Note from Karlan's mom

No blog post this week, but here are a couple of excerpts from the email Karlan sent me:

Finland has warmed up a bit lately- snow on the sides of the roads, but not much on the actual roads or sidewalks. Hopefully this means I don't fall on my face this week (because it TOTALLY happened again last week!) I'm not as much of a winter enthusiast as the average Finn, so I'm just fine to see some color on the streets. 

In Preach My Gospel this week I've studied a lot about keeping commitments. We've noticed that when an investigator comes to church, it's like a catalyst for keeping other commitments. We had a kid from our school presentation come to church on his own this week. He didn't want a Mormonin Kirja, [Book of Mormon] but he took our card, and had some good questions. Miracle. I've never had that happen before.

Five more weeks!

ANTI-Trunky Letter

A letter for Sisar Hansen falls into the mail slot with a slight "thunk". The return address is the mission office address. Another trunky letter? Upon opening the letter and scanning its contents, I discover that it is, in fact, an ANTI-trunky letter from President Watson. Dear readers, I have 6 weeks left in Finland. That's right. SIX WEEKS. The time is flying by, and will only get shorter. I was really thankful for this letter, reminding me to "sprint to the end" and be the best missionary I can be while I can. Being a trainer helps with this quite a lot. I have to be on top of things for the sake of my companion. She needs to start out her mission as strong as possible, and I can have a big effect on that. She actually pushes me to be better, with tovereni, I have a bit of a built-in anti-trunkiness system.

As I reviewed the letter, I noticed an invitation to re-read the ENTIRE Book of Mormon during my last transfer, or rather, my last transfer, minus the almost 3 weeks before I received the letter. Hoo, boy! Challenge accepted! I've been blazing through, reading almost 20 pages/day in addition to any other needed studies, and it's been amazing how much I can get from it at such a pace. I'm highlighting, writing in the margins, and discovering insights for investigators. I'm about halfway through 2nd Nephi after about 4 or 5 days of reading, and getting more out of Isaiah than I ever have before! There are so many things I'd like to do before I go home. I know that I can't do everything. I pray that, instead of this adding to my stress, that the Lord will help me to prioritize and to not mourn over the things I may have to give up, but to find enjoyment and peace in the things He asks of me to do, those things that are best. It's refreshing to get rid of baggage, don't you think? The ridding of baggage of too many projects and time-drainers sure does feel invigorating. (As does reading the Book of Mormon!)

Friday night we arrived at our weekly coordination meeting after a few hours of some odd contacting adventures (former investigator giving us a book about the Shroud of Turin, anyone?) to hear that, "Oh, yeah, there's a school presentation on Monday morning. Who wants to do it?" Ooh! I LOVE school presentations! The sisaret will do it! Sisaret! Not even thinking of how poor tovereni might feel about it, I quickly volunteered. It's settled. School presentation Monday morning. No members involved at this point, and not even sure if we had a copy of the materials in our apartment, we tried not to think too much about how big this task might actually be. There's a lot of material to cover, and even I don't know all the vocabulary involved. Instead of losing her cool, Sisar M made a study plan to help us prepare for our latest assignment, and we went from, "How is this even possible?" to "At least we'll have a member there with us!" Well, when our member cancelled early Monday morning, all we could do was laugh. We really didn't mean to wake anyone up, but at least the YSA we called out of desperation had a good sense of humor about it (and hopefully they liked our apologetic cookies later that day). With everyone at work or in class, we had nothing to do, but just go out and do it ourselves. We arrived in the class of about 10 high school students, set up the PowerPoint, and the words just came. Tovereni blew the class away with her 12 weeks' worth of Finnish. She commented, shared personal stories, and answered a few questions, all in Finnish! The teacher and the class insisted that English would be fine, but Sisar Mendenhall was not called to speak English. She was called to boldly declare the gospel in Finnish, and that is what she did. We got some tough questions, of course, not all of them well-intentioned, but we were always able to conjure up just the right words to give an appropriate response to any concern. A MAJOR success, one that I hope will be a confidence-boost for tovereni. Quite an accomplishment for any missionary on just her 3rd week in the field. I was in my 3rd TRANSFER when I did my first school presentation, and it was daunting enough. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, my companion in miraculous.

