooking the castle in Ortigia

At the castle in Ortigia.

its this island here thats part of siracusa. we saw the duomo there and another church and this old catholic library. we are fortunate cause we get to do work there as well. i bought post cards to send people in the ward and some of sunnys family.

At the soccer game with our ward mission leader. I was
outside in the sun for like 8 hours.
Yes Igot burnt. not burnt anymore though

Soccer scarves

Our favorite member, Fillo Maranci.  Anziano
Anderson heading to Messina.

The Siracusa District
Add names

With our favorite member

Furia overlooking the castle in Ortigia

At the castle in Ortigia

At the soccer game with our ward mission leader. I was
outside in the sun for like 8 hours.
Yes Igot burnt. not burnt anymore though

Soccer scarves

Baptism of the ward member

Siracusa photos

Anziano Anderson before transfers to Messina

Our Siracusa District
Anziano Furia, me, Sorella XX and Sorella XX

Our favorite member, Fillo Maranci

at the soccer game with our ward mission leader.
 i was outside in the sun for like 8 hours. yes i got burnt. not burnt anymore though.

One year in Italy!

Hosford Family and Friends,

I just received Dad's letter today. I can't believe I made it a year in Italy. It's strange to think that I have been away for so long and now I am on a land island called Sicilia and that I understand what people are saying around me. It still hits me and some days I have no idea how I got here.

News here: Well a lot of people have been complementing me on how tan I am. Not that I work on it at all.  It just comes. However, I have the worst tan lines ever. Sorry for not emailing on P-day. We saw a castle then received permission to see a soccer game here which was awesome.  We won 3-0 (Siracusa vs. Prato). Then after that we had an appointment in Nato which is a bit out of the way. Yes, I am a district leader again.

My new companion Anziano Furia is awesome. We have a blast together. He comes from Torino.  He is pretty laid back like myself, but we work well and hard together. Its also nice that he doesn't speak English. Makes me speak Italian all of the time. He finishes the mission in 4 transfers but hasn't had an American companion in about a year.

The work here is going pretty well. We have been doing a lot of street cause I am tired of house and we found a way to open people up. the way being through English course. We just do work promoting it and the gospel comes up always. Its nice to be out on the street meeting and working with people outside instead of inside.

However, we have run into a huge problem in the ward that I tried to hide from Anziano Furia.  However, we did a correlation last week and the ward doesn't like two of our investigators that we bring into Church (Fabio and Salvatore). It doesn't matter why, just the fact that people have been complaining. I have never been so angry at a group of people. I didn't realize there were physical qualifications, etc. and such for being a child of God. This wouldn't have bothered me if the members gave us referrals. However its not the case. How can they want a new family in the ward when they can't take care of those which they have. Or how can they take care of a family of investigators when they can't be nice and help the least of people (Salvatore and Fabio who are incredible people). We are working with about three families and I am terrified for anyone of them to come to church. They need to move from a ward to 2 branches. One of the good members and the other of all the crappy members. So as missionaries we are trying to set a good example. I hope when the elders bring someone to church that you two swarm that person... in a good way.  Just the crap that goes on here.

Things are coming along alright with Fabio and Salvatore. We found this lady who is dissatisfied with her church and her and her husband are looking at switching.  Tell you more about her later.

So things are going along here. I hope everything is well at home. Things are just fun here. Look forward to your letters.  Love you all.  -- Anziano Mitchell Hosford

Noto flower display

Hump Day --- 1 Year Mark

Catholic Cathedral steps

Hosford Family and Friends,

Well, today is transfer day and right now I am waiting at the train station in Siracusa waiting for our train to Messina where I will meet Anziano Furia who is coming down from a place called Terni (north of Rome). So I will be on a train today for about 5 hours if the trains work right.

Yesterday for P-day we just went around seeing a couple things that we always pass by, but never have seen.  I am excited to be here for this next transfer. We might get to see a play in the Greek theater and hopefully we can go to this Flower Festival at Noto as well.  I am trying to buy some ties for Sundays at home.

Other than that, just enjoying the city and serving the people.  I have had some interesting experiences this week.

The first we were teaching Salvatore a lesson the steps of the main Catholic Cathedral.  We didn't no much of the lesson because we just talked, but it was funny because of the place. After the lesson this ignorant Catholic came up and starting blasting us in a sense about the name Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, etc.  Then I shut him up (because I was tired of it) by asking:  Have you read the Bible?  No.  Have you read the Book of Mormon?  No.  Then I said If you know nothing about a book them I wouldn't make an opinion about it and extended an invite to read the books.

I wanted to say more, but I didn't feel that I should. I had thoughts after about other things. I wanted to say, to destroy his opinion and to bring him back up in a better way. Hopefully, I might get another chance. It was nice to shut down someones' stupidity and invite them to act.

