Grazie per la grazia

Ciao! Here I am again dear ones! Just loving missionary work beyond belief. I cannot even express how grateful I am to serve the Lord. I know it is changing me and strengthening me, helping me be like Him. This week has been great. Interesting and tiring and crazy, but great. Halloween was a delight with spooky fun at the Barbieri's house. they had gross-looking food and treats and a hang man with a LOVE t-shirt. It was funny. We taught them and brought the Spirit of God into the spook house and set a date for baptism with Dylan and his mom for the 23rd of December! I don't know why they did not have a goal before. It was like everyone was just waiting for Cristina to stop smoking, but this gives them a firm goal and gives her a vision which will raise her desire and power to act and stop smoking. Dylan is so ready. When Cristina asked him if he would be ready to get baptized the 23rd his whole face just lit up. He is so happy. I love that kid so much. Now we just have to help Cristina and get her into the bishop. It is possible and it would be one of the greatest miracles I have ever seen. We had a great scambio this week and Sorella Heupel helped me out a lot. We also had a little miracle where we ran into the dad of a less-active girl we had never heard of. He is the ward mission leader in another ward in Milan. We met him by chance right in front of his daughter's house and he told us she lived there and called her right in front of us, telling her there were two missionaries looking for her and that we wanted to come up. Well, we got her number and an appointment to come back. God really does take care of all of his children. I am excited to meet her. We finally saw Beny again and though she did not want to set a baptismal date she would set a date with us for her to find her answer. By the end of the month Beny will know the church is true. :). I love her. She is so smart, just a little unsure and wants to do the right thing. She will get it if she commits herself to finding the answer this month. My companion got sick Sunday night and through up until about 10 in the morning and has basically been hovering between almost living and nearly dead since then. I may be exaggerating, but she was really sick. She passed out in the bathroom Monday morning. Ugh. The anziani came over to give her a blessing. It was really nice, though slightly awkward. She was in pajamas...they were in our house...things that don't usually occur. They are wonderful missionaries and I really appreciate their love and concern and their willingness to use the priesthood to bless. It really helps. Anyway, with my dear sorellina ill I have had a lot of time to write, think, study, and clean the apartment. Apart from our sleeping quarters it is sparkling. Aside from cabin fever, I have suffered little other than worry for her.  I have listened to many general conference talks and studied a lot of scripture and just really thought a lot about the grace of God and how grateful I am that I don't have to be perfect right now. I can learn Christlike attributes with time and one day be ready to live with Him because I will be like Him. I am grateful for the process. I am grateful that grace covers everything and that I just have to keep trying. I am so glad that I don't learn everything right away (which is a hard thing for me to say) because it means the lesson will really stick when I finally get it. I will really be changed. That means a lot to me. I am grateful I have challenges because I have to rely on the savior and it is only by doing that I can understand the goodness and mercy of God and the joy that he has in store for me, or even the joy that I experience now, serving him, giving the best that I am, however imperfect it may be. I still have a lot to learn about grace, but I am so grateful that the love of God surpasses all things, and that if he is okay that I am not perfect (he made me that way, so I could learn and gain strength by overcoming my weaknesses which are really gifts that are just harder to open because we have to gain the strength to use them and understand them) I can love myself as I am and then work to improve to be fit for the kingdom. That is what I am learning. He is always with us and as long as we keep trying he will keep covering us. I love the Lord a lot for that. Tanti bacioni a tutti voi! Just remember Him and do your best. 

