Homecoming delayed

We are in LA with my in-laws. Dee's dad is in hospice, not doing well, with 24-hour nursing care. We don't know how long it will be until he passes, but we think it is weeks and not months. 

Given that, our homecoming has been postponed from March 24th until April 14. Please update your calendars. We hope to see you then!

All good things must come to an end

I awoke before my alarm on Tuesday, having slept pretty well. There was even time to take a quick shower and put the towels into the washer, so that there would be nothing dirty left for the Motts, just some towels hanging to dry. I took out one last load of trash, then finished packing. My big suitcases were quite full, but both were barely under 50 lbs after I got everything into them, including stuff that Dee had left and hoped to get home. At 7am I walked out, with Anziano Balzotti meeting me on our floor to help with the suitcases: two 29" and one carry-on, plus my computer bag. 

There was very little traffic, and I got checked in plenty early. At one point I felt a little weak walking to my gate, but for the rest of the very long day I actually felt surprisingly good. There were no delays anywhere. Sorella Wyatt was on my flight, and several LDS folks came up to chat upon seeing my name tag. In Atlanta, going back through security after customs. I ran into Elder Renlund, one of our apostles, who was also coming home from Rome. He saw my name tag and came up and thanked me profusely for our service.

I rested but didn't sleep much at all for the entire 25+ hours from the time I woke up until I got home at about 10:30pm local time. Rich had to work late, so I just grabbed a taxi at the airport, which is a very quick way to get home. The house looked clean and organized. I didn't unpack, just had a small bite to eat and zonked out in our own bed. Heavenly! It will take a few days to get over jet lag, but I am glad to be home.

This basically closes our mission blog. It has been great for me to write it, and I hope that our readers have enjoyed it. Our homecoming talks will be in Sacrament Meeting at 10:30am on March 24 in La Costa Ward. Hope to see some of you there.

Arrivederci!

Final full day in Italy, temple dedication

Monday marked exactly 18 months from when we entered MTC. I got up early and washed the sheets and put new ones on the bed. Just making the bed completely wore me out. I had to sit down and rest for a while. I will sleep on top of the cover tonight so that the Motts will have fresh sheets. 

In the morning I walked down to the Chinese store for one last time, buying a salt shaker because I accidentally knocked it off the shelf the night before, sending glass and salt all over the kitchen and hall. I also bought another Gatorade at Conad. After all that, it was definitely time for a nap, which lasted well over an hour. 

Just before 1pm I headed over to the temple for the 2pm dedicatory session. There were two lines, one for Italians and one for everyone else (much longer). After standing in line for a while, I saw Anziano Simoncini who was helping there. It was good to be able to say goodbye to him and his wife, with bacietti of course, and he said that I could go to the Italian line if I wanted to. 

As I walked up, there was Ugo, so we went in and got seats together in the first endowment room. On the other side of me was Daniele and Norma Salerno. I also saw President and Sister Dalzotto, whom I knew from the 1970s. They are now in the temple presidency. She remembered that I had taught Seminary for her in her home in 2007 so that she could see how an American did things. I also saw lots of other folks I knew, including Sorelle Wyatt and Ricks, who flew back for the dedication. 

The ceremony was wonderful, with Elders Holland, Soares and Uchtdorf speaking, followed by President Nelson. His talk was completely different this time, and there was no cornerstone ceremony. A different choir sang. Brother Valentini, who sang in the one on Sunday morning, told me that there was a different choir from a different stake in each session, which is cool that so many got to learn that wonderful music. He said that it was a huge highlight for him. He also sent me the Italian translation of the Hosanna Anthem:

Osanna, osanna, osanna al

Padre e all’Agnel. Amen, amen, amen

Il Tempio è ormai completato, il Tempio è ormai completato.

Possa Dio accettar quest’offerta, possa

Dio accettar quest’offerta. Amen, amen.

O Santi, gioiam, la fede e il gran lavor hanno eretto il Tempio

Dove oggi siamo; gioiscano gli spiriti defunti,

poiché un sacro Tempio adesso abbiamo.

Gioite allor, avrete redenzione, voi, prigionieri avrete libertà;

grazie al Signor pel Suo eterno amore, grazie al Signor per

questa libertà, grazie al Signor per questa eternità.

(Parte con la congregazione 2 volte)

Soprano/Contralti

Osanna, osanna, osanna nel più alto, amen e amen.

Tenore/Basso

Osanna nel più alto, osanna nel più alto, amen e amen.

Cantiamo anche noi con l’armata celeste,

osanna al Padre e all’Agnell!

