First week in Oulu

You say Oulu like oolew.

My new companion Sister Cooper is from Payson, Utah. We get along super great. She is funny and open and we seriously have so much fun together :) The new area is beautiful! When I think of Finland this is what I think about….and all of the trees are losing their leaves and everything now, and it is gorgeous. It truly felt like coming home getting off the train here. And the ward just took us in and ward members have been helping us so very much. I am so blessed to be here and I know this is exactly where I am needed.

We saw the ocean yesterday too, so that was legit. It’s gorgeous! So many ready people here so it’s been a blast. We do not have a car. Only about 3 or 4 sister areas have cars. We ride bikes! I am riding an elder’s bike that he let us borrow and Sister Cooper is riding an old bike that a sister left. We are still trying to figure that one out, but we get around for now. I am getting good at navigating by map though. We have been lost a few times, but luckily there are always people to talk to. It’s awesome cause you can still do missionary work even when you are lost!

You asked how the language is going... and I can say that I do well enough to do work! Sister Nelson and I survived last transfer. J I definitely feel like my capabilities increased a ton in the last two months. I understand most of the time, it just really depends. I am just good at pretending and reading people and getting the gist and then guessing. But hey! We teach in Finnish and it’s fun! So I don’t know if that answered your question, but let me just say that learning the language is still a process. The gift of tongues is real, it’s just not how I pictured it. The great thing is that the Lord helps us to be able to do what we need too. It’s amazing. 

Saying goodbye to Haaga

Oulu, Finland

 I will be training this next transfer, and I will be leaving the Haaga area. I will be shot gun training in an area called Oulu! It’s the most north that any sisters can go. We will be the only set of sisters up there. I am shot gunning the old STL's area that is combined with one other area. It’s going to be a little crazy. I will have to take an overnight train tomorrow night to arrive there on Thursday morning. I have the Zone Leaders up there in my ward though, so they should be good help. Quite the adventure I am about to embark on! it will be fun and exciting! I hope I don't die!!! I am super excited to meet my new companion tomorrow though. Training will be fun. I am nervous, but I know the Lord will help. And the Holy Ghost is the real teacher, so I will just do my best and let him do the rest. 


We took a picture after our last WML meeting on Sunday. The guy on the very left is our WML and he is awesome. Then Eder Edwards and Elder Hoggard are the elders in our ward, and then our cute ward missionary who is from Vietnam and has been a convert for a year, and Sister Nelson and me. 

The one of me on the floor is at about 1900 on Saturday after we had been running around like chickens with our heads cut off helping a member with a baptism.

The temple, Mission Tour, and an incredible investigator

Helsinki Finland Temple

We got to go to the Helsinki temple last week, and it was soooooo good! I miss it so much. We have to go like a thousand times when I get home.
Last week we had a Mission Tour as well. This is where all the missionaries in my zone (Helsinki and East zone) came together and had a meeting with Elder Johnson and Elder Sabin who are the first and second counselors of our Area Presidency and their wives. All of my MTC group (besides Sister Margetts) were reunited at the mission tour! It was so great! What awesome missionaries they all are. We couldn’t believe it has almost been 6 months since the MTC.

This is what Sister Margetts said in her weekly email: "We had an incredible mission tour, and here's a picture of me and all my friends from my MTC group... oh wait, all of my group are in Helsinki and the East zone."

Sister Margetts, alone at her Mission Tour

A cool thing happened that happened to us this week is that Sister Nelson and I were riding a train to get to a lesson and we got off to switch trains and walked up to this man that was there standing there to talk to him. He looked at us and immediately said, “Yes. I am interested. Here is my phone number, and when can we meet?” He then proceeded to tell us that he lives by us and has seen us on the bus and has wondered about our church. He told us that since 2007 he has been searching for the truth fro God and he wanted to know what we had to say. He then called us later that same day to set up an appointment with us. We couldn’t meet with him until Monday, but he said would come to church to see what it was like. In church they taught about temples and family history and he loved it. He said he has been looking for a church that could help his grandparents because it never felt right to him that nothing could be done to help them. The lesson went well yesterday and he is preparing to baptized on the 8^th of October. Miracles happen every day! I feel so blessed to see how the Lord works. It’s amazing!