Letter dated 13Aug2013

Dear Family!! This has been a really fantastic week, and next week will be grand as well! I am getting really excited to leave to Sweden, and all the time I catch myself imagining what the following week will be like, like going to church for the first time, talking to lots of Swedish people, and much more of the sort. I leave on Monday morning Utah time and arrive Tuesday morning in Swedish time. I will also get to call home! I will probably call early Monday afternoon or late Monday night Michiagn time and leave a message. Like I said, this week was amazing! We had the chance to skype with another two Swedish people, Menne (a Noregian name) and Sarah. We taught about the Atonement and how great a blessing it has been in our lives (and it is such a great blessing!). Äldste Taggart and I have loved meeting these great people, and it is really fun to be missionaries already! The other night, a Korean-speaking elder was outside our residence door shouting what sounded like "Titrate!" A titration is a chemistry process, so it sounded like he was cheering on some chemicals mixing. It was really weird. But then we opened the door and realized he just wanted to trade ties. I thought it was really funny :) The devotional speaker on Tuesday night quoted a quote from President Packer that is "There is a height, a bredth, and a depth to scripture that we have yet to find." I like that idea so much! Always, there is so much that I can learn from the scriptures, and they often are very specific to choices I am making and give me confidence in making a tough choice well. I have found recently that it is always good to begin scripture study with a prayer and ask for guidance and the ability to learn well with the Holy Ghost; this is an important element. I am noticing substantial help with learning Swedish that I know is beyond my own capacity and from God. I have also been thinking of how I've been blessed, protected, and supported in the past, and this has been very humbling and refreshing. I love being a missionary and having a greater chance to think about these things! Yesterday, I was in a big, random room with Äldste Taggart and his accompanist as they were working on vocal solo of his when the projector turned on and we realized we were being filmed! The videographer was practicing an automatic camera that is used when people give speeches in that room. He was having a good time using different camera effects and I felt really important. It was a win-win. I hope mom has a great birthday on Saturday! Do something fun and relaxing for me :) Joseph: I understand you just finished finals, congrats! Hope you aced them like I aced Dow High in tennis once. Andrew: dad told me that band camp went well, that's good to hear! I really miss band and playing the trombone a lot, so be sure to have some fun this season for me. What's the show you're doing? And is there another crazy drum major whistle solo? Twins: remember how I helped you with your biography projects when you were in 5th grade? I was wondering if you could do me a little favor and send me short memos that tell me about the 7 wonders of the world. I just know of the pyramids and possibly that statue in the Curious George movie. So if you could just write about 100 words on each of the 7 wonders, that would be swell. You could even use Google translate and send me the descriptions in Swedish. But don't do that, because my vocabulary doesn't extend far beyond gospel words. Also, it's possible that there are 2 sets of 7 wonders of the world, one of ancient things and one of newer things. If this is the case, send me info on the list that includes the pyramids. Thanks guys! Have fun in Utah and Idaho! Say hi to everyone! There is a slight chance that my visa will not have arrived by the time I am to go to Sweden. I would then stay an extra week here. But I will probably be in Sweden next week, and I will not necessarily get to e-mail until up to two weeks from now. My address in Sweden will be Elder Daniel Wilson Schindler Sweden Stockholm Mission Enebybergsvägen 38 182 46 Enebyberg Sweden And due to the new policy, I can receive and send e-mails from and to anyone on this account, not just immediate family. I know that Jesus is our Savior and I love you a lot! Love, Äldste Schindler P.S. Thanks so much for the box of goodies! Everything was great!