hello family! 

wow what a week! First mom I got the blue shoes they are absolutely perfect I haven't taken them off my feet yet haha they are super comfortable, the brown ones haven't come yet not sure why. But thanks mom you are the best! yesterday we went to Carmel which was heaven on earth. I can't wait to have a summer house there with a private helicopter landing pad. its beautiful. ill send some pictures if i have time. It has been a wonderful week. L came to church on Sunday so she will be baptized this Saturday with another one of our investigators we are super excited. They will be Hermana Arias' first baptisms of her mission so we are thrilled. The work is just moving forward in YB and we have front row tickets its the best. 

This week I have been so grateful for my family, I think for the first time I actually got a little homesick! There is a boy in my ward that looks EXACTLY like thomas when he was 13 so I pulled out the photoalbum that Johnny made for us and showed them. We had a good laugh. Some of the sisters in my apartment think thomas is very cute its kind of awkward haha they couldn't believe the great change that came over him haha i love you thomas! And so I started looking through all the old photos and just started missing Montauk and all the wonderful experiences we have had as a family. I just feel so blessed. I can't wait to walk out of the doors at JFK airport and see all of you in a few short months. I mean I know I still have a while and don't worry I am not trunky, but it will be a very sweet reunion. The mission has just given me such an appreciation for family, and I feel so grateful to have been raised in such a closeknit loving family. We are really lucky! I love to be able to teach the plan of salvation because it just gives me butterflies thinking about eternal families. Heaven wouldn't be heaven if we were alone. 

Otherwise life is good in san jose. We are halfway through this transfer which is crazy! only 3 more weeks until Hermana Arias leaves, we are super sad but working super hard to just give it all weve got. Missionary work is the best!

I am not sure if any of you saw in the news, but there was a sister that was in an accident this past week, if you saw it she is doing ok but we have been asked not to share details. If you could keep her in your prayers we would all appreciate it. 

Love you lots

Hermana Fischetti 

Hello family,

First please give my love and condolences to the Derwin Family. I am so heartbroken and sad to hear that news. It is just awful. Please let Anna know that I am thinking of her family and praying for them at this time. I really am truly heartbroken to hear this news, its so sad to hear about young lives being taken. But I do know of a surety that Drew is in peace and is happy. 

Michael, I am so sorry to hear about your back :( You can trust me when I say I know what you are going through! Just rest as much as you can and be patient, and GO TO PHYSICAL THERAPY always do your stretches ok?! I know it is very frustrating and annoying, but be patient and you will be better in no time. I am so sorry to hear that though! At least you will better by summer time and can be having fun, and it doesn't sound like you need to wear a robot back brace so thats great! 

Dad, Congratulations on your new calling! How exciting!! I can't wait to hear all the wonderful things you are going to do for our ward. That is just so great. We are going to have a very busy family! How about the week of November 12 we can all plan on a great big family nap haha 

For us otherwise it was just a normal week. We are having a lot of success with two of our investigators and hopefully they will be baptized really soon. They are progressing well and I love to be able to see them grow their faith. Our Bishop has started a new plan that every presidency in the ward is in charge of one of the 5 lessons in PMG to teach to new members and less actives. The first step is for us as missionaries to teach the ward how to teach the lessons. So Friday night we started with the Sunday School Presidency. It was really awesome. So spiritual and they are so excited to go out and teach it now! I love to see the ward progressing. Spanish wards are really hard because almost all of the members are recent converts of the last 10 years, which is great but no one really knows how to run a ward. So we have been working really hard to help the auxiliaries get more involved in missionary work and in retaining recent converts. we have a huge problem with retention and I think it is because members don't understand visiting'home teaching or fellowshipping, so converts just slip through the cracks. Another great thing that happened this week is we set a baptismal date with the elders investigator danny, we are both teaching him because he needs lots of love. Friday night I was laying in bed thinking about him and what we can do more for him, and it hit me that I am so worried about him because he is exactly like Scott. I had a really overwhelming spiritual experience that part of the reason I came to Yerba Buena was because I would know how to help Danny through his past and help him look into his future. I am really excited to see him be baptized! Otherwise all is well in YB. Life is good! 

Please tell Elder Gamble thank you so much for trying, if I can I will try to get an address- I am bummed it didn't work out because my investigator here is convinced he is ready. I will keep working on it and see if there is anything we can come up with. 

Ok I love you all so much! 

Also mom, one thing I could use. You know those ugly Clarks I bought? well they are the only shoes i wear now because it helps my back a lot, but they are absolutely destroyed, they are coming apart and the leather is gone on the front part of the shoe. So if you could go on 6pm.com and find a pair just like them that are somewhat cute with lots of support that would be awesome. if they are ugly, its ok i will still wear them as long as they aren't expensive. 

Have a great week!

Hermana Fischetti

Helloooo!!!!!!!!!!

