This week has just been popping here in the good ole North of Finland and in the blessed city of Kajanni!! We actually hit -11 yesterday so that was pretty cool. Sadly nothing yet to report on the northern lights...we have had like 9 straight weeks of clouds... but I will see them one day!! It so weird as it progressively gets darker each day... like the sun maybe comes up at 10 and then it is completely dark by like 3:15 - 3:30...but it's actually pretty cool:) It will be really weird when the sun is up ALL THE TIME... it's gonna be great, but I have really enjoyed the dark and cold suprisingly haha.
This week has been pretty crazy so this email may be written differently:)
Wednesday we went out and pounded some more doors and met this really cool guy from Syria. You meet a lot of people from the middle east and they are way nice and so much fun to talk to. But this guy was especially funny cause me and Elder Reed both walked out of his house each getting our selves a free English to Arabic translation of the Koran. Me and elder Reed were laughing pretty hard cause he was telling us how he could get us more if we needed them. So if anyone needs an English to Arabic Koran, I have one:). Then we pounded a few more doors and that was just about our entire day. That night we went and played some Sähly with the ward members and some people from the city, and that was really fun. Playing Sähly is way fun and it's way tricky too That night we also cleaned our apartment again and filled out some papers because we were going to be having out apartment inspection on Friday which was also transfer call day, so that was just one big nerve wracking day haha.
Thursday it was district meeting! So we got up to Oulu and went to district meeting. It was going to be the last district meeting that we would all have together cause nobody knew what was gonna happen the next day with transfer calls... so we had our meeting and then just hung out all together. We got our V- Books back. Now in Finland they do a thing called V- Books or "Vieras Kirja" Which translates to guest book. So it's like a yearbook pretty much but everyone from you district writes in it about you and how the transfer went. It's pretty fun to read what other people thought about the transfer and reliving those old memories with the other missionaries.. so that was cool. We said goodbye to Elder Crump which was sad cause he goes home this week. Elder Crump is an amazing guy and everyone should get to know him. So I'll miss Elder Crump. We got to take our lovely 3 hour bus ride back to Kajaani and then do some street contacting to end the night. Thursday was now over and the scary day was coming up. Apartment inspection which really is nothing to worry about, but transfer calls were coming the next day haha.
Friday... Transfer Calls!! So we got up in the morning and got ready cause our apartment inspection was starting at 9. During our inspection, President calls and I just start to panic...cause that is the call that decides if I get to stay in the greatest place on earth or if I am getting moved somewhere else. We had to tell president to call us back cause we were in the middle of the inspection. Okay now the inspection ends.... we passed with flying colors and they were really impressed with our apartment and car but thats not the point... me and Elder Reed are running inside to are flat to call back president and we call him and he is on the line with someone else, so the suspense is just building. Finally president calls and he starts talking to us and and then he tells us our new assignments. He started with Elder Reed and told him that he will be training again in Kajaani! That is so cool that he gets to train again and that is gonna be so fun! The trainee is gonna love Elder Reed and learn a lot. But then my heart just sank cause that meant I was getting moved out of Kajaani:( I had to leave after one transfer. So my next area I will be serving in is the Espoo 2nd ward!! So I'm going to be moving down south and be in a ward! Our branch in Kajaani had about 15-20 active members to now going to a full on ward haha that's a change! There is also a catch to this as well. I will be in a TRIO! My companions will be Elder Englund from Sweden who is one of the funniest guys I know and Elder Fitzpatrick who just served in Kuopio. I actually met Elder Fitzpatrick my first night with Elder Reed cause we spent the night in Kuopio... so we are all going to have a fun time together down in Espoo! I am very sad to be leaving Kajaani, but I am very excited to be going down to serve in Espoo. That is pretty much it for that day cause nothing can really beat transfer calls haha.
