Rain

My grandma wrote me and told me that it has been raining a lot over there in Utah. I really laughed, because I never even knew rain like I know here in Norway. It has rained every single day since I have arrived, and when you are out talking to people in the pouring rain you really start to understand what rain is. Also, I figured it would be warm in the summer...but I have been nothing but cold since I got here. Everyday I try wearing more and more cloths. Tomorrow is the first day of June and I'm wearing thermals. It is going to be the longest winter of my life. 

The food here is pretty good. They have good bread, which means a lot to me because I worked at GH for so long.

 I'm really loving the work. Everyday I love it more and more. There are huge dissappointments. People randomly don't want to meet anymore. People dissappear out of the church, and it took so much to get them there. The biggest dissappointment has got to be how misunderstanding divides people. I hate that. 

But what did I love this last week? My companion is really amazing. Sometimes you meet people and they instantly have a place in your heart. I am so glad she is my trainer. She is really loving and teaches me so much, which is one of my favorite things to do. Some of the members here have my whole heart, and one girl that we are teaching shows me how important this gospel is. It changes people for the better. 

Oh yeah, that is another thing I loved. We had a new convert, she had been baptised a month, who wanted to come and do missionary work with us. She was found on the street last year and now has one of the most powerful testimonies I have ever heard. As I would start talking to somebody she would just start begging them to listen to me because my message had made her so happy. It had complely changed her life, and you could see it in every part of her. That is why I love this so much...it makes people so happy.

 I'm really busy, so that makes it easier, but also this is somethimes really hard. I think so far student teaching was harder on me, but this is harder to get right. Sad to say I'm not a good missionary. I am aware that I have a lot to learn, and I'm also trying to not let myself get too overwhelmed. I wasn't called here to fail and I know it takes time to learn how to do new things. I also try to have faith that the things I can do now are the things that need to be done here now. But I haven't found anyone that wants to come back and learn more. And I have only gotten 2 people to come to the church to learn about anything in the first place. Mostly, I have learned that a lot of people think religion is crazy...which I don't understand. There is so much good that comes from faith. I loved what you said in your testimony, ''its so much easier to let God in than to shut Him out''. That is just how I feel. The strongest part of my testimony is that God loves me. Sister J asks sometimes how I know that. I can't really give her an answer of how I know it. Not one that makes any sense, but I just can feel it. And it is so much easier to feel it than to try and always wonder if he exists, so I just focus on feeling and noticing Gods love for me. It is hard to know anything, but the blessings of the gospel speak for themselves. I love the commandments, the priorities, the blessings, and the responsibilities of being a saint.    

 I have learned a lot from Sister J. We talk a lot about how a mission is a wonderful opportunity to become the person that you want to be. She challenged me to think of the person I want to be at the end of my mission. I've prayed and thought about it and I think I want to be more humble and less selfish. I've already noticed myself thinking about my goal and making changes. I'm excited to make a good plan. I also am praying to really love the people here. I've never really had a hard time loving people, but I want to love these people more than I have ever loved any other people. More, even, then anyone in South America. Sister J and I talk about what it is that motivates us to do the work. She challenged me to let it be the people here that motivates me, so that means I will really have to love them. I like talking to her about motivation. I have always been a hard worker, but that isn't really as important as why I always work. Focusing on the why instead of the just getting something done is better. 

Love you all,

Katie

First Photo from a Stranger

Brother Fredrickson,

As we discussed on the phone tonight, my mother and I were in Trondheim, Norway for 10 days and arrived home early this week.  While we were there, we attended church in Trondheim and had the opportunity to meet your sweet daughter.   She is well, seemed happy and ready to dive in to her work as a missionary.  It was a pleasure to meet her.  I hope you enjoy the picture.