Halloween

Happy Halloween!!!! How I love it! It is a perfectly gray day here, just right for Halloween. So much has happened this week and I know I say that a LOT but I really mean it this time. I really do. I will have to briefly sum up the wondrous events and hope that my few words sufficeth me. Last Wednesday we taught a lesson with Henry and Jessica using hymns to explain the principles in the restoration. We had a great time singing and feeling the spirit. Henry said it was the most beautiful lesson they have ever had. Which is quite a compliment. At consiglio they brought up the idea to do the musical "my turn on earth" and it was suggested that I direct it and take part. I don't know if that is okay or if I will have time to help a lot, but it would be delightful fun if possible, and I know I could help. Thursday was Anziano Webb's birthday so we made him a cake with a spider web on it I did using honey to make it shiny and I made up some story about how we needed a Spanish Book of Mormon for a woman we found in the area book and stressed him and his companion as they tried to make it home so we could meet them and get a Book of Mormon. When we showed up with a cake, his face was priceless! When he found out it was all a lie, it was even more funny. I know honesty is important, but I think we can be forgiven for lies told to cover birthday surprises. That afternoon Sorella Wolfgramm called to ask if my companion and I could be tour guides for a couple of hours to someone who I know very well...Susan! This wonderful American woman I met a year ago in Firenze was staying with the Wolfgramm's and they were unable to show her around, so we got to do so. We went to the duomo, ate panzerotti, and talked, catching up and reminiscing about Firenze. It was a marvelous miraculous afternoon and I felt so blessed. I am still flabbergasted it worked out like that. Afterwards we met with an inactive woman and her family. Her daughter in law is not a member but was very intent on everything we said and wants to learn more. Her son is an inactive returned missionary and rather cold but I hope we can help them all heal their hearts and come back. It was a beautiful lesson. My companion has been having problems with her velcro shoes and saw a nun walking to the casa di nazareth here and said she wondered where she got HER shoes and if only nuns could get them. I nearly died laughing and my dear Sorella Brown couldn't figure out why. Lei vuole le scarpe da suora. It is HYSTERICAL. Beny had us over and fed us tea and crackers and random things she found in her cupboard. She is adorable and we had an awesome discussion. If we can just overcome her admitted laziness together, she will get baptized, I am certain. Gotta love her. Saturday I felt like walking down into the metro for no reason. It was out of the way, but we went and I saw this woman on her phone and new we had to talk to her, so we followed her. She sat down and I sat next to her and started talking. We followed her onto the metro and kept talking and got her number. We got off the stop after her and headed up because I new we could catch the bus there and there was a man playing the guitar and singing into a microphone there on the street. He was AMAZING. And he was playing my favorite Italian song, "Meraviglioso" by Domenico Modugno. We lingered for a moment because it was just so wonderful and I wish I knew the man's name, but anyway, it was a little personal demonstration that God is mindful of us. He led us to that woman and to the music. Dio ci ama tanto. Sunday I was asked to give a talk in church two minutes before sacrament meeting began, so after translating the first talk I handed the thing to Anziano Webb and headed up with barely an idea of what to say since I had only thought about it for a few minutes during the sacrament. I talked about how God loves us and about repentance and the opportunity we have to feel his love, improve, and share it. My knees were a little weak, but it must have gone alright because a lot of members told me I did well. One sister told me she cried and another hugged me and complimented me on my Italian saying she was amazed I could speak that well and communicate with the spirit. It was one of the nicest compliments I have ever received. I feel like after that, I can do anything. I gave an unprepared talk in Italian to a bunch of Italians and it went well. Thanks to Heavenly Father. Truly. I felt so blessed. We had lunch with the ward and then watched the film the mountain of the Lord together and had a nice time.  My companion and I spent a while talking. I guess I was a little discouraged about how I was doing  as a missionary and she thought I was beginning to feel badly all of the time. I am grateful for her honesty, because it gave me a chance to take a look at myself in another way. She said we do our best and that is good enough. I think I am starting to believe it. I just have this unquenchable thirst to improve. I just should not let that drive make me feel bad when i don't improve fast enough or don't succeed right away. To everything there is a season and we progress exactly as quickly as we should if we keep doing all we can. Monday I took some finger cookies to district meeting to celebrate an early Halloween and they were appalled at how disgusting they were. I told them I did not have time to wash them well, that's why they were dirty. I thought a couple of the anziani were going to faint or be sick as they turned white and green but in the end, they ate them anyway. I am taking them to the Baribieri-xhunga family tonight as well and I am so excited because they love Halloween and they will love them. At district meeting I really took in a lot this time. We had a role play that really helped me focus on helping others make commitments and progress and how to do it boldly and with love and I realized that I am capable of being the missionary I want to be and the missionary I see in so many others. We all struggle with things and we all succeed at things and we are all good missionaries. I learned so much from our anziani and how they work and I was able to also take a look at our work, refocus, and improve and enjoy it again. We have seen so many miracles since. We talked to an old man who did not want to listen but showed as how to get to a bar to buy some water and this bar was inside a fence next to a soccer field and it was not visible at all, but when we got there we met a girl named Farbin and she was super interested in the Book of Mormon. We hardly said anything, just a brief testimony, and she gave us her number and asked if we had one also in tamil for her mom. Miracle! A little old lady named Albina let us into her house and kept telling us the same things and asking us where we lived. She was a little crazy, but we sang for her and she gave us a very ripe banana. Yesterday we were freezing in our house and boiled water for a while to heat our kitchen and then discovered our air conditioner things work for heat as well. Our house was very humid after. A man came today to fix the regular heaters so that is lovely. No more frozen sister missionaries. We taught some awesome lessons and then did  casa last night and were led to a woman who had studied with missionaries before but is going through a seriously difficult time right now. she does not believe god answers her, that he made a mistake creating her, she is very angry and very lonely. She let us in and we were able to pray with her and have a real beautiful lesson talking about the love of God and bearing testimony that he understands and that he answers. We were led right to her, and I really hope it made a difference. We were a part of god's answer and that really is a miracle. I had so much energy last night, I was so happy, just feeling like a missionary and loving the work, I skipped all the way home. I looked like a crazy person, but it was just such a good day and I feel like I have had such a change this week. I feel worry free, more confident, and more capable to transmit Heavenly Father's love and help his children change their lives for the better like he has done for mine. This Gospel is the way back to him and to happiness and I know it. Love you all!!!

