23Feb2015

Dear Family and Friends: Congratulations Emily and Summer for your baby boys! That is wonderful to hear :) Well, I am getting settled in here in Södertälje (this is pronounced weird, and doesn't really mean anything, but is close to södertälja which is "south whittle\south whittling" by translation. It is half-way between Stockholm and Eskilstuna, or a little south-west of Stockholm). Äldste Rasmussen is great to be with. He's from Orem, Utah, and is an excellent teacher. He is someone from whom I can learn a lot and with whom I'll have lots of fun! Leaving everyone in Stockholm was very sad. But the missionary work is thriving, and it felt good that I left it in good hands. As a last lunch, we made the most of Äldste Sweat's fryer and made deep-fried ice cream! (see the picture) It was really good! It tasted quite similar to fries + Frostie. There is also a picture of the two of us, the Södertälje sisters (Sisters Kamauoha from Hawii and Taylor Alberta), and Nina and Fredrik, at Nina's family's lake! They are such a fun family. They live in the the woods, and we had moose meat while visiting. She is the Swedish voice for GPS, as well as several of the answering machines! And there is a picture of cinnamon biscuits, which Ä. Rasmussen made, and Turkish delight, which I delightedly found in our apartment! The people here are so great! Lennart, who was baptized in Jakobsberg a few weeks before I arrived there, has moved and now lives two floors bellow us! He was a sailor, and is so cool! We are teaching a good friend named Akil, who has received a very strong testimony of the gospel; he should be baptized soon! Our mission leader is brand new to the calling, and even new to the church! His name is Okoro, and he is a very capable man. He was telling us how he had felt unprepared to fill his calling, but how he realized it was the Lord who had called him, and that he needed to stop worrying. What a strength of testimony! A man in the ward named Åke shared a funny story in Priesthood meeting about how he stood up for his faith while in the sauna :) That was a funny story :D We swung by a part-member family and had a wonderful discussion about needing to be humble, and how we are placed in mortality by the Lord so we will be humble and rely on him. I am so thankful for this probationary time, and to be able to follow Christ! I love you all and hope you each have a great week. Hope and pray anyone who's sick gets better! Love, -- Äldste Daniel Schindler