Other adventures from the week include:

-Wiping out on the snow as I ran for the bus to church. Good thing everybody was watching...

-Getting caught in the snow in inadequate footwear (It had been MUCH warmer that morning!)

-Cutting out snowflakes as baby shower decorations as a mini service project

-More fun times teaching and learning with Lance

-Contacting BINGO, our latest attempt to help us be better at contacting on the street/bus (We look for people to contact who match the attributes on our squares. Bonus points if we can actually get in a lesson. It's been miraculous so far!) 

-Waiting outside an investigator's building for 15 minutes in the cold (and wearing afore-mentioned inadequate footwear) until somebody came out of the building, and we were able to drop a cookie/letter combo in her mail slot

-And many more anti-trunky antics!

Dear reader, life is grand. Let us, like Nephi, "live after the manner of happiness" and avoid the angst of trunkiness. Life is literally a gift from our Heavenly Father. May we treat it as such.

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Hansen

New Beginnings

January 7, 2015

This is the first blog post of my final transfer in the Finland Helsinki Mission. Surreal, huh? Half of my previous companions all left the country last week, and the mission has undergone yet another transfers change-up. There were a lot of comings and goings last Tuesday/Wednesday. Tuesday night we had to get all of Sisar Schellenberg's luggage to the Central Railway Station in Helsinki center to load onto a big truck headed to the mission home. There we met with other departing missionaries, including Sisar Heggie (who joked once again that since we keep running into each other, we'll never actually say goodbye) and Sisar Dayton (a more-than-welcome surprise). We took a couple of them home with us, as well as another future-trainer sisar and her luggage (she's training AND transferring, brave soul!) to spend the night before the next day's departure/training meetings.

It was fun to see the new missionaries. They are so full of light and hope. They want to serve with all of their gusto. After our trainers-only meeting we all had lunch together at the mission home, and got to know each other a bit around the table. I can only guess that most people were listening closely so as to make predictions as to who our new toveri would be. I sat by a bubbly girl from Utah, and an army kid who identifies as growing up in Belgium. There was another sisar who's 23. Maybe she would be a good fit for me. 6 new sisters in total who could possibly be my final toveri in the field. We weren't to find out until after another combined meeting where we went over some policies, including how to cope with the extra hour of companionship study that missionaries and their trainers have during their first 12 weeks in the field. When we were finally paired up, I was put with the army kid, Sisar Mendenhall. All of the other sisters' eyes seemed to pop out of their heads when I told her that we had a less-active lesson in just a couple hours' time. Everyone seemed pretty well-matched up. These things are definitely inspired, a fact that President repeats often.

My new toveri is simply miraculous. She's expressed to me her weaknesses and her fears, and yet she gets up and works through them anyway. She's a bold and fearless contacter. Contacting is a bit daunting for many new missionaries (as well as some more seasoned sisaret, like the one writing this blog post). We did a contacting roleplay during studies the other day, and she still wasn't sure about how it might go. She did set a goal to stop at least one person in the street that day, and the second person we came across, she taught them about God's love, and a living prophet! We taught 4 street lessons that day, mostly thanks to her. I frequently hear her whisper to me as we walk down the street, "Hey, shall we stop that man over there?" She's bold and eager in lessons, too. I know it's so hard not knowing everything that's going on, but she responds to invitations to answer questions or to testify like a champion. In our lesson with Lynn on her second day in the area, she gave an IMPROMPTU object lesson about church attendance in FINNISH, even though Lynn assured her that English is okay. She fought off jet-lag to contribute prayerful goals to our weekly planning session (let's be honest- she practically did that one all by herself) and is bubbling over with ideas on how to best help the people in our area. I am humbled and excited to be her trainer. She keeps me on my toes, and even reminds ME of good missionary habits. "Uh, Sisar? Shouldn't we pray first?" "I'm going to make this chart so we can keep track of our daily contact with investigators throughout the week." SERIOUSLY. What did I do to deserve her? The Lord has been long preparing me for this. I can see it as I re-read past journal entries. I can see how my dear Sisar Schellenberg, who was twice a trainer, has prepared me for this with her constant love, patience, and diligence. I think she was my trainer-trainer. There are, of course, the normal and natural stresses of being new to the mission field, but tovereni handles them well, and always finds a way to move on.

