I finally met someone from Hillsboro!

Buenos Dias o Buenas Tardes Familia,

 Hope you've all had a great week. It just seems like a few days ago when I wrote to you all. I honestly can't believe I've been out for 5 weeks. Time flies by so fast. I have a lot I want to say and I don't even know how to begin. 

I'Il start with Spanish. My Spanish is doing pretty well. I've learned so much here at the CCM. My vocabulary has improved both conversationally and especially with church words. I love speaking Spanish, but at the CCM it's not as easy because the majority of us are Americans who speak English most of the time. The last two weeks, however, is only Spanish. Some days and conversations are harder than others, but I can't wait to speak it fluently. 

Friday night, after dinner, my companions and I were walking outside to go back to class. Somehow I lost track of them and we went different directions. Right before stepping outside of the cafeteria I heard an Elder say "Hey Joe". It had been the first time someone had called me by my first name. I turned around and to my surprise I saw Grant McGregor. We talked for a few short minutes before I had to go. He has a few more weeks left before he goes to Chile Santiago. I was so happy to see someone I recognized and knew. Also that night it rained terribly. You can expect thunder and lightning pretty much every night. If you even thought about going outside without an umbrella, you were going to get soaked. And when you're wearing a white shirt, it doesn't look all that great when you can see right through everything. Haha. Some times there can be a few inches of rain on the streets. Those are some of the best nights. 

A week or two ago, elder Mazaleyrat was brushing his teeth and, I must have said something funny because he accidentally spat(sprayed) toothpaste on my suit jacket and pants. We tried getting it out, but had no luck. Along with that, two of my other pants had a small rip in them. One of them I had only worn once. Now, not only did I have one pair to repair,  but now a second. I looked down at my pants and said "seriously", like the kid inventor off the Ellen Show. Luckily at the CCM they have a place to dry clean and sew. I took them in and it costed me 210 pesos or 13 bucks. Super cheap and they did a great job on all of them. Now I don't even know where the rip is at. Haha. 

We have been teaching Dayana and Raul (our teachers) pretty much every day. In the beginning or for the first few weeks, we had a lesson prepared and then we would write down what we each wanted to say. Like literally write down the sentences. We did this because at the time because we didn't have a lot of vocabulary nor sentence structure. However, the last two weeks, I don't believe I have taken any notes to our lessons. It can be difficult sometimes, but the investigator(our teacher) always corrects us if we didn't know a word. We have definitely been better about working together as a companionship in all things. Elder Hilton and Mazaleyrat are great guys and I'm going to miss them a lot as well as my district.

Some parts of the CCM were long, hard, and slow. I honestly thought spending 6 weeks was going to be super tough. I now reflect back on my first week here and have no idea where the time went. Studying all day, with minimal exercise time was difficult for me, especially because I like staying active. But somehow the days went by so fast and before I knew it, I was eating dinner. Each night when I wrote In my journal, it felt like I had already written in my journal 10 minutes ago. So crazy. The MTC presidency here are super cool and kind. I loved going to the Tuesday and Sunday Devotionals with them. 

Unfortunately I won't get my flight plans from the Reception until this evening. I have been asked to be the Travel Leader for one Hermana who is going to Yakima who will be on all the same flights. So at least I'm not by myself. They did send me an email two weeks ago about my flight stuff, but nothing different than what we knew before I left. I will forward that email to dad, but for everyone else here's what I know. 

- I leave Monday October 22nd for my flight from Mexico to Dallas Texas. 

- My flight leaves at 8 AM, so I will have to get up super early. 

- Once I land in Dallas I'll have about 30 minutes before I board again. 

- From Dallas I will fly to Seattle, which is about a 4 hour flight. 

- There I have roughly a 2 hour layover, which is when I can call home. 

- Then I'll take a 40 min flight from Seattle to Yakima and land around 6pm. 

Well I can't wait to be in Yakima. I will miss the CCM a lot and the many friends I've made. I can't wait to Facetime and hear from you all. I'm getting excited just thinking about It. Thanks so much Bailey and Jimmy for letters. I loved them. 

I love and miss you all so so much. 

Elder Nissinen. 

I met the real Jimmy Washington from "The Ringer"

What's up family, 

I hope you've all had an awesome week. To be honest, besides General Conference, theres just not a whole lot else to write about. So I'll try my best to tell you all the highlights of this past week. 

