Dear Parents, Your missionary has arrived safely and brought much sunshine

Dear Parents,

Your missionary has arrived safely and brought much sunshine, both physically and spiritually. Attached is a picture of them outside the Mission Home. We are so happy to have them here in Norway. We have already witnessed their enthusiasm and conviction of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.

President and Sister Evans

Dear Brother and Sister Pyne,

Your lovely daughter is now in Mo-i-Rana, just below the arctic circle. We haven’t had sisters there for many years.

President Evans

I got to go to the temple for the last time for a while this morning.

Heisann my best people!

That word sounds Asian to me but it just means hello. So. Don't be alarmed. Guys, this is crazy crazy. Being a missionary is the opportunity of a lifetime. This week I have been reminded lots of times of my favorite lyics, "Your skin and bones turn into something beautiful." We are children of God. We have a loving Heavenly Father, and each of His children need to know this. My heart feels so close to these people that I haven't even met yet. When Chad Lewis came for devotional last week (or was that two weeks ago...? time here is so weird) he said, "You're going to meet weird people. People are really weird. But you look right through them to their heart and you love them." I want to always do this. Even when I'm not a missionary. Jeg vet at Gud elsker oss.

WE HAVE TRAVEL PLANS!!! I'm freaking out. Sometimes I'm so excited and sometimes I feel like I'm going to throw up. Mostly the throw up part. We have layovers in Dallas and London. I can't believe that this is real! We'll leave on Monday, the 27th. We'll get to Norway in the afternoon on the 28th.

We skyped Norwegians yesterday. Uh..... terrifying! They are members, thank goodness. They were the sweetest people. Their names are Marcel and Lotta and they have been married for two years. They were really kind and helped us with our awful Norwegian because they speak perfect English as well. I feel so spoiled. We really do have the best of both worlds because they'll be patient with you while you try to speak their language, but they all speak English too so you can actually communicate. We shared a message with them about attending church and then just asked them about Norway. It sounds like a dream. I really do think that it's the most beautiful place in the world and I haven't even been there yet.

A girl on my floor has mono. Heaven forbid we all get mono and can't go to Norway. We're trying to be really careful about germs, but it's hard when you're so close all the time. We make the best of living this nun life though! There's a girl in my district that is a vocal major and she sings Strauss for me while she's in the shower. I love it. ]

Sister Taylor, one of my teachers, brought things from Norway for us to see this week. She has these beautiful wool mittens that someone knitted her. They remind me so much of Jan Brett books. They're absolutely beautiful. She knitted her name into them and they have scalloped edges and rosettes. We also celebrated the 17th of May which is like their independence day. They wear beautiful traditional dresses and have parades and nobody goes to school or work. Sounds lovely to me! I can't wait for next year. They also love trolls just like the Jan Brett books. I don't understand that part cause trolls are ugly.

Mom! Thank you so much for the lilacs! Oh my goodness. I died. And so did everyone around me. We all smell them a whole bunch every day. You were so kind to sacrifice your bush for me. I promise that they're much appreciated. I had forgotten that we even had that bush. Also. Are the peonies blooming? Ah. Enjoy that beauty for me!

Okay so I didn't know this, but you can go to Tucanos for free if you are a missionary! Too bad we can't get out of this place but... Hunter. Take full advantage. Go there for lunch before you go to the MTC!

I love this: "You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down. So why bother in the first place? Just this: what is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer. But one has seen. There is an art of conducting oneself by the memory of what they once saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least know." I feel like this email is really random, but I'm just throwing in all the stuff I want to tell you!

Norwegian is coming okay. I'm trying to just give all of my fears to the Lord because I don't know how to say very much at all. And it's all church vocab so actually getting around in the country will be interesting. They aren't going to have enough trainers for all of the girls going, so they're either going to put 3 of us together, or they're going to stick two newbies by themselves. Heaven forbid I get stuck by myself. But everything works out when you believe in God, so I guess it would work out somehow! I can't believe that we're actually going to Norway!! Holy cow. There are 21 of us that will get there the same day and 17 are sisters so it will be really interesting to see what the poor President and his wife do about all of us sleeping there the first night. It will be a slumber party!

Um.... the MTC was not prepared for all these women. There's a urinal in the girl's bathroom because they had to convert it to a girl one. I love it! So... on Friday night you gotta have a little fun you know? Luckily Sister Harrison is my partner in crime! Also. Look at the pictures! My Sister Mourik is an incredible artist! She drew these for me. Can you believe it? I need to get them laminated.

I got to go to the temple for the last time for a while this morning. The blessings of the temple are so beautiful. I was so sad to leave the Celestial room. Take full advantage of having a temple so close and we'll work on getting one in Norway!

Dad, your email meant so much to me. Thank you for being such a wonderful father. I feel the power and strength that comes from the priesthood that you hold and I know that you bless my life. It comforted me and helped me to feel like I can do this. I love you.

