Kiire!

Thanks for the e-mails and updates everyone. Good to hear from ya.

Splits was this past week. The Savonlinna elders came to Joensuu this time and got to help us out. I was able to be with my MTC friend Vanhin Behnke, awesome guy. So fun to be around. Anyways, splits was pretty good, the other pair of elders talked with a lady in the street for 40 minutes . . . .but no contact information. :( but she got ours at least. The next day was splits with the Zone Leaders, Vanhin Bailey and Vanhin Olsen. Since they had to drive from Oulu they spent the night too. Vanhin Olsen and I went tracting together and at the last door we were at in the building the lady let us in and we were able to get a teach. Ah, good things always happen on splits. All of us got together and went to go visit the oldest member in Finland, who happens to live in Joensuu in a nursing home. Anne Mustonen. She's 95 and probably one of the funniest old people I've ever met. She was really hard of hearing so I'm pretty sure the whole building heard our conversation with her. We sang her a hymn and got to talk a little. My comp, Elder Falk told her he was 21, and she replied, "Olen kakskymmentakaks," which translates, "I am 22." We all got a laugh out of that. She didn't remember a lot of stuff but she would say something, look confused for a moment, then chuckle and then look confused again. It was pretty fun to be with her. We all enjoyed it. When we were leaving we said,"So on tosi kuuma," which means it's very hot (it was hot in the room), but she thought we said "Sinä olet kuuma," which means "You are hot," so she replied "Kiitos," thank you. hahahahaha Fun Fun.

On Friday we found an old referral that was never contacted that lived near the Russian border. So, my companion being Russian, we went out to contact him. He was busy, so while we were there we drove the extra five minutes and visited the border. I joked with him to not shoot me and run. haha We got some cool pictures though. He wore his Russian flag shirt underneath. We shot a video of me interviewing him on how he feels being so close to home, he stops, thinks, and makes a run for it for the border with me running after him yelling stop! don't do it! hahaha, all staged, but hilarious. I'll try to attach it.

On Saturday we finally found my FIRST investigator. haha, feels weird saying that. I've been reading the newsletter of the missionaries in the stake that Sister Young sends out to us, and everyone else seems to have hundreds. BUT, Finland is different. It's no Brazil or Argentina, but we are one of the better missions in terms of growth. Love it here. Anyway, our new investigator . . . .Anne Outakorpi, used to work for the Lutheran church for 22 years before getting a sickness related to stress. She didn't like her work and blames the sickness on it, so she stopped going there and is basically looking for another church. BOOM, the Mormon boyz are at the door, haha. She seems solid: prays well, thinks the Book of Mormon is a good idea, and so on. We have our return appointment with her tomorrow. Yesssss. Pray for her.

Our P-Day is basically dominated. After finishing this we are driving 2 hours to Kitee to visit a member and possibly teach her friends or husband. Don't know why it's today, both of our schedules are open, haha, oh well.

About the package, still haven't got it. I got a letter from UPS giving me the receipt and invoice and telling me I need to sign for it and show some ID when it arrives in Helsinki, which should be today or tomorrow. The only problem is that I am in Joensuu, haha. I called the mission office and we're trying to work it out. Hopefully they can just sign for it.

Zone Conference this week! That means roadtrip to Oulu on Thursday, sleep in the chapel, Zone Conference on Friday, sleep over again, then road trip back. haha traveling is fun too.

As a parting thought, yesterday for our DA message I shared D&C 58:26-27 about being anxiously engaged. It applies to all of us. The field is white, with snow, already too harvest in Finland. I know it. Gotta go. Rakastan teitä! Moikka

Vanhin Watson