Sisar Cardon on the daily...and train rides‏ (October 27, 2015)

Dont be fooled my the umbrella. The second the wind caught it, it was folded backwards and moments after this picture I was soaked, with an umbrella that kept folding back every couple seconds. Nonetheless, this was a happy day!!

The train rides in Finland are my absolute favorite thing. Words literally cannot express the beauty here. I wish a picture could capture it. But the memories of them will forever be treasures to me. (Me on the 5 hour train ride to Oulu for a zone conference.)

Sisar Harris' mother send a package of amerikkalainen ruoka (american food)
and this is the last thing we ate before our sugar and gluten stop. SO HAPPY!!

Where we go tracking in my favorite area. There is forest in between every house and it's
completely silent. The pink in the distance is the sunset on the Meri (sea) with a bunch
of fishing boads docked. The picture does absolutely no justice, but just know that it's incredible here!

Sisar Nieminen who is pretty much our 3rd member. She comes on 2 or 3 lessons a week with us (we cant teach men without a 3rd woman) and I always have complimented her on her hats (a very simple Finnish phrase) so this week she opened the door of the car and without saying much, just "Lahja" (gift) and handed me this pink hat. It was the sweetest thing!! We now wear our hats together and she smiles so big when she sees me in it. Bright pink is a good color on my head, dont ya think? ;)

(Sisar Harris, their wonderful friend, and Sisar Cardon)

Loving It!

Here is the worlds fastest email for a week that I could go on for hours about. 

-Sisar Harris and I laughed more this week than we could handle. We really have been able to find a lot of happiness and businness in the work.

-We went on splits and I was initially terrified of the idea of spending a full day with the sister training leader but it ended up sooo fun and I learned a lot. Sisar Pace said that I was the fastest progressing trainee with the language than she has seen in the mission. It was good to hear that. I have been working really hard and day to day its hard to see progress but nice to see that others can see the progress.

-We went with a member to Hesburger (Finlands glorified McDonalds) and it was quite delicious! I got a rye bread burger. Rye bread needs to be as big in America as it is here.

We have this investigator who is from China and he made us chinese dinner the other day and it was delicious! (I imagined my best friend Millet Shimai and how that is probably what she is doing every day...#chopsticks)

(awkward "mid smile" picture but the food and the lesson was great!)

--So, one of our friends  is having a hard time with some of the things she is giving up, so what Sisar Harris and I have come up with is that we are going to do it with her. We are stopping eating sugar and gluten from here on out. It's a sacrifice and a very big thing to do, but if you really think about it, living the gospel is a lifestyle change for so many people and asking someone to do make changes can be a big deal so we are doing it, too. It's only fair that we understand how difficult it is. So we start tomorrow, keskivikko (Wednesday) so feel free to pray that we can all have the strength!!

I wish I could write more but #notimeEVER

  

Also, fun fact, I used to deal with stressful times by watching tv shows because then I just go into their world and don't deal with mine, but now I read Mormonin Kirja and I literally get so sucked into it! It's my missionary addicting tv show! Honestly, I am so that annoying missionary now...hahahaha

Crazy, different and fun Week!

So I was in Helsinki for a training for new missionaries this week. We were at President Watsons home for 4 days and it was full of the sprit and learning and Sisar Watsons delicious food! It was so great. I learned a lot about how to be a better missionary that I am implimenting in my work now. 

We had the opportunity to go to the Finland Temple. I can't even explain in words how much I loved it. It is just the most beautiful temple. Also, we did the session in Finnish...I was the only newbie to do everything in Finnish. It was incredible. Actaully, a lady in the temple (she is from America) asked me as we were about to leave where in Finland I was from...She thought I was a full Finn!! I was so happy. 

Then we went to Pietarsaari for district confernce (pretty much just stake conference) and because we are the only sisters in our district and it was so far from Vaasa we got to stay in a legit Finnish hotel!! President said that we are literally the ONLY people in the whole mission who would get that opportunity. It was the coolest thing! There was this breakfast in the morning...you better believe that we made the most of that. Here is a fact for you: Finns don't mess around when it comes to breakfast. I have never, ever, ever seen a breakfast with so much delicious food. I literally felt like a queen. Sisar Harris and I literally tried one of everything. It was the happiest morning!

Well, this week was a great one! I have lots of pictures to prove it! 

Love you all so much!

(Breakfast fit for daughters of God ;) )

Pictures from last week!

And when I thought it couldn't get more beautiful then Vaasa. We went to Pietarsaari for District Conference this week and it was SOOO wonderful. I am so blown away by the beauty of Finland. I just want to travel all over the country and see everything!

