Foggia - 12/21/2015

(So this is a little personal note but I will go ahead and post it) 
Well I'll write something cool while I'm waiting for you all to
respond. Sooo yesterday we did weekly planning and at the end we tell
each other what their strengths are of the week and Sorella Peterson
said to me "you are just so bold. You talk with everyone. All the
other missionaries that I talk to always tell me that I should learn
as much as I can from you and they're right! You have really become a
missionary, you can see it. And you can see that you've let the
mission change you to become more and more Christ like. I just hope I
can learn as much as I can from you."
So that was basically the coolest thing ever ever ever. It was so neat
to hear her tell me, "you have really become a missionary,"  "it's
who you are." And that is something I wasn't sure would ever
happen, just because being a missionary is crazy haha. But it was just
really super super cool.
Anyway....that was rad. (a good shot in the arm doesn't hurt once in a while)
What else... Foggia is hard. Really hard. We have 0 investigators.
We've been working hard and seeing members and less actives and doing
as much as we can, but it's going to take a while to rebuild this
place back up. But a lot of the members I've been building really
strong relationships with, because I feel like that is the way we are
going to get Foggia going, is to build them up to give us referrals.The greenie is doing good. She's hanging in there! haha Foggia is hard.
It's a lot like Battipaglia. But she's doing great, and is so ready to
love and help the people. She doesn't understand a lick of anything
hahaha but she speaks pretty well so that's good. We'll help her get
there. I remember not understanding anything and it was so so
frustrating. You just felt lost and out of the loop and mess all the
time. Seriously though the gift of tongues is so so real. I understand
almost everything anyone ever says to me. Sometimes I understand the
meaning of Italian words but don't know the actual translation in
English. And I know when I hear something that I say that's wrong
I can hear that it's wrong if that makes sense... Like it doesn't flow
correctly.
Okay well I love you,

Sorella Kennedy 🇮🇹

Foggia - 12/14/2015

Hello family!!
Okay about the week, this week was really awesome. I had the
opportunity to do a really long scambio with the sisters from
Bari while I was waiting to get the greenie. So we had some really
super cool experiences together but one of the best was when we were
going to Bari from Foggia were sitting there and this family of 4 sat
down from across from us. There were 4 adults. So we start talking
and of course we start talking about the church and we end up teaching
the restoration right there. But the most amazing thing was that not
only were they listening but also these two guys standing in the
aisles were listening and these people in the chairs in front of us
were turning their heads around to hear what we were saying! We were
teaching half a train car! It was so so rad!!!! They all felt the
spirit in what we were saying. In fact
After we talked about the apostasy and how Joseph Smith wanted to know
which church was right one of the girls turned to her husband and
said, you know there really are a lot of churches... :) bingo.
Then Thursday I got my greenie!!! Her name is Sorella Peterson and she
is awesome! She's from Logan Utah. She's really quite sweet and I
think she's going to be a fantastic missionary. I'm still kind of
trying to figure her out but she's excited to work and learn and I'm
excited to have her.
Well I love you!!!
Sorella Kennedy 🇮🇹

She's here!!! Welcome to Italy Sorella Peterson!

The Italian people love very elaborate and beautiful nativity scenes!!

This is a girl who is going to get baptized and my new "greenie" Sorella Peterson.