What a week. First off bragging moment: Hermana Arias and I are leading the mission in invitations for baptism. We are straightup killing it right now. Ok now I am humble and we only did it because the Lord is blessing us SO much. But its been AWESOME. We are working so hard its CRAZY. This week though I had two really cool experiences I wanted to share. We were able to take two of our investigators to the temple this week along with their mom who is a recent convert. The Spirit was so strong when we were in the visitors center I just loved it. I was crying through the whole families are forever video. Oh gosh I am such a baby now but I cant wait to have a family! Seriously! And it just makes me so grateful for the plan of salvation. I just love our family and I love the temple. Then we were walking around outside and I was talking to our investigator S, and she has been pretty cold towards us so we have been kind of unsure. But I was teaching her about baptisms for the dead, and she just turns to me and says I want to be baptized. It was crazy. I just love how the Spirit can touch everyone in different ways. 

Then yesterday at church we were in sunday school, and the teacher was talking about Les Mis. I started really thinking about how its relates to Christ and the atonement and I started to imagine the scene when jean valjean is standing on the wall ripping up his parole paper. And I imagined Christ doing that for me- taking all the wrongs I have ever done and he just rips them up. He takes our lives back for us when we are lost and chained in sin, and allows us to erase our past. There is no need for justice because he paid the price. We don't need to run from the law or wait for our past to sneak up on us. Christ has paid the price, he paid it in full. I am so grateful for Our Savior, Jesus Christ, that loved us enough to give his life. 

I just wish I could explain how much I love being a missionary. It is so hard, and so exhausting and there are certainly days where I want to get a one way ticket to new york but I would never. I love this work. This is truly the work of the Lord. Our Father in Heaven loves his children and has provided a way for us to come closer to Him. We literally have a Prophet of God on earth. Is there any greater blessing? We have been provided the tools we need to be happy, we just need to do it! I know this is the Church of Jesus Christ restored once again on the earth. And even in moments of doubt or confusion, we can pray and the confusion clears and it all makes sense. I love you all go out and work with the missionaries!!!

Hermana Fischetti 

hello everyone! i didnt realize how short time was oh gosh. what a week just finished up transfer numberrr S I X! which means i really am half way done with my mission. ITS NUTS AH! i cant believe it. last night we went to the outgoing for the leaving missionaries and sister jensen left for brazil so sad :( :( we cried and cried but im really really excited for her and the adventures she is going to have there. what else oh I saw Sister Bowman the RS pres in seaside. sheesh i just love seaside i need to have a change of heart! but she told me that they are finally combining all the spanish in one ward which was something we can up with when i was there. its incredible to see the things that have happened. i just love that area and i love seeing the work move forward there. especially because im going to raise my kids in that ward! haha mom dont cry. what else we had an AWESOME lesson with this family saturday night, the dad danielo reminds me so much of dad. we are really hoping his heart will soften so they can get married in the temple. they have to get married first and its kind of complicated but i know its going to happen. and they haven't come to church in like 7 months but then they came yesterday! and danielo and ingrid were high fiving us and it was awesome. sometimes sister missionaries just have the magic haha it also helps my comp is from the same area of guatemala so they are best friends. i love having a nativa for a comp because everyone loves them and its awesome. i have 6 transfers left so its time to put it into high gear and work super hard. now that my back is feeling a ton better im really excited for this transfer. we are going to harvest all the seeds we have been planting. i love you all lots and lots! mom make SURE the elders take care of that referral otherwise ill be a dead woman! haha ok love you love you

Hello!

 

This week where to begin...

 

Well on Wednesday I went to the doctor, I got some xrays but they havent called me back so I guess everything is good to go. I am taking gabapentin to help with the nerve pain and it has helped so much. I'm not in pain and I have so much more energy and I am sleeping through the night. It has been an incredible blessing. She also prescribed me a muscle relaxer, so I tried it and it was a disaster. I couldn't keep my eyes open to save my life, I almost fell asleep in a lesson... so I think I am just going to stick with the gabapentin. Also she wants me to go to physical therapy for a few weeks, is that covered by insurance? Can I call them and start going this week? After three weeks if I am still in pain when not on the medication, she will refer me to an orthopedist.

 

Otherwise the greatest part of this week .... I WENT BACK TO SEASIDE!!!! Lidia- Pablo's wife was baptized on Friday night and I was able to get permission to go. It was the most spiritual baptism of my mission. Pablo baptized her and it was so touching. I love them so much. Our purpose here is to help families be together forever and that is what is happening with them. Their children are now all investigating the church with their spouses. The Spanish group is growing rapidly down there because of Pablo. He is the best member missionary on earth. It was such a blessing to be able to see the fruit of our labors. We met Pablo and Lidia for the first time at Analia's wedding. I remember planning it and all the work and exhaustion that went into it, many times we wondered are we supposed to do this? Looking back almost 8 months ago, it is so clear that the Lord had a plan. Ricardo, Analias husband didn't get baptized- but the wedding wasn't for them, it was to bring an entire family into the Gospel. This is His work. It hit me in the baptism how carefully planned our missions are and the Lord knows where we need to be and when for the people that are prepared to be found. It is such an incredible blessing to be a part of this work. I just love the Seaside ward so much, I can't wait to visit it and I can't wait to live there one day haha

 

On Saturday and Sunday we had the opportunity to hear from a member of the Seventy- Elder Aunua at stake conference. He was really cool and very laid back which was awesome because usually when general authorities come everyone is serious and professional. But he brought the Spirit so strong and everyone was laughing and really happy. I loved everything he spoke about. He talked a lot about how we share the Gospel because we want people to have all the same blessings and be able to be together forever. It hit me that sometimes we complicate sharing the Gospel but really its is quite simple.