Last Wednesday we took our second visit to the temple. I love going to the temple for a few reasons. First off, it's the only way to get outside of the gates in the CCM. Being cooped up in a class nearly 8 hours a day, the temple is always a day you look forward to. You get to see different people, and the cool streets of Mexico city. The second reason I love the temple is because they have a small gift store right outside. They sell scripture cases, t-shirts, and super cool knitted ties, which are my favorite. They are 300 pesos which is roughly 18 bucks. You know they're making a fortune when it literally only costs them less than dollar and every white guy in the CCM is wearing one. Haha. I'll have a picture in the drive of the ones I got. The third and final reason I love visiting the temple is because it's truly an amazing temple. As I've mentioned in the past letter, it's the largest temple outside the U.S. The pictures do not describe the size of the Mexico Temple. It also amazes me to see how well kept the temple grounds are and always maintained. Even here at the CCM, every morning you will see a bunch of workers edging, mowing and doing general cleanup. Some days I wish I had the Toro mower and was mowing the lawn. Yes, the temple is truly amazing and the experience inside can be as well.

 

My companions, Elder Mazaleyrat, Hilton and I are all doing great. Our lessons we've been teaching have been improving but there is always room for improvement. Our district is truly awesome. There is really only two guys that joke around in the classroom, and that would probably be me and Elder Stock. He has the same personality as me, and yes that's including all the dumb and dumber quotes and what not. He's even seen "The Ringer" which always makes for a funny conversation. Theres also another missionary, not in our district or zone, but his name is Elder Newton. Man, this guy is hilarious, and our personalities are also the same. He flew in with basically my whole district, which is why we know each other, and we sit next to each other during our meals.There are days where I've never laughed my head off so hard over some of the things we've talk about. I love it. I'll add some photos of him and I, plus our district in the drive. 

The Spanish is coming. If it's clear and not 100 miles per hour from a Latino, I can pretty well understand everything. As far as my speaking ability, I think it alright. It's no where near fluent, but I know that it will be with time. The food here is always great. Pineapple, watermelon, and cantaloupe are really getting old though. The Horchata (the milk after you eat cinnamon toast crunch) is not  too bad. not too good.  They always water it down so it just taste weird. My favorite drink is this mango orange stuff. It's so good. I have it every meal. Theres a few responsibilities that zone leaders have. We have meetings Sunday morning and few others throughout the week. We get the sacrament set up, the sacrament meeting set up with prayers and hymns. We are also in charge of the Zone meeting on Saturday evenings. There was a newish elder who came in a few weeks ago and was assigned district leader in his district. Well he thought he owned the world with his calling and he started to tell people to only listen to him and what he says, goes. Well the three of us heard about him and so we talked to his companion to see what was actually going on. What he said he was doing was true and so we had a meeting with him personally to calm him down and tell him what his role was as a district leader. 

Well it finally happened. First session, Saturday morning, President Nelson dropped the 2 hour church. For me, it hasn't really sunk it yet, but we all were anticipating that it would happen. I love how the they came out with a new Come Follow me program with the new additional program for Individuals and Families. It's great to see the church wanting more focused time in the home. What about those temples. President Nelson isn't messing around when he announces 12 new temples at one time. As you can tell the church is expanding and he wants everyone to be able to enjoy and have the opportunities to visit the temples. 

All the talks were great. A common theme I noticed between most of then was "Staying on the Path". I'm not sure who gave the talk, maybe Elder Neil L Anderson, but someone mentioned why we have to face and will face difficulties in our lives. I just couldn't help to think of Dad's quote, "We do Hard Things". Another talk that kind of took me by surprise was President Nelson's Sunday morning session talk. I like how he addressed we aren't Mormons, but Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It was a powerful talk and he said some pretty cool blessings when we use the Lords name in his church.

We truly have the best family. Some days I look around at the Elders and Hermanas, and just think if I have nothing else, I do have the best family. We are so blessed. Thanks for the package and the letters. The trail mix is the best. Those are my favorite days. It's hard to believe I've been out for 4 weeks now. 2 more to go. 

Love you all so so much. 

Elder Nissinen. 