Highlights

Did you ever think a mission could be this good? I planned on not really loving the first month, but if you always expect the worst then you are always pleasantly surprised. Needless to say, jeg liker veldig mye å være på misjonen min. It get better and better every day. Here are some highlights:

My companion. Sister J from somewhere in Utah. She is a hard worker and a really good example. We don't waste any time and that keeps things moving, which I'm really grateful for. She is as loving as they come. She tells me everyday this transfer is dedicated to me and keeps me laughing and talking. 

So much sunshine. I never see the sun go down. We go to sleep at 10:30 with a bright sun still lighting the sky. We had to turn our little bunk beds into a fort with blankets hanging all around because it is even worse in the morning. I'm pretty sure the sun is out by 2:30, because if I wake up in the middle of the night I wake up to sun. I love it. It is so easy to wake up in the morning. My first day I woke up at 4 and felt like it was 9 the sun was so bright. Also, Norway is beautiful. I'm in the city most of the time, (and you know I'm really not a city girl), but have been able to go out into the country a few times. It will absolutely take your breath away. Green land, old and colorful buildings, just picture everything I love and you have Norway. 

Teaching and talking about Heavenly Father all day long. I meet all sorts of people and I get to tell them about Heavenly Father, sometimes they just stand there and smile. They don't agree to be taught often, but I make them smile while for 5 minutes I tell them about a loving God. Even just talking with people makes everything brighter and you can tell. I sat down on the bus today next to a girl and before I said a word she said she wasn't interested. I laughed and said she must know that I was a missionary. I still need to practice Norwegian so I just kept talking to her. You could see her slowly loosing up and smiling by the end of the bus ride. Maybe next time we meet she'll let me talk about how important she is to God. But today I hope she just felt happy. We are teaching one Norwegian girl about my age. She has a baptismal date for the 11th of June (Happy Birthday Dad). I loving hearing her talk about what the Book of Mormon makes her feel. I love seeing her smile more and more each time we meet. 

The small and interesting miracles that happen. I'm not one to admit a miracle, but they happen. Yesterday we were meeting a new investigator for church, but he has absolutely no phone, so we had to be to the bus stop at just the right time. Well, we got there and he wasn't. (That happens a lot). So we waited a bit and then went back to church. Once we got to the back door we realized neither of us had our keys, that never happens. As we were walking to the front of the church. He never would have come in if we hadn't walked over and seen him. He liked church and is coming to FHE tonight. Another thing I loved, *.  We met her contacting on the bus one. A lot of people give out numbers, but few people give out real numbers and even fewer actually meet with us. But she invited us to her house, made us dinner, and let us teach her about the Book of Mormon. She comes from * but married a Norwegian. She has * children. Right off she said she believed that Joseph Smith saw what he saw, so it will be interesting to see where it goes. She had about every Holy Book you could imagine. I'm excited to go back and teach the plan of salvation. 

The members. This certainly is not South America. I remember church being pretty big every time I went, but the church is small here. I'm talking 3-9 primary kids. 13 people in Relief Society. But they are all amazing. I love to ask them about how they found the church. I'm still really not the most effective missionary, and sometimes it's a downer, but then I see the members and ask how they heard about the church. They tell me about meeting the missionaries and what it was like for them. After that I am totally ready to get back out and try contacting again. I'm just one person, but I can make a huge difference. 

Worst part: 

They gave me a cell phone. My own. I've never been good at phones. Answering, talking, texting, keeping it with me, not losing it. And I have my own cell phone. It is a huge blessing because you can get a lot done, if you know how to use it. So I'm really going to have to learn phone skills. Especially how to listen and not start chattering the second it get quiet, and even more so how to not just jump into the reason I'm calling. (It is pretty weird when a stranger calls someone for the first time and just asks when they can meet to talk about God.) Top it all of, I'm doing it in another language. 

Love and miss you all.

Okay, I only miss you on P Day... but at least I'm honest

First few days...

Hello Home.