(Oh) Sia gloria in eterno nell’alto dei cieli,

sia gloria in eterno al Padre e all’Agnel.

Amen, amen

Afterwards, Ugo and I hung our for a little bit and took a photo in front of the Christus status in the visitors center. I gave him a big hug and headed home.

On the way home, I stopped to rinse and vacuum the car, so that it will be presentable for the Motts when they arrive Friday. I was still feeling pretty weak. On the way into the apartment, I can into Paolo and said goodbye, with bacietti of course. He is such a great guy. I chatted with Dee on the phone for a few minutes. Things seem to be a bit calmer there with a little bit of help and some pain and sleep meds for her dad. She is coming down with a cold, hopefully not the same one that I am getting over after three miserable weeks!

The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent at home, packing. I had more stuff that I thought, so the suitcases are very full, but I am easily under the weight limit. I dropped off the thermometer the Sorelle had loaned me and gave them some used clothes to put in the bin down the street, since I won't have time in the morning. Being on my feet much of the evening wasn't bad, and I feel stronger right now that I have in a long time. Hopefully that will augur well for my trip home.

Temple Dedication Sunday

About 2am, I woke up with a coughing fit. It took a good while to stop, by which point I was thinking it unlikely that I would go the temple dedication in the morning. Fortunately, I was able to get back to sleep and awoke Sunday morning feeling decent, if weak. The Balzottis and I headed out at 7:15am to the Roma 2 chapel at Piazza Carnaro, where the dedication broadcast would be received. There are a number of chapels around Italy and the extended temple district where the broadcast can be seen. Basically, for the day the chapel becomes an extension of the temple, and you have to present a temple recommend to enter.  We left so early because we thought that there might be a huge crowd, which ended up not being the case. Apparently the temple itself can hold 750 people for the event, which was basically reserved for Italians, as it should be. There would be sessions at 9am, noon, and 3pm.

When we got there, the place was completely empty. For a while we thought maybe we were in the wrong place, but finally people started showing up. Anyway, we got front row seats. The high councilor assigned to the building didn't get there until 8:15am, which was way too late because we all had to be in our seats at 8:30am for the 9am start. Anziano Balzotti started checking temple recommends in the meantime, and one of the young elders from Malta knew how to turn on the broadcast. Our chapel was pretty full, but there was no need to use any of the overflow rooms.

The dedication ceremony was wonderful, about 90 minutes long, including a brief pause while President Nelson and a number of other leaders, including the temple presidency. went out to put some cement on the cornerstone. There was choir outside to sing for him, and he had a fun time talking with everyone. Several young kids had been selected to take their turn at the cornerstone; they will definitely have a story to tell for the rest of their lives. President Nelson said that their efforts on the cornerstone were symbolic, and that it would have to re-done correctly.

Elder De Feo conducted the meeting, and the temple President and his wife, the Pacinis, spoke first, in very good Italian. Unfortunately, we realized that we were getting the English feed, so that the simultaneous translation into English was drowning out the Italian -- not  good for the Italians in the group! Then the rest of the talks by President Ballard and Nelson were done in English, with alternating translation into Italian, so everyone could understand. President Nelson spent a bunch of time reviewing the history of the church in Italy, with many names recognized by a bunch of us. He read the entire, long dedicatory prayer in English, and then it was read again in Italian. After that there was the Hosanna shout, led by Bishop Caussè in very nice Italian. He obviously speaks French and English, but it surprised me when he spoke in Italian. Then we all sang "The Spirit of God", with a small choir (14 people) singing the "Hosanna Anthem" as a preface and descant. I sang that with the choir at the San Diego temple dedication in 1993, and I am asking around to see if I can get all the words in Italian. The whole ceremony was very moving. This has been a long time coming in Italy, and it was truly a day of rejoicing.

I got to see one of our GANS, Francesco Migliorisi, up from Sicily for the dedication, which was nice because he hadn't been around for a few months. On the way home we made some calls and messages to alert the broadcast team that they had the wrong feed going out, and they said it would be corrected. The rest of the day for me would be spent entirely in the apartment. I almost immediately took a 1.5 hour nap because I kept nodding off in my chair. Then I did some final loads of laundry so that my clothes can be dry enough to pack on Monday. I also wrote the Institute history for the 2019, bringing it up to date for the Motts to take over, using this blog as my guideline.

Several people, including the Magnantis, Simoncinis and Ugo, have kindly called or messaged to see how I am doing. I am still weak and tired, but each day seems to be slightly better. At this point, I think that I will be able to travel, if nothing gets worse. I was exhausted and in bed by 9pm.

