One year and one month later... where do I begin? I will begin with today. this morning I headed into the downtown area, and watched with delight people setting up for the festival in town today. Last night I saw them take everything down, all the merchandize packed up into vehicles, all the booths torn down, and all the decoratins hanging about the streets are also down for the night. I was surprised to see that. And then this morning at 10:00 everyone is back putting everything up and out for display. It was fun to walk around and be able to greet some people that I have met throughout my time in Iwaki.
My English class ended with a birthday cake for me! And my husband bought me a very nice pair of sandals for my birthday. He actually bought one pair, but they were just a teeny bit too small (which I didn't notice) so he brought them back and exchanged them for the pair that he originally wanted to buy for me. They are great! I love them! I appreciate the effort he put into buying them for me.
This weekend I am off to Funehiki for a little R & R. Good times with good people.
Aug 7, 2009
Jul 13, 2008
Pleasant Surprises
This past week has been full of pleasant surprises. Blessing number one came on Tuesday. After losing a family of three beautiful children (English students) on Tuesday, God blessed me with two new English students all at the same time, or within 24 hours. Also, my Tuesday Junior high class held pleasant surprise. There are two girls: Ran who is in 8th grade and Miyu who is in 7th. Ran stated that on Wednesday she wanted to make instant fried noodles (yaki soba) in the rice cooker. Ran invited Miyu to participate. Ran comes on Tuesdays and Wed. to learn English, Miyu comes only on Tuesdays. Miyu treats Ran with a lot of respect as Ran is the older one. Ran wants to break that respect and simply talk as equals, so Ran initiated this yaki soba party. It was a joy to see them talk about who would bring what ingredients, and that they wanted to come earlier to make it so we could eat and play games in English. It was truly delightful to see these two young women cutting and washing veggies, feeling comfortable together, and receiving dinner that was made by someone else. Tuesday was a Delightful Day.
Blessing number two came along on Friday; I now have my Japanese drivers license! God's hands were all over that. My prayers were that I could understand the Japanese and that I could accomplish this goal in one trip. My Japanese "mom" volunteered to come with me to driving school to make sure I understood the Japanese. The teacher called Koriyama to confirm that I could go to Koriyama for the test instead of Fukushima (much further and troublesome) as well as requesting information on the driving course and what skills I would be tested on. My husband was confident that I could do this, supportive that it would be OK if it did take three trips to get my license, and patient as he did the majority of the talking to the officer in Koriyama- that I couldn't have done. And, it started to rain as we drove up to the driving center, so I prayed that it would stop until after the test. It didn't rain until we headed home around 3 in the afternoon. I am thankful for the multitude of ways God answered my two simple requests.
Blessing number three is quite unexplainable. Three weeks ago I noticed something strange growing in my zucchini and cucumber pot; I pulled it out. Shortly there after, I spotted it ago and pulled it out again, but only getting the stem out and not the root. This caused me to wonder what it was. It looked like it would be tall with with leaves. The only thing that came to my mind was corn, but I knew we did not plant corn; we didn't buy corn. It surely was stubborn, for again, up it grew, this time Masato saw it and too wondered what it was. His suggestion was to pull out the root and plant it seperately to see what it was. He too was puzzled. At this time I also noticed a smaller version growing in my little oregano pot. Truly confused, and certain that it was a weed, I re-potted the larger version in a pot by itself. This week Wednesday a Calla Lily bloomed. It is beautiful. This made me wonder what a weed truly is. A weed is something that is not wanted. so, in this instance, was this Calla Lily a weed? But it is a beautiful flower. Then the question of science also pops up: how did it get there? We didn't purchase Calla lily bulbs. And I don't think that cross-breeding a cucumber with a zucchini results in a Calla Lily. Nevertheless, it is probably the most beautiful and welcome "weed" I have experienced.
As I sit back and look back over the past week, God has truly blessed me in a multitude of ways. Praise be to God!
Blessing number two came along on Friday; I now have my Japanese drivers license! God's hands were all over that. My prayers were that I could understand the Japanese and that I could accomplish this goal in one trip. My Japanese "mom" volunteered to come with me to driving school to make sure I understood the Japanese. The teacher called Koriyama to confirm that I could go to Koriyama for the test instead of Fukushima (much further and troublesome) as well as requesting information on the driving course and what skills I would be tested on. My husband was confident that I could do this, supportive that it would be OK if it did take three trips to get my license, and patient as he did the majority of the talking to the officer in Koriyama- that I couldn't have done. And, it started to rain as we drove up to the driving center, so I prayed that it would stop until after the test. It didn't rain until we headed home around 3 in the afternoon. I am thankful for the multitude of ways God answered my two simple requests.
Blessing number three is quite unexplainable. Three weeks ago I noticed something strange growing in my zucchini and cucumber pot; I pulled it out. Shortly there after, I spotted it ago and pulled it out again, but only getting the stem out and not the root. This caused me to wonder what it was. It looked like it would be tall with with leaves. The only thing that came to my mind was corn, but I knew we did not plant corn; we didn't buy corn. It surely was stubborn, for again, up it grew, this time Masato saw it and too wondered what it was. His suggestion was to pull out the root and plant it seperately to see what it was. He too was puzzled. At this time I also noticed a smaller version growing in my little oregano pot. Truly confused, and certain that it was a weed, I re-potted the larger version in a pot by itself. This week Wednesday a Calla Lily bloomed. It is beautiful. This made me wonder what a weed truly is. A weed is something that is not wanted. so, in this instance, was this Calla Lily a weed? But it is a beautiful flower. Then the question of science also pops up: how did it get there? We didn't purchase Calla lily bulbs. And I don't think that cross-breeding a cucumber with a zucchini results in a Calla Lily. Nevertheless, it is probably the most beautiful and welcome "weed" I have experienced.