I guess I send you(pl) all an  update on how I'm doing. I am doing really well. Today I don't have much more than half an hour, so I'll just write as much as I can. I think my favorite thing that has happened so far was my plane ride from Texas to London. Heavenly Father must answer prayers because I sat next to someone born and raised in Mexico but currently living in Italy. During the plane ride we talked about why I was going to Norway, which led to a discussion about what make the LDS church different. It was a really incredible talk and I am so grateful that I got to met him (we'll just call him Juan). I told him about the BoM and we read from the introduction together. I told him about Joseph Smith and used the picture from my gospel principles book. Well, he just kept asking questions and I kept answering them. We talked about everything, 9 hours is a long plane ride. We talked about temples, baptism, family, profets, priesthood, marriage, all of it. My favorite part might have been when we were looking through the last edition of the conference Ensign together, because as I showed him picture of Thomas Monson he took the magazine and started reading it. He read 1 whole talk and the closing remarks by Monson. I told him as a missionary we give the Book of Mormon to people and he said he would like to have one. I had one Spanish copy in my carry-on, so I gave it to him. It was my personal copy, so it was highlighted and written all over, but he said he didn't mind. I also gave him a copy of the Ensign since he seemed to like it so much. He gave me his card with his name and number and e-mail and told me if I needed anything while I was in Europe I just needed to write him and he would take care of it. He was kjempe nice. Finding people who are willing to listen has got to be the best part. 

Norway is beautiful. Really green. It reminds me of Virginia only there is more water. I'm in Trondheim right now, and my companion is now sister Johnston. I love how as a missionary you get on a plane with a complete stranger, yet you know you can count on them to help take care of you and be your best friend for the next few months. 

Yesterday we went to church. I love all the people here. Church was really great. I'm in love with the Norwegian old people because they look like they just fell out of an old murder mystery or maybe they own a funeral parlor. I'm not sure if that really makes sense. There is one in particular that has my whole heart, but I can't remember his name because I heard 2 trillion names yesterday, none of which I've really heard before. The church is old and pretty, and so far we spend a lot of time here. It has a room where we can teach in and is close to us, so we use it often. I'm still meeting the investigators that we have later today. 

I'm certain that this will be a bigger adjustment than the MTC was, but I figure the quicker and harder I jump into it the quicker the adjustment period will go, because I don't like adjustment periods. I did, however, eat a boiled egg today. I'm glad some things never change. 

I love you.

Katie

Safe in Norway

<hi! <i'm safe here in norway. <i'll be writing more tomorrow. i love you all! it is pretty here, but the sun comes up so early. church is beautiful! ''

coputer is weird.'

'

katie

I'm alive and in the MTC

Dear Family and Friends,

Hi! I think some people have been wondering if I am still at the MTC or in Norway. I'm still in the good ole' MTC. It is interesting because I really have no idea what is going on or how long we will be here. I don't like it because if I wasn't in the MTC I could get on the phone and figure it out, but as it is I can only hope that everyone who needs to be is diligently doing their job. Hopes are we will leave Friday, but that hasn't been the first time we have been told we will leave by a certain day.

It hasn't been bad being here more time. I have learned even more about the gospel and Norwegian. We also got to meet the next district of Norwegian missionaries, 9 in all. It is pretty crazy because we only had 4 in our district. There are 2 sisters, which is exciting because we will certainly be companions sometime in the future. I think there are almost as many Norwegian sisters here as in Norway. Anyway, it was funny to see them come in with big, worried eyes. And I love hearing them try to speak Norwegian because I know I sounded just like them when I first got here, and I'm sure I still sound pretty weird. The 1 Elder who is here with us had to go and get a solo sticker. He is a good sport, laughs, and says the church is still true even if he has two sisters for companions. Having companions can be difficult, but I'm grateful them because we are united in purpose and understand pretty well how the others are feeling. I usually tend to like doing things on my own, so it has been a pretty big adjustment. You do a lot of waiting as a missionary, especially when there are 3 of you.

