Sunday, March 27, 2016.
This is our 44 year anniversary, and is also Easter Sunday. Daylight Savings Time also started today in Italy, so we set our clocks back and our trip into Milano for church this morning was interesting because there was hardly anyone on the road and we easily found a parking place. At church we saw two couples visiting from US, both had served missions to Italy  One (Garbett) recognized my name and said he served with an Anziano Hoopes in Genova.  I got his business card (he is a contractor in Salt Lake) and gave him Fred's numbers.  The other is from Denver and didn't stay much after church.  They asked Myrna to say the closing prayer in Sacrament meeting today, which is the first time she has done that. She prayed in English, which is fine in our ward, because we have a mix of people, some of whom speak English. During Sunday School I read quite a bit from the Book of Mormon in Italian, the first time I have read that much in church, and that went fine too.  Then during priesthood meeting, after I accompanied the opening hymn, a counselor in the bishopric asked me to go play the piano for Primary. That was interesting too. The Primary president, Sorella Cano, is from Peru and cleans the mission office, so we see her often.  Her husband was recently hurt in an accident and is spending a month in a hospital and will be in rehab for a year, he was crushed from his waist down and they weren't sure, at first, that he would live.  In fact, they prayed for him in Stake Conference.  They don't have a piano in the primary room, just a Yamaha keyboard, which I am fine with, but they gave three kids signs to hold up, saying (in Italian) start, slow and stop, and as they held them up at their pleasure, we stopped, started or went slow in the signing.  After church the bishop invited us (people without families) to stay for Easter Dinner, which we and about 30 other people did.  I took a few pics, and we sang songs after dinner, which was held in the Relief Society room.






Taken from across the table at Easter dinner at the church.  We had a pasta dish, some meat, a salad and peanuts (not traditionally Italian, but they have them) for the main course.







Then, after dinner, they opened a large fancily wrapped Easter Egg. which was hollow chocolate with a gift inside (which the little girl took) and we passed it around and broke off chunks.  We have seen these in the stores, they are about 5-10 euros each.  They also sell large fruit cakes, called pannetone, which they also eat for Christmas, which are very popular.  We had some for dessert, along with tiramisù, which is a classic Italian dessert.  Traditionally, tiramisù has coffee and some kind of liquor, but this must have been Mormonized, because it didn't taste like coffee or liquor, but it was good.


The missionary sitting directly across from me, Anziano Mocelin, is one of the APs, and is from France.  His English is okay and he is a really sweet guy, who is also sort of the life of the party.  The bishop asked him to sing a solo in French, so he made the bishop get up and sing with him, although the bishop said all he knew in French is "oo la la." Our bishop is from South America and then he and his wife and some others sang a hymn in Spanish.  Then, the mission president volunteered me, him and the other senior missionary in attendance, to sing Gente Guardate, so we also had a trio sing. Our mission president is a good singer.




This guy, on the right, was sitting next to me and is from the Philippines, but does not speak Taglog, he speaks some other island language, but he also speaks Spanish and Italian. Today was the first day for him to wear a white shirt to church; he has a baptism date on the 16th of April, which we want to attend. He has been very friendly to us and he is being taught by the APs.  He will make a good member.  He lives with his mother, who, unfortunately, has no interest in the church.  He is actually 37 years old, but doesn't look that old.


Yesterday, P day Saturday, after doing our laundry and cleaning our apartment, we drove down to Pavia, which is about a half hour south of us.  We have never driven that far south, we usually go north to Milan.  There is an old church about every quarter mile on the country road (we didn't take the freeway), and we stopped at some of them to check out their organs.  This was the day before Easter and they were having confessions to prepare for Easter, so I did not ask to play any of the organs.  This is looking toward the back door in the first one we saw.  There were people cleaning the church to prepare for Easter and I asked them about the organ.  They laughed said it is roto (broken), but that I could go up and see it, so I did.


This is about the most "broken" organ I have seen yet in Italy, even the keyboard has been removed and you can see the trackers (the wires that pull down the keys).  It would a pretty good organ, if it worked. I suspect it was built in the late 1700s and don't know why it has been damaged so much. Even the pipes were in pretty poor shape (we saw one like that last Saturday but didn't go up to the organ loft). Unfortunately, this is the condition of many antique Italian instruments.  In France there aren't any organs of this vintage in any of the old churches, because during the French Revolution they melted down the pipes, which contain lead, to make bullets.

We went into Pavia, at least the north part, and went to a large, new shopping mall, but there were a lot of people there.  We drove into town and had a kabap and pizza at a little shop, where we parked our car on the sidewalk in front of it (with the Italians, who park on sidewalks when there isn't better parking).  A kabap is like a gyro, made by people from the middle east, and they also make pizza.  The kabap is on a large heated bun, with tomatoes, lettuce, other veggies and some white sauce with yoghurt, really very good.  We had one of each( kbap and pizza) which were 4 euros each, and each had half, which was a very filling lunch.  Then we drove around the main part of the ancient city, and I didn't want to pay to park because of the time of day (the churches were closed in the afternoon) and decided we must go back sometime during the morning or late afternoon to see those ancient sights.  There is a very large monastery down there too which we want to see.  It is called he Certosa di Pavia, and can be seen on the internet, just Google it.

