December 28th letter

HEJ SANN from Elder Arko! (It means 'hi' in Swedish)

Elder Arko got to speak to his family on Christmas!!! It was very exciting for all involved. First of all, He sounds great and seems to be doing quite well. He told us 3 activities that He's been able to participate in during the Christmas season so we'll start with that.

1: Elder Arko has visited the Arctic Circle (no, not the restaurant...the actual Arctic Circle). He said it was very fun...and cold :)

2: There is an Elder up there who is really in to fishing so Elder Arko had the opportunity to go ICE FISHING with Him! The Elders borrowed an auger from a member's husband and spent about 15 minutes drilling 3 holes in the ice. The Elder who really enjoys fishing caught 2 fish which together were about 10 inches in lenghth.

Yes Elder Arko used a soda pop bottle for a fishing pole.

3: Elder Arko has eaten reindeer! Weird huh? He said it was an intersting experience and it actually tasted pretty good.

Another story we got to hear while talking to Elder Arko was a funny one. Since there has been a lot of snow in Sweden... it has become a little harder to ride bikes, as you can probably imagine. Well, Elder Arko lost control one day and this is what happenedthe handle bar went into his pocket so he was stuck on the ground trying to figure it out for a minute. Thanks for the laugh Elder Arko!

Now for the usual letter. Elder Arko said He's glad the Christmas rush is over so things can start getting back to normal. They can actually start missionary work again. It has been very frustrating for them because lately all they've been hearing from people are things like, "Yeah, just come back after the Holidays." So, in a week when New Years is over, they'll be back in business.

Elder Arko had a very eventful Christmas! They had fun watching Kalle Anka (Donald Duck). Believe it or not all the Swedes gather around at 3 in the afternoon and watch Donald Duck!!! Elder Arko thought it was very funny. They have short little clips of a bunch of Disney films and He has no clue how or why it became a tradition, but it is. So, Elder Arko got to see Goofy, Chip and Dale, Donald Duck, Lady and the Tramp, and Tinker Bell!

The Elders also had julbord, which is what all Swedes have around Christmas. It directly translates to "Yule Table" and it's pretty much a Christmas Smörgåsbord! They also have a lot of raw fish over there. Elder Arko thought He dodged that cuisine by not going to Japan, but He was wrong. There was also ham, cheese, ginger bread cookies, and some other stuff He's not sure what it was, but He tried a lot of new stuff :)

Elder Arko had a great Christmas in the coutry of Sweden! He hopes you all had a Merry Christmas and will have A FANTASTIC NEW YEAR!!!