The first day the new missionaries arrive, they are extremely excited and motivated and really, really tired. By the time they finally get to bed, they are completely exhausted. (I wish there was a better way to do this, but it just doesn't work out that way.) Because of the great distances some of them have to travel to reach their final destination, some of them have to be up by 5:00 am. The missionaries going to Sicily have an 8 to 10 hour train ride. Some of them have to take a plane to Sardegna or Malta. Most of the others usually have a long bus ride to reach their assigned area. Add into that equation the fact that it's also transfer day for the entire mission and it becomes quite hectic. We have missionaries coming to Rome from all over the mission to meet up with their new companions or else being transferred to another area of the mission to serve with someone else. It's complicated. Our wonderful assistants put the jigsaw together and somehow it all works in the end. I just pray each time that everything goes well and it does, but only because a higher power than us is overseeing everything. The assistants spend all day taking missionaries to and from the airport, train station and bus station. They are amazing. They really work overtime to accomplish such an amazing feat.
My son writes that the two assistants, Anziano Kasper and Bird, are really great.
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