Youth fireside

Saturday morning I was up early, making multiple trips to the trash and recycling bins. It is good to get the place into shape to leave. Sorella Balzotti dropped by to take some stuff from our fridge: 30 eggs (they come here in packages of 10, not a dozen), tomatoes, and thawed buckwheat bread. The fridges are now pretty much ready for the Motts, with a few things in them but not many.

I spoke with Sorella Millet about how I was still feeling weak, so much so that, if I had to fly that day, I would say no. She just said that I need to rest; having been so low for so long, it will take time to get back to normal. She suggested that, when I fly, I get a wheelchair and all the help I can at airports, and that I should consider upgrading my ticket to business class to allow me to spread out and rest well. So I called Delta and asked. There were no first class seats left on the Rome to Atlanta leg, and she checked for a while and said that the Atlanta to San Diego leg would cost over $3000 to upgrade! I gasped. She laughed and asked, "not happening, huh?" Nope.

I walked down and renewed my antibiotic in case I am not better a few days after getting home. The pharmacies here often do not check, so you can refill a prescription multiple times, but this time they marked it, so I couldn't do it again even if I wanted to. Sorella Millet said that she has seen some of these sinus-related illnesses take three courses of antibiotics to cure. Hopefully I won't need it.

I got to speak with Dee for a while. Her dad is in really bad shape, having a hard time breathing when he lies down, but unable to sleep propped up. And he can't remember, so every ten minutes he tries to lie down, gets up, tries to sleep sitting up, gets tired and says he needs to lie down. Rinse and repeat. It is exhausting for her and for him, poor man. She has hospice and a home care place coming to meet with her during the day, so hopefully she can get some offload soon. Her cousin Jim, who lives there, is being a wonderful help whenever he can, but he has a life and a job.

I made a 10-minute video tour of our apartment, detailing some useful facts for the Motts to know. I also put post-it notes around the apartment explaining a few things. I put the video file onto a USB flash drive that I am leaving here for them, along with a bunch of useful docs. The video will also be uploaded to Google photos, so they could view it while still in the MTC, if they have time. I took a one hour nap, much needed, and then organized the linen closet and hung up the lace curtains in our bedroom. We had just kept the blinds down for a long time, but it is nice to get light and still have privacy.

Later in the afternoon, I walked down to Conad and stocked up on Gatorade. It is less than five minutes by foot, but I return feeling really spent. At 5pm there was a fireside by President Nelson for all the young men and women in Italy (teenagers, basically). A link was available to watch it online in English or Italian, and I chose the latter. Nathan Pacheco, an incredible LDS singer, performed a couple of musical numbers, including a very moving one where he had the congregation sing a refrain while he sang the descant. The DeFeos spoke, as well as President Ballard and the Nelsons. It was a very moving devotional. President Ballard's grandson, Anziano Huntsman (currently one of the assistants to President Pickerd), translated into Italian for his grandfather and did a fine job. The other translators were incredible. Joshua Perego sang in the youth choir, and he got to shake President Nelson's hand.

I spoke with my mom and my sister Marilyn, hopefully for the final time from Italy. Anziano Thacker called to ask if I could help drive a van which was to be ready at the temple site in case of some kind of emergency. When I answered the phone, I involuntarily started coughing quite a bit, then told him that I wouldn't feel safe driving in my current condition; he got it immediately! Later he brought me my ticket for the Monday afternoon dedicatory session in the temple, signed by President Pickerd. We also plan to participate via broadcast to the stake center nearby for the first dedicatory session on Sunday morning. It will be a historic day for the church in Italy.

Scanning, shredding, cutting

Friday I finally got to stay home and relax. I slept fairly well, but woke up early. I walked down to get a haircut at 8:30am. At the end, my barber, Francesco, asked if he could give me bacietti (kisses on the cheek), which is very common among friends here. By about 11:30am, I was falling asleep, so I took a nap, which ended up being over two hours. Even though I have almost no more cold symptoms, I am still pretty weak and tired and am starting to get worried whether I will be well enough to travel by Tuesday.

I spent a bunch of time in the afternoon scanning a pile of docs that Dee left for me. Slowly I am also putting the apartment into shape, throwing some stuff away and putting away other things. I walked down to Conad to get some more Gatorade. In the evening I used box cutters to tear down a bunch of cardboard boxes, big and small, that we had accumulated during our mission. No sense in filling up all that space for the Motts.

