We are definitely feeling the Love....
Last month we were given quite the shock when we showed up for our weekly discipleship group that we lead. We came all prepared to study Matthew, but when we opened the door to Kelly's apartment, we were met with a big, roaring "SURPRISE!!!" We were shocked to see over 35-40 people crammed together to give us an appreciation/goodbye party. Thankfully it was more of the appreciation part and less of the goodbyes because we will still be in Trondheim until August (though many students are now leaving for the summer). But we still had to hold back tears as we looked around the room at so many wonderful friends and thanked them for all that they have meant to us these past nearly 3 years. We were also blessed above and beyond by a very generous gift of money to go towards our Italy trip that we head out on this Friday for 2 weeks. God never ceases to amaze us with the blessings he pours out on our lives. What a wonderful night! Thank you Kelly, Linn, and Magnus for doing such a great planning job and managing to keep it a secret! And thank you to all who came and made it such a memorable night. We truly feel loved and love all of you right back!
Our faces as we realized what was happening!
And us re-enacting our "surprise faces" :)
Funny story: I, Cortney, after much deliberation, had decided to chop off my long hair at my first Norwegian hair-cut....and it just happened to be the day of this party. I didn't have time to do anything to it myself before coming to Kelly's and was already nervous just to see the 8 people who would be there, so imagine what was going through my head when I realized how many people I was now going to see! What a debut...yikes. Still getting used to the hair (what's left of it), but got to say I've now had more time to work with it than in these photos! :)
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This year we got to experience our third 17th of May celebration from a different vantage point- we got to be in it! Many Christians in Trondheim came together to march behind a sign that said: "Sammen for Jesus" or "Together for Jesus". It was a great change to join others who marched for different organizations and causes by walking and singing about who Jesus is in our lives. I think we were one of the larger trains so it was neat to be a part of. In the pictures above you'll see some of our good friends wearing their tradition Norwegian "bunad". Many people receive these when they are younger (or all desire to have one someday) and they are very expensive and worn proudly to events like this, as well as confirmations, weddings, etc. Different regions of Norway have different designs and colors, so it is really neat to see when everyone is wearing them!
One thing we like about the Norwegian parades that is different than many U.S. parades is that they don't consist of fancy floats or crazy antics, but rather simply celebrate People. You can stand and watch a few hours of people just walking by for different reasons, all decked out in their traditional outfits and cheer them on with a "Hurra!". It is quite special to experience (even if it can get a little long after a while!). Then, it's off for some pølser, or hotdogs, and is, or icecream. BBQ is also a common thing to do in the later afternoon with family and friends. Interesting traditions- so glad we get to experience what makes this culture truly Norwegian!
Last month we were given quite the shock when we showed up for our weekly discipleship group that we lead. We came all prepared to study Matthew, but when we opened the door to Kelly's apartment, we were met with a big, roaring "SURPRISE!!!" We were shocked to see over 35-40 people crammed together to give us an appreciation/goodbye party. Thankfully it was more of the appreciation part and less of the goodbyes because we will still be in Trondheim until August (though many students are now leaving for the summer). But we still had to hold back tears as we looked around the room at so many wonderful friends and thanked them for all that they have meant to us these past nearly 3 years. We were also blessed above and beyond by a very generous gift of money to go towards our Italy trip that we head out on this Friday for 2 weeks. God never ceases to amaze us with the blessings he pours out on our lives. What a wonderful night! Thank you Kelly, Linn, and Magnus for doing such a great planning job and managing to keep it a secret! And thank you to all who came and made it such a memorable night. We truly feel loved and love all of you right back!
Our faces as we realized what was happening!
And us re-enacting our "surprise faces" :)Funny story: I, Cortney, after much deliberation, had decided to chop off my long hair at my first Norwegian hair-cut....and it just happened to be the day of this party. I didn't have time to do anything to it myself before coming to Kelly's and was already nervous just to see the 8 people who would be there, so imagine what was going through my head when I realized how many people I was now going to see! What a debut...yikes. Still getting used to the hair (what's left of it), but got to say I've now had more time to work with it than in these photos! :)
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Syttende Mai!!! (May 17th, Norway's Independence Day)
HURRA!!
HURRA!!
This year we got to experience our third 17th of May celebration from a different vantage point- we got to be in it! Many Christians in Trondheim came together to march behind a sign that said: "Sammen for Jesus" or "Together for Jesus". It was a great change to join others who marched for different organizations and causes by walking and singing about who Jesus is in our lives. I think we were one of the larger trains so it was neat to be a part of. In the pictures above you'll see some of our good friends wearing their tradition Norwegian "bunad". Many people receive these when they are younger (or all desire to have one someday) and they are very expensive and worn proudly to events like this, as well as confirmations, weddings, etc. Different regions of Norway have different designs and colors, so it is really neat to see when everyone is wearing them!
One thing we like about the Norwegian parades that is different than many U.S. parades is that they don't consist of fancy floats or crazy antics, but rather simply celebrate People. You can stand and watch a few hours of people just walking by for different reasons, all decked out in their traditional outfits and cheer them on with a "Hurra!". It is quite special to experience (even if it can get a little long after a while!). Then, it's off for some pølser, or hotdogs, and is, or icecream. BBQ is also a common thing to do in the later afternoon with family and friends. Interesting traditions- so glad we get to experience what makes this culture truly Norwegian!
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