First and foremost, I need to give a shout out to my wonderful grandparents! Grandma and Grandpa Blankmeyer thank you so much for your wonderful package and for being smarter than me and not sending actual Dr.Pepper from America to Norway. Way to be creative with the Dr.Pepper candy and Jelly Beans though, it was much needed. Also the Oreos and Mac and Cheese were a great addition as well. My companion and future companion have and will enjoy the treats as well. Thanks a ton!
Also Søster Ralphs and I were walking home from picking up your package when we saw this cute couple and the man happened to be wearing a USC hat. I stopped and asked if they were from California and we talked about the wonderful university that is USC, so that was way fun! I even grabbed a picture with them so I could remember that moment. It's always way fun to see Americans here in Norway. By the way, HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!! Enjoy the land of the free and home of the brave for me! Eat lots of hot dogs, hamburgers and watermelon and enjoy the fireworks!!
Søster Ralphs and I were walking home the other day from an appointment when I saw a man with a Texas A&M sweatshirt on (thank goodness for American college apparel). I stopped and asked him if he was from Texas and you will never believe his response! He said that he and his family are from Texas but they just recently moved to... COLORADO! It's exactly like us! It was a crazy coincidence and way fun to talk to a fellow Texan turned Coloradan. (Not sure if that's how they say that down there, but still cool!)
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| Our Dutch friends heading back to the Netherlands! |
On Thursday and Friday we helped our Dutch friends pack up and head out of this grand old country of Norway! It was fun to switch things up and use that opportunity to serve in a different way than we normally get the opportunity to do as missionaries. This week has actually been a week full of service! We went over to Ben's house on Tuesday with our Dutch friend and we challenged him to perform a small act of service every day this week. We started our service with helping Ben record some gospel rap, so I think pretty soon Søster Ralphs and I will be famous here in Ålesund; Ben is going to make us stars! Just kidding! Anyways, we would call him every night after planning and follow up on his service and we would tell him what service we had done that day as well. It was fun to do a commitment alongside our most recent convert and really have a focus on service this week. I would challenge you all to perform one small act of kindness a day and do it with a friend or family member and share your service stories. It's actually way fun!
Anyways, on Friday as I was cleaning the windows and doing some final touches at our Dutch friend's house we got a call from President Hill. We occasionally get calls from him, as Ålesund is the most isolated sisters area. It can get quite tough, but this being so close to transfers we were right in assuming there would be some changes made here in Ålesund. Come to find out that there will once again be a trio in Ålesund and Søster Ralphs will be training a new missionary alongside one of her fellow MTC missionaries. This meaning that my time here in Ålesund has come to an end. President didn't clue me in on where I would be headed until yesterday morning during moves call (a big group phone call where they tell us missionaries where everyone is headed for the next six weeks). I will be transferred to............................
My new companion will be Søster Petersen and all I really know about her is that she is very sweet and very musically talented, so I'm excited! I have heard nothing but great things about the area and the ward and I am so excited to go and serve the people in Asker and discover more of this amazing country!
This past Sunday was our fast and testimony meeting as well as my last Sunday here in Ålesund. We were able to invite a lot of our investigators to church so I could say a last goodbye and snap a couple of pictures as well. One of my favorite investigators Denzel (Like Denzel Washington) ended up coming and that was way cool.
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| Me and Denzel |
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| Denzel's hat which says AUSTIN TEXAS!!! Way to represent! |
For those of you that don't know, fast and testimony meeting is a meeting held every first Sunday of the month where members of the congregation have the opportunity to go up and share their testimony. Testimony meeting started and the Spirit was so strong. I got up and bore my testimony on how much I have come to love Ålesund and how much I really will miss it. Of course, there were tears. I sat back down and noticed Denzel had pushed his seat back a little bit. I thought to myself, he's probably trying to find the right moment to leave the meeting early as he continued to stand up and then sit back down. It only occurred to me as he was walking up to the stand that he was trying to go up and bear his testimony. It was so amazing to hear someone you have been teaching the gospel to, go up and talk about how it's changed their lives, even just a little. What an amazing experience. This work really is worth it!
It has been really hard saying goodbye to the people I have met here in Ålesund though. It's crazy to me how quickly and how profoundly you come to love the people you serve on your mission. I have only been living here in Ålesund for a few months but I have made some of the best friendships I have ever made in my life in this little town. We were talking to our Venezuelan investigator Maria and saying goodbye before I leave and she said some amazing things about moves and transfers and the friendships we have made here in Ålesund. She said that these friendships that we make as missionaries have real substance because we go out and talk to people about Jesus Christ and our Father in Heaven. You can go and hang out with friends and talk and talk and talk and it mean absolutely nothing because you spent your time talking about hair and clothes and the latest this and that. I am so grateful for this opportunity that I have to wear this nametag and go out and talk to people about what has brought me the most joy in my life- and that is Jesus Christ. I am so thankful for this work and for the opportunity that I have to serve here in Norway. I have grown to love the people and the culture and can't wait to see that love grow these next 14 months!
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| This is Maria! |
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| Ha Det John og Helene. Best couple in Norway! |
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| It's a typical Norwegian desert! |
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| Finally found some American soda! |
Alright let's end on a funny note today! Earlier this week Søster Ralphs and I were walking around town talking to different people on the street. Søster Ralphs decided to start up a conversation with this guy who ended up being a Muslim from Syria. He didn't seem very interested in our message so we decided to just give him a mormon.org card which has our number on the back just in case they have any questions. The next day we get a phone call from our Syrian friend and says he would like to meet at 6 outside the bus stop. We show up and find a nearby bench and proceed to do our job as missionaries. We started talking to him about Jesus Christ when all of a sudden he pulls out a ring from his pocket and asks, "Is this real gold?" I put my hand out in a cup shape to take it and see when he grabs my hand, flips it over, slides the ring on, and turns to Søster Ralphs who is sitting in the middle of all of this and says, "We are engaged now, right?" I pulled my hand back and took the ring off and told him that I was sorry but I didn't think it was real gold. He took it back and said, "Only real gold is good enough for you my angel," and then chucked it into the water! Pretty funny but probably good that I'm headed out of here!
Well, I love you all and hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy your 4th of July holiday today! By this time next week I'll be emailing you from the wonderful city of Asker! Keep up the good work and God bless the USA!
Love,
Søster Blankmeyer
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