Saturday we had to go pick up president and sister Aura cause they were spending the next two days in Kajaani to visit us and the branch. So we went and picked them up and dropped them off at their hotel and then did some tracting and then we had to go help set up for the branche's christmas party! So we went and set up for the christmas party and then greeted people as they started to show up and our investigators came as well!! So for the christmas party there was a lot oh hymn singing, and people performing for the branch which was again singing. President and sister Aura, Elder reed, and I and a member actually did something ( shocker right ahah, I sang with them in front of the branch ahah) we all san Silent Night and you could probably only hear president Aura and our member cause they were singing so loud:). But that was fun, hope y'all enjoy the video haha. We watched a few more people sing, played some games, and then ate food. So we had desserts, not sure what it was but it had like pomegranate, cream, crushed gram cracker, and some other delicious goodness:), and some porridge with some fruit on it. Yes moms and pops, I actually was able to eat a bowl of porridge, that rice stuff that I never liked (They eat that in Norway as well..and me, his mom's favorite:)). I just said a prayer and was like " Help me get this down and keep it down" haha. Well it worked, and surprisingly not as bad as I remember:)). But the party was way fun and we wore these goofy lookin santa hats:)) It was a ton of fun! Then we had interviews with president and that is always a great time to be able to talk to him. He was proud of the work we did in Kajaani. He asked me if there was anything he could do for me and no joke this is what I said haha " Send me back to Kajaani when you get the chance" and he and I laughed but I was being serious. I want to come back so bad. Our branch president thought it was so funny that I wanted to stay so bad, cause apparently everyone wants to go to Espoo cause it's a bigger city and nobody wants to stay in Kajaani. Well I guess I'm just the opposite of them haha.
Sunday we had church, I gave a final testimony in the branch. President and sister Aura spoke. Then church just got real sad when it was over. One of the members who you will see in a picture was really sad that I was leaving, and me and him got a long really well. A lot of the members were shocked that I was leaving after such a short time. One member said " There will be no one like Vanhin Rakkaus" and not sure about that, cause there are a lot of great missionaries, but it meant a lot. But this was the absolute saddest part... our investigator family that we have been teaching since like my 3rd day in the country came up to me to say goodbye. Sister Aura had to explain to the kids where I was going and what was happening cause they were asking her why I was leaving. But then our investigator came up to me and wanted to say goodbye. She is seriously one of the nicest people to ever walk the earth and is doing so good in progressing towards baptism. She got gospel library on her phone and was so excited when she could get all the scriptures, conference talks, church lessons all in Swahili. She is an amazing lady. But she came up to me and told me this and this is translated cause none of y'all understand Finnish. It was a gift of tongues miracle that I understood all of this. But she said " Thank you for coming over and teaching me every week. Thank you for all that you have taught me, and I am sad that you have to leave. If God wants it then we will meet again." If that doesn´t make you emotional then I don't know what will cause I'm a baby and I just started to cry. That was literally the saddest thing to say goodbye to her and her family. But I know that they are going to be in good hands with Elder Reed and his trainee. They will do great things with her, and I am so excited to hear about what happens to this family. I never thought it would be so hard to leave an area that I only spent 2 months in and be so hard to say goodbye to the people that I just got to know. I guess that is what the gospel brings. Just unconditional love for everyone you meet.
This week has been great and I'm so excited to get to Espoo tomorrow!!! Hope you all have a great week and Merry Christmas!!
Elder Love out
We always ask questions at the end of his letters...and Austen's dad asked him "How did your visit go with the Mission President?" And this is what he answered:)
"Having President up in our neck of the woods was way fun. President ans Sister Aura are some great people. I honestly didn't get much council from him, just that we were doing a great job. Pretty much all he did was complimenting me the entire time I was with him, and what a great job i;m doing, and how excited he is to serve with me these next couple of years. He told me I was a solid missionary and he wished he could thank the apostle that sent me to Finland. Then he started to cry and complimented me some more. So, I'm guessing he likes me haha. Then he said he could see all the people that I was going to help. It was a way cool experience with him."
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