The Week Before Zone Conference

Well, we are one week away from Zone Conferences, and as zone leaders we have lots to do. Last Thursday and Friday was planned and had appointments. Friday's appointments were all out of town in Milazzo where there used to be a branch, but it became part of the Messina branch. So we had some less active appointments to go to and such things up there. It is a beautiful north Sicillian town. Whoever thought that I would be lucky enough to serve in Rome, Pisa, Napoli (close there to) and Sicily? What a blessing it is to serve in such wonderful, amazing places with amazing people.

Saturday we had some rather routine activities such as lessons and finding work and a lesson with one of our progressing investigators, Mariapia. We gave her a baptismal invite, and she said that she will when she knows that the church is true. We were not able to set a date, but she is awesome. She is in her late 40's early 50's with two kids and is separated. She works as a secretary in a law firm. She is great. On Sunday, she came to church for all three hours (her third time in church) and the first counselor from the Stake Presidency was visiting. He gave a great talk about first children in sacrament meeting and how everything should be done to keep them in the meeting. Then he talked about growth of wards and branches and how it comes when we focus on what the gospel focuses on, the individual, and not the numbers. Focusing on the number will not get us anywhere. It is the same way in missionary work. It was a really great talk.

We have started formulating our ideas for our training for Zone Conference and we are pretty set on the topic of change. On how we change and preserve change in ourselves and in investigators/member/less-active members. We are hoping to organize all of our ideas so that we can transmit this idea that we have to the zone, so it can benefit them.

On Monday, we had district meeting and then we did exchanges with the Anziani in Reggio-Calabria which is the city across the strait from us. I went to Reggio and the missionary I was with is from Germany. That was fun. We had a good exchange and then we came back and, with my companion, went to some appointments including one with Mariapia.

Well, that is all as big news goes. Next week, since Zone Conference is on Wednesday, we will either do email Tuesday or Thursday. We are not sure which one, but if you all could plan accordingly that would be nice. That is pretty crazy about all of the conference rearrangements. Who knows what will come of it (I am speaking of football now). Who knows but maybe this will help BYU finish a sports season like men instead of scared dogs with their tails between their legs.

Sounds like the reunion went well. I actually had a dream that I went fishing up in Island Park the other night and caught a nice big brown trout. That was fun...then I woke up. Haha Dreams are fun.

I have one picture this week, and it is a yellow watermelon. It is smaller than a watermelon and the inside is yellow. The seeds are arranged like a watermelon, and it tastes like a watermelon, but it is yellow like a pineapple. Crazy!

Love,
Anziano Hatch

*Please note Clark's new mailing address. (His email address remains the same.)