April seemed to fly by for us. We have been continuing in our language classes and looking forward to May bringing new students to our class. There are now 7 of us in our class and in May a group of students coming from Australia will be joining our group as well. Through our class we have been able to learn about 5 other cultures and we are looking forward to being able to learn about a 6th culture as well.
We really enjoyed Easter here in Italy. We were able to spend the holiday with the missionaries here. Sunday services and celebrations were very similar to what you would experience in the states. One tradition we learned about was Pasquetta or “little Easter.” It is always the Monday after Easter and is celebrated with family or friends. The main tradition is to have a picnic in the country or on the beach. Some say the thought behind the picnic was to remember when Jesus walked with the 2 men on the road to Emmaus and shared a meal with them. The weather was rainy here, so instead we had a picnic inside and spent the day together playing board games, ping pong on the dining room table, and finishing the day with a movie.
Also, a minister from the states, along with his daughter, visited the missionaries at the end of April. They were able to spend a little over a week here visiting with the missionaries and church members. They also gave of their time through teaching and preaching. We had a nice time getting to know them and we were delighted to see what an encouragement they were to all around them!
April marks our 6th month here in Italy and it is hard to believe we have been here that long already. It is even harder to believe we only have a few months left in our time here. We still have quite a few things to get in place in order to have a smooth transition returning home and we would love your prayers as we continue to work out the details. We are looking forward to seeing family and friends again, but we know it will be difficult to leave such a beautiful culture and country as well as the new friends we have made.
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