day 9

[day 9] hope

We had packed up all our things, said goodbye to new friends and we ate our last Japanese style breakfast in Tsumagoi. While my breakfast was somewhat predictable and perhaps not much of a

culture shock, my friend Alice decided to try new things every morning. This particular day she had scooped a pile of small fish onto her plate to accompany her steamed veggies, mizo soup granola, and fruit. I really enjoy breakfast and I don't think that I would have much of an appetite if my breakfast was staring back at me. But Alice didn't seem to mind so Wanda and I had fun taking pictures with her breakfast.

We started our journey back to Toyko in our 3 Toyota vans around 9:00 a.m. We drove for about an hour along the coast with the Pacific Ocean in direct view. About 2 hours into our drive back we stopped at a rest area by Mt. Fuji. Mt. Fuji is one of those places that you see and you are so mesmerized by it that you continue to take pictures in the hopes that perhaps one photo will capture the grandness of it all. Pictures can capture a lot of special moments, but it is nothing like experiencing the moment. So, to the left is my sad attempt at capturing Fuji from our rest stop. After a short break we loaded back into our vans to finish our travel to Tokyo. Karol [see previous post for Karol reference] drove us back, so we spent the next hour or so listening

to her stories about Japan and asking her questions about the field. We dropped off our luggage and headed back into the city. I loved loved

loved walking around Tokyo. I could have spent the entire 10 days just

exploring the endless jungle of buildings. Whenever I visit a new city I enjoy getting lost, just for the sake of being able to find my way back

to wherever I started. I know it may sound irrational, but the idea of being able to spend days in a new place without an agenda, just exploring and experiencing the city for whatever it has to offer with each step. I always seem to feel more acquainted with a city that way.

Before we headed back into the Harajuku area we stopped to eat lunch. There was a small block that had a great selection of restaurants and cafes so our team split up and decided to meet back in about an hour. Wanda, Rachael and I were sitting on the porch of this cafe that was situated on a small intersection, just watching people and talking about our week in Tsumagoi and then this older man walked up to smoke a cigarette near an ash tray-yep, they are that considerate. I was trying to be sneaky and take a picture of his outfit from behind when we heard a loud traditional Japanese music begin to play around the corner. The man smoking suddenly put out his cigarette and walked briskly

out of our line of vision. We quickly cleaned off our table and followed the sound of the music. As we rounded the corner, we discovered this group of students performing traditional style Japanese song and dance on the corner. I was mesmerized. Their performance continued as our team slowly started to gather together and they were still singing after we left. Here is a little video to help explain what my words fall so short of:

We walked around the city for the remainder of the afternoon and finished our night with a team dinner. The dinner was a great way to finish our day. We got to laugh and talk through our favorite moments on the trip. As we walked back to the Mets I tried desperately to soak up all the lights and the faces that passed by.

But before we got back to our hotel I got to walk through the biggest intersection in the world. Literally.

day 8

[day 8] why I miss tsumagoi

Around 6:30 on our last day my friend Charlotte and I got up early to take pictures. A quiet fog had crept in over night and settled over the ground to greet us. My favorite place by our hotel was this little chapel. I am not really sure why I loved it so much, but we passed it every time we walked to our classroom and I didn't mind when the kids wanted to linger and stare out the window because I did too. It is a simple little while chapel, a quaint bell tower and this beautiful dark gray stone walk way that leads up to it. I might have stood under the bell tower for a while that morning, just staring up. After our photo shoot Charlotte and I joined the team for breakfast and headed straight to our rooms to greet the kids smiling faces.

Our last day with the kids we had so much fun. It was a great day, but I felt like the kids knew something was really different that day. My little buddy, Arata followed close to me all day and cried for the first time all week. When more of the kids started to get upset Mrs. Janice thought that it would be a good idea to have nap time, I agreed. Our kids normally didn't take naps so we had to 'trick' them into nap time. We got all our pillows in a semi-circle and played Simon Says. Mrs. Janice would say "Simon-says, 'Sit on your pillow', Simon says, 'Lay down', Simon says, 'Pretend like your asleep.'" I know it sounds kind of lame, but it worked, perhaps too well. Ms. Malorie might have fallen asleep with the kids that day- I know, falling asleep on the job, really responsible, but Mrs. Janice was awake no worries. She decided to tell that story to all of our team members, and I kindly reminded her each time that I was just following directions. After we had nap time we played with play-dough for a while then went to practice for the program that night. All of the classes put on a small program for the parents, since pre-schoolers have a short attention span on a good day, we decided to do something simple. When we asked what song they would like to sing they all resounded, in unison, "Jesus loves me!!". Do they know the words? Yes, well some of them anyway. A couple observations: the two kids that loved to sing this song were almost silent when they were on stage and Timothy (who likes to stick things up his nose) he would randomly shout words that he remembered. Despite the seemingly scattered performance of our class, I loved to see their faces light up as they sang, I can't help but think that God was so delighted to hear their small voices singing/shouting this song.