This week we had 8 new missionaries come from the MTC.  Myrna made lunch for them, as well as muffins, and we both did training for them, about an hour each, I on their money cards, etc., and Myrna on the importance of doing their permessi so they don't get kicked out of the country. At the end of their second day (they are dead from the long plane ride on the first day), after they were matched with their first companion, we go into the president's office, stand in a circle, with the president and his wife together (sisters next to the president's wife) elders on the president's, and then Myrna and I are the bridge for the other side of the circle, all with our arms around each other's shoulders and sing the mission hymn, and then kneel in prayer.  It is quite impressive and the spirit is very strong as we send them on their way to the train station to begin their missions.

20 Mar 2016.

Apostle Christofferson came to our mission this week and we had a conference with all members, about 750 showed up at the Milano stake center on Wed evening, and then just with the missionaries on Thurs, (about half the mission, the other half live too far south and weren't invited, they will go to one in Florence.  On Saturday he met with about 350 stake presidents, bishoprics and high counselors in Rome. Today for priesthood meeting the high councilor in our ward presented a lesson to the young men, and invited the 3 high priests, to attend, and discussed his attendance at the meeting with the apostle yesterday.





These are the 4 mission office elders, with whom we work closely, who prepared pass-along cards for the districts in the mission, to give out at the meeting with the apostle.  They are to be given out to inform people they can view a website with a new video of Jesus for Easter.  This pix was taken in the conference room across from our office.







We prepared lunch, chicken salad in croissants, for the 140 missionaries who attended the conference.  It was a lot of work, but fun.











One of the other senior missionaries at the pulpit asking the young missionaries to take their places and listen to the prelude music (I was playing at the piano at the bottom) about 45 minutes before the meeting with the apostle started, he hadn't come yet--the mission president took him and the 70 and their wives to Como (famous lake up north) and to the Last Supper in Milano that morning for their cultural experience.



All 9 senior couples in our mission came to the conference, and I was asked by the president to be the host, because he was picking up Elder Christofferson. They stayed at the nearby Golf Hotel (name of the hotel, it does not have a golf course) and we took them to lunch at a nice near by restaurant, where we asked a couple who are going home to bear their testimonies (they said they didn't ask to come to Italy but have felt they were in paradise for the pat 16 months), they copied old records that will be indexed in the future. I also took the couples to the old abbey where we sat in the old choir seats and sang "Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee," with words by St. Bernard, who actually spent time in that abbey (about 1200 AD), where we also sang St. Francis of Assisi's words to "All Creatures of our God and King" (in Italian) and then ended with "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet," one of whom we listened to that evening.  It was a lot of work but a wonderful experience.






There wasn't enough room for all 140 of missionaries to eat in the same room at the church, so we set up several rooms.












Outside of the stake center in Milano.












On Sunday afternoon we drove out to an old sanctuary (church) of Mary at the Spring, which is near an old dairy and palace, although I don't know who lived or lives there.  The sign says that the affreschi (paintings on plaster) are from Leonardo (da Vinci) school, although I didn't see them.  Before Easter, Catholic churches hide all of their most beautiful art work and then display it with all of their splendor on Easter and leave it up until next Lenten season.



 It was a very beautiful afternoon and it has been a pleasant day.  Myrna is up baking cookies for tomorrow.  At church today a young man, actually 37 years old, is taking the lessons from the APs, and today came up to Myrna with a cookie she baked about 3 weeks old wrapped up and in his coat pocket.  He said he loved them and wanted the recipe, although I doubt he will bake any, he couldn't find the ingredients--it took Myrna a long time to find them, but she will send cookies with the APs and the recipe.

13 March 2016.

Last week we took the 14 departing missionaries to a restaurant near the mission office that we had never been to.  I could see a church tower not far, and decided I would check out the church on Saturday our P day  It is in a small town called Pieve Emanuele, which was founded in the second century.  This is the church, St Alessandro, a very typical looking old church. (our car is the silver one to the left.)