This will explain the title of my letter. The guy on the left of me looks identical to Jimmy Washington. I had to get a picture. Every time I see him I think in my head the quote he says in the movie. "I do it for all of you" 😁

Hola Familia,
Hope you guys have had a great week. It's hard to believe I'm already half way through my time at the CCM. Time goes by so fast at times, and slow at others. 

To pick up from where I left off last week, Elder S. left Thursday afternoon for home. I haven't heard any news since he left, but I really enjoyed spending time with him. I hope he can one day continue to serve a mission. My companions are the same I had before. Elder Hilton and Mazaleyrat. 

P-Days are truly the best days. Last week I got haircut. When I walked into the salon, the lady thought my companion was the one getting the haircut. Every time I told a missionary I was going to get a haircut, they would just laugh, and then had to explain why I like it short. Unfortunately they weren't able to cut anything under a 2 on the sides for some reason, so honestly I feel like I need another one. We also cleaned up our Casa, changed our sheets, and did some laundry. My favorite activity to play here is Volleyball. When there's gym time I play Volleyball. Some missionaries are really good, so that's partly why I like to play. 

Last Sunday was fast and testimony meeting, because next Sunday is General Conference. So the Saturday night before we didn't have dinner and that Sunday morning we didn't have breakfast. It was the first time I can remember fasting for a full 24 hours. It was difficult, but our whole district was able to do it. Each week our Branch Presidency assigns a topic from Preach My Gospel so missionaries can prepare a talk based on that topic. I've written one each week in case I get called up to speak. Luckily that hasn't happened yet. I did the same for my testimony. As a few companionships went up, Elder Mazaleyrat looked over and told Elder Hilton and I, "Let's go". We went up and each bore our testimonies. 

Although I could have done probably just fine without notes, I had them just to help keep my thoughts organized. It was tough to speak in Spanish, especially when over half the branch is Latinos, but they all said they liked it and my pronunciation was good. 

My Spanish is definitely improving. I can understand nearly everything someone says. That's mostly true because at the CCM it's at a beginner level, hah. I can carry somewhat of a conversation and work my way around words I don't know. Spanish is a very complex and simplistic language at the same time, but I've learned so much these past three weeks. 

We've been teaching Dayana and Raul, who just act like investigators, but really are our teachers. We switch off every other day for who we teach. Since there are the three of us teaching it's kind of nice, because we each have different ideas. Sometimes it can be difficult because one may speak a little longer. We prepare our lessons based on the topic our investigators need the most. So usually we just split up the lessons in three parts, so each of us gets roughly the same amount of speaking. After each of our topics are assigned we kind of just separate and prepare our portion of the lesson by ourselves. I didn't mind preparing by myself, but it just kind of irritated me. Elder Mazaleyrat would prepare at a different desk, while Hilton and I would halfway prepare the lesson together. Elder Mazaleyrat is a great guy and I love him, but every time I wanted to prepare the lesson together, he would just ignore it. Sometimes he can be a little stubborn. I guess that also might be out different upbringings and personalities. Haha. I finally had enough of it and told him and Hilton to come outside and study. Before we began preparing our lesson I told them that we needed to work together on the lessons and not so much individually. Our lessons were great beforehand, but felt like we were missing something. So hopefully this week we can improve on that. 

The Latinos left Monday, very early in the morning. Which also means theres no one in our Casa. Sunday evening, before they left, we gathered in the living room and had a testimony meeting, then ate some snacks. They were super cool and we're going to miss them. Mosquitoes at night are problem in our casa. It doesn't matter if we shut every window, or door, somehow they get in. Luckily I don't have any bites yet. Even when we go to sleep, out of nowhere you can hear the buzzing of the mosquito. So annoying. 

Well there should be some exciting news coming this weekend. Maybe 2 hour church, and some new temples. An elder told me here that they also might allow missionaries to decide how long they want to serve(12, 18, or 24). I don't think it's true, but who knows. 

Our family is awesome. Thanks so much for the letters this week, Dodo and Ninnie. We are so blessed. 

Love and miss you all so so much. Peace out  

Elder Nissinen

"Hey Whatever"

Hola familia. 

I hope you guys have had a great week of school, in Minnesota, and at home. Things here at the CCM have gone great and I'm enjoying each day. 