Somebody visiting from Canada somehow got my number and called to ask if the temple visitors center was open. I was pretty sure that it was closed until after the dedication, but she said that they had been told back home that it would be open. She wasn't very happy with my answer, but I couldn't think of whom she could call to verify. After a while I realized that I could ask the Hydes, a senior couple assigned to the visitors center. Sure enough, it was closed as I suspected, so I called the lady back and gave her the definitive answer.

I was able to get to bed fairly early. I didn't talk with Dee during the day, but we did message quite a bit. The temple dedication this weekend will be great, but I can hardly wait to get home.

Doug's final day at Institute

Thursday morning I woke up after almost 8 marvelous hours of sleep! That has been a long time coming. I still was feeling a bit weak all day, but with enough meds was able to make it through. Anziano Balzotti called to ask if I could help him drive some missionaries from one train station to another, because the subway line was down. I simply wasn't wasn't feeling strong enough to drive anywhere, and I suggested that he simply have them just take a taxi, which was cheap and easy. He liked my suggestion. Late morning I walked down to Conad to stock up on Gatorade (trying to keep my fluids up) and another bag of cough drops. I also got an email from the Motts at the MTC. Somehow they manged to run into Daniele, who also just arrived there, and make the Rome connection.

We left a little early so that I could show the Balzottis where to take the Motts next week to get their codice fiscale. The government office is right next door to the temple, but parking and finding the right entrance is tricky, so I walked him through it. We arrived at the Institute early, taking the freeway again. Anziano Balzotti is now fairly comfortable with our various routes downtown. Soon a very familiar group showed up: Riccardo, Krista, Jomar, plus former Ganziani Mansell and Smith. Riccardo had a big hug for me, since he will be out of town starting Friday. They all hung around for a while, with me finishing my lesson prep.

In the afternoon took my second antibiotic pill from this new course, hoping that it would reverse the tide. For Seminary, we had 8 kids, plus two others (Matteo, Pamela) who couldn't make class but dropped by briefly to say goodbye. As long as I stayed seated, I was doing pretty well. We played bingo after a short lesson, then ate some cookies, and I got big hugs from all of them as they left. This class has been a lot of fun for everyone.

 

Pamela

Donatella

Valentina (Daniele's sister)

For Institute, we had a big group: about 35 kids signed in during the day. That was very gratifying, especially because of the last minute schedule change due to the Friday transit strike. The Balzottis got the crack chicken dinner all ready and warming in the crock pot, then drove up for a final dinner at the mission home with departing missionaries who had stayed an extra few days to attend the temple dedication. They got back in time to set things out at the end of class. They have been so wonderful, quietly and efficiently helping out while I have been somewhat out of it due to my cold.

There were some folks from Meridian Magazine who wanted to interview some of the kids and get photos of them for an article. It was challenging to find room for them, my class, as well as the online Pathway class that evening, but somehow it all worked out.

Our lesson was on the Kirtland Temple dedication, D&C 109-110, which I skipped ahead to because of the temple dedication coming up here this weekend. I had them sing "The Spirit of God" to the tune of "Now Let Us Rejoice", which is apparently the melody used back then. It is fun and a bit strange to hear, but the meter works perfectly. We read a bunch of verses from the sections and discussed the power of the temple and its covenants in our lives. There were several visitors in town for the temple dedication, who participated nicely in the discussions. Amazingly, I was able to stay on my feet for over an hour during the lesson, which I attribute to the adrenaline I get from teaching, not to mention Excedrin. 

At the end of the lesson, I invited Anziano Balzotti in for a presentation from me and the two Ganziani: our final Ganziano tie! Twenty was exactly the right number to buy. He was delighted with the gift, and the kids applauded loudly.

After that we had the closing prayer and crack chicken sandwiches. I sat down in the kitchen for most it, but I got to visit, hug, and take photos with a lot of the kids. It was a wonderful sendoff for me.

 

 

 

Here are some photos of me with different kids.

Andrea, Almendra

Maria Jose, Ilario

Francesco, Joyce

Linda (we gave her a ride home too)

Chris

Jayno

Joyce

It was a bummer last week when I missed Dee's finale, but this evening made up for it. Once I got home, I had a brief chat with Dee. Her dad is home: confused, agitated, weak, and generally not doing well. She needs to get some in-home help real soon, and she knows it. Now I just need to get better enough that I can fly home.

The cold is winning :-(

Wednesday morning I woke up after a decent sleep, but my sinuses are closing up. This cold just won't let go, and I still have very low energy. We went to a new (to us) Todis not far from home to get more buns, and it is really nice -- it even has parking! We got stuff for Thursday night's meal, and then filled up the car with gas -- my last time paying for that.

