SIGNING OFF FROM NORWAY!!

Heia!

Wow, I thought this day would never come!   It is still not real yet, I get moments of reality every once and a while, but really not that often.  Mostly when things get quiet and I have a chance to think, which is honestly not that often.

Thank you so much for getting the schedule figured out! That sounds awesome to have the schedule figured out like that! I am seriously so pumped to get into school and start studies and stuff!  It should be awesome!  You are the best!

This past week was pretty memorable.  We had a ton of miracles and a ton of cool experiences.  I saw the most spectacular show of Northern Lights ever!  It was literally one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen!  I was going to bed, looked out my window and was just amazed.  We all ran outside in -15 degree weather and watched it in our pajamas for like 30 minutes.  We were frozen solid, but it was so worth it!  So that alone made Alta a sweet splits.  We got to teach a lot there too though.  It was super cold the whole day too, like I said, -15 degrees.

Then we went to Tromsø and that was quite possibly one of the prettiest places ever.  I loved that place a ton!  We had a ton of miracles happen there too.

Finally we came here to Trondheim and I had my last Sunday here in Norway.  That was super painful. But at the same time awesome, everyone remembered me!  Super nice to get to see everyone again and get to be here with them for my last sunday!

So yep, this week was pretty insane.

This next week I am flying 3 of the 5 days.  We are working in Mo i Rana on Tuesday so we are flying there tonight from Trondheim.  We are flying back to Oslo Wednesday and we are flying home on Friday.  So I think this week will go by super fast.  

Thursday is our "burny day"  That basically means that we get another p-day.  So that should be pretty fun.  

We leave for the airport at like 8 on Friday, it takes an hour to get there and we have to be there 2 hours early.  So that should be an interesting morning.

But anyways, I have a super busy day today.  I have to get a haircut and try and get all of my last minute shopping in.  We have to take a flight at 5, so we have to leave the city at 3. So we have a race today.

I am super excited to see you soon though!

I love you so much!

Elder Jones

A LOT OF QUESTIONS AND THE LAST OF THINGS

Heia!

Well that was a lot of questions... I will try and answer them all haha. I have been thinking a lot about this whole thing and I am sure that I want go to law school afterward but I want to do the undergraduate that will give me the most diversity. I have considered taking things such as business or finance so that I could be more marketable as an attorney afterward. But I think that if I were to choose a major like that I would need to know what my career would be so that I could specialize in that field before hand. So I think that it is best that I stick to English.  That being said I might choose later to have a minor in something like finance or business later on once I have a better idea of what my career is going to be. As far as fun classes I think it would be cool to take a swing dancing class or maybe a tennis class or maybe even a class like lifesaving.  As far as the timing of the schedule goes I think I just want it to be consistent.  Ideal would be classes that start a 9 or so everyday and are over in the early afternoon.  That way I could just do school everyday and then work everyday and have a set time for studies and social time.  I have learned that I like routine on my mission.  I hope that is enough to give you a better idea.  I would like to be able to work out in the mornings before I get to school.  I don't want to have to wake up before 6 though.  So the earliest class could be like 8... If it has to be earlier that's cool.  I am really good for whatever you can get :) you are the best! (Mom note: I was asking him questions because I need to register him for classes tonight.)

The temple would be sweet on Saturday.  It would be way cool to get in a session before I get released... Let's plan on that.

So yep I think that is everything.  Let me know if I missed anything... I hope that I didn't. 

This past week has been super fun.  We had a ton of miracles! We visited Bergen and kristiansund and kristiansand as well as stavanger.  I can't really even describe how fun it has been.  I have been so blessed.  Monday's are becoming really stressful though... I don't have time to think about all this other stuff and then I get in to the office and I have to make a decision right then.  O well, that's just how it is.  

We had a ton of miracles happen in Bergen actually.  It was the coolest place to go on splits to.   I got to see all of the old members there and get to see some of my old investigators.  I actually got to see yelitza while I was there and go to teach her.  It was serious déjà vu. 

Anyways, thanks again for all of the stuff that you are doing for me! You are awesome! I couldn't have done it by myself.  You seriously are the best! I am super excited to see you! 

This next week will be my last full week and we have a packed schedule.  We are going to Trondheim and Tromso and Alta.  We also have zone conference tomorrow where we have to give our last testimony to the mission.  That will be really strange... Not too excited about that.  So this is the week where we start doing the last of things...

