It Was A Great Week Though In General

February 27, 2017

Hello Everyone!

I'm really starting to feel like the beginning of my emails are just turning into "This injury I got from running this week". So last week I wrote about scraping up my knee. That's whatever. I can live with that. In case you're wondering (which you're probably not but I'll tell you anyways) my scraped up knee is fine now. The Jurassic World band-aid made it feel a lot better. The story gets better (I know, how does someone top fun band-aid stories?). Anyways, the next day, I turn a corner on the run (it's EXTREMELY icy, FYI) and both of my legs fly out from under me, I'm parallel to the ground and land on my hip. I thought a scraped up knee wasn't fun, well, it's bruised to say the least. At least I don't feel it anymore. It just looks really gnarly. Way fun though.

We got dragonfruit this week. It tasted delicious. Weird, but good. Plus Elder Mitchell

As for the casual weather report. Norway is still being bipolar when it comes to snow, and sun, and rain, and refreezing. But luckily, spring is right around the corner.

It was a great week though in general. A lot happened. Everything from playing ping pong as a district again, to eating some food that didn't like me as much as I liked it, to trying to hand out free hot dogs.

Well, to start off with food. I first want to say, I haven't eaten a kebab that has completely wrecked me... yet... *knock on wood* But we went to this place with one of the youth in the ward to just see how it was going with him and stuff. He suggested this place, I had heard alright things about it, so we went. I ate it pretty quickly, but man... right as I finished it, I just felt like I had sat on a swing for a while (another FYI, I don't like swings too much. They're fun, just make me not feel so hot). The kebab tasted really good, don't get me wrong, I just didn't feel great the rest of the day. Almost had some kebab regret, but not quite.

Later throughout the week we had Zone Conference in Oslo. We caught the train into the city, and then got onto the Metro which got us to the church. It was a great conference, saw a lot of people because we combined to zones for it, and had a lot of fun. Learned a lot, etc.

Quick funny story from Zone Conference. On the way back, we were chilling at Oslo S, waiting for our train to head home, and one of the other missionaries was waiting there too, waiting for a train, but he had his ukulele in his backpack... Oh ya, we totally jammed out there. I've learned some ukulele while I've been out, but I'm still not very good. Anyways, he starts playing different songs and we're all just singing along. Needless to say, everyone around was just hardcore confused why people were playing and singing in public.

Elder Nelson, me, and Johnson

I don't know if this next story is funny, or just depressing. I guess I'll just kick it off with a quick explanation. So Drammen has been redoing one of their tunnels doing some repairs on the roof or something. Anyways, it happens to be this major tunnel that everyone uses leaving the city headed back home (you know, the commuter life). This tunnel has been open and closed off and on for like a month now, and luckily, we haven't driven TOO much in the ridiculous traffic it's caused. I didn't know how bad traffic actually got during rush hour, usually we're just in a small bit of it... I figured, oh, it should loosen up when we get passed the mall.... nope! So we were headed to a town like 8 or 9 miles away. Not too far. normally, it takes 15 minutes to get there. But knowing there'd be traffic, we gave it 30 minutes instead. Sounds reasonable right? NOPE. AN HOUR AND A HALF. We were basically parked on the road for most of it. It was bumper to bumper traffic the ENTIRE way, and like, not just bumper to bumper going fairly along, no, like snail pace the whole way. Oh, well, such is life, you live and you learn.

Some of us at the street stand trying to 

hand out hot dogs and talk with people

We had a little tent up in the middle of the city on Saturday. It was a lot of fun because we handed out free hot dogs and talked to people about the church. We even had a proper fire too to roast them over. It was cold, but the fire made it lots better!

Well I hope you all have a great week! Take care!

Sincerely,

Elder Mickelson

"May I share with you a formula that in my judgment will help you and help me to journey well through mortality... First, fill your mind with truth; second, fill your life with service; and third, fill your heart with love." —Thomas S. Monson

As Usual, But Still Worth Noting, I'm Doing Great!

View from above the morning's fog

February 20, 2017

Hello Everyone!

Baked goods in the store (Bakevarer)

As usual, but still worth noting, I'm doing great. This week came and went and who knows where it flew off to. But anyways, I'm chilling here on the computer with a Jurassic World Band-Aid on my knee. I was hoping for a Hello Kitty one, but I can't complain. Anyways, I totally fell on the ice... twice... while running this morning. Scraped it up more than I would like, but oh well. Needless to say, the ice was VERY slick this morning. We had run down to this ice skating rink (in the summer it's a soccer field I think), and back. WAAAAY too much uphill, but such is life.