October 24th

What an adventure it has been this week. I am slightly ill, slightly suffering from intense nasal congestion and furious sneezes, but all is well. I don't think I have laughed as hard as I have laughed this week in a long time. The other night, I was beginning to get sick and we were out knocking doors. Our plans had all fallen through and we walked through an odd twilight zone tunnel that took us to an entirely different part of Milan, and as my companion said, it was like the map folded. We had been doing ricerca for a while and no one wanted to listen except a woman who only spoke Chinese, so our efforts were momentarily fruitless. Little did we know that would change, though we still would not find anyone. I said I needed to sit down, but there was no where to be found, so we started to leave the area. A young girl walked past us in the opposite direction and I said, "let's talk to her." She was walking fast and as I said before, I did not feel well, so we didn't catch her. But, we found a place to sit down. Miracle. I tried to make some phone calls and my beautiful companion gave me a pep talk from heaven. Really. She made me feel so much better by telling me how great it is to not be perfect. We do our best and it is good enough and we have wonderful experiences. Even if nothing works out. And she is right. Miracle. Then two Chinese men motioned to us to open the gate for them. I did and then tried to talk to them, but they did not speak Italian. Sweetly, one of them showed me what was in the bag he had, pulled one out, and laid it in my hand. He had given me a kiwi. With the stem still on it. And then walked away laughing. It gives new meaning to the scripture "take no thought before hand what ye shall eat..."That was another of our many "God loves us" moments and how He turned our rather fruitless evening into a fruitful one. Miracle. Every time something goes wrong, we look for the silver lining and just remember to say, "Dio ci ama" "ci ama ancora". It is a beautiful practice and makes each day great. In other news, I nearly died laughing recounting this story and our very silly week in district meeting. I was crying I was laughing so hard and then I sat down saying "I really don't feel well guys". I was a nutcase. Oh well. I blame the nasal decongestant. It expires this month. Other great things...After Benny did not show up to her appointment with us twice and we were discouraged, she begged us to come over and really opened her heart to us. She wants to meet with us again and I am so excited! She is so great! We met a neat lady named Saturnina who joked about her name meaning little Saturn and how she isn't really human. We had a very tasty kebab with a piadina made right in front of us. I bought boots today! And Anziano Webb and Torgerson gave me a blessing and as always, I am really appreciative of the love that God has for us and that he makes manifest through the power of the priesthood. All in all, it has been a wonderful week. My companion and I are both doing relatively well, at least we get along splendidly even if my health deteriorated mildly this week. I love Sorella brown! She is so great! such a good missionary and so fun! If nothing else, I hope you have all had a good laugh reading this and that in the future you will remember to look on the bright side, sing a song, eat a kiwi, and remember God loves you!

