Sisar Indiana Jones 

Finland – week 4  

01/27/15

Moi! Hei! Terve!

This week has been very slippery. As in literally the roads and walks have been slippery. Here they put down gravel on top of the ice rather than trying to melt it, I think that's because whatever they did the roads and sidewalks would still have ice. The other day we realized we were about 30 seconds late for the train (as often happens) and my companion decided that we were not going to miss it! She dashes up the stairs in a way only someone accustomed to 10 lbs. of winter gear can, rounds the corner onto the track and splat! She epic-ly lays out on the station floor. I, in a great impression of Indiana Jones (at least that's what I looked like in my head), leap over my fallen companion in an effort to just punch the open door button. I didn't notice that my companion was getting up and my purse (containing an English Book of Mormon, Russian Book of Mormon, Finnish triple combination, and English quadruple among other things) smacked her in the head forcing her back to the pavement. I figured I'd apologize later, ran to the train and punched the button just in time to have it pull away. About then is when I realized how ridiculous we must have looked, and we've laughed about it for the whole week. It turned out much better that we missed our train. I think we probably made the days of a few people at the station too.

This week I've been thinking a lot about how the gospel really is for everyone. No matter who or where we are in life, we can be helped. It's wonderful because there are so many different kinds of people, and we usually think peace between these peoples is just the wishful thinking of beauty pageant queens, but peace really is possible when we bond over the gospel. Ether 12:9 says, "Wherefore, ye may have hope, and be partakers of the gift, if ye will but have faith." Anyone can partake! We pass out cards with our number and the invitation to come to church because everyone is welcome. One of the students from our school presentation last Monday came to church Sunday and it was awesome! Church is really a great way to rejuvenate for the week. I appreciate church so much more now that I'm here. I'm telling you all this so that you don't have to come all the way to Finland and knock your friend in the head to learn this. Church is very meaningful, go with a question you've prayed over and you will receive answers.

Word of the week: tulentekotaito = the ability to make fire! Obviously that's a word I use every day. 

This is me revolutionizing the work atop my noble pig steed. There are lots of random animal statues here. I'm not sure why.

I love you all! Keep warm! Or cool! Whatever your climate demands.

Much love and prayers,

Sisar Mendenhall    

High School and Mexican Food  

Finland - Week 3

01/20/15

Moi ystäviä! This week has been wonderful, so many fun things.

Yesterday we gave a school presentation to a class of 17 and 18 year-olds. I was pretty scared at first but it was actually a lot of fun. They asked really great questions and we got to talk about things people don't usually know or ask about, like our humanitarian program. They asked a lot about families so I got to tell them how we normally did Family Home Evening, opening push-up war and all.

One of our investigators is just the coolest person you will ever meet. He invites his friends to church, he talks about the church as "our church", he reads the Book of Mormon on the train even though it's not translated into his native language, and he just gets along so well with everyone. However he didn't start off doing all of this, we had to bug him for a bit. It's wonderful to see people grow and change in the gospel, sometimes you don't expect certain people to be very wanting to change, and then they just are! That's why it's so great to always be thinking, who can I share the gospel with next? You don't have to stress a lot, when you're really trying to find the Lord will give you opportunities. We find here that the more people we talk to on the street, the more referrals people give us! We have yet to meet someone on the street that wants to be taught, but still the more we try the more people we find in other ways. I found a super awesome scripture this week, 2 Ne 5:27 "And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness." It's simple, to the point, and tells of the joy we get from living the gospel. I love to share that with people and tell them, I'm telling you this because it makes me happier, and it will make you happier too.

I eat way more Mexican food here than ever before. I guess I didn't really eat much before so that's part of it, but my companion loves Mexican food and everyone here is like "You're American you love Mexican food!" A Russian lady made us really great Finnish food, I guess everyone just likes each others' food.

I've found I really like yogurt-covered raisins, I ate like a pound this morning. On the bright side I will go through them quickly and then have no more temptation! Also I found the best looking chocolate so I attached a picture. 

And I found this squirrel in a tunnel one day, Finns don't like the word "squirrel", it's hard for them to say.

It's still snowing here and it's so beautiful! I really love the snow, I'm a little worried about it melting soon, it's gotten warm enough that I'm only wearing one pair of thermals rather than two.

I hope everyone has had a great week!

Sisar Mendenhall

Missä on sinun sormet?‏   

Finland – Week 2

Moi!! 

Week 2 has been great! I've been speaking more Finnish which means more laughs for my companion. I asked someone without gloves where their gloves were the other day, they laughed and said "Well I sure hope I know where they are!" turns out I asked where their fingers (sormet) were, not their gloves. 