We were, however, very lucky to have another apostle come last night. Elder Andersen. One thought hit me while he was teaching. I'm not sure how related it was to his message, but it was the message I got; those messages usually mean more. I have always had this fear that I won't live up to my full potential. I've always made goals and strived to achieve them. I work hard. (I've noticed since being at the MTC that I have a unique ability to read and study for hours on end without getting terribly sick of it. Apparently this isn't common.) But still, I worry I might miss something and I won't live up to...or become what i could have become. Elder Andersen talked about the grace of God. Three beautiful words. I always understood the grace of God to be a divine help and strength. Yesterday, my understanding was expanded. What I learned is that it is by the grace of God that I have the opportunity to become more than I have the capacity to become on my own. I believe that and I'm thankful for that. I must work my hardest and do all I can, but I can have the assurance that I can become more than even I hoped to become. As I put my trust in my loving Heavenly Father, I see myself grow and improve each day. Not in the ways I always thought I wanted, but in the ways I know are best. I thankful for the person Heavenly Father helps me become. (I literally just opened my scriptures to this page...I hadn't read this scripture this week nor was I planning on including it. It only fits oh so perfect. 1 Corinthians 1:4-8).

I've also learned more about goal making since being here. It is important to prayerfully make goals with the guidance of the spirit. we tell Heavenly Father what it is we want to do. Then we make a plan to do it. If we made the goal with the spirit and it is righteous, Heavenly Father will most certainly help us achieve that goal. Divine help for the things that matter most to us is always available. I like that. It is kinda like we make a promise to God that we will do the thing we have decided we want to do and he promises he will help us. This must be why with God all things are possible.

Wow, how was that for an e-mail? I used my journal, so I hope you enjoyed the increased insight into my brain.

I was really bummed that I didn't get to call home on Mothers Day. I hope you all had a good celebration. We didn't talk too much about it here, so people wouldn't get homesick I think. Maybe, if your lucky, I'll be able to call on Fathers Day. I know my dad would love that.

I love you all so much! I'm so grateful for all the good influences and support that I have. I miss you!

Love always,

Katie Bug

P.S. My dad sends me e-mails from his iPhone while he is in bishopric meeting, just to tell me he is sending me an e-mail during bishopric meeting. Isn't he funny?

Good News!

I got some really good news this week. Hayley T. Castle is going to have a waffle stand at the Provo Farmers Market. Why is this maybe the best news ever?

1. I love waffles.

2. I love summer.

3. I love farmers markets.

4. I love Hayley!

So do me a favor, go buy one of her waffles, give her hug, take a picture, and send it to me. Yay Hayley! You knew I’d be proud, and I’m so proud. Add the tennis lessons and I’m just jealous.

Maybe if I was in Norway I wouldn’t be. I know you’re hoping for this next line to say, “Oh wait, I am in Norway.” But, alas, it cannot be. In case you haven’t heard, we experienced some work permit difficulties. Everything is all in the middle of being resolved; hopefully we will leave by the end of the week. We met and elder who had been here for 16 weeks; that is 7 over how many he was supposed to stay. One extra week really won’t be bad.

Apparently the MTC has this library of devotional talks from the past. We watched one by Elder Holland. He usually speaks with a lot of power, but this one was so powerful because he really let loose. He has a wonderful personality. It was so funny. He said he wished he had chains or rope or even curtains to tie up any missionary who wanted to go home. He said not for his own sake, or the Church’s sake, or even for Heavenly Father’s sake, but for the sake of the missionary. His mission just meant too much to him and he wants everyone to have that experience. I have totally felt like this is an amazing opportunity and that I am so blessed to be able to serve. I love you all mucho grande, but I want to be here right now, with all of my heart.

Also, I’m growing a sunflower in the MTC classroom. So good.

Happy Mother’s Day, hopefully from 4792.3 miles away!!!

Pictures from the MTC

"Funny glasses."

"Norway!"

"My district."

"Time to study!"

"Yay! I'm 23!"

"My B-day party in the MTC! Wild!"

"Companions."

"Sister R. Me. Elder B. Elder S."

"I'm not sure-I guess I'm yelling or something."

"Hand brace."