Epic P-Day Ping Pong

(yes, we put two tables together)

We kicked off the week with an epic game of ping pong as a district. We all got together and played ping pong in the church (there's totally just a couple tables chilling there, so we used them). Proudly, I can say I won a lot, but practically at the expense of being dizzy. We started playing to where you had to spin in a circle every time you hit the ball. It made it REALLY hard. I'm surprised I didn't fall over.

We (Elder Mitchell and I) also bought ourselves a couple train tickets, and hopped on the next train headed down to Tønsberg to be a part of their district meeting. That was really great getting to be with all of the missionaries down there. Elder Mitchell and I parted ways for the next day, he stayed in Tønsberg, and Elder Rogers (one of the missionaries in Tønsberg) came with me back to Drammen for splits.

Elder Rogers and I on splits

Splits was way fun. We spent some good time doing a bit of everything, and walked A TON uphill. I've only been to Bergen once, but it felt like I was ALWAYS walking uphill. That's what it seemed like when he was here in Drammen this last week haha. But it was way fun and it was really enjoyable. We even remembered to get a splits selfie!

A blurry picture of me (all bundled up for the cold)

Wednesday night, we were headed back into town and we got a text if we could start the seminary class before the teacher got there a few minutes later. So we said yes and went. It was really great because we had a chance to teach a little bit and share our experiences a bit at the beginning. One thing I'm very impressed while I've been in Norway is the youth within the church. They are just so awesome. They're an example to me of deciding what your standards are and living them. It was just so prevalent while we were there that evening. They'd talk about different things during the lesson, and I was just blown away by how incredible they are. For them, it seems to just click. So it was a great time.

So I do not know why, but now all of a sudden, I seem to be coming across more people with animal mounts chilling in their living rooms. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind, it just throws me off because I haven't seen too many here in Norway. But we were talking to this lady at her door, and Elder Nelson asks what was on the wall behind her. I was off to the

An emu (imagine a small ostrich)

side so I couldn't see, but I moved a little, and there was this GIANT moose head right at the back of the entryway. I've seen quite a few moose, but this head was like one of the largest I've ever seen! just chilling on the back wall. Anyways, it led to a fun little discussion, but it was just so shocking, just because I haven't seen too many while I've been here. There's a start for everything I guess.

Well I hope you all had a great week! Take care everyone!

Sincerely,

Elder Mickelson

"Seek forgiveness from those you have wronged. Forgive those who have wronged you. Forgive yourself." —C. Scott Grow

Headed over the bridge in the city (Those were some giant flags)

Me inside the Blueberry (our Opel Corsa)

My Bear Story

February 13, 2017

Hello Everyone!

Well, the snow's packed on the ground, and after a few weeks of little to no sun, the sky has cleared up, and the big bright thing in the sky (not the moon) is shining its rays down on the city of Drammen. It's been pretty consistent snow for the last week, and it's been pretty cold. Lucky for us, it's not Canada and a million degrees below zero.

I had this REALLY cool experience this last week. Elder Nelson and I decided one evening we would go knock some doors. As we walked up to the first door, I could see this silhouette through the giant frosted windows. It was a large bear. So I knock on the door, and this older gentleman answers the door. After about a minute, and the conversation came to a close, I asked him, "Is that your bear?" pointing towards the corner of the entryway. Looking behind the guy, I just see this giant room, with antlers and different mounts. I knew immediately that he was DEFINITELY a hunter. He said yes and asked If I wanted to see it. Naturally, I said yes and we went in and started talking with him. Needless to say, he's one of the coolest people I've met in Norway. It was fun getting to talk about hunting and outdoor things like that for a bit. As we were about to leave, he commented that if we had a camera we could get a picture with the bear. So I did. IT WAS SO COOL!!!!!!! It's amazing to meet just so many different kinds of people throughout the world.

We went and were with the young men for their activity this week. They played some different sports. I got schooled in soccer. Again. Ehh, but such is life. If anything, I'm much better now than I was back in the States. Improvement. That's for sure. But we did do pretty good in basketball. Perks of playing basketball during gym time back in school!

There is one of the nicest guys in the ward here in Drammen. We got a call this week if we'd be able to help move some flooring into his home and move some furniture around so new flooring could get put in. It was really interesting because I didn't know who he was at first. Then after getting to know him, I recognized him immediately in church yesterday. He's always been there, I just hadn't gotten to know him. It just made me realize that helping people out is a wonderful way to get to meet people you don't know. Sometimes it is just that little thing that helps you make a new friend.

A few days ago, we held a little film evening and invited a bunch people to watch Meet the Mormons. There was tons of food (snacks really, but you know), and it was really enjoyable. It didn't turn out half bad.