As I sit back and look back over the past week, God has truly blessed me in a multitude of ways. Praise be to God!
Jun 14, 2008
Tidbits of our Lives
I have tried for the last week to write a new post and attach a slide show to it. I have given up. For some reason it is not working. This morning, Saturday the 12th (I think), Japan had a major earthquake at 8:43 in the morning. It was the largest one I felt during my awake hours. We are OK. In Iwaki, there was no damage done. Just a bit of shaking. There was one man killed in Iwaki as a result of the earthquake; he was fishing on the ocean side and a big rock fell over and crushed him. That was the only casualty in our area.
Garden News:
Masato takes great delight in looking at our veggie patch every morning. The tomato plants are very tall. They stand up to my shoulders. We are proud "parents" of one little bitty green tomato, about five or six zucchini, and the cucumbers are now blooming, with two shapes that promise to be cucumbers. He is just now realizing that we could get many zucchini, and is surprised by the quantity we could get from two plants. The eggplants haven't blossomed yet, but there are many buds. The zucchini leaves don't look healthy. If anyone has suggestions, I am interested in some assistance.
Lighthouse News:
Our friend Junko has been going to church with another one of our friends, Orie. About two weeks ago, Junko made a statement that she believes in Jesus Christ and God. Hallelujah! It is exciting to see friends accept Jesus, and to see their enthusiasm.
Nina is in Norway for the next two months as her sumer vacation.
I am excited about next week's Saturday night event: a potluck party. I cannot wait to see what people will bring.
On the 28th of this month, I am hosting a bridal shower for one of our faithful volunteers, Tomoko. Her wedding is on Ocean Day, the 21st of July.
Our News:
Masato has another opportunity to perform in Tokyo in July. This time it is a one time event. It is a jam session; an experience he hasn't had. He is pretty excited and unsure about this opportunity.
I started the process of obtaining my japanese driver's license. I completed step one yesterday; maiing a copy of my drivers license, and other documents to JAF (Japan Automobile Federation) to translate my American license into Japanese. The next step, which is about one month from now, I take some private driving lessons, and then off I go for a written and a driving test. I would appreciate prayer that this process is fairly painless and that I only have to take the test once. Usually, from what i have heard, Americans take this test about three times before passing.
And that is the news from Iwaki, Japan.
Garden News:
Masato takes great delight in looking at our veggie patch every morning. The tomato plants are very tall. They stand up to my shoulders. We are proud "parents" of one little bitty green tomato, about five or six zucchini, and the cucumbers are now blooming, with two shapes that promise to be cucumbers. He is just now realizing that we could get many zucchini, and is surprised by the quantity we could get from two plants. The eggplants haven't blossomed yet, but there are many buds. The zucchini leaves don't look healthy. If anyone has suggestions, I am interested in some assistance.
Lighthouse News:
Our friend Junko has been going to church with another one of our friends, Orie. About two weeks ago, Junko made a statement that she believes in Jesus Christ and God. Hallelujah! It is exciting to see friends accept Jesus, and to see their enthusiasm.
Nina is in Norway for the next two months as her sumer vacation.
I am excited about next week's Saturday night event: a potluck party. I cannot wait to see what people will bring.
On the 28th of this month, I am hosting a bridal shower for one of our faithful volunteers, Tomoko. Her wedding is on Ocean Day, the 21st of July.
Our News:
Masato has another opportunity to perform in Tokyo in July. This time it is a one time event. It is a jam session; an experience he hasn't had. He is pretty excited and unsure about this opportunity.
I started the process of obtaining my japanese driver's license. I completed step one yesterday; maiing a copy of my drivers license, and other documents to JAF (Japan Automobile Federation) to translate my American license into Japanese. The next step, which is about one month from now, I take some private driving lessons, and then off I go for a written and a driving test. I would appreciate prayer that this process is fairly painless and that I only have to take the test once. Usually, from what i have heard, Americans take this test about three times before passing.
And that is the news from Iwaki, Japan.
May 27, 2008
A Picnic in the Mountains
Monday was such a fine day that I woke up, deciding we would go on a picnic. I dug out the picnic basket we purchased last fall at a kindergarten bizarre, and packed up tuna sandwiches, a lettuce salad, rice balls, and cold chai. Off we headed to the mountains, for a picnic.
Before heading out the door, Masato wanted to take me to a place we went last year that had clean water. We stopped to puchase some containers. The water was so good, that we searched our car for hidden liter bottles that I always forget to bring in the house after a road trip.
Although this spot is well known for good clean water, it is truly well-hidden. I loved the sound of the birds and running water.
Before heading out the door, Masato wanted to take me to a place we went last year that had clean water. We stopped to puchase some containers. The water was so good, that we searched our car for hidden liter bottles that I always forget to bring in the house after a road trip.
Although this spot is well known for good clean water, it is truly well-hidden. I loved the sound of the birds and running water.
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