Anyways, I love you tons! Let me know know if I can do anything else or if you have other questions.

Jeg elsker deg! 

Eldste Jones 

Mom:   Did you get to see the Berg's while you were in Bergen?  How much do you weigh now? Have you grown any?

Dallin:  yep :) it was super awesome to see them!  I stayed at their house and was at church on sunday. I got to be with J a ton too.  A ton of people remembered me as well, which was a surprise cause i was there as a greenie.

I was late with emails today because I woke up in Bergen, flew to Oslo, debriefed president on all of our travels, spent a whole ton of time on the next transfer with him and then started freaking out about how many emails i had.... haha.   It was quite a day.

We still have to go wash laundry for the next week and throw away all of our stuff we are not taking with us and check out of norway and all of that stuff... so I acutally have to get going here soon too.

You have done a ton for me though!  thank you so much!

I weigh 195.  Still the same height.  No growth spurt unfortunately, haha.  (Mom note: That means a total of 75 pounds lost on his mission!)

I THINK I FELL A LITTLE DEEPER IN LOVE WITH NORWAY! WE ARE LITERALLY DOING THE COOLEST JOB IN THE WORLD!

heia!  

Things have been crazy the past week.  Lots of miracles and lots of cool stories!  Unfortunately we are supposed to get ready for a whole week of flights this week so we have to go and do laundry and stuff, so there is no time for the stories.  But, it will only be a couple weeks, so we can tell the stories then.

We went to Hamar, Fredrikstad, Moss, Porsgrunn, Tønsberg, and Drammen.  It was a week full of driving.  I think I fell a little bit deeper in love with Norway though because of it.

Elder E and I are doing great, we are getting more and more tired as the road goes on so I think we might literally come home on stretchers but thats totally okay!  I would be fine with that.  We are literally doing the coolest job in the world!

Thanks for starting the stuff with College.  I think that English would be good for now.  I have some other ideas floating in my head right now but nothing concrete.  If the schedule could focus on the general education requirements for right now that would give me more time to figure out plans after the first semester.  I am definitely set on getting a law degree though.  Not sure as to what profession I will take that to though...I think if we get housing and schedule figured out that would be a great start. Can you help me with the schedule though? 

Let me know if there is anything I am missing though.  I feel like I have a thousand things to focus on these last couple weeks and I am trying not to lose it all.

You are awesome and I am so excited to see you!

Jeg elsker deg!

Eldste Jones

That was a sweet surprise to get from you on transfer daY!!

Hey there!

 

Well that was a sweet surprise to get from you on Transfer daY!  I came into the office super early to start getting things ready for transfers wednesday morning and you had told me that I got accepted!  That was insane!  I am super pumped! 

 

I think it would be sweet to room with Riley!  I would love that.  I will go online today though and start the registration process and see what the next steps are so that I have a better idea of what needs to be planned for.

 

This past week has been sweet!  I have loved getting to travel and work with the different missionaries.  We had miracles happen in each area!  We found new investigators and commitmented them to baptism and church and everything in between.  So we are definitely going hard! 

 

Travelling with Elder E is probably just a dream come true!  He is a stud and like I said a week ago, we just work well together. Missionary work could not be more fun! We are also living with Elder S and Elder H.  So that makes coming back to Sandvika really awesome.  We are only here like 1 night a week though. So that is really not all that much.

 

We actually travelled down to Sandefjord and then to Oslo and finally had sunday here in Sandvika.  So we were just all over the place.  It was sooooooo cold though.  We got snowed on.  Most of the time is was sleet though, so we were just wet and cold, and the wind was blowing.  Despite all that we worked hard and got stuff done.  The Elders all seemed to be having a good time to, despite the awful conditions.

 

This week we are going to drive all over!  We are driving to Hamar, Fredrikstad, Moss, Tønsberg, Porsgrunn, Drammen.  We are going to see the whole east side of Norway. We also get to take our car across a ferry on the fjord.  It will be sweet!

 

As far as coming home, I am definitely excited.  I am also definitely sad.  I don't think you can really understand it without having served a mission. It is literally like being torn in half.  But the thing is that this has to happen... so I am just running with it :)  I love the mission and I love you guys. I just can't have both at the same time.  So I will enjoy this as much I can before I come home and then love home as much as I can before I have to go to school.  Then I will try to love school... we will see how that goes though haha.