From there we went to Metro, more to show them the ropes (so they can show the Motts) than to buy much. It is a huge store, like Costco, requiring a membership to enter. They have high volume packaging, but not everything is a deal. However, they are the only place in town we can find certain things, such as cheddar cheese and sour cream. We also bought a bunch of hamburger to stock up the freezer, plus chicken to cook for Thursday night. We also picked up a couple of little blankets (throws) for the Millets. From there we drove downtown to the Institute, so the Balzottis know how to get there and then downtown.

When we arrived, the Balzottis sprang into action, filling three crock pots with chicken to cook. It was early enough that they would be able to bone and shred it and have it cool enough to put into the fridge overnight. Sorella Balzotti made the bacon for the crack chicken so that everything would be as ready as possible for Thursday.  I helped them with a few computer things, including making a copy of Benvenuti al Sud to show to their family.

President Pickerd called to say that he had a ticket for me to attend the Monday afternoon temple dedication session in the temple. The opening session on Sunday is reserved for Italians in person there (which is right!), though we may go see it broadcast at the stake center. I spoke with Dee, who said that there were big challenges with her dad and the convalescent home -- not a surprise. She is trying to do all this while jet lagged.

I was really tired and took an hour nap on the couch. Then a bunch of kids showed up, including Mariasol, just home from her mission in Spain. It was good to see a bunch of them hanging out. By late afternoon, I was really feeling weak, with lots of pressure on my eardrums. Anziano Balzotti drove me home to rest, and Sister Millet said that I should go ahead and start a second round of antibiotics. Hopefully that will help. I did a little bit of shredding and scanning of papers that Dee had left for me, but I felt cruddy all evening and went to be pretty early.

Throwing out my dinner

Tuesday morning I climbed the stairs once at our apartment, for the first time in a while. I seem to be slightly feeling better each day, but the cold is still doggedly hanging on. In the morning I walked down to Conad to buy lettuce and tomatoes for tacos. The Balzottis had to go try to renew their permesso (silly, because they go home this month, but this is Italy), so they were out of the picture for taco prep. The Ganziani happily came in early, donned their aprons, and went to work chopping and grating. With their help, everything was ready on time.

Daniele flew to the US to enter the MTC in the morning for his two-year mission to Tempe, Arizona. His mom, Mariela, sent me photos from the airport. On the plane they had WiFi, so he was able to WhatsApp with the group, which was fun.

About the time that lunch was served, Dee let us know that she was boarding a nonstop flight from JFK to LAX, the first one out that morning on Delta. She had spent the night in the airport. They offered her a hotel, but she figured that she would have maybe 3 hours at the hotel before having to get up and return to the airport. The thought of packing and unpacking for that little rest didn't appeal, and I think she made a good choice. She said via WhatsApp en route that her flight was very empty, so that she got to lie down across a row and sleep on the way to LA. Didn't hear much else other than that she made it home safely, probably around noon there, and promptly went to work. That's my girl.

The group for tacos started a little small, but grew steadily. After lunch they had some really energetic group karaoke. The Balzottis are enjoying being around the kids.

 

 

After lunch, Ugo showed up and we had our student council meeting, with Maria Jose in via Zoom, and Joyce, Marlene, Ugo, Anziano Balzoitti, me and the Ganziani in person. They were planning for things to come that I would not participate in, which was a very strange feeling. It was good to see Anziano Balzotti chime in with his opinions at a few opportune spots. I am so grateful to them for taking over and passing the baton for us, particularly with me feeling so cruddy these days.

There was a big transit strike planned for Thursday, which wouldn't really affect us much. However, we learned that they moved it to Friday, which would cancel our two classes and final dinner! Because I missed the last two weeks, it would be a real bummer not to have a final meeting. So Ugo decided to move everything to Thursday night. We won't get quite as many kids, but it will be fun. That took a lot of arranging, since we had the meal prep scheduled out to take up the rest of the week. Fortunately, we figured out a way to get everything done, and we will shop Wednesday morning. Then we realized that the Balzottis have a conflict on Thursday night, so we scrambled a bit, with Ugo offering to do the whole dinner. At last we decided that we could make it work by prepping stuff ahead on Thursday afternoon. My head, which was already spinning from not feeling well, took a couple of extra twists with all this.