Then yesterday, we met with this guy names Gionni who speaks English and Italian. He lived in the States for a long time.  He told us that one day he, his brother, and his daughter passed by a ward movie night. they they came to English course (he and his daughter).  She loves the sisters and just every person in the church. We did a lesson with him where we just about about what we do and such and showed him the church building. He really liked it and the stuff that we represent. He said he could try to come on Sunday.  Just a great guy. He is ready honestly.

We have a couple others that aren't really making progress.  But stuff if going well here.  Hope everyone is going well at home.  Love everyone.  -- Anziano Hosford

Girls were investigating us not the Church

Hosford Family and Friends,

Today is the day before transfer calls.  So I will mail this letter tomorrow after I find out.

Well, Easter here and the day after Easter were nice days to relax. We went out in the countryside for the day after Easter. With that and conferences and such the work has been a little slow. The ward is starting a new less-active program.  In which we have been assigned 5-6 other individuals that they would like us to start working with.

We had a lesson with this lady named Paola yesterday. She is a lawyer (less active member) with a desire to learn. Yesterday we had a great lesson about the plan of salvation.  We wanted to teach the very end but got caught up in the very beginning which was great because we had great discussions about the various point of it. She has a lot of great questions. She is very smart and makes it easier for us to relate.

We also had a lesson with this guy names Fabio yesterday. We are trying to help him stop smoking while we teach him the plan of salvation. He doesn't understand very well, so we spoon feed him everything. It's necessary and we have a great time doing it.

We are supposed to be having a lesson with Salvatore right now but he didn't show up and just cancelled o nus. We had a solid lesson with him last week where we told him our intentions and everything with the lesson about the restoration. It was funny because I brought up baptism and he asked us what our intentions were and we told him.

Other than that, we just have various contacts and people we see every now and then. 

Comments from past letters:

Mom-- the girls were investigating us not the Church.  For the record I am tanner than some Italians now.

So with transfers coming up I am pretty sure I am going to another area that doesn't have a lot of work and i don't want to leave. But I am sure I will.  I hope everyone is doing well at home still.  Love everyone.  -- Anziano Hosford

Transfer news:  I am staying in Siracusa agains and will have an Italian companion.  My comp is going to Messina.  

Baking lasagne

Hosford Family and Friends,

I almost forgot to write a letter home this week. I was just making lasagna and I remembered that I needed to do it. Eitherways, the lasagna turned out better. I have the sauce down. I just need to learn how to layer properly the lasagna. I am afraid I am laying the sauce too thick or thin. Eitherways, I will ask someone for help with it.

The weather has really warned up and we no longer have to wear jackets. I am tanning pretty nicely. We put two leather chairs on our balcony for enjoying the sun. I am actually on one now. Besides the weather things were a little slow last week with conference. I really enjoyed a lot of the remarks made. Esp. Anz. Nelson’s remark about the big bang theory. I twas nice to watch all ten hours of conference. First time I have ever done it.

We are continuing to build our teaching pool. We always wanted to go to other cities to do work, but we never really have had a chance. However yesterday we went to a play called “Avola” and it was pretty. If I stay here another transfer, I plan on branching out to little cities around here. However, I don’t know if I’ll be here another transfer (NOTE FROM MOM: His comp is being transferred and his new companion is Italian and doesn’t speak English. Mitchell is hoping to greatly improve his Italian in the next 6-12 weeks). Nothing major going on with the work here. We don’t have anyone we see more than once a week. Honestly not a lot has changed since my last letter. Just moving through contacts and trying to keep our teaching pool up. A lot of people told us not to contact them again after Easter.

I have almost finished reading “Jesus the Christ”. I have put off other studies to do so. I will finish it by Sunday. 
Not a lot to write about. However, Everyone who reads this letter should take the advice given in General Conference and WRITE TO MISSIONAIRES … ME!!

I hope all is well at home. Sorry for no big news this week. Look forward to getting LOTS OF LETTERS! Love everyone.

Anziano Hosford

Misc emails:

ya we got those ties our first transfer together. i was thinking about it and i really want a nice tie collection when i come home. i took a couple photos today. not alot. i will send home just some random ones. so i am staying here again and i will have an italian companion which i am pretty excited for. doesnt speak english. and i am district leader again. district leader is hard. just time consuming. its forced me to read all of pmg pretty much.

the lasagne has been coming out better and better every time. just need to learn how to layer it better. honestly...no one feeds us in this ward. the ward is horrible...with the exception of a select few...and those few are blessed and are our favorites. Woman, that lasagne takes over two hours to make. and three if i do it without a time crunch.the lasagne is just a hassle to make...first you just cut everything up...then you start the ragu (the sauce) and you have to stir it every like 5 minutes. i hate the stirring part. my least favorite.