Since I forgot to talk of the food in last weeks letter, I'll start off with that. Each meal there's usually two main entrees. One of my favorite meals here is the occasional spaghetti. There's actually a funny story about that I'll share. One evening for dinner they had spaghetti for dinner. It was made just the way I like it, and so I was super excited to try it. It was great and reminded me of moms home cooked meals. Well, about week later they had the same meal, and so obviously I had to get it again. I put the red sauce on top, grabbed two cups of my favorite mango drink and sat down with my district. Now I'm not even joking, they must have put ghost peppers in the sauce, because it was so hot. My mouth was on Fuego. I'll have to watch out for that the next time they serve spaghetti. I try my best to choose one of the two meals, but when in doubt I always have peanut butter toast, pineapple and watermelon. The food here is great and I almost never hungry. 

Classes are going great and I really like my teachers. They're funny and cool, which makes the classes go by faster and enjoyable at some times. There are many difficult and long days in the classroom, so it can be hard to stay focused. A few days out the week our district will go to a computer lab and study Spanish online. That's always a good break.

 

We have been also teaching two investigators, which are actually just our teachers acting like they know nothing. It's really good practice, especially when our Spanish isn't all that great. Luckily Elder Mazleyrat knows quite a bit to communicate, so when Hilton and I don't know what to say we just look at Mazaleyrat. Its actually funny. We have fun teaching and I'm so glad to be with them. 

So an interesting event happened just this past Monday. 

There's a missionary, who all of the sudden was sitting in a meeting or a class and looked up and instantly forgot everything since 2nd grade. He didn't know where he was at, what he was doing,  nothing. He isn't in my district but is in my zone. It was his last day in the CCM, which would mean he'd be leaving the next Tuesday morning for Guadalajara. But because of his circumstances he went to a hospital in Mexico for a MRI and the results according to the doctor weren't good. I tell you this because he is now my companion. He's a great and super kind guy. So yesterday he had an appointment with the CCM hospital to go over the official results of his MRI.  I don't know all the technical terms, but somehow in his head there's an area where blood isn't getting to, causing him to forget things. Unfortunately he will be sent home, and most likely not be able to come back on his mission. He leaves tomorrow afternoon with another doctor, because he can't fly by himself. I really like this Elder and will be hard to see him go, but I'm grateful I got to spend a few days with him. 

Tuesday night, the Latinos in our Casa told us to go in the living room for a meeting. We walked in the room and there was a bunch of snacks and stuff sitting on the table. We had a short testimony meeting, then just hung out and ate some food. It was a really awesome experience for me hearing about them bearing their testimony in Spanish and how they said they would miss us when they leave next week. I love those guys. Latinos are awesome. We have a quote between us in the casa and we repeat everytime we see each other. It's the beginning of a song but we just say the first line. It goes like this. "Triste mamá me siento triste" , which in English the song talks about how a boy is sad because his girlfriend found another guy. It's so random but they sing it all the time. So we've just picked up on it too. 

The days are long here, not going to lie. Although It is hard to believe I'm already two weeks out. I am so grateful to be serving a mission. I reflect on home a lot, but I'm so glad to be here. We are so blessed to have such a close family, no matter where were at in the world. Love you all very much. 

My thought for this week. When you didn't do very well on a test or when you get a door slammed in your face. Just remember what Mary Roach (Although if she does make it to Hollywood it will be Gilboux) said..

"Hey Whatever". 

Elder Nissinen. 

"Bring It On, Well then C'mon"

What in the world is going on. Geez, I can't believe it's already been a week here at the Mexico MTC, or CCM. I have so much to tell you guys, so hopefully I can say all I want to say in this email. 

The flights from Portland and Phoenix were great. I was the only missionary leaving Portland, so it was really weird not seeing any family members or anyone I recognized. It was a short flight and a great nap. When I looked at my flight itinerary of the gate number in Phoenix, it wasn't there. I kind of panicked for a second when I got off the plane until I saw, well what looked like three Hermanas, walking in the opposite direction of the gate I was supposed to get to. Luckily for me they were missionaries and they showed me where to go. When I arrived at my gate I saw a few elders and talked with them before we boarded. The plane was about half full and roughly 12 missionaries. One of the Elders name is elder Ryan and looks a lot like Okie. Just would have wished it was. We arrived in Mexico and got on this rickety stick shift bus,  and headed for the MTC, about a hour drive. I honestly believe I didn't see a single stop light on the way there. I seriously could have driven better. People were weaving In and out all over. It was hilarious. 