When I went to get my rice and vegetable bowl from the fridge for dinner, it wasn't there. I looked around, and it had been washed and put in the dish drainer. I asked Sorella Balzotti, who first said she didn't toss any dinner, but then she said "well, there was that bowl which had been around forever." Yep, I had made the same thing the week before, and she didn't realize this was new. We got a good chuckle out of it, and I scrounged up some other food.

Once Ugo's class started, we headed home quite early. We needed to get buns for Friday's dinner, and Todis closes at 9pm. I showed the Balzottis where the key items (e.g., our tortillas for Tuesdays come from there) are to be found there, though they didn't have enough buns for our needs. We will hit a different store in the morning. It was good to get home and to bed early with how I was feeling. I chatted very briefly with Dee before hitting the sack about 9:30pm. It is nice that she is there, but this is not a fun way to end our mission: separated, me sick, her overwhelmed. Next time around we will use a better system!

Dee marches forth (eventually)

On March 4th, 1977, Dee flew home her first mission. Her dad had printed up invitations to a welcome home gathering, saying "March forth on March 4th!" And so perhaps it was fitting that she flew home on Monday, the same date this year. She had been up almost all night, packing, discarding, etc. Getting little sleep the night before a transatlantic flight can be good in terms of overcoming jet lag, but this would be an unusual day of travel. 

Already by 6am, her noon flight was announced with a three-hour delay. Delta re-booked her connection at JFK so she would get the last flight out that night to LAX. I slept pretty well for the first time in a long while, having used no cold meds. With the delay, I had time to walk down to Conad and get some food, since it would be tight getting to Institute on the back end. We still left plenty early, with Dee willing to wait a few hours extra at the airport to accommodate our schedule, and there was no traffic either way. With my horrible cold,  Dee and I had not even so much as held hands the whole time she was back here -- she really didn't want to get what I had, and I don't blame her! But we gave each other a brief hug as she left.

 

 

We arranged with Paolo, our wonderful doorman, to meet him at his little office on the way out. Dee cried as she said goodbye to him. He has been such a gentleman and so helpful to us throughout our entire stay here, particularly during the time of her broken foot.

 

I got back home in plenty of time to make my dinner and gather bags of stuff to go to the Institute, for the first time for me in 11 days. Yahoo! On the way out to meet the Balzottis at the car, I did my final gas meter reading for the two apartments in our palazzo. Every day now has several "lasts". We got downtown in plenty of time, with Anziano Balzotti driving via the freeway route so that he could learn that. I was happy for him to drive because I still felt a bit woozy, with some light ringing in my ears.

The Balzottis now know the drill at the campus and were all over the daily setup steps. We planned the week a little bit, then did an inventory of stuff we would need to buy at Metro for our "training" run there on Wednesday, showing them how to get from there to the Institute and pointing out where all the critical food items are located in the massive store.

By early afternoon, Dee's flight had been delayed another few hours due to engine trouble, apparently installing a replacement part. So she would be at the airport for a long time. At one point they apparently then taxied out to the runway, but something wasn't right, so they pulled back into the gate. Her flight would eventually depart seven hours late, with her snoozing as she could in the airport. Having tech to communicate in these situations is a real boon, and she would end up with WhatsApp connectivity on the flight to New York, so we  knew what was happening, though not how or if (unlikely) she would get home that day.

My final home evening lesson was fun, with a full crowd. Sorella Balzotti picked the quote from our book, doing a very fine job in Italian, thank you. My question of the week was for everyone to tell something really nice and helpful that someone had done for them  once. There were some nice stories. I told about Dee's friends, right after our fire in 1996, bringing her back some mementos that she had gifted them from our trip to Russia. All her stuff had been destroyed, and they wanted her to have that memory, which was very touching for her. Anziano Rouse talked about when he was a kid, with his dad in grad school (i.e., poor), and someone anonymously gifted them a bunch of stuff to give the family a Christmas, which they wouldn't otherwise have had. They still don't know who did it. That fit right into my very brief lesson on the sermon on the mount in Matthew 6, where Jesus says to do thing without fanfare, letting God have the glory and not seeking it ourselves.

Sorella Balzotti had made chocolate-chip cookies, which were quickly devoured. I ended my lesson early so that we could go home. I was really feeling tired and weak by then, though I hated to skip the games and fun that were to ensue.

With the time zone change, I went to sleep quickly without knowing what would happen with Dee. Stay tuned.