Oct. 17

Well all my dear ones, it has been another wonderful week in Milano. My companion has been thoroughly exposed to finding, knocking doors, and talking to crazy people in the park or on the street, getting yelled at, almost kicked out of buildings, and having people threaten to call the police or call us rude for interrupting lunch. It is delightful fun. My companion was so cute singing the "count your rejections" song. Way to stay positive, Sorellina! After this week she can probably face anything. We had a miracle that came from all of that, though. We met this crazy spiritual teacher type man, Lenny, in a park with a young girl he was helping learn English, Silvia. He talked and talked and thought everything he said was right, said you couldn't define God because that limits god, god is in us, in everything, we know everything if we listen to everything, including rocks, and he believes he has the power to put thoughts into peoples heads and move things with his mind and can read the thoughts of others. It was fascinating. And uncomfortable. Did we back down? Did we argue? No. We bore testimony. Even though my poor companion just wanted to leave. Afterward we both felt like we had been there for Silvia. We did not know why because we did not get her info, but we saw how she listened to us and we said a prayer for her. Two days later, the anziani in como called us because they had just met her on the street, invited her to read the Book of Mormon and will be seeing her in the near future. Miracle. God is mindful of all his children. And, having a good attitude when everything goes badly brings blessings. Even getting yelled at can be fun. In other news, Olga finally has a baptismal date, though it is not until January, it is still a huge miracle. Things are moving forward with Cristina, Dylan, and all of their family. We just keep praying it all works out for December. That would be maybe the greatest miracle of all. We said goodbye to Nicole today, who flies to New York tomorrow. She is going to do great things. She got a 5 year student visa and is so excited. I am so proud of her and of who she is becoming. I have to go, but I just wanted to say how grateful I am for the chance I have to be a missionary. I see everyday other people grow and how I am growing myself, but it is  not just because I am on a mission, but because of the things we DO as missionaries. Things we can all do. I grow and I learn to love others more because I am applying the atonement more in my life so I can share it and as I do that I want to share it more. My relationship with my father in Heaven grows because my prayers are more meaningful. I am a little less selfish and a little more generous, a little more kind. Still very VERY imperfect. Seriously flawed. But I know I am changing and growing. I know His grace makes the difference and will continue to do so and that His love is the most powerful thing there is and will heal any hurt, any wound, any heartache. Everything will be made up. This gospel is so beautifully perfect and I really love that. I know it is true for myself and that is something very special. 

Sorella Chandra Lloyd

Addestramento e divertimento--Training and fun

Well my dear ones it has been another adventurous week and I have so little time I hardly no what to include, but I am sure you are all dying to know about my wonderful new companion, Sorella Brown. Thursday morning bright and early we went to the Milano 2 ward building to meet each other and it was a terrific meeting. They went through announcing who would be with who and I was of course a little nervous, but very excited, and the second they said she would be my companion, she gave me a big hug, and I had the most overwhelming feeling everything was as it should be. I know we are supposed to serve these wonderful people together and she is so special!!! She is from Florida, a humanities major, very quirky, very much herself, and a terrific missionary. We have had a marvelous week. A week of firsts! First gelato, first Italian pizza, first and second time eating Ecuadorian food, first time knocking doors, first time talking to people at the park, first lesson, first Italian post office, first time eating food from the Philippines (boiled peanuts and duck egg and meat filled steamed dumpling things), first city, first area, first baptismal invite, which was beautiful by the way. I think Sorella was shocked she would get to do it in English, and she had never practiced it in English. She said, "we will be holding a baptismal service the 25th...uh..or the 27th...I don't know. I haven't looked at a calendar lately." It was beautiful! I was so proud of her! She stumbled a bit and we laughed hysterically afterwards, but she was so herself, so great, and Ester didn't mind it wasn't clear, she totally accepted it. She was fearlessly knocking doors, ringing bells, and talking about prophets. It was terrific! She is awesome! I love hearing her opinion and learning from her. She has a great perspective about the work and about people and we get along splendidly. She was such a good sport last night when I got us rather lost. I was enjoying it thoroughly, walking for miles, but I was worried she would hate me afterward. Instead, she said she was grateful to be with me and we had a marvelous time, even though she got blisters. She is a gem. Yeah for adventures! We had a great mission-changing zone conference on Monday and we are so excited to change our focus to following the spirit and teaching really quality lessons. I am very happy about this. It is definitely a higher way of doing missionary work and I know it will powerfully bless and change lives. I love being people focused and just knowing and loving them and giving them the gospel. General conference was amazing. I am so excited for missionaries everywhere and I love listening to everyone. I love Elder Holland. Some great news from Milano: Nicole got her visa to go study in New York!!! She has prayed and fasted for this and now everything has worked out! I am so happy for her! And...Cristina stopped smoking!!! She had not smoked all day yesterday, but her sister, who is an intense smoker came over and Cristina got upset and was having a hard time without the nicotine so she asked her sister to leave her a couple of cigarettes to help her calm down. She said she went on the balcony to smoke one, she lit it, and just felt awful. She threw it out without smoking and had her husband throw away the rest. She said the adversary is not going to win this time. And he won't.I am so proud of her!!! She has been reading her scriptures and conference talks daily and is using that and prayer to conquer. That is the way to do it!!!  I am so so happy. The work is moving forward here. I have a wonderful companion and am learning so much and I see the lord's hand in my life personally everyday. It is such a blessing to serve Him. Please share the gospel. It is so beautiful to watch people's lives change for the better. And strengthen your relationship with heavenly father. He wants it as much as you need it. I love you all. Be good. work hard. 