This week I've been singing a lot of hymns for several good reasons. One of which is that they speak fabulous Finnish, and another is that they really invite the Spirit and calm the atmosphere. People always say when you have bad thoughts or are discouraged to sing and hymn and honestly, it's great counsel. "A song of the righteous is a prayer unto me" is so true, and earnest prayer is the best way that we can really develop our own personal conviction that Christ is the Savior. So sing hymns! Hymns have the power to calm, to teach, and to testify. All of those are invaluable in a world that teaches you not to hope, there is always hope! I like to stop people on the street and ask them what hope means to them, often they don't really know how to answer. I'm so grateful for the gospel so that I can know what hope is and what to hope for, and I'm so grateful for hymns to bring that hope to light. 

On a completely unrelated note (pun 100% intended), we have a really great investigator with really affectionate cats. I'm finding myself grateful for all of my weird animal stories (such as when our school had a cat infestation in the ceiling and for a few weeks cats were raining into the classrooms) because they've been testing my vocab and helped with contacting! 

People here are very kind. Really, we're spoiled a lot. Lots of people tell me how good my Finnish is, but they always say it in a creative way that, ironically, I don't understand. If they just said, "Wow you have great Finnish!" I could say, "Thanks! I try." But instead they say, "your ability to communicate in the Finnish tongue is quite impressive" and then I say "I'm sorry, I'm new and don't understand Finnish" and my companion says "They just said you speak great Finnish" and then no one quite knows what to say. I don't even know the word for awkward.

Word of the week: tiskaan, which means, "I am doing the dishes" Hooray for Finnish efficiency!

Hyvää päivää!

Sisar Mendenhall

Suomissa  

Finland - Week 1

Wow a lot has happened! Christmas, New Years, and I'M IN FINLAND!! I'm literally in a library in Finland and it's the coolest thing ever (literally and figuratively). I guess I'm not that cold, I've got two pairs of thermals, two pairs of socks, a massive coat, a scarf, gloves, and an ear warmer. So I'm actually quite warm!

First off Christmas was awesome!! Elder Nelson came and spoke at the MTC, I sang in the choir (btw, angel choir went really well, I didn't fall or anything), we had talent show (featuring an Elder from my district and his yo-yo, definitely the best act), we woke up at 5am to do presents with all of the Finns, ate a sack dinner in the hall (which is a lot of fun), sang more (lots of singing), watched Ephraim's Rescue, and called home! That was really fun but I think my mom thought I was a different child of hers for a second. So, a very busy day that was wonderfully focused on Christ. He's truly the reason for the season. 

FINLAND!! I don't know where to start, it's wonderful! Our trip over was great, both of my bags weighed exactly 50.0lbs so the trip started with a miracle. I came at the perfect time to clean up all of the Christmas chocolate:) I've already told people that I am a car, that my family has sold a lot, and several other things that I wasn't trying to say. Finns are genius, our towel rack is heated.

My second night here I taught my first lesson! (That's when I said lots of interesting things about my family, thank goodness I have my companion to translate my Finnish into Finnish!) And it was a lot of fun. I didn't understand much past the food being delicious, but that's ok. We taught that same lady again yesterday and I already understood so much more. It's amazing how much the Lord will bless us, He really wants to help us.

I'm in Haaga which is an area of Helsinki so thankfully I'm in the warm part of the country. It's a wonderful area! We already had a miracle Sunday! Two of our investigators, two less-active members, and another non-member who just wanted to come were all at church on Sunday! Sometimes church seems like a small thing, we think that as long as we worship God in our hearts it's fine. Really though coming to church is important because we get to worship together and strengthen each other. The power of unity is awesome, particularly with hymns, I love hymns! Last night we visited an old lady and all she wanted us to do was sing with her, it was really great and definitely brought the Spirit.

In case anyone wants to hear Finnish, "The Testaments" movie is in Finnish! So if you have the DVD you can just go to the language section and change it, and if you don't I'm pretty sure you can request a free copy. Try mormon.org and lds.org. The movie is awesome, so if you watch it in Finnish watch it in English after.

Oh man I just love Finland! The bread, yogurt, people. I'm so glad I get to come here as a representative of Christ, it's truly unique and I just love it!

The picture of the snowy forest that you might recognize from Narnia, that's the view out my apartment window.

Thanks everybody for your love and support!

Rakkaudella,

Sisar Mendenhall

The Sport of Laundry Watching    

MTC - Week 8

Terve! HYVA JOULU!! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! 