 

I am down for whatever on the whole getting released thing.  I think that I just want to go to the temple on Saturday morning, that is one of the few things that I really really want to do. So whatever is best for that really.

 

Anyways, I have to go get winter tires on my car and then get a new headlight, do some laudry and then do some more chores so that I am ready for a week of travels.  Today is a busy p-day.

 

Jeg elsker deg så mye!

 

Eldste Jones

I KNOW THAT HE HEARS AND ANSWERS OUR PRAYERS AND THAT HE WANTS US TO KNOW THAT!

hey there!

haha I did end up getting your message from last week so you don't have to feel so bad about that!  it came when you resent it!

It was good to hear from you this week too though.  It sounds like a ton of stuff has been happening back at home!  That movie sounds super cool!  I am kind of jealous that I didn't get to see it! Elder H and I saw the preview on lds.org and thought that it looked sick! We are definitely missionaries haha.

Anyways, this past week has been an interesting one.  We got to go to Stavanger and and do splits with the Elders there.  I got to spend and entire day with E!  It was super awesome!  I got super excited to work with him over the next month. He is such an awesome Elder.  We got to do a lot of proselyting and I swear there is no other person that I work better with than with Elder E!  It is just so easy to teach with him and to know what he is thinking.  Seriously, it was just like the perfect day.

Other than that we spent a lot of time getting ready for moves again.  We had to purchase flights and trains and rent out a guest house and all the other odds and ends that come with a big transfer like this.  We also got to work super hard in our area. I totally forgot to tell you guys last week, but we have had the hugest miracle here.

Two weeks ago on Sunday Elder H and I fasted so that we could have a baptism here in Sandvika before I leave.  We had many people that had come to church and were really just waiting on an answer to get baptized.  So we felt like the Lord could totally make it happen.  The Lord blessed us in such a different way though.  I can't give too many details, but the Lord doubled our blessings!!  It was a huge testimony to me that the Lord will always reward us when we are trying to do what is right.  I know that he hears and answers prayers and that he wants us to know that.

Anyways, the rest of the week is hectic. We get new missionaries tomorrow and we  have moves on Wednesday.  We are going to be a taxi service to the 16 coming and 11 going. Once the dust settles Elder E and myself will hit the road. We are going to have a car for 2 weeks while we visit all of the areas in the east and telemark zones and then we will start taking flights, ferries, and busses and all of that kind of stuff for the final two weeks.

It should be pretty exciting!  I will take pictures... this will be well documented.

Anyways, I should be back in the office next monday to write and report to president and stuff like that.  So I am sure that i can even send some pictures home.

I have to get some stuff done here. So i will be talking to you later I guess!

Jeg elsker deg!

Eldste Jones

IT IS SO IMPORTANT TO HAVE DIRECTION AND MEANING IN LIFE. WITHOUT THOSE WE JUST SITTING DUCKS!!

Mom Note:  He's down to 5 ½ weeks and for the first time he didn't get my email.  I sent it to his home email address accidentally.  So when I woke up this morning and checked my e-mail my day was already ruined.  This is what he said.

I never got an email from you this week... I hope you are doing okay!  This past week was awesome. Lots of good stuff happened.  I guess I can just attach the email that I am sending to Dad though.  Let me know if I can do anything for you!  I love you so much!

Your son,

Dallin

letter to Dad....

heia!

This past week was just like all of the other ones on the mission, insane.  We had a lot of stuff to do.  On top of it all it was general conference.  That was sweet!

The week started off great.  We had MLC early in the week and it was Elder H's turn to conduct.  He did a great job and MLC was just a great experience all around. We talked alot about member work and the stuff we need to do to get going on it here in Norway.  It seems that there is always more to do on that front!  Anways, it was a great meeting and a lot came out of it.  I have one more while I am here on the mission.  That should be an interesting to be there for that.

Anyways, after that we had Splits with the missionaries in Oslo.  I got to work with Elder G while I was there.  It was fun to be there and work for a little bit.  I was remembering being there with Elder B what seems like an eternity ago.  Anyways, I found out while I was there that they got a baptismal date with a man that Elder W and I found while we were together.  So it was nice to hear that I am still helping out down there in some small way!