When we arrived at the MTC I grabbed my suitcases and went into the lobby where all the new missionaries were at. I recieved my weekly planning schedule, a bunch of other papers, the name of my companion, and of course my name tag. Then was able to send a short letter home to all you guys. The next place was to drop off my suitcases at my apartment, but unlike most missionaries I was going to be staying in a casa (house), which In my opinion is much better than a dorm. My companion wasn't there, so I hung out with some other guys and ate dinner. I was so tired. 

To fast forward a little bit, I'm in a trio. Yes, there's three of us. My companions names are Elder Hilton and Elder Mazaleyrat, and that is spelled correctly, pronounced Maza-le-ra. Hilton is from Idaho falls and Mazaleyrat is from France. Literally, out of 700 or so missionaries, there's only one from France and I get to be companions with him. It's a great thing. Hilton will be serving in Las Vegas and Mazaleyrat is serving in Mexico. He speaks fluent French, knows enough to speak English and understands and speaks Spanish pretty well. He reminds me of Jevon sometimes when he tried to speak French. Haha. They are awesome guys and we have so much fun together. 

As most you know, the first week at the MTC is the longest, hardest and slowest week in your entire life. There's just so much sitting, it drives me nuts. I look forward each day for gym time and putting on my normal clothes, although I'm getting to like wearing a white shirt and tie. My teachers are Hermana Martinez and Hermano Ruiz. Super cool teachers and I've learned a quite a bit of Spanish from them. Spanish for me has gone great. One of the things I learned this week that many others missionaries don't realize is that the Gift of Tongues is not only for speaking but also for understanding. I've been praying each day for that and have improved my understanding skills a lot. I can speak pretty well and communicate with just about everyone about normal topics, but when it comes to speaking about gospel stuff, that's where I fall a little short. But luckily my district is in the same spot. However I've picked up a lot of basic church words as well. 

My district is very small. There's only 9 of us which is great because we've gotten super close already. Our district leaders are Elder Kelley and Galmiester. Then we have Elder Stock (from Washington but not my mission) and Butler(from utah). Obviously myself and my companions. And Hermanas Fausset and Hall. In fact Hermana Fausset is from Provo and worked with Kim at the media center. She knows Kim very well. What a small world huh. 

This past Tuesday, there was roughly 300 missionaries leaving which would leave our Branch left with two districts. One of those being ourselves, and the other leaving a week from today. So with that being said the branch called our Hermanas as the STL's. We are expecting at least 200 more missionaries coming by today which should fill in the gaps in our branch. Sunday was great. It was the first time where something felt familiar. I helped passed the sacrament with my companions, and it was just a great day. 

Well I have some pretty big news to tell you all. After church that sunday we had worthiness interviews with the branch presidency. And yes I am worthy. To summarize, with the amount of missionaries leaving the next Tuesday it would leave our branch without Zone Leaders. So, when I thought my companions and I would be off the hook as far as leadership positions, I was wrong. We were shortly called that afternoon as the newest zone leaders. We don't know all what were supposed to do and we have some big shoes to fill. Especially being out only a week. It will be a good opportunity for us and we are excited to meet a lot of people. 

Here's two funny stories. 

1. Last Saturday we had a Zone meeting. It was an hour long and for the first 40 minutes or so, 50 of us played musical chairs. Apparently the past few weeks the zone had been doing an activity like that without any problems. Then lo and behold President Bennet walked in. Instantly the room was silent and he had a confused and disappointed look on his face. He pulled the zone leaders aside and asked them in front of everyone, how is the spirit present during this activity and how is this even a meeting. All you can really say is Sorry president, it won't happen again. I honestly enjoyed the activity, which is the funny part, but what's even more funny is that they had been playing games the past month like that. Well now I know what not to do at a Zone meeting. 

2. In our Casa or house, we share with roughly 10 Latinos and that's its, and only one of them can speak English. Well because Elder Mazaleyrat can't pronounce words well, I though it would have been funny to have him try some English Tongue Twisters. He then shared a French tongue twister and Hilton and I laughed really hard. We then had the Latinos try to say it, but it's hard for them to pronounce English or French words which makes it funny and were all laughing. There's a video of a latino and my companions and I trying to say the French one. I guess you can say it's our quote now. 