Overall, it was a really great week. I'm looking forward to this one! It'll be loads of fun! I hope you all have a great week!

Sincerely,

Elder Justin Mickelson

"God's ultimate purpose is our progress." -D. Todd Christofferson

This Week Has Been Super Crazy!

Drammen in the evening

February 6, 2016

Hey Everyone!

This week has been super crazy! One of the busiest ones I might dare say. Elder Hoopes and Jefferies moved this last week. And, naturally when anyone moves, it involves visiting a lot of people and saying goodbye. It was really good getting to meet with a bunch of people Elder Hoopes had gotten close with, but sad for him saying goodbye. Well, nice thing is that you can still stay in touch after moving!

Elder Nelson (my new companion) got here this last week too. He's from Lehi, UT and actually played some lacrosse! I think he's the second person I've met that played lacrosse. Not too huge of a sport in small towns ya know. But that's what happens when schools and cities and everything is small.

Elder Jefferies, Hoopes, Me, Johnson

Elder Mitchell, who I was with in Fredrikstad, moved here to Drammen too, and that's been a blast. He's also been way fun to have in the apartment. Old inside jokes, and catching up has been so much fun. That and quoting The Other Guys with him has been awesome.

We try working a lot with the youth here in Drammen. So we were at the young men's activity night this week. We got there a little later than we expected but it was no problem. They had it set up like a man cave. The young men had set up a small FIFA tournament, and I tried my hand at beating them at ping pong... My somewhat ping pong skills are rusty to say the least. But that's ok. I still held my own.

We were out visiting a family for dinner, and we hopped on the bus to go out there (mind you, I've been in that area only once before) and we started our little adventure there. We got to where I thought the bus was supposed to turn and go up their road... and it just kept on going forward... even further down the hillside. After a few bus stops I knew we were way past where we needed to be. We were a few minute drive PAST where we were supposed to be. I found out later after so kindly getting picked up that there's two busses, which both go along the same road, and only one of them turned on to their road, and that was the OTHER bus, NOT the one we were on. Well, I won't make that mistake again. Luckily, we weren't too late getting there.

So, as the subject of the email led you all to wonder, working out. So this week I've worked out A LOT. More than usual. We even had an apartment run this morning. It wasn't so bad running downhill, it was run back that sucked. So that, in addition to other work outs, and over 500 squats in one day, and other stuff spread out this week, my body (mainly my legs) has been hating me. But I'm finally feeling good again.

We had sport this Saturday, us missionaries and a few other from the church, we played soccer, and basketball, and indoor hockey (another reason my body was aching). Anyways, because I'm American I'm naturally bad at soccer, and then at basketball, the Norwegians dominated us... (Disappointing, I know), but I didn't do too bad at indoor hockey. I'm much better at it than I thought I was. So that was loads of fun.

Church was really good yesterday. We had a great class on charity and how we can find more opportunities to help others in our daily lives. It was a great class.

Well I hope you all have a great week! Take care!

Sincerely,

Elder Justin Mickelson

"But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him." Moroni 7:47

Wow, 7-Weeks Have Come And Gone!

January 30, 2017

Hi Everyone!

Wow. 7 weeks have come and gone! The transfer is nearly over and it feels like I just moved here!

This week was pretty jam-packed. We had a crazy week with two different splits, a world-wide missionary broadcast with several changes to the standard missionary schedule, and we even had time for a waffle stand!

Last Tuesday, Elder Johnson and I were on splits together. Since we already are in the same apartment it was no problem. It was pretty great, we had visited some different people that day and went out talking to people. It was tons of fun. He really enjoyed it, especially because he hadn't been on splits before on his mission (he's been in Norway for only a few months).

There was a world-wide missionary broadcast this week too. Some adjustments had been made helping us be more effective. Changes were made allowing the previously more standard morning schedule to become flexible. For example, studies could be put wherever we wanted in the day to best fit daily/local needs. So it was made a lot more flexible, leaving it up to us to decide when to do everything. (Plus, we get an extra half hour to get ready for the day!)

I went on splits with Elder Applegate too this week. He's serving in Sandvika, and he came here to Drammen for a day. He's an awesome guy, it was great having him here for the day. He was also here for some of the Waffle Stand that we had put up.

We set up a giant tent, with some tables set up, and handed out free waffles all day! It was pretty great. We got to talk with a TON of people. I'd say it was quite a success. I had done one similar in Bodø, so it was quite fun to go for it Round #2.

So as for moves this week, I'll be getting Elder Nelson and saying bye to Elder Hoopes this week. AND! Elder Mitchell will be coming to Drammen too! I was with him in Fredrikstad so it's going to be a blast!

I hope you all have a great week! Take care!

