Summer is really starting with Midsommer this week

With Summer really setting in things are going well! In face, most things are really good besides the pollen in the air which seems intent on waging war with me and my allergies! Here's how the week was!

On Tuesday we had a YSA and Young men/young woman activity playing mini golf by the beach. So that was really fun and then we had some special visitors, a previous Elder in the mission named Elder Berlin and his family came on vacation and were there playing with us. Elder Berlin was my AP when I was a relatively new missionary so it was cool to see him! And although I didn't win at mini golf, we all had a good time together!

It's been an interesting experimental week with food. Firstly we made an apple pie because we were given a ton of apples (the pie turned out way well). Then we ended up spontaneously making butter! I'd always been told that I shouldn't whip cream too long or else it would become butter, but while using cream to make something else we decided to give it a shot. And it turned out well and tasted good! It's like normal butter haha! The last thing we made was called Flygande Jacob (flying jacob). It was interesting. Imagine chicken with bananas on top covered in cream mixed with chill sauce. And then bacon and peanuts on top. Sounds way nasty, I know! But apparently it is some kind of Swedish dish (not super common, but I've met several people who'd heard of it). Haha, I wasn't exactly the biggest fan but at least I can say I tried it!

I also went on exchanges this week with Elder Cummings, a previous companion of mine. He goes home in around 2 weeks and it was really strange to be with him one last time before he goes home. It's weird that some things come to an end.

I don't have much time, but I do want to just say that I'm grateful for this time I have to be a missionary and try to help the work of the Lord go forward. Things are going well and I'm enjoying everything out here!

Have a great week!

Elder Nelson

(no subject)

Hello!

It's been a nice week! There were a couple nice highlights and here they are.

It got really warm and sunny this last week and we were able to go to a park with someone that had previously met missionaries and toss around a frisbee then take a seat in the grass and have a lesson. It felt wonderful to just be out there in the nice weather! The bad part about it was that half of me was in the sun and the other half was in the shade so I had one really red sunburned arm and the other one was not at all. I looked kinda goofy!

This week was graduation for the high school students in Sweden. What that involves is that everyone dresses up (guys in suit me and ties and girls in white dresses) with white sailor hats on and just kind of drive around crazily and have parties. So that was cool to see!

On Saturday we had some things fall through during the day and it was a little disappointing to have some of the lessons planned not happen. But we did have an appointment set up in the evening and went there. We were welcomed and seated as a couch that had around 6 other guys our age there that were relatives to the man we were there to visit. It turns out it was kind of a family gathering so in total we got to talk to the grandpa, the original man and his two brothers, and then around 6 of their children. It was super cool honestly, and it felt good to be able to teach and explain our message to so many people in one setting. The message of the restoration and how we can know it is true is a powerful message.

Have a good week!


Elder Nelson

(no subject)

It has been a good week here in Helsingborg, Sweden. It's starting to appoach the "hot and sunny" stage of Summer here and the humidity isn't helping! But it is beautiful with the greenery and seeing Denmark over the reflective ocean. Its a beautiful place!

This week we had the opportunity to go by many returning members either with ward members but also just stopping by. There were some good things that happened and we were able to get in contact with a lot of good people. We hope to start working regularly with some of them and helping them come back to church.

Yesterday Helsingborg's soccer team and Malmö's soccer team played each other, and apparently they're rivals. We were in the train station in the evening and when we walked out, there was tons of police cars and then just crowds of people kinda running around in the distance. Come to find out there were a bunch of fights that were taking place. So that was interesting!

As part of visiting so many returning members this week we were able to visit and give a total of 4 people the sacrament who can't make it to church anymore. It was a reminder to me how important the sacrament really is and the difference it makes to regularly be remembering the Savior. It is something I think we can all be better at remembering the importance of. It is a wonderful opportunity.

Anyways, I hope you all have a wonderful week. Take care out there!


Elder Nelson

I got a new companion

Hey, it's been a good week here! I'm a little low on time because we are about to go and visit some people with our bishop in just a few minutes here so I'm going to make this quick.

Elder Merrell, my previous companion, moved all the way up to Skellefteå and then Elder Norin, my current companion, just came down from Uppsala. He is actually Swedish and it's been fun so far! I was with the Elders in Malmö and an Elder from Kristianstad on Wednesday as we were waiting for our new companions and despite some delays of trains, they made it here! He also used to play the bass and is a way nice guy, so it's been good!

Some other highlights of this week were when we went to a Phillipinno birthday party of a member here and they had a bunch of other people there. We had some way good food and some people got a little into the dancing and stuff haha. It was a fun experience though to hear the combination of Togalog, Swedish, English, and Danish that was taking place there!

Things have also been going well with some of the people we are working with, as well as we spent some time finding and working with some returning members. Things are going well!

Sorry it's short, but have a great week! Keep up all the good you do and make God a part of your everyday lives.