Christmas truly is the best time of the year! I love it so much that yes, I will be singing with just two other people in front of thousands of missionaries tonight. But it's just one line of a song, so I'll be ok! Our angel choir has grown to 16 but we are divided into 6 singing groups. It sounds pretty cool and our costumes are way fun, so really all is well, no bumbling angels today! Well, I guess the performance is in a few hours, I hope there won't be any bumbling going on.

We are all moved into our new house! It's pretty great because the beds and closets are close enough that it's like we have a two-floor apartment! The ground floor, and the level made by each top bunk and closet tops. There isn't really room for a soccer game, but if we had a mini chess board there's room enough for that. Maybe even a full-size chessboard if we go on the second floor! Even though it's crowded, I'm really going to miss it because my roommates are just the best. Really it's amazing to look back on everything we learned together, and how much we've laughed together. My MTC stay has just been wonderful, everybody should go on missions so they can come feel the spirit of the MTC!

Ok, so the subject of my email refers to an intense yet delicate art, and it only occurs once a year. The one time this phenomenon happens is the day before Christmas (today) because if your P-day is on Christmas (like ours is) you go do all of your P-day things the day before, but every missionary that has P-day on that day still has their P-day. (On other holidays you're just supposed to get up super early, like we did on Thanksgiving.) So double missionaries! We got to the laundry room at the beginning thankfully, and then watched the peaceful battle ensue. You'd see missionaries lapping the machines, taking mental notes of which had the fewest minutes left. Some missionaries starting countdowns much like one does on New Years Eve. Others camped out with study materials and snacks. Some tried forming alliances "I'll rotate your laundry if you let me use your washer next!" Really, missionaries were getting super creative! The most awesome thing though, was that people weren't getting mad. You go anywhere else with lines, with not enough of what is needed, and with people on a strict schedule and I'll bet fights would break out. There's no way a bunch of teenagers could be so peaceful if they weren't spending their time trying to come closer to Christ. The whole situation should have driven people crazy, but it didn't. That peace is really what I love about this gospel. Even when you know things are not the best, you can find peace. Even if what you need peace in is as silly as laundry, the Lord is willing to help.

IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME!!! And one of my favorite Christmas scriptures is Luke 2:10-11 "And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you glad tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." What is the first thing the angel says? Fear not. Why not? Because Christ the Lord is here. We need not fear when we have Christ. I realized the other that the scriptures tell us to "fear not" quite a few times in connection with Christ. That is just as true today as it was then. I am so grateful for my Savior, and that during this time much of the world is celebrating Him. I don't want to think where I would be without Him. I know He came to this earth, He suffered for our sins, He died, and then He lived again. He did all of this for us, because of His love. I love my Savior, and I hope you all take the time to think about Him this wonderful Christmas day!

Last note: I have travel plans! I fly out Monday!!!! Suomi here I come! that means I probably won't be able to write or email until two Mondays from now. But I can always still receive mail... :)

Love you all so much!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

-Sisar Mendenhall

Saunas and Singing    

MTC - Week 7

Terve!!! 

This week has been so great and just filled with little fun things! No sarcasm there, these things might not seem the best, but here at the MTC we make them the best.

First of all, I really want to go to Finland, and the MTC knows, so they brought a little Finland to me! Finns LOVE their saunas, and our whole dorm building has been converted into just that. The heaters in our building have been broken (as in they will not turn down) for two weeks and wow are they cranking! So even though it's December all the windows are open at all times, and if you want to take a shower, you get up way early or be prepared.

Secondly, our building is being renovated/torn down, we don't know, so we moved across campus! Our room was built for four (there are six of us) so it's a good thing we all get along so well. You know what though, I'm happily sacrificing closet space because... THE HEATERS WORK!!! YAY!!!

My companion and I have amazing unity, at least our investigator Monday thought so. That's because we stood and left in perfect unity, moving as one, waving as one. My notebook somehow got way tangled up in my companion's sweater and we didn't want to stop teaching so we just acted like nothing was different, and exited en masse.

I got to host again this week! They had too many Sister hosts and not enough Elders, so I had to help a few Elders too. I think they felt really weird having me carry their bags.

