venire a Cristo: Final Letter

Dear Subscribers of the Yskes weekly email,

For those of you who are informed, this is the last email I will be sending out to all of you. That's weird. I finish my mission on the 15th of November. So I still have a week and a day left. Next week will be spent going to Rome and what not so I won't be sending out an email. So, this is the last one. It might be a little long but I guess that kinda makes sense considering the circumstances. Well, here it goes...

Starting out, this week was a good week. I ate enough food this week to feed a family of four. I wish I was kidding. I've been constantly full since Tuesday. That may sound like a good thing, and it is, but at a certain point it's tortuous walking into a meal appointment still being full from the meal you ate 5 hours before hand. Missionary problems. Notwithstanding the stomach pains though I enjoyed the many great and generous people who fed us this week. It was good.

Other things that happened this week. Well, we were able to pass by a member family who, of late, hasn't been coming to church that often. We showed them a video of a man who went on a cruise, but because he was a man of little means, he brought with him beans, crackers, and lemonade mix to eat for the week long trip. He was able to see all the great things he wanted to on the cruise but was not able to participate in the great parties happening on the ship. Then, the last day a worker on the ship asked the man which departing celebration he would be attending. The man explained his situation and, a little to late, the ignorant man discovered that everything on the boat, the food, the parties, and the fun, were all included in the price of his ticket. Too late, the man found out that he lived much below his potential. We then talked about how we do this. As sons and daughters of God we have infinite potential. Do we try and reach it? In the end it was a great spiritual thought and we left with joy in our hearts. Now to end the story on a good note, this family came to church this week. So everything seems to be going in the right direction.

Well, now to the part of the email where I become nostalgic and sentimental while reflecting on my mission. Well, everyone seems to be asking me "are you excited to go home?" Honestly the answer is "yes and no." I've truly come to love Italy and its people. Part of my heart will forever be in this country. I guess I feel like I'm going to leave half of my heart here in Italy and the other half I'll find when I get off the plane. In the end it will be one of the saddest and happiest days and experiences of my life.

My mission has been amazing. I've come to know so many great people. I've learned so many new and amazing things about the gospel, Italy, myself, and life I guess. I feel like I've grown a lot and the Anziano Yskes who steps off the plane will for sure not be the same one that stepped on a plane nearly two years ago. To try and explain my feelings and experiences about my mission in one email is impossible. I don't know if I have the vocabulary to even attempt it (my vocabulary is limited). But to sum it all up, I wouldn't trade these last two years for anything. The memories I've made here will forever have a special place in my heart and nothing in this world could buy that. #priceless. I thank God and everyone I've come to know these past two years for the experiences that I've had. It's been a wild ride, filled with happiness, disappointment, tiredness, and the inability to move after eating a large amount of food. Some days it seems to have gone by so fast and others I feel like the mission is my life. It’s been a good one though and I hope this last week will be the cherry on top. Love you all and have a good week. Thanks so much for your love, support, and prayers over the past two years. It's been real.

Anziano zyskes

Buona morte