Elder Nelson


Attach is a picture of my new companion as well as my old one. Yeah, we cleaned our train out today and it was about as gross as you can imagine haha.

I'm sticking around in Helsingborg (Elder Merrell is going to Skellefteå)

The end of another transfer has come again. Time seems to be flying as this beautiful corner of Southern Sweden warms up and is getting sunnier and sunnier (the sun rises at 4:47am and sets at 9:23pm). But here are some things about the week!

Well, the time has finally come. I've now finished training Elder Merrell. It's crazy and pretty sad how quickly the time has gone. But it certainly was a pleasure and I loved the opportunity to be with him for two transfers here in Helsingborg! He will be flying out of the nest and actually hopping on a plane all the way up to Skellefteå! That is the 2nd furthest North area in the mission, it's waaay up there! I'm excited for him! And then as my new companion I'll actually be with an Elder named Elder Norin who is from Sweden! I've heard he is awesome and I'm looking forward to being with him!

The current ward I'm in is called the Helsingborg ward and it is a part of the Malmö Stake. There is another unit in the stake in a city called Kristianstad that is a branch though. It is (well, was) one of the oldest branches in the church. The first branch there was organized 1854! And then yesterday it was organized to be a ward because it fulfilled the requirements to do so now. It was really cool to be a part of because we watched a broadcast if it taking place at our church. So congratulations to Kristianstad's ward!

It really has been a great last week though. I've loved looking back and seeing the hand of the Lord thus far in my time here. Life is good and is carrying exciting things to come!


Elder Nelson

Happy Mothers Day!

Hello hello, and happy mothers day to all the moms and all other women out there (one day late, sorry)!

It has been a really great week here in Helsingborg, Sweden! We've had a lot of good little things happening and I'm positive about the work moving forward!

Firstly, this week just flew by because we had 2 exchanges this week, one with the Elders in Malmö and one with Halmstad. Both went well! We got some good teaching done in both of those and a good time. My previous companion Elder Cummings is in Halmstad so it was really fun to be back together, reminisce on the Gothenberg days, and go right back into the groove of teaching lessons with him. They were some good days on exchanges!

We decided to branch out our skill set and attempt to make pretty much our favorite pastry that exists here in Sweden called chocolate biskvier. Imagine an almond kind of cookie with some super good fluffy chocolate creme on it and then all dipped in melted chocolate and let to cool. They're something else! It may have taken us a little over 2 hours (haha, almost all of our dinner hour and then just about all the time we had from 9-10:30 at night). But they were worth it, and now we're essentially the Swedish chef!

Some other good things included some great studies by the ocean, delivering a BoM to a man who had asked and reached out for one via Facebook, and running into an American soccer player that moved here to play two different times (we met him twice, he didnt move here twice haha) and getting to invite him to church. But it was amazing because someone we're teaching with a baptismal date came to church yesterday for the first time and it turned out to be a pretty fantastic church experience. It's been a good week and a reminder that God is good and really loves us, I've certainly felt that this week. And it certainly is amazing to help others feel that way as well!

Have a fantastic week!


Elder Nelson

Being at the right place at the right time

Hello hello!
It's been a really great week and we were able to see many miracles! There were some good stories and experiences!

This week was Valborg and May Day. Valborg is the last day of April and the holiday where you just burn things. And then May Day is typically a day off of work but also is known for being a day to go out and demonstrate. Both holidays were good and at Valborg we had a really nice ward party. We had a lot of nice songs, games, food, and fire (of course). Then we actually did see some demonstrations as well on May day.

We also were able to have Zone Conference this last week with some really good instruction. It is always fun to see everyone!

We had something really cool happen last Monday. We had dinner with a less active member and the member said hi to someone at the restaurant in passing. We later asked him who it was and he said it was another less active that we had actually been trying to get in contact with. I was pretty sad that we hadn't gotten to talk to them or anything, but I now knew what they looked like. Here's where the miracle happened! The next day we were on a bus in the morning and I looked up and saw the very same man! Both my companion and I agreed it looked just like the mysterious less active, so we waited on the bus until he was getting off, then got off with him and talked to him. It was way cool, and now we have his contact information and will hopefully be meeting them soon! It was the kind of perfect "stars aligning" miracle that we are blessed with occasionally and was a reminder that God is mindful of us.

On Sunday it was also amazing to see everyone that was put in our path. On that day we had two random people stop us at different times and were able to give a Book of Mormon to one of them. We also were able to meet 2 people I knew that had previously been taught by missionaries as we were out. And lastly we met another inactive member as we waited at a bus stop and then a really cool American soccer player from Virginia on a train. It was the kind of perfect day where God just made things work out so that you met people and happened to be in the right place at the right time throughout the day.

Anyways, it's been a great week with us! Hope you all have a good one!


Elder Nelson