I am blessed to get to begin again during the last transfer of my mission. I am blessed to serve in this area with these people. I am blessed to start off 2015 on such a high note. In a way, being with a relative mission beginner will help prepare me for the inevitable re-entry into the "normal" world in just two months' time. There will be a lot more new beginnings awaiting me there.

Kiitos more than I can express for all of the love and support you've all shown me throughout 2014. I hope to be able to repay you in 2015.

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Hansen

Prepared

I've been pondering a lot on the topic of preparedness lately. With so many "red" days in our schedule (non-proselyting days) we've had to be very much prepared with things to do, and people to see. Change calls came the day after Christmas, which brought to our attention the need for my dear toveri to prepare for her final days in the mission field before she heads back home on New Years day. Phone calls to be made, letters to be written, things to be sorted, and bags to be packed. In my Doctrine and Covenants reading, I've noticed that many, many times it is said that idleness and laziness are not acceptable before God. When I go back home from my full-time service in just over 2 months, I won't be going straight back to school, or to a job. Until I can get on my own two feet, I'll be living with my parents, in a small town where I have few friends left. How can dedicating myself to my current calling as a missionary help prepare me to be a profitable servant at that future period of my life? How will I go back to the world, and continue to live in a way that will prepare me to enter into God's presence, when my time will be divided amongst so many other things? 

President Watson had tovereni and I over for personal interviews a few weeks ago. In my interview with him, we talked a great deal about preparing for my final transfer in the mission. He gave me a lot to think upon and to study, and I have tried diligently to follow his counsel daily. He mentioned in a zone conference once, the story of a man who was NOT called to be the ward's next bishop. "But President," he humbly appealed to his stake leader, "I received a personal witness that I was to be called as bishop. How do I make sense of all of this?" As it turns out, he was eventually called as bishop, just later on than he had imagined. His initial impressions were not the whisperings of an immediate future, but a basis of preparation for the day when he would be called to preside over a ward. I remember feeling this way when, after such strong feelings about serving a mission, I received a very strong NO answer at the age of 20. I was in no way surprised when the thoughts and impressions (dreams, even) I've long had about one aspect of my missionary service came true, and my change call included the assignment to be a trainer for a new sisar entering the country this week. I've spent a lot of time studying, praying, fasting, and conversing with tovereni (who trained twice) about how I can be the best possible senior companion to whoever it is I'll be spending my last 2 months in Finland with. Although I know that there is no way to fully anticipate everything that will arise from most of life's transitions (moving to college, serving a mission, starting a family, all fall into this category), I do feel prepared (in addition to feeling very humbled). We've put together to the best of our ability a well-structured schedule for the next week. I've listed out the kind of trainer I'd like to be, and how I can become that missionary. When Wednesday comes around and I am paired up with the person the Lord wants for my companion, I will feel ready to keep the work going forward in the Haaga ward.

Sisar Schellenberg has done an admirable job of preparing to go home. Despite packing bags (in record speed, I might add), writing down addresses not to be forgotten, making goals for post-mission life, her mind has been in the present. She's been an indispensable aid as we've plotted out schedules, found members for lessons, prepared the apartment, and even made little flashcards to help New Sisar get to know the area and its inhabitants. She does not want to spend her last days in the field coasting, or wiling away the time in idleness. She is finishing strong, and I am inspired by her great example. If my last transfer is as dedicated and consecrated as hers has been, my departure from Finland will be bittersweet, but with an emphasis on the sweet.

As for the Christmas portion of Christmas week, we had fun getting to know members, eating traditional Finnish Christmas food (ham, vegetable purees, chocolate, etc) and of course, skyping. It always goes by so fast, those 40 minutes, although knowing that I will see my family in person in just 10 more weeks made it a bit easier than past sype sessions. We were blessed to be invited by a less-active member who had prepared skype on her previously skype-less computer, just for the occasion. She was prepared with an offering of fruit for us to take home, to counter the piles of sweets she knew we'd surely already scarfed down. How thoughtful! How well-prepared!