In which Doug leaves the apartment

Sunday morning I awoke after a lot of coughing during the night, but I had a reasonable amount of sleep by recent standards. My cold symptoms were feeling good enough that I felt I could make it to church on our last Sunday -- really didn't want to miss! I took extra cough syrup and some Excedrin to help me make it through.  Other than my doctor appointment on Wednesday, it was the first time I had left the apartment complex in ten days. We headed out carrying a bunch of bags of food and things for Primary, getting help from FrancescoM to carry it in when we arrived. The weather has been really nice, sunny and warm during the day -- a huge contrast from last winter when it was cold well into April.

It was a wonderful testimony meeting. Bishop Magnanti started crying when he read our names to release us. There were a lot of testimonies, almost all quite short. I got up for a minute to say that we had come on our mission expecting to love our GANS kids, but we never expected to get so close to our ward here in just 18 months. I blamed them for making my wife cry every day, which brought a laugh from the congregation. Then I bore a strong testimony of Christ and sat down. Several others had kind things to say about us, though Ugo warned that "it isn't easy to get rid of the Whitings -- they have been following my family for 42 years!"

After the end of the meeting, Silvia, the Primary President and Dee's good friend, came up with the great idea of getting a group photo of everyone in the chapel. I suspect that a few folks were missing, but it was still nice to have a memory:

Dee had a final Sunday teaching in Primary, and she had a great time. The kids each drew a picture and wrote a note to her. She has really connected with that little group.

A number of our GANS kids were there from all over to wish us well, enjoy the meetings, and eat lunch! I was feeling quite week and a bit dizzy, so I mostly stayed seated and just enjoyed all the wonderful people.

The lunch started just before 12:30pm, with plenty of food of many types for everyone. A few more of our GANS showed up afterward to join the fun.

 

 

 

Most of the GANS at Roma 3 for the da

The Simoncinis dropped by to say goodbye

Us with the Cadenas: Jair and Silvia

Then Sheyla and Jomar showed up

Dee had to drive us home, since I wasn't feeling up to it by then. By the end of the day I was starting to come around. We got home by about 2:30pm, a nice long day at church, with lots of hugs and laughs and tears.
 
Dee went to packing her suitcases, right up until we headed out to have our exit interview with the Pickerds at the mission home. It was quick and low key. They are great folks and have a heavy load, and they are very appreciative of what we senior couples do for the mission. It is so hard to believe that this whole thing is over for Dee and almost so for me. We have loved every minute of it.

Take-home lunch

Saturday I awoke after a halfway decent night's sleep -- maybe 4-5 hours, upright in a chair -- with my sinuses still open! Progress. However, I was still feeling too weak to even try to go to lunch at the Magnantis. We love them, and she is an awesome cook! Dee called to tell them that I couldn't come, and Elia said that Dee should drive down and pick up the food, which she would package up for us to enjoy at home. It is almost 40 minutes on the freeway, but who can refuse an offer like that?

Dee had invited all the GANS to lunch at Roma 3 after church on Sunday, so we asked Ugo to buy some porchetta, a local specialty meat often served at ward events, to insure that there would be enough food to go around. Usually you have to order a few days ahead of time, but Ugo knows a guy who found 7kg for us to buy for Sunday. Nice. Dee walked down to Conad to buy the bread for the Sunday lunch, as well as getting more Gatorade for me, then headed out to get our lunch. I tried to nap while she was gone, but was unable to do so -- these days being sleepy and being able to sleep are rather uncorrelated. When she got back, we enjoyed some amazing pasta and eggplant Parmesan. Wow. I told Elia that it was magnifico and Magnantico!

I spent some time with Barbara's laptop but couldn't find any problems with it, other than the fact that is slow and 10 years old. I called her to ask what the issue was, and it was a rather vague "something pops up every so often". So I just made a backup of it and will give it back to her. Sorry I couldn't do more.

I did some of my usual financial and computer housekeeping chores during the day when I felt up to doing anything. For example, I gave Dee her Verizon SIM card for using at home and installed the one she bought for me in my US phone, which I also configured and updated for me. Dee set up the scanner right next to her desk to scan and delete a bunch of paperwork. This is not just a trip coming up; it is a move, so there is lots to do. I am glad that it cannot be done by car or truck, else we would be tempted to keep too much stuff. She also worked on her final Primary lesson. I got to speak with my sister Colleen in Las Cruces on the phone when I called my mom, and it was nice to hear her voice.

The Pickerds have been out of town for Zone Conferences and a Stake Conference, but I was able to set up an appointment for a final visit with them Sunday evening at the mission home. I hope that I will have enough strength to do that: it didn't feel right not to make one last connection with them before heading home.