The next time I get to email you, I'll be in Europe! I'm grateful to be the Lord's servant and to teach people about His love. I love this gospel and I know that it is true with my whole heart.

I love you. I pray for you always.

Love,

Sister M. Pyne

P.S. Sorry if there are typos all over. You just gotta type as fast as you can!

The Lord is forwarding His work and He needs sisters!!

Guys!! I'm so excited to talk to you!!!

There ain't no business like soul business. I'm exhausted! Haha I've had a really yucky cold all week. I'm finally feeling better, thank goodness. It's fun to be a missionary in the weirdest way!

I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day, mom. You are incredible and I love you dearly. I've wanted to tell you all week to watch the new Mormon Message about moms. It's on the home page. Maybe you've seen it already. I watch it all the time and just cry. Haha I'm so grateful for you. You are everything it says in that video and more. Watch it for me. President Packer's talk from last conference also has a really good quote. I can't remember it exactly, but it says something like, "The prayers of a righteous mother are so powerful." I know that they are so powerful and I testify that they are. Also, the bird on pg. 7 in the conference Ensign is adorable.

So. I learned something great this week. You know the baby island called Svalbard? Did you know that if you go there in the winter you are required to carry a gun so you don't get eaten by polar bears? Every year some tourists get eaten. Haha awesome, huh? I highly doubt that President Evans will send sisters there, unfortunately. But. I wish.

In Norwegian, the word "preparation" starts with an f. And the word for day is "dag" (pronounced dog.) So today is F-dag. Sounds like a gangster name, huh? We love it. Norwegian is a pretty cool language, actually. There are funny little phrases that we say all the time to each other like "inganting, tingaling!" That means, "nothing Tinkerbell!" Apparently they love Disney movies so they say that a lot. I've also heard a rumor that President Evans lets you watch Disney movies there... but we'll see.

I played for the departure devotional this week. Sister Oldham and I played "Be Still My Soul" and it went well! It was neat to be able to play something like that to comfort pepole as they get on a bus, go to the airport, and fly all around the world. Oh my goodness!! I'm doing that soon. I might die. Because I can't wait to get out of this place, of course. Haha. We get our travel plans on Friday. I leave a week from Monday. Umm.... that is so soon.

Sister Natalie Cameron, my sweet friend from high school left for Paris yesterday. Before she left, all 5 of us girls, Sister Whitney McLelland, Sister Ari Kokol, Sister Jessica Carlson, and I got to take a picture. It was so neat! I can't believe that we all got to be in here at the same time. Such a tender mercy and who would have ever thought? I am so blessed. Janice Kapp Perry came and taught relief society on Sunday and she wrote new lyrics to "As Sisters in Zion" for sister missionaries! She asked us to sing it for her--first time ever being sung--and as the music started we all stood spontaneously and started to sing. The spirit was incredible. The Lord is forwarding His work and He needs sisters!! We are powerful.

Sunday night was a hard one. I didn't feel good, I just wanted to be with you, mom, and I was feeling scared about leaving so soon. The Lord has ways of strengthening us every time we need it if we just ask. He needs us to be strong and ready to do His work and so He gives us strength. Thank goodness!! Sunday night devotional was some guy over missionary something, I didn't really pay attention obviously, but he gave a really good talk that was motivation for me and uplifting. I take for granted that I get to wear Jesus Christ's name over my heart every day. I have never felt the spirit more constantly in my life and I am so grateful for it. It's a neat thing to have instant answers to prayers because His work has to go forth!

I'm making some great friends here! Last night for gym, we rolled down the hill by the temple and then the sprinklers came on so we ran through them. Then we kind of got in trouble. But it's okay. It was worth it. And we're 20 year old women so I'm pretty sure some college dude employed by the MTC isn't in charge of us anyway. You learn to have fun as a missionary in weird ways so you don't go crazy. No wonder people are weird when they come home!

I know that this is the true church and I know that Jesus Christ lives. Believe in Him, let Him take your pain, and He will. I testify of that. I know that being a missionary is insanely difficult in all ways, but I'm grateful for the opportunity and the time that I get to wear His name over my heart. I love you dearly and I pray for you multiple times every day. Be happy and enjoy this pretty weather! I'll see you soon, my dears.

Love,

Søster M. Pyne

Happy to be wearing this tag and trying to learn Norsk.

           

My sweet sweet family! I love you.

Oh my goodness I miss you guys! But I also am happy to be wearing this tag and trying to learn Norsk. It's incredible to be a part of something so huge. So "to endure" in Norwegian is "å holde ut." Like to hold out. I think about it all the time, especially when we teach our investigators about the doctrine of Christ. That's the step that most of us are on! Enduring to the end. So "holde ut", my sweet friends. We're doing this!