Sorella Lloyd

Battesimo!!! e poi....Addestrare? Chi? Io?--Baptism!!! Then...train? Who? I?

Ciao tutti!!! Well, I am sure you are all dying to hear the news and crazy changes happening in our little Milan mission, or at least what I will be doing for the next six weeks, and I can tell you, there are so many crazy changes that don't make any sense, it is obvious the Lord's hand is in it. My dear companion is going to the city of my heart, Firenze, but only for two weeks because then she is going to open Siena!!!! What!? Is that not beautiful? She is going to Tuscany, the beautiful, with Sister Soh! And they both did a study abroad in Siena and love it to pieces. It is so perfect it is almost scary. The spirit was so strong when we got the call. I am so happy for them I want to cry. My favorite bit of country. As for me, dear world, I am about to receive a well dressed package straight from the MTC. That's right. I don't even know my companion's name yet, because she is on a plane right now. or just got here. Not sure. For those of you too shocked to understand my ramblings...I will be training. Did you die, Mom? Me. Training. in MILANO. I hope I don't lose her in this urban wild-land. I can't decide if I am nervous or excited. I know I am excited for the opportunity. I know it will push me and help me grow. Other than that, I have no idea what to expect, so hello new world! I will get my new companion tomorrow and if we survive this week, you will hear all of the beautiful details next week. I will try to leave out the not-so-beautiful ones, like panic and other odd behaviors that I may experience in the next few days. To tell the truth, I just feel good about it. I know I won't be a perfect trainer, but I know it is the right thing and that my companion is going to be awesome, and that we are going to do the best work we have ever done here in Milano and see oodles of miracles. As for the rest of our miraculous week I don't know where to begin. Maybe with the most beautiful part! Do, a deer. Our dear girl named Nicole was baptized!!! It was truly one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. She told her dad so he could get work off to baptize her, but her mom still had no idea. there was an activity at the church beforehand and still no one said anything! I am so proud of our relief society. That was a dangerous situation, making jam and eating it with all of the other sisters, chatting about life, and still not one word was said about her daughter being baptized. Miracle. I was brimming nigh unto bursting with excitement. Anziano Webb was in a mild state of panic and the rest of us just kept laughing we were so surprised we were pulling it off. Thank you Sorella Perez for chatting with Sorella Garcia until the time was right. Nicole and her dad got dressed and we went and got her mom and asked her to come help us a moment. When she saw Nicole she paused and just started to cry. She hugged Nicole  and just wept, embracing her. I got chills. It was such a beautiful thing. I have never seen a moment like that in my life. The baptism was beautiful and her dad was so proud. Nicole was radiant. Sorella Jacobson and her parents got to be here for the baptism and we did a musical number together, come thou fount, in Italian, and then Nicole bore a beautiful testimony, talking about how so often we think the spirit doesn't speak to us, that we don't get an answer, but really we just need to learn to listen. Is she not incredible?!!! I cried. The spirit was SO strong and beautiful. I am so proud of her. The rest of this week has just flown by, but to give you all a few gems, here is a list of wonders and touching moments.

At lunch with Fratello Marinello and his wife, he said I was, "veramente brava" and to get that, sincerely, from and elderly Italian gentleman, who is very strong in the church, is quite a compliment for me.

I got my new permesso which means I am staying here legally again!

Eugenia and Geraldine are doing awesome!

Slla Friloux gave us American food which included our all natural peanut butter and sweet potatoes I requested.

Pranzo with the Gambardella's. Lasagna alla siciliana and lots of laughter. so fun.

I got to record myself singing into a headset and tape recorder for gaia for her birthday and ate too much cake.

We had an armor of god competition with the Marinello family. They are so great and have cute kids.

