Summer Solstice in Finland

We are enjoying the sunlight so much. It’s so great, but its also weird, it feels in a way that I have been living in one continual day because when I go to bed it’s day and when I wake up it’s day. But its so cool! (Note from Rhonda: according to the weather app on my phone, in Helsinki the sunrises at 3:57 a.m. and sets at 10:49 p.m.)

My favorite place, Pyynikki

Cleaning a member's roof with Sisar Thayne

Nothing super great this week. Yesterday we got lost in an area looking for a former investigator and walked like 10 miles, which was great! We found the former and he was super sweet, not interested, but really nice,  and we met some really cool people along the way that we never would've met if we hadn’t gotten lost! One day I will figure out how to read a map... Also, we chased down the ice cream truck. It was the best thing ever! Ice cream is so good here you guys, and its the funnest word 'jäätelö'. Say that one ten times fast. Anyways, the work is good, the days go fast, and I am really enjoying life. Thank you for all the prayers and support, I can truly feel it out here. I love you all!

Jäätelo!

Crazy selfie with Sisar Thayne

The funniest thing that happened to us this week...well, on Sunday we were going to catch our bus to get to church and there was this group of like 6 really loud people with suitcases at the stop too. We knew they weren’t Finns because they were talking to each  other and they weren’t speaking Finnish, so we decided to go ask them where they were from. They ended up being from France and they were here for a week for a Europe economics conference and they were just heading home. They were super cool and really talkative and really excited to practice their English. They were amazed that we were here doing missionary work and they all took a card from us. We talked with them for like 20 minutes before the bus came and they even took a selfie with us. It was pretty cool. Sister Thayne and I laughed after on the bus cause both of us said in our past life we would never walk up to a group of adults and just start talking with them.

Selfie with the French friends we met at the bus stop

Picture with our Chinese friend before he went home

My new companion...

Saying good bye to Sisar Kokkonen

My new district

On May 16th Sister Kokkonen was transferred Neitsypolku in the very middle of Helsinki to finish Sister Burden's training. How fun is that? She gets to go be with one of my most favorite people in the whole world! My new companion is Sister Thayne. She is from SLC and  is awesome! We laugh all the time and we go out and do work. She really likes talking to people, which is fantastic because that’s what makes me the happiest out here. We work hard, and we get lost (only twice...my fault), but we figure things out together and it is super fun. 

    Tampere is so great! Oh man, I really do love it here! Last Sunday we were out contacting and I stopped a Chinese man outside of the grocery store. He said he wasn’t really interested and that we should probably go talk to someone else, but we gave him a card and told him to call us if he was ever interested. Then, on Friday night we were out contacting in the center and got a call from a random number. it was the Chinese man! We had forgotten about him... he told us that he had been pondering on what we said to him and that would like to meet the next day and learn more. So he met us at the church on Saturday and he told us he wanted to find out how Christ could help him in his life. He also told us that he didn’t think that he would be able to come to Finland, but that he really wanted to, so he prayed and asked God for help. And then it was possible to come, so he knows the God answers his prayers. He also said that he felt that when he came to Finland he would meet someone very important, and now he sees that it was us. He has met with us the last two days and read the Book of Mormon a little along with the restoration pamphlet. He says he knows that Joseph Smith is a prophet from God and that he wants to follow the prophet now because the prophet knows what God’s will for us is. He also said that he feels peace and comfort when he prays like we taught him. He is so great! He comes to lessons well prepared and basically teaches us the message. He has to go back to China next week, so we will meet with him until he goes and then send his info to the branch where he lives and have them take care of him. He is so amazing! We love him so much and we feel so blessed to have been in the right place at the right time taking every opportunity possible to talk to people. And now our friend has blessed our lives. Miracles happen every day and it’s amazing. 

Beautiful Finland