 

Nothing really else to report on, we got bunk beds this week so that has been fun. Sister Arias has had pink eye so we had to stay in the house for a while yesterday... that wasn't so fun. Otherwise thats it.

 

Love you all so much!

Hermana Fischetti

 

 

Hello family!! What a week we have had! First off, it started on Tuesday with us thinking we were getting emergency transferred because of the gang stuff BUT miracles of miracles we ended up just switching areas with the elders. We feel totally safe now and get to stay in our ward! It has been a blessing. President said he prayed long and hard about what to do, it is really cool to be a part of the revelation process and we know there are specific reasons this happened. Since we've moved areas we have met single woman that need us to teach them and its been so cool- there is a reason why all the drama happened. So now we are basically white washing an area and it has been so much fun.

 

Then on Wednesday we had an incredible lesson with the Bishops daughter. He asked us to work with her because shes been going through a lot right now. It is so cool how the Lord puts us in specific situations to be able to help people that are going through the same things we have been through. She is in the situation I was when I came home from college my freshman year, and it was so cool to be able to talk to her and share scriptures with her that helped me. We are teaching her again tomorrow and I am so excited. I really feel like we can help her a lot and help her to change the path she is on.

 

THEN I got the BEST PACKAGE EVER! Wow thank you mom so much for all your work and thank you everyone for all your sweet notes! I absolutely loved it! All the notes, it just made my week. I was laughing for days. Dad thank you for the suggestion on Alma 50- I love that chapter especially when it talks about it being the happiest time among the Nephites. Obedience is the way to find happiness- no other way!

 

We have also had a miracle of member missionary work- we got 2 new investigators from members. Thats a miracle, it never happens, and when it does they usually get baptized. So we are super pumped about that. Yerba Buena is on fire.

 

Then on Saturday we had the best experience of my whole entire life. Every week we volunteer at a class to help vietnamese people get their citizenship- its hysterical because vietnamese people are the funniest ever. So 3 students got their citizenship this week! very exciting so they took us out to the the nicest pho restaurant in San Jose. It was just the craziest experience, we were celebrities snapping pics like classic asians i just loved it so much. mom also please accept all my friend requests especially those from vietnamese people hahaha have to keep in contact for life. I wish I could explain how funny the dinner was but I really can't so I won't even try. Lets just say it was the best hour of my entire life.

 

After the dinner we went to Noche de Amistad at the ward building and it was so awesome. I remember in Seaside one night playing Soccer and I just felt it, like this is where I belong this is home this is my family. I haven't really felt that yet in Yerba which made me sad, but that night we played all these games and everyone was laughing and singing and dancing and it was just a blast. And I felt it again, like these people are my family too- I promised them before this life I would come find them and I have. Man I love being a missionary.

 

Ok thats all I've got this week! I love you all so much!

 

Hermana Fischetti

Ok this week... wow what to even say. haha we've been having the craziest time but thats ok. its been awesome and really adventurous. On Monday we moved apartments so that was exciting yes we still live in a palace. I can't even think what happened this week. We had an awesome lesson with an investigator family Friday night and I am really excited to see their progress. We are hoping they will get baptized in the next few weeks, but we will see. Thank you all for your fasts for the rain- its been a miracle, we still need a lot more but every little bit helps. On Saturday we had a cool lesson with this woman named Mercedez. So she was taught by missionaried in 2010 but never got baptized so her teaching record was in our area book. Last week I was going through all the former investigators since 2004 and pulled out any that have  come to church. Usually thats an easy way to weed out people willing to keep commitments. So then during weekly planning on Friday we called the names I had gotten to make appts. Then there was this woman named Mercedez- she had never gone to church so I seriously have no idea how she got taken out of the area book. But we called her and set up an appt. She was like oh yeah im having a garage sale tomorrow you should come. So I thought it was kind of a joke and was like man this is kind of a waste of time. But as usual I was so wrong. We meet there and shes like oh ive been waiting for you all day! We had an awesome lesson and the Spirit was so strong. She had breat cancer so the missionaries couldn't teach her back then because her life was just too crazy but now she is really interested and wants to know more. We are super excited  for it. Miracles are happening all the time. Sister Arias and I are doing great, but please keep us in your prayers. We are facing a lot of trials in our area. I can't really talk about it in email, but our area is dangerous. On Thursday we are meeting with the Chief of Police in San Jose to figure out if we should stay in our area or not. Don't worry we are being very safe and please don't call President Watkins because you are afraid for my safety. But just keep us in your prayers even more than usual.

 

Otherwise nothing else to really report. We are working hard and constantly striving for exact obedience. Luckily we don't have an underground railroad of elder sister letters in our mission. Sheesh. missionaries sometimes kill me.

 

Love you lots

Hermana FIschetti