Foggia - 12/7/2015

Drummm rollll....... IM TRAINING!!!!!!!!
Woooo!!!! A greenie is coming to the Foggia! I'm so excited!!! I'm
scared but I'm super excited to. I really love Foggia. The members
here are so awesome and the area has a lot of potential. It's
interesting because I've been with all the sisters from Bari because
Sorella cano left me Friday. So I'm on like a really big scambio until
my greenie comes on thursday! Anyways they told me that everyone
before me has hated Foggia. That all the sisters there have hated it,
and that they are excited for me to train because they think I will
change Foggia and the opinion that the mission has of Foggia. So
that's cool. Also I don't know if I told you guys this, but Sorella
cano actually wrote to president telling him that I should train haha
she told me that for the sake of the greenies coming in I had to
train.. Haha so cute.
Yup. What else, the anziani had a baptism and it was so so cool to
see! And then this girl that the other anziani are teaching (but that
I'm super homies with) came to see the baptism and she just cried and
said that it was so beautiful because she just pictured her baptism
the whole time and I literally almost died when she said that! I
seriously love this girl and she's not even my investigator haha....
This week part of my scambio was with this girl that took my spot
after I left battipaglia and we have just been talking about
battipaglia... And I cannot really describe how hard it was. It
was good to get to talk about it with someone else because seriously
it was so hard. I'm so glad I survived. Haha but I love it so much. Ah
the mission is so good and complicated.

Well I'm so excited to talk to you!!! I love you!!!!!!

Sorella Kennedy 🇮🇹

Nativity scenes

Week 56 - Foggia, 12/1/2015

Hello!!
Sorry I am a day late... We had zone conference yesterday and so we
have pday today! 
My address is
Via Napoli 19,
71122, Foggia Italy
I miss you... Good grief. Hearing Sorella cano talk about going
home every day makes me miss you guys so much. She said today, the
thing I'm most excited for is to hug my mom and dad...booo.....but ya I'm so 
excited to see you. Only 3 weeks till skype!! :)
Well Sorella cano is doing good. She's still working hard but she's
like all over the place haha her mind is so gone... But that's okay
and understandable and also pretty funny.  But she's doing awesome and
I'm really happy I had the chance to be her last companion. 
What else... This week is transfers! I think that the lord has a very specific
plan for me here in Foggia. In the letters president has sent me over
these last two weeks he's said exactly that. That the lord has things
for me to do here in Foggia. It'll be interesting to uncover what
those are.
We did a Jesso (a mostra in centro) where we talked about the church
and we were showing the Christmas video from last year, and this
family came up to me and I asked them if they wanted our website and
he said who are you and I said were the Mormons, have you ever heard
of us? And the father said yes, but we don't know who you are... In
fact my son just a couple days ago asked me who were the Mormons? And
so I was able to explain a little about the church and leave them with
a restoration pamphlet. They didn't give me there number but I felt
very strongly after I met them that they were a reason we had done the
mostra that night.
The ward here is awesome!! they are soooooo loving and so great. And
they love Sorella cano and I. Especially Sorella cano haha but that's
okay now they are starting to love me to. :)
Anyways I love you all. I'll let you know what happens for transfers
on Monday!!
Sorella Kennedy 🇮🇹

Week 55 - Foggia, 11/23/2015

Well family!!
What do I have to say.... Not a lot... Haha
Let me tell you some fun facts about Foggia!!
1. Because it's like a classic Italian town literally it shuts down
from 1-5.... So literally there is not a soul in sight it's crazy!!!
Haha
2. The people don't like the people here. Haha the ward mission leader
told us and I quote "there are not good people here in Foggia, well
there are but there's not very many." Haha so that's pretty funny
3. What else... Idk...
I have to tell you guys that both of your letters were inspired for
me. Because this week we basically got told that we have to start
focusing on the members here because they need so so much help.
Working with members, you do not get a lot of numbers... But that is
what they need help with. It's also really nice that I feel
like you guys have more of this reality of this mission... Because let
me tell you it is not easy. There are a lot of parents that don't see
it like that... They just think we'll you didn't baptize what the heck
were you doing?? But seriously.... The people here need different
things. They need love and kindness and healing... Literally when I
stepped into Battipaglia and also Foggia, I felt like this is an area
that needs healing... It's broken. I can't describe it. But I don't
know. I just thank you I really needed it. :)
Love you!!!