It's true, in the creation when God made the earth and looked back and said, "it is good" but then when he looked at Finalnd after he made it he said, "wow it is VERY good".   I love it here.

Oh also, our apartment talomies (building manager) asked us for our last names because he needed to update our door name. It hasn't been updated in years simply because they thought our last name was LATVALA but now it says "Harris Cardon" and I am sure it won't change when new sisters come in. So pretty much, Sisar Harris and I are going to be legends in Vaasa because even for future sisters,
it'll be our name on the door and building. YES!

The temple :)

Sisar Valerie Cardon with Sister Faye Wade, both from Bountiful!

Sisar Cardon and Sisar Wade at Interim Training this past week at the Mission Home.

Sister Faye Wade is also from Bountiful. She and their family accompanied her husband as the Mission President in Finland in the 1970's. He has since passed away, and Sister Wade is serving in the Mission Office, and occasionally helping with the meals when groups come for training. Valerie attended Sister Wade's mission farewell last summer.

Sister Wade said of Valerie:
This week, she is at Interim Training where all of her group who arrived in September have come to the Mission Home for some training along with their trainers.  My companion and I were able to help with some of the meals, so I got to see your adorable daughter!!  She is doing so well and progressing well.  It's always hard at first because you want to be able to speak Finnish right away, which just doesn't happen for anyone.  It is such a difficult language and I never did get so I could speak fluently.  I know words, but putting it all together in conversation is a whole different level.  The missionaries do such a good job and come well prepared after nine weeks at the MTC. 

 Note: as a missionary mom, this kind of email is very much appreciated! I have read it and looked at it several times today!

General Conference

(Just the view of the ocean from our afternoon contacting. I dont know what the Finns did, but God must really love them to have given them this breathtaking land....oh and also, dont be fooled, it was just about freezing when I took this picture #worththecold)

Well, this week was a great one. I think that I have never enjoyed conference as much as I did this weekend. What a blessing to hear from such wonderful people of the world. Its such a testimony builder first off that these men are not "dumb guys" but very intelligent and successful men who wouldnt be fooled by an untrue church. They speak truth. Secondly, a big testimony builder that some of my questions were answered that I didnt even know that I had. I already cannot wait for next General Conference because not only does that mean that I am halfway done with my mission, but that I will have grown so much since this Conference this weekend.

Really cool story for ya... So about a week or two ago, we were contacting around the park lake here in Vaasa and we talked to a 21 year old guy, very briefly, from China. His name was (Bobby), and when we asked him about his religious beliefs he informed us that he doesn't believe in any God, that 'we really do not have any purpose here on earth. We simply just exist'. He didn't seem interested in learning anything more so we gave him a pass along card and went our seperate ways. Then, look forward to this past Saturday. We are walking down the street, making our way from a potential investigators place to the church to watch the Women's Session. We encounter this man again and recognize him. We ended up talking for about 15 minutes and really established a good friendship, learning about where in China he is from, why he is in Finland, what he is studying, and so on. As we were about to walk away, I just mentioned--without really thinking much about it-- that he should come to watch our prophet and apostles speak to us tomorrow (Sunday) and that we would be eating in between sessions. He said he might come and we parted ways again. Yesterday, to our pleasant surprise, (Bobby) walked in about halfway into the first session. It was so awesome to have him there. We also had two of our other investigators there and they really enjoyed it (I quote my mother in saying that 'if everyone in the world would just listen to conference with an open heart and mind, then everyone would want to be converted' and this was the light that I saw in these three peoples eyes.) In between sessions we ate some homemade American apple pie that Sisar Harris and I prepared in celebration for one of our investigators birthdays. We talked and laughed and honestly just had a good, normal, fun time. After the second session, (Bobby) came up to us and said, "this is pretty interesting, I think I would like to learn more." It was amazing! Here, this guy that we met a week or two earlier that had absolutely no interest in hearing what we had to say, and after an, initally unrecognized, spiritual prompting, we had made an appointment to teach him, he had a page of notes from the prophet and apostles of the Lord, and he had even joined the facebook group of the YSA's of our ward so he could come to activities in the future. WHAT?!? So awesome. We really are led to those who are being prepared.

I really loved being able to hear the words of such wonderful people this weekend. It is impossible to walk away from conference, after truly listening, without an increased testimony and desire to be a better person.

Sisar Cardon

We picked literally about 3 million apples last pday and have made applesauce, 4 apples pies for members, baked apples, apple salads, and eaten our weight. So so so fun!!