The weekend saw the end of our "red" days, and some opportunities for meaningful missionary service. Margaret came with us to a baptismal service in nearby Kerava, and had a good time at her first kastetilaisuus, and an ejoyable time in sacrament meeting the next day. Our newest Friend, Lance, came to church as well, and despite having a dump truck load's worth of new information put upon his head, he seemed to have a good time, and we are really excited to spend more time teaching him about Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and their plan for us. The work her had slowed down a bit for a small period, and now it seems to be picking back up. We have a lot of potential here, in this most wonderful of areas. I'm blessed to spend my last transfer in Haaga. My poor new toveri will be spoiled from the get-go.

A big part of preparation, I have learned, is accountability. Accountability gives us a push forward, and keeps us on the right path towards our goals. I would invite you all to consider your personal or family missionary vision for 2015. Write it down. Put it in a place where it will be easily seen and remembered. Turn to the person on your left, and tell them your goals for inviting to church/giving away copies of the Book of Mormon/introducing people to the missionaries/whatever you choose to do. Now somebody else knows, and you are officially held accountable. Reading Preach My Gospel is a great place to start. Chapter 3, all about the missionary lessons, and chapter 6 on Christ-like attributes, are personal favorites of mine for member-missionaries. Tell me how it goes! I sincerely want to know! This life is a time to prepare to meet God. It is a time to help others prepare, who simply do not know how. The gospel of Christ gives us the tools. All we need to do is apply them. Make like a boy scout, and be prepared!

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Hansen

Feast

Joulu is once again here, as surreal as it sometimes seems. Helsinki streets are blanketed with snow, and it was a miracle that we were able to make it through the crowded mall in once piece, on our way to the library to write emails.

I´ve thought a lot about love as Christmas approaches. God´s love is, after all, the source of all our greatest gifts. He gave his Only Begotten Son why? Because He so loved us. We have been amazed again and again by the love shown to us by members, investigators, and others. When the world is at its darkest (a word that has many meanings, some of them particularly apparent in Finland), the light and warmth of the Spirit are vibrantly visible. While we had a solid appointment for each of our 3 red days (non-proselyting days), until about a week ago, we found ourselves with not much else to do during that time, and no place to skype! Yikes! We proclaimed the news of our predicament far and wide across the ward last Sunday, and the response has been huge. Many members of our ward are from other parts of Finland, and will be out of town for the next couple of weeks. They can´t give us a place to stay or to skype, but even those who will be half-way across the country for Joulu approached us at church yesterday, and asked us if we were set to go, concern in their voices. As it turns out, there is a less active member of the ward whose door we knocked a few evenings ago. She let us in, chatted with us for a while, and then invited us over to skype with her. She´ll even give us a ride, since she lives a bit far out. As it turns out, she didn´t even have Skype installed on her computer at all, but texts from her over the past few days have confirmed that all is set and ready to go for us to call home on Thursday evening. We´ve filled out the rest of our red days, and we even had to turn a couple offers down, due to too many appointments! Lynne invited us over for a bit on Christmas Day. She´s taught us how to knit, and we´re excited to show her our progress when we go over there. At our last meeting with her, she gave us each a present that, when carefully squeezed, feels suspiciously like yarn and needles. What love!

