La Sonya

*these are in no particular order. Rachel V Andrea Mom Christopher Dad Pa new friends snow skype IKEA trains sledding scarves coats camp wawona hope thanksgiving feast packages nature space (outer space) books Bible encouragement visitors baking apples spanish french tchad missions knitting wildlife bears/bjorn lions/love swedish hot dog loaf fires candles wooden homes scandinavia norway cottages duvets hotties love encouraging books CS Lewis stick shift charcoal garlic tea hot chocolate dysfunctional pink tea pots popcorn music hiking cultures warm homes potluck kitchens cookbooks internet mail God's unconditional love memories lamps sheep cows with bells walking through forests Fangekasa inspiration motivations boys green purple Advent Christmas tights traditions change constant farms fall good smells Bessaggen Adventure future yosemite campers moose Mowgli Honduras Norway kindred spirits Estonian friends garden friends trees beauty time heaven Christ me

In the start of November Maggi Harrel asked me if I could coordinate Thanksgiving day for the group of Americans. At first it was easy I just told people what to bring and to go to Gabriela's house, that is until last week when we realized Gabriela couldn't host it because her kids had the Christmas concert to go to. I then volunteered Gronvold because I had the space. So that's how I got to host my first Thanksgiving day feast. I was a bit worried on Thursday and Friday but it all melted away. I cleaned up the house and put out my Christmas decorations. Sunday I woke up ready for the festivities to begin. People were set to start arriving at 12 to eat around 1pm. I had to make an apple pie and mash potatoes. (I signed up for mash potatoes because that is my brothers favorite part and I though I should make them in honor of him, although I am sure they didn't taste the same because I didn't have the same ingredients). Everything went great. We had 12 people and 1 ba...

What a start to my trip through Scandinavia! Just getting up at 4:40am is a big ordeal. Then getting up to my world blanketed in snow! Ivo drove me down to Hokksund train station and I missed my train by minutes, but there was still time to make the train from Oslo to Stockholm. Just 6 minutes. In those 6 minutes I had to get my EuRail ticket stamped and find my train. Of course I always panic and can't decide if I am no the right train or not. Realizing I was just before my exit I lug my suitcase to the door to make my dash for it. I get in line to get my ticket stamped after speed walking past everyone, get my ticket validated and turn to look for the track with my train just as I hear over the loud speaker in english ''last call for Stockholm'' Ekk! Quick which one is track 6! Following behind an equally late man, we push through the stream of people going the opposite direction and make our way to the train. I literally got on seconds before they rolled out! Ame...

Just so you know I am going to be posting my Thanksgiving adventures. Stories from all three meals and pictures/video too. I will also be posting my adventures from Finland, Sweden and the mother IKEA store. . . . Just not today. I am tired from all the festivities today and have to get up at 5 am to make my train to Oslo, Norway that takes me by train to Stockholm, Sweden that takes me by ferry to Turku, Finland by Tuesday morning. So I am off to bed to sleep what few hours I have left. Many blessings to you on your Sunday night. Ps It's snowing, why does it always snow when I am leaving?

So the other day I was thinking, "Five years ago had God told me where I would be doing right now I would have not believed Him." Really if God had come and sat down next to me while in the Destiny Drama Company bus on tour and begun to tell me that in five years I would be driving a stick shift, big, red bus/van down a dark Norwegian road with a charcoal poultice on my infected ear and my, then new friend, Ben from DDC, to pick up a Bulgarian named Tzveta, at the train station. I believe I would have laughed and said thanks for the funny story. But to have believed it, no way. Let us rewind my life tape and see where I was five years ago. I was back from Honduras as an SM, going through the reentry shock of America and University life again. I had finally been accepted into the touring theater group Destiny Drama Company, after two years of rejection. I was on fire for life, spanish, student missionaries and God. I had a minimum of two years left in University before any lif...

Well today the majority of the students have been gone from the school leaving me and just a very tiny group of working students and green house workers to run the place. I must be honest I wasn't very excited about being left behind while everyone else went to an faraway land to do mission work. Especially because one group was going to Honduras, the very first place I lived outside of America. I would have LOVED to visit my old home at El Hogar de Ninos. But alas I was left here to 'run' things. After I saw the light of all the fun, Kaisa, Tiina and I could have I began to get excited. So now after a week I would love to tell you about our tales. All week I worked doing things from cataloging library books, covering new books, planning my recruiting trip through Scandinavia, cooking in the kitchen, taking the trash out and cleaning Solhoug down the hill. The days have been diverse enough and I have been able to listen to great music and books on tape. (a side note about t...