Sincerely,

Elder Mickelson

I was given a challenge by a little girl in the ward to write down every day a reason why I believe in God. So #1, I believe in God because I can feel His love for me.

Have a great week everyone!

Wow! What A Hectic Week!

Me by our apartment

January 23, 2016

Hello Everyone!

Wow! What a hectic week! But such a good one at that. We started out the week on Monday with a way fun activity as a district. Elder Hoopes had gotten the game Bananagrams for Christmas, so we decided to play that as a district. TONS of fun. It was the party edition, so all of a sudden you had to start doing crazy things like only playing with one hand, standing on one leg, or setting the banana case that the tiles go in on top of your head. It was a very silly game, but a lot of fun.

All of us at Zone Leader Training

We had Zone Conference here in Drammen this week (sadly didn't get to travel very far to it, just across to the other side of the river). The day before we were getting different things set in place for it, and out of nowhere we get this call from a member of the church here, letting us know that basically all of the busses had stopped running... It had been raining all day, but it was still cold enough that the rain froze on the ground, and the entire city became just a giant sheet of ice. To put it simply, it became one huge ice skating rink, suddenly with a bunch of cars on the roads. A bunch of accidents happened. Luckily we were taking the busses so we didn't have to worry about driving, we just needed to worry about the busses running still (which they eventually did).

Oslo

That night we had walked over to a house for a lesson, and we were walking up the driveway, which was still a sheet of ice, and it took us about a minute to walk a few feet. One step forward, two slides back.

Oslo

We had Zone Conference, which was blast. I still love getting to see everyone. I realized that I had known most of them for a really long time, and that I had been in the same city with almost half of them at one point or another. It was really enjoyable. Right afterwards, I headed off to Oslo for splits with Elder Bleggi (we came to Norway at the same time). It was great being with him. We got to teach a few different people and it was loads of fun. We were at the mission office which is the same place as the young adult center there in Oslo, and they had seminary that evening, so I walked into the room, and saw several different people I knew, some from here in Drammen, but also some that I knew from other wards I had been in. It was great getting to catch up real quick with friends there.

It was a great week. Really fast-paced, but very enjoyable. I hope you all have a great week. Take care!

Sincerely,

Elder Mickelson

Alma 37:37 "Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day."

Drammen Was Hit With Quite A Bit Of Snow

A bunch of us over at President's home after New Year's.

January 16, 2016

Hello Everyone!

A week ago, Drammen was hit with quite a bit of snow. A whole several inches. The snow we'd been missing since November finally came. Well anyways, we had gotten up one morning and were about to go out the door to catch the southbound train to Tønsberg, and all I hear is... "It's raining..." It's one thing to rain overnight, melt all of the snow, and stop... but the rain went on for a couple of days. Needless to say, I got soaked pretty fast.

Our District together after interviews.

We still caught the train and made it just fine to Tønsberg to spend the day with the missionaries there. It was really cool because we not only were in Tønsberg for a bit, but we drove down to another city called Sandefjord because that's the city they normally are in. With a constant pour, we hit the streets and it was a blast. We were with Elder Arveseth (he was in Fredrikstad when I was there) and then his companion Elder Hansen.

Elder Hansen and I spent some time knocking on some doors talking to different people. We had walked up to a door and there was just country music blaring and I thought someone was having a party. But, it wasn't like a ton of cars were parked there, so we knocked. When they came out it was fun asking about the country music and finding out that they had just been jamming to it. Fun meeting people who love country music too! haha

A game we all played to try and get a piece of a cereal box off the ground with only your feet on the ground, I found out I'm more flexible than I thought (yes, that is me)

A few days ago, we had been over at a family's home for dinner, and while we were waiting for a few minutes for the food to finish cooking, several of us sat down and played some with LEGOs with their daughter. It was fun seeing all of us, sitting around the classic bucket, loaded with LEGOs and building fun little houses. It's quite entertaining having a blast to the past with something that was such a part of my childhood.

We had finished up eating and their son, Elder Jefferies, Elder Hoopes, and I all had a wall sit competition. Everyone was out by the 2 and a half minute mark and it was just Elder Hoopes and I left. We had gone for 5 minutes straight (By the way, the longest wall sit I've ever done in my life) and we decided to fall at the same time. My legs were shaking pretty hard-core, but we managed.

I was out talking with people and started talking to this guy in high school. He had this really nice camera, and come to find out, he's way into film-making. He's helped make a few music videos for some local musicians. He was a way cool guy to talk to.

Well I hope you all have a great week! Take care!

Sincerely,

Elder Mickelson

"Difficulties allow us to change for the better, to rebuild our lives in the way our Heavenly Father teaches us." Thomas S. Monson