Joulu traditions in Finland are a bit different than in the States. For example, Joulupukki (Santa Claus) comes straight to the door to deliver his presents on Christmas Eve, which is the big day Suomessa. Finns often enjoy a trip to the sauna on Christmas. One of the biggest parts of a Finnish Christmas is the food. Let me tell you, Christmas food in Finland is fantastic. Rice pudding with plum soup, vegetable casserole, ham, pulla and other pastries, hot glögi to drink with a piece of gingerbread in hand, the list goes on. At this time around Christmas, we are almost never without an offering of food on any given day. Members have filled our dinner appointment calendar almost past its capacity. We have a hot meal provided by a member 9 days out of 10 at this time of year, which gives us an excellent opportunity to get to know ward members better, and encourage them to #ShareTheGift. Life is a literal feast right now. Those members whose houses we miss often give us bread, gingerbread, or Finnish chocolate as a gift in passing. We gave our former investigator Keith a Christmas card, and even he responded with some candied almonds. It´s almost more than my stomach, or the waistline of my favorite skirts, can handle. The point of this is not to boast about the perks of serving in Finland at Christmastime, although I would be lying if I said that it isn´t a wonderful time. More than anything, as members are so willing, even eager to provide us with something delicious, I feel their love and concern for the missionaries serving in their ward. They notice us. They look out for us. They know we´re far from home at a time that centers around the family, and they want us to feel like we are at home here in Helsinki. Their love and care for us missionaries reflects love for the Savior, because we are His representatives, and our purpose is to bring others to Him. Our cut-out paper Christmas tree we hung on the wall hangs over a pile of gifts, the sight of which warms my heart with love. How have I been so blessed in my life, to have 3 consecutive Christmases where, although my family and familiar traditions are halfway around the world, I feel so loved and cared for, so at home?

This mission has been like a giant spiritual feast for me. Like Nephi of the Book of Mormon, I have been blessed to, on many occasions, feel the arms of our Savior´s love encircling me as I do such an imperfect job of serving Him. I feel great love for our investigators, former and present. We had an excellent lesson with a young adult named Margaret yesterday (she who came to our Thanksgiving dinner) that left me pondering how great the gospel is, and how miraculous it is that Heavenly Father loves His children so much, that He has given us the commandments and ordinances we need to be worthy to return to Him. 

I am thankful for the ability to spend two Christmases in Finland as a full-time missionary. I am thankful that the missionary lifestyle requires me to look past material things that weigh down my suitcase, and to focus on learning to love others more as Christ loves them. I am thankful for the love and service we have received at this time, and throughout all the year. May you enjoy a Joulu that is centered around the Savior and His incomparable gift to the world.

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Hansen

Don't Leave This Behind

After a bit of an absence, the sometimes-weekly blog post returns with a vengeance! 

Time flies. It really does. In 3 more weeks I will be entering into my LAST transfer, and my dear Sisaret Schellenberg, Heggie, and Dayton will be back home, nametag-less. The work in Haaga is seeing ups and downs. While investigators are thinning out, we are finding more time for work with less-active members, and building relationships with people within the ward. Christmas is a wonderful time to naturally bring up the Savior, but it is also a time of busy schedules and out-of-town visits. Organizing our schedule has been a bit of a challenge, but we're hanging in there, and we have yet to experience a "my goodness, what is there even to do around here today?" kind of day.

Before I go into things spiritual, here are some funny moments from the past couple weeks that can serve as some Christmas cheer, for those of you not in Finland during the season of delicious Christmas porridge and hot glögi:

- We've brought a member along to a couple of teaches with an investigator who has two cats. These cats are normally quite friendly, but they are infatuated with our member! As soon as he sits down, there's one on his lap, scratching at his jeans, tail in his face, and another one on the back of his chair, nuzzling him from behind. With nobody else are these cats so eager to love and be loved. Our member handles it like a champion.

- A few weeks ago at our visit to the temple where Sisar Schellenberg's friends from Turku were performing proxy baptisms, one of them pulled me aside and told me that a secret plot was unfolding, and that my cooperation was key. I gave her my email, and Operation Surprise-Sisar-Schellenberg-With-Unexpected-Guests-at-the-Ward-Christmas-Party was underway. She did a literal double-take as 3 familiar faces from afar showed up to help us with decorations. I was glad that I'd somehow convinced her to put off sending them her Christmas package in the mail, and to have it ready with us at the church, just in case somebody from Turku might show up, who could deliver it for free.

