October 30, 2012

Hi Mom!!!

(and evry'body ellers!!)

Ok OK Ok mom!!!! :) Sorry :) I'll answer your questions first, and then tell you how awesome my week was :)  However, Since I can email you, (which is a lot faster anyway) I'm prolly not going to have time to write you a personal letter every week. Well, mostly its the fact that sending a single letter costs over 3$. And I can't email the other people who are writing me. And I'm going to starve if I spend all my money on postage :D So I'll try and balance everything ok? :)

So my shoe size is 11, (or 11.5 if they are smaller shoes). I dunno it's really hard to say. I've worn 12's that were perfect, and the 11's that I have right now are a little too big :) So it depends! What else... Send any packages to the mission home for now. It's prolly easier just because I live in Olso (dude.... I live in Oslo Heck yes! :) and olso is about 40 minutes from the mission office, so the AP's when they come around they'll prolly just bring it too me. It would prolly work at my normal adress too... actually. Assuming I dont move in three weeks (holy smokes another transfer... GONE! ) Just send me stuff at my normal address. but like if for example you send something before Nov 22 (which is moves day) I'm not certain I'll still be at my apt. :) In terms of stuff... Good clicky pens :) Ask Kristy or Lauren. I'm pretty sure they remember the ones I always used. Oh and a couple journals. like a small one for spiritual stuff district meetings and conferences etc... and one for a personal because the one i'm using right now is going to be filled within the next month...and journals cost (cheapest I've found) 50$. Thats insane. it would be cheper to have you buy some and send them than that., Skittles and Starbursts (i miss american candy) :) Mostly this stuff can just fill the box up to the weight limit :D

Sooo what else. I can't believe you got an Ipad. That's ridiculous. It's funny because our companionships phone is literally a brick from like the year 2000. I should take a picture of it because its so old. Anyways, it's hilarious, because literally every single person in Norway has a smart phone, and when we ask for peoples numbers on the street, we pull out this brick... and they usually start laughing a little bit. I miss technology. :( Hey if I was a senior couple I could have an Ipad!

Speaking of Word of Wisdom problems. Norway has many of the same problems (and a whole bunch of law of chastity ones too very... specail to norway) :) It's interesting because Friday and Saturday nights are literally pointless for us because everyone is drunk. I hate the smell of smoke here too. I don't know if its 50% but it's close. and I know that almost EVERYONE drinks. This last Friday, after we had given Mia a blessing, we were on the trikk back and these two drunk guys got on and just starting to talk to me. It was way funny. The blessing was way cool by the way. Not in Norwegian mind you but it was really special because that is the lady who is 100% convinced im an angel. Speaking of speaking. I gave a talk yesterday! Wow. Cool stuff. On saturday night we got called at like 10 to see if we could give talks in church the next day (5 ish minutes a peice) and of course we said yes. So the next morning I prepared something and studied about takknemlighet eller gratitude. In church I learned that E. Anderson wouldnt actually speak and mine needed to be 8-10 minutes. Oh, and 3 priests from the state church were on visit. :D Just to .. you know... take any pressure off of it. :) So with about as much faith as I could muster, (which ive learned as a missionary that I really dont have all that much) I got up as the first speaker. For some reason I decided to abandon my plan and not use any notes or bullet points I had written down, and just go. The whole experience was incredibly strengthening and humbling for me because... well it wasn't me that could really do that. And it went really well actually. Probably one of the better talks Ive ever given. And in a language I've know studied for 3 months completely freeballed. I will share a couple of the things I was told and know however. More than half the ward has no idea, or won't believe that i've only been here for over a month. The other half... Is surprised lets say. The stake patriarch talked to the senior couple who related to me just how much he was impressed. I didn't really care about anything afterwords however because I ran down to talk to one of the investigators we had in church who I was in charge of.

Speaking of which, I dont want to tell you too much before things happen, but I will say we have a few people who we are starting to teach that are going way good. The guy I'm talking about is Konrad, who is basically the champ of the world. Like... holy smokes I love him. We taught him right before mission conference this week. After we got taught by this really intense muslim guy :) Funny story: I was talking to him afterwords (konrad...not muslim dude) and talking about how he needs more sleep (heh, I can relate to that one) and I just put my arm around him and he just sat there and leaned his head on me for a minute... first thought: This is a 35 year old man.... and then I just went with it. :) He's way put together though and way normal! yay for normal! I'm way looking forward to this next week. Like, its going to be awesome! We also taught this guy who's going on a wilderness adventure in... Thailand! for a month. He was way cool though.

Anyways. Oh yeah we had misison conference this last week with President Teixera. It was way fun to see all my old MTC buddies again and to get to know some more of the missionaries. hooo. I feel bad for whatever area we're in if me and E. linge ever serve together. :) Basically Teixera promised us that By the end of my mission, we will have doubled the number of missionaries and that a whole bunch of stuff is going to happen, and that we need to lead that.  Anywaze.

K well that's about all I got. This week was a lot better. I've starting contacting people and talking people on my own, and me and Elder Anderson are doing a lot better. It's really impossible to give you a good description of how things are. He is just... him. I don't know. I don't even think I've really given a good description in my journal. It's hard to write down how someone is like. He's just way chill, and now that we have goals that we're working towards together things are going way better. Honestly, im not even going to try to describe it. I will fail. I'll try in my journal so you can read that. :D Eldste Godfrey and Eldste Torjesen are our Zone leaders. They are way spunky and cool. We spend most of our evenings down in their apt.. Anderson heckles them too much :) I cant really describe people very well. :P Oh well. I'll try another time when I have more time!

MATTHEW: HELLO?.... IS ANYONE .........THERE?  apparantley not. did you even get my email homie bro? Did you move your adress or somthin? Anyways. I don't think I heard from anyone this week... soo I'll talk to you next week!

K well imma go now! I don't have any money for stamps this week. Sooooo. Sorry peoples. This email was extra long to make up for that right!?

I really love all of you sooo much! I wish I could carry you around in my pocket, or give you a bucket of thoughts so you could know just how crazy all of this is!

Have a great week all of you ok! I love you all!

-Eldste Christopher Whetten

P.S. It's snowing! but we prolly wont go sledding until next week. ALso. It's cold. Really cold. I had some thought about this that I wanted to share.... but I got nothing :) Definetely time to go get a hat and some gloves :D
and its dark.... very dark....