In vespers a few weeks ago we sang most all of Fannie Crosby’s hymns. She has written several personal favorites. As we were singing I remember one part standing out to me more than the other songs. It was “I sing because I can not be silent.” How beautiful is that!? Sometimes I find myself singing songs out loud. For example at camp this last summer I found myself singing “It’s a beautiful day and I thank God for __________” How wonderful it was to find myself walking around with that song bursting forth, not worrying about who will hear me, how I sound but just singing with all my heart simply because I can not be silent. The rest of those words are just as profound, as you read the words think about what they are saying. Are they true for you? Do you love to proclaim it? When was the last time you found yourself singing out loud because you were in love with your boyfriend/girlfriend or spouse? If you have, think about when was the last time you sang because you were so in love with...

While living in Tchad we, the SMs, used to dream of the Embassy as we drove past it in the Capital. We would imagine that inside there was air-conditioning, plush couches, fountains flowing with CocaCola, AW rootbeer, and cream soda and bowls filled with MnM’s and soo much more. We visualized something of a cross between Disney World and the Marriot. After all when you are in the American embassy you are on American soil we are compatriots lost in a foreign country, we deserve to see something of our homeland. Nevertheless, we never went in, not even when there was a Coup on the capital and all that danger. Having never seen inside we just let our imagination believe what we wanted. February 2001 I received my first passport. I was 16 years old and heading to Costa Rica for my first time out of the country. My picture was bad but the stamps I have received over the last d10 years are cool. I’ve got stamps from Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras, United States of America, Tchad, Camaroon, I...

I applied for my first visa in August. I was still living and working at Camp Wawona when that went on. It was quite the ordeal. It was hard to get into town and I ended up sending the paperwork overnight to my dad so he could get my money out of my bank and send it to the embassy. It was a close call. I came to Norway with the expectation that I would only have to pay the ‘club dues’ only once. I finally received my visa papers and went in to the Police to get it officially put in my passport. It took me at least four visits to finally go when the office was open. (they are only open one day a week and then they were having meetings so they opened on another day. . . government offices) Finally they put in my visa and noticed that the expiratory date was for December 24 due to the fact that my passport was expiring in February 2010. The nice lady at the Police told me that I shouldn’t have to renew my visa or pay for it. . . at least that’s what I understood her to say. After visiting...

I'm trying to sleep but I can’t seem to find it. My mind just keeps running instead. Perhaps I’ve just got to much on my mind. I’ve been thinking lots about my future and what I’ll be doing in five years. I’ve got dreams. My waking dreams entail many things. I’m not trying to be picky with God, I’ll go where ever He sends me but I just have things I would like in my life. I would like a home or a flat. A place to call my own. A place where friends can come over and veg on my couch, or students can come and feel as if they were at home. A place that people can come to and feel safe and welcome. I would like a job that challenges me. Something that keeps me thinking on new ways to do something. I want a job that keeps me busy and active. No desk for me please. I want to be challenged to get people motivated, inspired, empowered and to find new ways to show them that they are not alone. I want a job that offers me freedom to think, plan, create and explore. I want to try new ideas t...

Dear creators of Skype, I can’t thank you enough for creating free video conferencing. It has helped me survive these last few months here at my new home in Norway. I can call family and friends and share a few words and looks. It’s amazing what a few faces can do to help lift moods. I have been able to eat supper/lunch/breakfast with people in California, Tennessee and Texas. I have been able to see every bite of a luscious looking corn on the cob, watch my friend cook her loaf in the microwave and sip tea with my kindred spirits thousands of miles away. Using Skype has helped me to bridge the gap of too many miles. Most recently I have been blessed with the opportunity to worship with my old friends in California as they had their morning staff worship. I was able to listen to their prayer requests and then take them to our Heavenly Father in prayer. How amazing is that? I was able to feel like I was sitting right along side Derek as he gave the worship thought. I was able to ask Rya...

I love making hot tea; I love drinking it, serving it, the while process. I am also old fashioned and dislike greatly microwaving or electric hot water makers. I prefer to do it the same way my grandmother did it (at least I assume the way she made it), on the stove in a teapot. That was one of the exciting things about having my own kitchen was that I could use my stove to make tea when people come over or when I want to sip apple cider before bed. My flat here in Norway came furnished with lots of things, including a mini cheap teapot, that doesn’t have a whistle hole. I was using it all the time and once when I had a lot of people over we had to refill the little guy lots. Then one day when I was cleaning it out because it had smelt a little funny I noticed something on the bottom on the inside. On closer inspection I saw it was three tiny rust holes! Gross, I had been drinking nasty water. It’s a wonder I didn’t die or something. So on the shelf my teapot went to never be used agai...