Sorella Kennedy 🇮🇹

Week 54 - Foggia, 11/16/2015

Hello family from Foggia!!!
Okay so, to preface Foggia... I will tell you what president waddoups
told me in my weekly email before I came, he said "Foggia is a unique
town, I pray it is ready for you and your power." I read that and
thought oh boy... Haha here we go.
So I get to Sorella cano and she tells me they have 1 investigator and
1 person who has been excommunicated and those are there simps. She
also tells me that thanks to some craziness that happened with her
last companion, (she went a little crazy and started seeing things)
they have basically not been in Foggia very much because they've had
to go to Bari a lot for exchanges.  Okay so
the work is minimal here... Then she tells me that the ward is kind of
a mess.... That the president of quorum and relief society arent super
mm reliable... but were called because the bishop tries to give people
callings and they won't accept.... Like everyone literally refuses to
accept their callings. 
So ya that's pretty much Foggia. There is a
lot of work to be done here... But I feel the potential and am excited
to be here. It reminds me a lot of battipaglia, kind of broken. I hope
I get to stay here for a while :)
Okay cool stories of the week though:
We went up to Bari for stake conference yesterday and it was amazing.
We got pulled into a special meeting with the new converts of the
stake and the members of the 70 that were there so we could translate
and it was really neat. The members of the 70 asked the bishops of
each ward to introduce the new converts of their area to them, and it
was soo beautiful to see the genuine love and caring these bishops had
for their new members. They spoke of how strong their testimonies are
and how they are examples of strength to the ward and they all knew
each conversion story of each new convert. It seriously was super
neat, then at the end of the meeting the Italian member of the 70
asked me and Sorella cano to go up to the front (we were the only
sisters there) and so we go up and then he asked someone to pull up
Moses 5:58-59 "
58 And thus the Gospel began to be preached, from the beginning, being
declared by holy angels sent forth from the presence of God, and by
his own voice, and by the gift of the Holy Ghost.
59 And thus all things were confirmed unto Adam, by an holy ordinance,
and the Gospel preached, and a decree sent forth, that it should be in
the world, until the end thereof; and thus it was. Amen.
So he reads this then he says to us, Heavenly Father has always
preached the gospel and has always called angels to preach it, he has
always called his angels to preach the gospel and is still using
Angels to preach the gospel today, then he turns to the new converts
he says when you accepted the Invite from the missionaries to learn
about the gospel you were accepting in the Angels of the lord. :) and
then he asked us to sit down. How amazing was that?? It was seriously
one of the coolest meetings I've had the privilege of being in.
Also before I left Rome I had the opportunity to have a lesson with
our lady with a baptismal date. So she came to us and she sat down and
said sisters, I went to Catholic Church and I know now that this is the right
church, that this is the church I need to be apart of and the church
of God. And I'm sitting their with my mouth like wide open... And then
she says to me I'm ready to be baptized I know it's right, if you tell
me I can be baptized tomorrow I will do it. My mouth was basically on
the floor at this point. So we confirmed her bap date for the 27 of
this month because she hasn't had all the lessons yet, and she didn't
want to wait another week.. :) that was the most sick thing ever.
Thennnnn let me tell you that Heavenly Father loves us and is so aware
of us in every moment. So this may seem like a little thing but for me
it was huge. I go to the station to leave for Foggia at like 6:45 in
the morning, and I'm sitting there and this is where all the
missionaries meet for usually wherever there going and stuff, so I'm
standing there talking to someone and I feel this tap on my shoulder
and low and behold I turn around and it's.. Sorella argyle :) I just
about died. She had told me she had been transferred to Ostia, which
is an area near Rome, but I was going down to Foggia so I didn't think
I'd get to see her because this is her last transfer. But just by
chance she had gotten to come up a day early, then had needed to come
to the station to pick up her new companion that morning. So I got to
talk to her for like an hour before I had to get on the train and it
was just the best thing ever. I seriously love her, I cannot explain
how awesome she is. She was definitely someone I was supposed to meet
here on the mission. We are going to need her come stay with us in
California to because she really wants to meet all of you.
So ya those were the highlights of the week!!
I love you all!!! :)


Sorella Kennedy 🇮🇹