I've been learning this week that missionary work has to do with fast-answered prayers. Our investigator, Mariel, is struggling to believe that God exists. It's been a really interesting process to help her to come to know Him. In our lesson yesterday morning, she was telling us how her dad left their family when she was very young and she doesn't understand how we have a loving Heavenly Father. I had the prompting to ask her to kneel with us right then and I said a prayer (in Norwegian...) asking Father in Heaven to help her to know that He is there and that He loves her when she prays. The spirit was very strong and it was so neat to be able help her feel His love. There were a couple teachers in the room observing and they told us after that it was one of the most spiritual lessons they have observed. It's amazing to me that even though we are just teaching our teacher and she's pretending to be an investigator, the spirit still testifies of God's love. The spirit is everything in missionary work! I feel my missionary heart growing and growing even though the MTC feels like jail most days. Haha working on my attitude... it's going to be amazing to have actual investigators that need that love so badly. And to be able to see the sky...

So I miss music like crazy. The MTC has a rule that you can't listen to any music. So I've been kinda dying. Except for that I watch the Brandon Flowers mormon message every day just for the music. SO GOOD!! Technology is fantastic. Mormon messages are like gold here. Sister Oldham and I aren't sure when we're going to play our musical number yet, but we recorded some of it while we were practicing and I'll send my memory card home today so you can see it! Well, hear it. See? We love technology! What did you do in the days before memory cards and email? Die?

TRC is training resource center and it's when we just sit in a little room with a random Norsk speaker and have a conversation for 20 minutes. And we do two of them every week. Intimidating!! Some of my girls and I were running the other morning at like 6:30 and a grandma was walking into the MTC. She randomly stopped us and said, "Where are you going?" We told her Norway and she started to speak Norwegian to us! It was so awesome! So she was one of the people that we got to talk to in TRC that night too and she was so kind. I told her that I speak French and she started speaking French! We had little side conversation and I understood it much better than our Norwegian one. Still working on it. It's coming though. I memorized the first vision this week and my vocab is getting better. Grammatically, it's actually not a very difficult language. We had already learned all of the grammar concepts so we're just reviewing them. But actually applying them while I'm speaking? Whole different story.

We get our travel plans a week from Thursday! The Swedish district left at 3 in the morning and it made it feel more real that we're actually leaving soon. I don't know how I'm feeling about this... but it's all going to be okay. My little heart is being stretched in every way possible.

Chad and Michelle Lewis gave our devotional on Sunday night and it was incredible. I just had tears streaming down my face the whole time. Part of the reason was because I saw Sarah, of course, but they also were so inspiring. We get lots of old people speakers here and they are great, but sometimes it's a little too much so it was very refreshing to hear from them. I talked to Michelle for a second before and she said that they had done this a couple times before, but this time was so different because there were so many sisters! She cried with me too. I was so grateful to see them and to be able to listen to them speak. Such a tender mercy. We have another devotional tonight and I have a feeling it might be a general authority. We'll see. Maybe it's just my wishful thinking. Most of them are pretty old though too. ;)

Guys! The church is so true. I know that Jesus Christ lives and loves us. God is there and knows just waht we need. This is the hardest thing I've ever done, but Christ has a way of making eveything okay. I am so grateful for that. 18 months isn't even that long... and... I've almost been gone for one of those months! We're doing this! Can you believe it? Thank you so much for your emails. I think everyone knows by now that I just cry every day for one reason or another so I sit in this computer lab and just let tears stream down my face as I read your words. I love you so much!

Oh yeah. I got a "calling" in my branch. I guess it's not really considered a calling here. I just am supposed to boss people around about doing the music for sacrament meeting. Music, bossy, and only for three weeks. Perfect, huh?

Oh man. I just feel like I have so much to tell you all the time! This time is the best and the worst cause it's so stressful to type as fast as you can. I love these ladies in my district and zone. Last night we had a pinata for Cinco de Mayo (excuse my Spanishy spelling) in one of our rooms. A girl held it from the top bunk and we hit it with some random stick we found. The things you'll do for fun in this place. It actually was pretty fun though! We all get along very well and I always think of the blessing that dad gave me right before I left that said I would make some friends that would be lasting best friends. I'm grateful for them!

The temple is the best place ever. Today I saw a girl and her mom in the session together and I cried a bunch. I miss that so much, mom. But we can do it again soon! I read the note you gave me with the hankerchief every time I go. Temples make it so we can be together forever! What a blessing. I just want Norway to have one! It's coming.

We were doing TALL (just a study Norwegian thing on the computer) on Friday night and my computer kept being so weird! The mouse was working for me, but then it would randomly click on things and move the screen around and it was actually kind of creepy cause it just kept doin this by itself. Earlier, an elder had come in the lab freaking out about his pen being lost and he was looking behind all the computers and couldn't find it. Um... elders are so dumb. What they were really doing was plugging another mouse into my computer and then they dragged it behind all of them to their computer so they could control it! If I could touch elders, they all would have dead arms. They make things exciting. I told them I'm in on it next time they do it cause no one expects sisters to do things like that. I also told Metcalf, the "lost pen boy" that he better watch his back.

I promise to write hand-written notes today too! They're better anyway. Be happy! We have all the reason in the world to be happy!

I love you with all of my heart,

Søster Pyne