Dee's final day at the Institute

Friday I woke up after a tough night. I actually had over 3 hours without congestion right after I went to bed, but then I woke up after only two hours and couldn't get back so to sleep!  It was so frustrating to miss that golden opportunity for some good sleep. When I did my saline nasal rinse in the morning, there was a lot of blood in it. Gross,  yeah, but not surprising after going through a ton of Kleenex.  

After showering and shaving, I got ready to go to the Institute, but just couldn't make it.  Ugo stepped in to take over my lessons, and Dee went to the market for some Gatorade (to keep my fluids up) and yogurt (to overcome the antibiotic course in my gut as the course comes to an end). It was a real bummer not to be there for Dee's final day at the campus, but I just wasn't up to it. My nose was still completely clogged and I had little energy. I was actually able to take a number of good naps during the day, which was a nice change over recent days. 

In the afternoon I switched from steroid spray to steroid tablets, which is what Dr. Baccini recommended if the spray wasn't working. Then I took my antibiotic, and within an hour or two my nose had cleared up and stayed that way for the rest of the evening!  It was a very strange feeling after all this time. That was the wonderful news, but I was still very sleepy and weak, and thus glad to be home. I was able to stay awake until 8pm, just barely.

Ugo taught my Seminary class, which had 11 students who all were happy to eat a one final treat from my wife and give her hugs. Barbara and Mariela Rondinelli came by to give her gifts, and she had some US measuring cups as gifts which delighted them (they do stuff here by weight, not volume).

Ugo taught my Institute lesson. Dee said that the place was quite full, including President Rondinelli and his wife who also came to see her off. Dee prepared her pesto chicken spinach tortellini, which everyone loved. Ugo demanded the recipe! The Balzottis were there the whole time, quietly just helping out. At the end of the lesson, they invited Dee into the classroom, where Jomar and the Ganziani sang a song with rap lyrics that they added for us. Jomar couldn't look at my wife or he would start crying, so he had a difficult time. It was a lovely thought. Here is the video, and here are the lyrics:

See You Again (Jomar and the Ganziani Version)

It's been a long day without you, my friend

And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

We've come a long way from where we began

Oh I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again

Dang, there's this guy I know

His name is Anz Whiting, he’s got hair like snow

He’s funny, he’s cool, he’s kind and he’s smart

You can always count on him cause he’s got a big heart

Talk about a guy that really loves people

He’s the world’s most greatest GANS institute teacher

So Anziano Whiting, we wanna let you know

We're grateful, we love you, and we're sad you have to go

How could we not talk about family when family's all that we got?

Everything I went through you were standing there by my side

And now you gonna be with me for the last ride

It's been a long day without you, my friendAnd

I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

We've come a long way from where we began

Oh I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again

There’s activities every day, and the food is always bomb

But the greatest parts been seeing you when we get to GANS

You’re the closest thing that all of us have to a second Mom

On the real, when it comes to loving people Sorella never pretends

So God be with you till we meet again, yeah,

you'll always be our friend, no this surely ain't the end...

How could we not talk about family when family's all that we got?

Everything I went through you were standing there by my side

nd now you gonna be with me for the last ride

So let the light guide your way hold every memory as you go

And every road you take will always lead you home

It's been a long day without you, my friend

And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

We've come a long way from where we began

Oh I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again...

Dee in the class, sitting next to President Rondinelli

During and after dinner, everyone wanted to hug and talk with Dee. There were lots of laughs and lots of tears. Chris Campos, our nonmember from California, is an awesome guy; he told my wife that we had become his family, which was really important for him when he first arrived here alone in 2017. It was hard for Dee to get out of there. The Balzottis were very patient. They departed for home about 10:30pm.

Half way home, Dee remembered that she had left Barbara's laptop at the campus for me to look at. So Anziano Balzotti quietly turned around and went back. As she entered the Institute to get the laptop, she saw Linda and offered her a ride home (her apartment is in a sketchy area nearby). When the two of them came out together, the Balzottis again took directions on how to drop Linda off, getting lost a few times along the way -- it isn't an easy route. Despite the late hour, never so much as an eye roll, much less any complaint, from the Balzottis. After leaving Linda at her door, Anziano Balzotti turns to Dee and says, "That is a bad area! You know why forgot the laptop, right? Linda needed a ride home." We love the Balzottis! Soon after 11pm, I woke up after more than three hours of good sleep, with sinuses still clear, to find her not home yet at that late hour, so I messaged her. She was just arriving and we got to chat for a while. She was just glowing. We are both so glad that she was able to come back for this final week to get some closure here.