This is the story of how I became involved in a duet in front of hundreds of people: The other day a memo was sent to my teacher that I had to call the front desk, immediately. Those calls generally aren't so good. I walk to the hall phone prepping myself for the worst and hear, "Hey Sister Mendenhall! We need you to visit with the MTC presidency to talk about your part in the Christmas musical production." *Stunned silence ensues* I don't know how many of you heard my musical talent before, let's just be nice and say it's rather limited. Like, think of those TV auditions you watch and just want to give the person a hug afterwards. My comp and I head down, wondering what interpretive music they must be planning for Christmas, and go to the designated room to find just Sister Nally, and Sister Roach (the MTC Relief Society president and first counselor) sitting at a table like they are ready to hear our audition. We almost bolted. We walked in terrified, and then Sister Roach said, "Sister Mendenhall! I was just visiting with your grandparents last night and promised I would say hello!" PHEW! Huge sigh of relief there. We visited for a bit, she's way fun, and then Sister Nally says, "Sisters, you look very angelic, will you be the angels in the Christmas pageant?" YES, I was always the donkey, a wiseman, or a sheep (or even Joseph one year) in nativity scenes at home. Then she says, "Ok the two of you will just have one musical number." Whoops! Well, we really did want to be the angels, so we stuck with it. You all will hear part two of this story in a few weeks. It will probably be entitled: "The bumbling angel" or "Sisar Mendenhall solos in the choir--on accident". But I really am excited, they decided to have 12 angels, and I found a very strong singer to partner with, I can work with that:)

Truly though, this week has been fantastic. The power of a positive attitude is huge and my companion has optimism by the ton. We've loved the hard things because in hard things where do we turn? To our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I've been thinking a lot about Christmas, (ONLY ONE WEEK I'M SUPER STOKED) and the symbolism of Christmas. So the Christmas tree is the evergreen because of several reasons, but what I think is so cool about it, is that it really is green and lively all year. All year we have Christmas trees! All year, every day and every hour, Christ is there "to lift up the hands that hang endlessly down" (Elder Neal A Maxwell). This gospel is truly a message of hope. Of hope for better things in this life, and in the life to come. "Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh and anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God." Ether 12:4. Hope nowadays is used to mean something you don't actually think will happen, but that you want to happen, when really in the scriptures it's used to mean something that we really expect to happen. Right now I hope that I will be able to speak Finnish well, not because I don't actually think it will happen, but because I have faith that Christ can work miracles. This hope anchors me in strength when faced with what would normally be an impossible task (namely learning Finnish...). There's always something each of us could use a little more anchoring in, so go ahead and find your anchor! It'll make Christmas even more meaningful.

I love you all! Have a fantastic Christmas!!

Love,

Sisar Mendenhall 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE FINN FAMILY!!!

A REAL FINN   

MTC - Week 6

Terve ystavatni!!!

I love Finnish!! Sometimes it feels like Willie Wonka explaining calculus in Alice's wonderland, but it's starting to really make sense! Like why wouldn't "purple" have 17 letters? It has to be conjugated the right way or obviously the force would be unbalanced. My companion and I have started practicing Finnish by translating hymns and it's super fun. It is kind of tiring, the other day my companion said, "I think I would seriously die without food." She is absolutely brilliant, that just shows how tired our brains get. We have Speak Your Language (SYL) days during which if we do not speak in Finnish (or if taking to missionaries that don't speak Finnish if we don't translate everything we say to them into Finnish) we have to write every English word we spoke in five different sentences. Our charade skill level gets +50 points every SYL day. 

At the MTC we eat every meal in the cafeteria. So because we have eaten many many meals there, my companion and I have developed fabulous getting-up-from-the-table routines which have sparked a fad. Much like synchronized diving, getting-up-from-the-table routines are critiqued on unity and complexity. Our newest routine involved the cups song (with Finnish words of course). Also at the MTC there is a thing for holding open doors. To avoid contention my companion and I both open a door, then run really quickly through the door that the other has opened so that both of us can feel good for serving. 

This week my companion and I...SYKPED A REAL FINN IN THE REAL COUNTRY OF FINLAND HAVING A REAL CONVERSATION FOR 40 MINUTES!!!! We ran out of the skyping room and just prayed in thanks for the gift of tongues. We had so much fun talking to our Finnish sister and cannot wait to get to Finland!! We said words wrong of course, but with some laughs and help we were able to communicate our message. The biggest thing they teach here about the language is that you have to just try and have faith that the Lord will provide. And then He does and it's just the best!! Lots of times when we want to help someone, or help ourselves, we think we are just too far behind to even start. Maybe we are far behind, but most likely we just need to stick our necks out there and give helping a try. If we show the faith to say, I need help, the Lord is so happy to give us the help we need and want. I LOVE CHRISTMAS TIME!!! And I love it because, "we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ...that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." 2Nephi 25:26 Such a great time of the year!! I love my Savior, and I love you all!

"What's a fish's favorite Country? Estonia." --Said by the Estonian Missionaries next door. The real answer is Finland. Finland is every fish's favorite country.

Onnellinen joulu!! (Happy Christmas!)
Sisar Mendenhall

Pictures: Enjoying the December heat, and my view 9 hours a day (which I love because the gospel and Finnish are both pretty amazing)