I finally bought slippers. cheap and beautiful warmth.

We were knocking doors in a giant palazzo yesterday and at three doors in a row dogs started barking and no one answered we had an echoing canine symphony for quite some time.

We met a beautiful woman doing casa who just started crying when we talked to her. We hope to have helped her and brought a little light and spirit and we see her again on Friday!!!

Yesterday we helped Cristina throw a surprise party for Gaia's birthday, under the pretense we needed her help teaching Cristina, and Sorella Modugno was there, along with many other friends and we were able to teach them all and have a great time together. They were all sad Sorella Nilson is leaving but it was nice to get to see them all together and take pictures. It was an unforgettable night and I got to talk to my mission grandma and old companion. I feel very blessed.

Today we have so much to do and so little time to do it, I must go. But remember I love you all and that everything happens at the right time in the Lord and he is in everything. Everything. We just have to look for his hand. Con affetto,
Sorella Lloyd

 

September 26

Oh my dear ones! What a beautiful day I have had. It was incredible and it all started last week when the sorelle from Varese came to blitz us  here in Milano. They showed us beautiful pictures of mountains and lakes and we were both drooling with jealousy and dying slowly of urban jungle fever, so we decided to escape our concrete walls and take a trip to Varese, where man and God's handy-work come together to leave you breathless, which could be the hike and the altitude, but I think not. We left bright and early this morning and met these lovely sisters in their cute little city and took a bus to the base of a hike called, "il sacro monte" which is a path of some 14 churches that depict the life of Christ in statues on the inside. It was incredible. Truly. As we climbed the mountain the view just kept getting better and I eventually lost all power of speech, at least the educated variety. "wow" and "che bello!" don't count. There just are not words. We could see the different churches in all of the greenery and with the gray sky, everything stood out in color, powerfully. From the top, there is a panorama so beautiful you feel like you are in the clouds, in the midst of everything and God feels close too. It is no surprise they built churches there. I was missing my mountains so badly, today really made me feel better. We were right next to the bell tower of the highest church when it rang and the experience was soul-stirring. My heart was singing. After the mission I think I will move to the mountains and study apicoltura and listen to church bells all day long. What a pleasure it would be. On the way back down we stopped at a bar/restaurant and ate some delicious food. I had gnocchi di polenta in a 4 cheese sauce, fish and salad, and also was able to try my companion's pasta with fresh tomatoes, basil, and bufala. is your mouth watering? We even ate their homemade crostata. Anyway, we returned by train and here I am, writing you all. This whole week has been incredible, first with our blitz and getting to know and work with the other sisters, and teaching Karen and her incredible 12 year old daughter Joyce, who gave us the most beautiful answer to our purpose here in this life, teaching Alma, who is beautiful, smart, and incredible, but just a little down, and being able to brighten her life just a little by reminding her who she is, teaching Heather, a beautiful American member from Verona who came here for fashion week with her cute German friend and sitting on the steps of the duomo eating panzerotti and talking about who we are as children of God. Lovely! Eating lunch with the Falvo's and talking to Slla Falvo and her daughter Sofia, and being taught by them and sharing the spirit and the scriptures together, giving Cristina a no smoking kit and strengthening her each day as she stops smoking (she is doing it today! pray for her! ) , teaching an incredible Filipino referral, Ester, who already wants to be baptized, chatting with young people about God and the gospel of Jesus Christ, being reminded of how much we are worth and how much we need to grow by a dear member who is struggling with the same things, and watching her momentarily overcome her self doubt to help YOU, going to a baptism of a young man you have never met, feeling the spirit there, and being introduced to a woman so sweet, with a certain way of speaking, I felt like i had met her before, being called a nightingale, planning Nicole's baptism for this Saturday and working it all out so it can be a surprise for her member parents, seeing how ready she is and how exciting it is for her. That is a beautiful week in the mission. So much. so many miracles. To top it off, I feel like I have grown, talking to my companion, having her help me, and learning to be unafraid to be myself and unafraid to choose, and unafraid to really live and touch lives. I am learning to be unafraid to love and unafraid to share my heart and perhaps that is the greatest blessing, because it gives me a real opportunity to help others. It is a lot more worthwhile when you love them and both you and they know it and can feel it. I love you all so much and just hope you know how much you are worth and would ask you to just remember to leave fear behind and go forward with faith.

Isaiah 41:10

con affetto

Sorella Lloyd