- One personal study, I was really impressed by tovereni. On her white handbook was a sticky note with the words, "Don't Leave This Behind" written in large letters. What a consecrated missionary! Only 3 or so weeks remaining of her full-time service, and she is set on keeping alive those principles learned on her mission, during her post-mission life. The next day, as we started our companionship study, tovereni turns to me and says, "So, I have this sticky note on my white handbook. I've received some money from home on my mission in American dollars, and I folded it up and put it in the cover of my white handbook. I put a reminder on the front not to leave it behind when I go home." HA!!!! I told her my thoughts about what her note might have meant, and we laughed for a good long while. This in no way effects my confidence that she will be a consecrated member missionary post-mission. :p

Over the past couple weeks or so there have been a lot of Joulu festivities. Although the ground is wet with slushy melt rather than drifted snow, Christmas is in the air, and people are coming from near and sometimes far (see fun anectdote #2) to join in parties and concerts. We had one of our investigators, a lovely woman named "Britney", come to the stake Christmas concert, and then gladly stay for the worldwide Christmas devotional. She was touched by the music and every time she turned to me to tell me how much she loves a particular song, she glowed with the Spirit. She's a former member who was not in the church for long, and who told us as she sat down in the chapel before the start of the concert, "It feels so good to be here again!" She will be busy this Christmas season, but if she can find ways to re-ignite those feelings in her everyday life that she felt last night, she will do very well in her progression in the gospel.

I have of course, been thinking a lot about gifts. The advent calendar my former Geneva ward sent me offers a small gift every day. Whoever put it together knows missionaries very well- there are pens, paper, stickers, nylons, you name it! Sisar Schellenberg and I are excited every morning to see what new useful thing awaits in a little bag (hidden away in the closet so I don't give in to the naught impulse to peek). Such a thoughtful gift. I had a dream recently that for Christmas, my family decided to do something silly, like draw each other pictures for a gift. In my dream I was really upset. I woke up, wondering what was so upsetting about the situation. I'm learning more and more to not rely on "stuff" to make me happy. Shouldn't the best gift be about love, not about material possessions? I guess the thing that got to me in my dream was not the lack of expensive objects, but rather the sloppy, last-minute nature of many of our drawings. They were completely without thought or effort. What makes gifts truly special, like the ones in my calendar, is the thoughtfulness behind them. Do we give a gift our of obligation with little thought, or do we give a gift with purpose and intent, based on the needs or wants of the recipient? Therein lies the real difference. That's why Christ was and is the perfect "joulu lahja". His life was always filled with purpose. It was given for us with intent and sincerity. His life was never given for reasons of vanity or trendy appeal. It wasn't superfluous or lacking in thought. He gave us everything, EVERYTHING, and for purposes so grand, that we can only imagine them in part. How much we can learn as gift givers and receivers from the example of our Savior! 

As we faced an afternoon with a cancelled appointment and a lack of surety as to our next move, we got a phone call from a less-active sisar in our ward. "I made some herbal tea and some joulu torttuja (a kind of Christmas pastry). Would you like to come have a taste if you're not busy?" We eagerly agreed, and when we arrived at her apartment, the table was already set, the herbal tea was hot, the pastries warm, and it didn't escape our notice that the other assorted snacks she'd prepared were perfectly counted out in multiples of 3. What care she took for our little gathering! What love she showed to us! We spent a short moment eating, enjoying the warmth of a hot beverage on a cold evening, and chatting about the Savior and His role in our lives. We had the chance to invite her to church and to learn more about her concerns and life situation. We were excited to see her sitting not too far behind us at the Christmas concert, enjoying the music. She was a wonderful example to me and to my companion of Christ-like gift-giving. 

May we consider the true meaning of gifts this Christmas season. I mean it. I don't mean to perpetuate sentimental cliches here. Can we all take a good moment to honestly and sincerely ponder the meaning of gifts in our lives? May we invite others to come unto Christ and receive the greatest gift of all, the gift of eternal life, which He has promised to those who follow Him. I'd love to hear comments and feedback about gifts during email time next week. And when Christmas, missions, and other life phases are over, may we not leave these experiences, these people, these feelings behind.

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Hansen 

The Gift

note from Karlan's mom:

No blog from Karlan this week.  She did want me to encourage everyone to visit www.christmas.mormon.org. There you will find a beautiful message about the Savior and Christmas.