Last night for our Tuesday Devotional, we had a live broadcast from the Provo MTC. Elder Neil L Anderson and his wife spoke,  along with a member of the seventy. Elder Anderson just so happened to talk about what we can learn in the temple. And today for our P-Day we went to the temple. The Mexico temple is the largest temple outside of US. It's amazing. There's so much information you can learn in the temple each time you go. One of the things Elder Anderson spoke about is so consistantly visit the temple and bring a spirit of humility and seeking to learn. So it was perfect timing as the next day we would go to the temple. 

Well that's just about it for this week. It's been busy, hard and fun all at the same time. There will be a separate email of pictures and a video or two. Thanks so much for your emails and the written letters from Mom, Ro, and Dodo. It feels awesome getting mail. 

Love you all and miss you all very much. 

When your having a rough day, all ya gotta say is "Bring it On, well then C'Mon"

Elder Nissinen. 

I'm here!

Hola familia. 

Well I made it to the MTC all safe and sound. There's a lot I want to tell you guys, but I have limited time. My P-Days are on Wednesday. So you won't be hearing from me until next week as far as an official letter home. I am in branch 1 of District C. 

Well its been a long day and I can't wait to tell you all about it next week. I wont be able to respond so, I'll hear from ya next Wednesday.

Love you all. 

-- 

Elder Nissinen

Joe leaves September 11th 2018 for the Mexico MTC

Last Week, Last Letter

Dear family and friends, 

I'm not really sure what to say in this letter. It's the letter I've been looking forward to write for a long long time, and now that it's here, I'm at a little loss for words. It might be best to save a large part of what I want to say for my homecoming talk in church in 2 weeks. 

I have done a bit of reflecting the past few days on how my mission has changed me and blessed me. As expected, I'm a lot different than I was when I came two years ago. Slowly and surely, whether because of companions, areas, or members, I've been molded into the man God would intend for me to be. The list of lessons I've learned here is endless, but if there's one thing that's really made an impact on me is that there's a lot of people out there with tough situations, and I'm extremely blessed to have the life I have. Living in America 18 years sheltered me from what real life is like for a large part of the world's population. Being literally immersed in Ghana for two years has opened my eyes and softened my heart. I get to (somewhat) live in humble circumstances for two years and go back to first-world lifestyles. My friends here don't. That will be hard to get over. 

I might have touched a few lives, but without realizing it, so many of them have touched mine too. I pray to Heavenly Father that I never forget the people I've crossed and their stories. 

It's been said that a missionary's most important convert is themselves. My mission has given me the opportunity to be closer to God through studying the gospel and teaching it. As I've read and taught the Book of Mormon, I've come to know it to be true, without a doubt. My mission has helped me to see God working in His children's lives, my own and those I've come across. I know that He lives and that He loves me. Throughout this difficult two years, He's been there to guide, comfort, and confirm to me that this is His Church, and that He loves me. That sweet assurance has blessed me tremendously. 

Last of all, I thank you for your support. Missions are hard enough with a loving, supporting family backing you up. There's a lot of missionaries I've served around who don't have anything near the support I have. The occasional package or letter has really helped me stay sane at times. I especially thank the immediate family for their weekly letters. I realize you are all very busy and tired, and to write me every week was probably a bit of a burden, but know that news and pictures from home - no matter how little - goes a long ways! Thank you. I don't think I could have done it without you. Heck, I barely did it with you! 

My time has come. I will miss the people of Ghana very much. I'm sooooo grateful that I could serve here. This is the best mission ever! 

The Church is True, the Book of Mormon is blue (and true). God loves and wants the absolute best for ALL His children, and is ever-ready to bless us when we do what He's asked. 

I only hope that God will accept my two year offering and find my service worthy. Although I've fallen short at times, I believe I've done my best. I believe I can walk on the airplane feeling like I've made the world a little better. My greatest joy hasn't come from baptizing converts, but rather knowing that I was an instrument in God's hands to carry forth His work. I suppose the baptisms is second! 

Have a wonderful week! Can't even believe I'll be with you all in just one week. Time flies doesn't it? 

Farewell!