Entering the front door, going into the church, turning around to look back at the door and then up you can see the balcony in the back of the church on which the ancient pipe organ sits.  There are many thousands of these organs in Italy that look just like this. (We are finding that most of them are not being used.)  I entered the church and immediately found a small electronic organ on the floor that looked like it was being used on a regular basis, and assumed the old one did not work.  I tried to open the little one, which caused the priest to appear, but he was very friendly.  I explained to him that I am an amateur organist and am interested in finding an organ to practice on.  He explained that the old organ is going to be restored within the next year or two.  He said the regular organist is an Irish woman who would be here at the organ tomorrow, Sunday, at 10:30, getting ready for the 11 am mass and that I could come to meet her.  Usually we go to church on Sunday morning and could not come, but this Sunday we could come because we had stake conference starting at 3 pm, and were available in the morning.  So we were at the church at 10:30 and she was there to meet us.  She was a kindly old lady who said she really wasn't an organist, just someone who could play the piano and she is all they have and was happy to know me.  She said I could come any time to play the organ, and then she got her husband, who is Italian, but speaks English, to get the key to take me up to the old organ, that the priest said does not work.  We climbed the old dusty staircase, and used a skeleton key about a foot long, to get into the balcony and there was the organ, covered in dust.



He turned on the electric switch and the bellows groaned as they filled with air and I sat down, took the cloth cover off the keys of the manual and pulled (they pull from right to left on the far side) some stops and sounded some pipes, beginning with the principal, the ones you can see, which are usually the most unaffected by problems (the reeds are the worst).  They sounded beautiful and I played a few sounds with both hands and pedals.  It was amazingly beautiful, although I could tell it needed restoration, but I was amazed that it played so well un-restored.  Anyway, by then the mass was to start in about 5 minutes (the organist said she did not play any prelude, she just accompanied the hymns), so I stopped playing and we descended.  He gave me his name and phone number and said to call and he would meet me and let me play when the church is not being used.  I am very excited about this.  This is the first old organ I have been able to play so far.  This one is within walking distance of where we live, and it is exciting to think there are thousands of these to discover.

So on Sunday afternoon we took the metro (underground train) into Milano, got off at the duomo to switch trains--it took an hour from the closest to Opera train station in San Donato--to the station at Lampaguno and a short walk through a skate park and there we could see the stake center.  We actually went there on Saturday evening to the adult session and went back on Sunday afternoon for Stake Conference.   I sang in the choir, and we had a practice after the evening session and two hours before the Sunday session.  It was interesting singing in an Italian choir.  There were about 26 women and 9 men.  I sang bass because they needed another bass, normally I sing tenor.  We sang an arrangement of "Lead Kindly Light", which Myrna used my cell phone to record during the practice. I thought they choir sounded so good because the accoustics in the church are wonderful (the floors are hard marble and the walls are hard and there aren't any drapes or carpet). The conference was also good, and I was amazed at how many people there were.  I didn't take any pix during the conference, but as we were leaving took a shot to show you how many chairs there are in the stake center.




They were filled and people were standing.  When I was here 50 years ago our biggest branch had about 10 people max. The program today said this was the 32nd stake conference for the Milano West stake, so with two a year, it is about 16 years old.  The Milano East Stake also had conference this morning and had two general authorities (area 70s) because they got a new stake presidency.  Since that is not our stake, we didn't attend, but now wish we would.  We will have a meeting with Elder Christofferson from the Council of the 12 in this building on Wednesday for all members at 7 pm, and the next day in another church in Milano for just the missionaries.  Myrna is in charge of feeding them, there will be a little more than half of the missionaries (some live too far to come) at this conference, so this will be a busy week.  I am in charge of entertaining the senior couples, so I am taking them to the old abbey and to dinner at the restaurant on the way to the church we went to this morning, then one we took the department missionaries to.

Because my camera was stolen from my coat pocket at the metro (underground train) at the duomo of Milano on Saturday night, I bought a new one on 9 March 2016 at a large Wal-Mart like store next to a large grocery store near our home. It was on sale for 100 euro, which is about 112 US dollars. It is a very small Canon point and shoot, which will nicely fit in my pants pockets, which I think would be harder to pick pocket.






Early morning from the balcony of our bedroom overlooking the street on which we live. Ring necked doves come to our balcony and coo me awake.












Myrna making pancakes for the 14 missionaries going home on 10 March, this was done in the mission office in the kitchen adjacent to our office.









Missionaries in the conference room.  They came from all over the mission and arrived at different times, so some had eaten and were playing Uno while others were eating pancakes and waffles.  They were here across from our office and around all day, we took them to a restaurant for dinner and a hotel for the night.  Most fly out about 6 am tomorrow, although the third from the left elder is an Italian from the island of Sardinia.

During the week of March 1, 2016, we had our first Italian haircuts, this is Myrna's.  Ivana cut off all of Myrna's dyed hair, so this is her natural color, which I think looks nice.















On Sunday afternoon we drove out to the Abhey Chiaravalle, which is on the outskirts of Milano, maybe 15 minutes from our house. It started in the 1100s, and still has active monks.  The church is very large and the abbey, where the monks live, is in front of it.









In front is the entrance, right off a little country road, the place where the monks live is to the left.  There was originally a moat outside because apparently the monks couldn't get out.