After that Elder H and I had a couple of days in our area.  We unfortunately had to start working moves which will be happening next week.  So that is when I will be starting on road.  We have 16 new missionaries coming in and 11 sisters leaving next week, so we have a lot of work to get ready for them when they arrive.  So this week will be buying flights and trains and organizing plans for all of that.  

The weekend was awesome, as expected!  We got to watch all of conference here in Sandvika.  It was amazing to hear the prophets and apostles speak and get their messages.  I think my favorite was actually President Monson's about the Bismark.  I thought it was great imagery for us to understand why it is so important to have direction and meaning in life.  Without those we are just sitting ducks!  

I thought all of the talks really just helped me to realize how I could be successful in life, in both Spiritual and temporal things. It makes me excited to think about it, but at the same time very anxious to know that I have to leave here.  That is life though haha!

The birthday was awesome.  Elder H treated me to all you can eat pizza and we enjoyed a nice man date haha.  Sister Allen made me Texas Sheet cake and Sister evans made me this bananna cake that was also just amazing!  I loved every second of it.  

Really though I feel like I am coming into my time to shine. I am going full court press and just going for Gold.  I have my last week in my own proselyting area now and I am just prepared to get at it!  I love being a missionary so much!  I really can't imagine doing anything else.

Thanks again for everything you guys do for me! It means a lot! I love you guys and I love this work! 

Anyways, I love you a ton!

Elder Jones

After I realized why he didn't get my email, I forwarded it to him hoping he checks his email during the week at the office.  Just a few minutes ago, I got this from him:

Just got your email!  Thanks a ton!  I love you so much!

Dallin

Also, totally got your package.  It was awesome and everything that I could have wanted.  thanks so much!

I know that if we are diligent and work hard and pray with a sincere heart and real intent he gives us what we need.

Heia!

This week has been just insane!  We have been super busy yet again haha. It sounds like you guys did as well.

I am super bummed to hear about Popo.  I will definitely continue to keep him in my prayers.  I have a testimony that through fasting and prayer we can get what we need.  We actually have a really good story of that from this past week.

We had another week where we would have a lot of time to be working in our area.  We would only have to leave for splits in Trondheim and that was pretty much it.  So we were super excited to get out and kill it.

Unfortunately we got out into our area and things were really slow.  We had trouble finding new investigators and getting other things done.  So we went through the entire week without finding any new investigators, not having any baptismal dates, and struggling to get any sort of progression with the people we did have.

So it was Sunday and Elder Holden decided we would fast.  After church we had 6 hours to make things happen.  We went out for the first hour and half and knocked on doors without any sort of success.  It was just dead.  We came back to the office and pretty much empty cupboards and scrounged for something to break our fast (we had forgotten to buy food the day before for the sabbath).  

We went out after that and the Lord gave us everything that we were praying and fasting for!  We got 4 new investigators, 2 new baptismal dates and people that could actually make some progression.  

So I know that if we are diligent and work hard and pray with a sincere heart and real intent he gives us what we need.  

I received that same testimony several other times this past week as we worked on Splits in Trondheim and with the District Leader in Sandvika.  I know that the Lord will support you if you rely upon him.  

Anyways.  I guess I feel super blessed to have had such great spiritual experiences over the last week.

To answer your questions, No, we did not get to teach Ole and Håkon.  We will try and teach them this week though.  I missed a teach with Alexandre, but Elder Holden taught him and it went really well. We did get to teach Jon axel, and ya he is making some small progression.

As part of our fast we wanted to have a baptism this week, we have people that have been to church enough times and are close enough to baptism that it could happen this week or at any time really.  We are just waiting on the time-table of the Lord.  So yep, there is definitely a baptism waiting in Sandvika.

So yaaa... it was a pretty busy week. Lots of cool experiences.  I look forward to another week ahead.  We get to have MLC again (this time Elder Holden gets to conduct that meeting) and we get to have General Conference.  I am super pumped for both meetings.  We are also going to be doing splits in Oslo.  So that should be pretty fun as well.

Anyways, thanks for being such a great Mom and for the Happy Birthday wishes and for everything you do!  

Jeg elsker deg så mye!  

Din sønn,

Eldste Jones