…And now it has been five days since we arrived in Sweden and already we have our dance card plumb full!   The first day we arrived we were met at the airport by President and Sister Youngberg, and the office couple, the Baileys.  Of course we had to have the traditional Swedish Flag welcome picture taken, then we took our luggage to the Mission home where we stayed the night after an amazing dinner together.  The next morning we began our journey to Karlskrona which is at the southeast tip of Sweden and actually in the Denmark temple district which we will visit next month with the branch here. We work with two wonderful sister missionaries where there are six missionaries (including us) covering the area of Karlskrona up to and including a town called Växsjö.  Driving down from Stockholm (in the new hybrid Huyndai (we were blessed to get to use for the length of our mission) it was like entering a storybook of family history as this is the exact area Erik’s father’s family comes from. What a thrill to see sign after sign of places so familiar to him having done his family genealogy over the years. It also happens to be that my grandfather, Anders Magnuson’s family came from Väckelsång and Kalvsvik just down the road.   The landscape as we drove was gorgeous as all the leaves are golden browns, yellows, and soft oranges and greens among the traditional colored red and white homes. It is so picturesque – so almost like it was painted by a traveling artist. It took about six hours to come down from Stockholm. Our apartment is 450 sq feet so it is very cozy.  The living room, bedroom, study room, and two closets completes one room.  Then, the entrance into the apartment leads across from it into the little kitchen which off of that is the bathroom – no tub, just a drain in the floor but the shower curtain is pretty!  Everything is super clean and we love it!  The kitchen and living area windows have wonderful views of the local neighborhood where there are flagpoles with Swedish flag banners that fly  so proudly in the breeze.  There are six apartments in the building and we’ve met two of the neighbors who are really friendly.  Ironically, the building is built almost soundproof and the families are very quiet as they most likely work during the day but still in the evening it’s quiet.  In the morning the fog comes in and the Skotta birds come hang out together outside our window while the smaller birds sing.   All of them competing with the sound of the fog horns out in the harbor.

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Meeting our new branch members was like meeting with family who had been anxiously awaiting for us to be with them.  So, so, really wonderful people whom we love, who share a love for the gospel in common, and a love for the Lord.  We are at home here and look forward together to bless, serve, love, and enjoy being with the saints in Karlskrona Branch and throughout the District.