Love always, 

Elder Nissinen

By His Grace

Dear family and friends, 

I'll try and keep it short for now. I don't really know where to elaborate or condense the story...

... but it's been a rough week! Long story short, I have tonsillitis and an abscess in the tonsil, resulting in four pretty miserable, painful, boring, long, tiring days in the apartment. 

Yesterday morning I was able to go see the Area doctor at the hospital. The abscess was drained, my tonsil was cut across (with a pair of stinkin' scissors, but I'm not bitter) and a lot of pressure was relieved. It was expected that I would be admitted to the hospital for 3 to 5 nights, but to our surprise they released me that evening, and I've been at the mission home since. I'm on several different drugs, so hopefully that kicks in soon. 

That was the first Sunday I've missed my whole mission! 

I was quite worried that I'd have to stay on my mission for extra time until my health was better, but it looks like I'll be fine. I'm just glad I can swallow food again (after two days of not being able to).

During the climax of pain, the city shut off our water for 24 hours. I so badly just wanted to throw my hands in the air and beg God to leave me alone (or to stop leaving me alone, whichever), but I exercised faith and patience that things would eventually work out and I'd be back in America with my family in 2 weeks. It was one of those moments where I really had a heartfelt conversation with my Father. Truthfully, I hadn't had one like that in a while. It felt sincere, and it felt good. 

Also, because I couldn't do much other than sleep and breath for about 4 days, I was able to read a lot of Church doctrine. I read a lot of "The Miracle of Forgiveness" by Spencer W. Kimball and a neat book called "In Defense of Truth". It also gave me time to catch up on some postponed, needed journaling. 

I'm so grateful to God for helping me through all this. As the locals say, "I'm fine, by His Grace". I'm grateful to Sister Jones, the mission nurse, for all she's done. I know I haven't been easy for her to deal with. Also Dr. Anderson - he spent most of yesterday in the hospital with me. I'm especially grateful for Elder Ackley - he's been very patient and helpful during all of it. Because I couldn't speak, he took all the phone calls for the zone and investigators the past 2 days. Being sick sucks, but having a sick companion is almost just as bad! 

Thank you for your prayers and support on the homefront too. I appreciate it so much. Don't worry. Pretty soon this bad dream will be over and I'll be in America with a bacon cheeseburger and Reese's Blizzard against my tonsils. 

Have a great week! 

Love, Elder Nissinen

Happy 4th!

Dear family and friends, 

Elder Ackley and I had a great 3rd week together! Our goal, as I've mentioned previously, is to baptize a few more investigators, and for him to be familiar with the area/members before I go. 

I was able to get several souvenirs last Monday, so I'm doing really well on that. The only problem will be the weight! I hope everything will fit. I'm a bit more nervous for home than I expected. I'll really miss this place. It feels so weird to image that I"ll be in America with you all at the end of this month. 

It's hard to focus at time with everyone around you constantly reminding you of when you're going home. I'm hanging in there though! I am enjoying every day, and taking lots of pictures. 

As for the exciting stuff of my week, I got a call from President Heid. His 16 year-old grandson Connor came to visit Ghana for two weeks, and he wanted us to take him out teaching with us for the day. You'll see from the pictures - Connor looks just like "Incredi-boy" from the movie Incredibles. I was with Connor, and Ackley was with another missionary. It was a really fun day! He reminded me of Joe - "slightly" cocky, funny, and easy-going. I took him around the area and showed him some of the cool stuff. He tried a few of the local foods. He did a good job teaching the Joseph Smith story for a 16 year-old. 

That night was a multi-stake YSA activity at our chapel. Because we lived at the church, we stayed for all of it. It was kind of a dance party/dinner/social. I'll try and upload a video or two, but it was really fun! I'm a bit sore - it's been a while since I've danced like that. 

Sad to say, but President and Sister Heid are gone! President and Sister Keyes flew in Saturday, and the Heid's left that night. I haven't met them yet, but I will Wednesday at MLC. I feel a little bad for the couple - they have 3 years, and I have 3 weeks. I guess they are really gung-ho about this calling. They're a bit younger, and their energy will be useful. 

Looks like you all are soaking up the summer sun with all the fun you're having! That's great, keep it up. Have an explosive 4th of July! Blow up one of those Excalibur's for me. 

Love, Elder Nissinen