Here's a video of our practice from that afternoon:

[after watching this you'll understand why I miss them so much]

The program that night went so well and it ended with a couple named Tom and Karol who talked about their 25 years on the field in Japan. She had the most gentile spirit, but she was bold when she spoke of the gospel. She absolutely loves the Japanese and it was just so neat to hear how the Lord continued to show her favor as she walked in obedience. As they spoke about their experiences and about each other I cried almost the whole time; wishing that I could remember every word and memory they shared, but I really loved just hearing about their marriage and how they loved each other out of the overflow of the Lord's love in them. These are the little notes I scribbled down when I got back to my room about Tom and Karol:

• always giving more
• true radicals
• in tune with the Spirit
• prayer warriors
• Godly marriage
• gentle words

One thing I will always remember Karol saying is that "it's for eternity that we serve." I am deeply compelled by that thought. To be in constant recognition that it's for eternity that I live and breathe. I could talk about that statement for a long time, but I hope it encourages you too. Here are some snapshots of our last day in Tsumagoi:

My Nanan

On Sunday around 11:00 a.m. Nanan, the last legacy of my grandparent's generation from New Orleans, passed away. I wrote about going to visit with her in August and that time will be forever priceless to me. Looking back it was honestly a gift to be there by myself with my family. I am so thankful that I got to sit, just her and I for hours on end immersed in fading black and white photos that told the story of their lives in Louisiana. Nanan was the keeper of so many family stories. She was the keeper of my grandmother's childhood. She was incredibly kind and full of joy. The sweet New Orleans draw in her voice hit this spot in my heart that made me want to smile and cry at the same time. That voice was just familiar in the strangest way, it was comforting and loving. I guess after hearing all their stories, the tone struck a cord that grew roots of appreciation and respect for them so much deeper in me. I can't wait to go back to New Orleans and sit at Cafe du Monde and dream through their experiences for a few moments. Nanan, I miss you already. I love you so much.

day 7

I'm sorry I've been so bad about posting a day-by-day of my trip, but this week it is on my "things to do" list so hopefully I will have shared all 10 days by Friday.

[day 7] A-Z

Our last small group meeting started like all the previous days before, we read from Matthew asked some foundational questions, prayed and sang together. We had divided into 2 groups, women and men, each morning before we prayed and while we were still in our groups Ben gave us each a sheet of paper and wanted us to think of a single word of praise in English for each letter of the alphabet. It was so precious to listen to the women in my group say Japanese and Korean words then smile at themselves when they realized they were speaking their native tongue. Then as we came back together Myoung-Seok was sharing about how praise to God is absent in our lives when we are disconnected from him. She paused, looked down at her Bible and then a smile began to peek from the corners of her mouth and she said, "Antennas never be folded." Translation: We should always be ready to hear from him because when we are in tune with the Spirit how could praise cease to flow from our lives? It was one of my favorite moments of the whole trip.

Needless to say our day with the kids was hilarious again. Arata and I played "parking garage" for 2 hours straight. Yep, we drove the cars into the parking garage [aka: blocks in a square] and backed them out in an orderly fashion. Over and over. Sometimes things would get a little crazy and the cars would go in backwards. He had a story to go along with all his cars. He would talk to me about where they were coming from or where they needed to go. It was great. Arata was the child I bonded with the most throughout the week. One thing we both share: we like for things to be in order. I always considered myself a pretty organized person till I met my buddy Arata, he likes everything organized, from cars to fruit snacks. Here's some photo evidence:

For lunch that day we had a little surprise from Ms. Sharon in the form of a McDonald's cheeseburger and fries. I honestly can't tell you the last time that I ate a McDonald's cheeseburger but I enjoyed the little taste of home. It's kind of sad that greasy burgers remind me of America, but it did.

The rest of the day went really well. I was going through my ABCs almost all day.

"like i always say"

Tonight was one of my favorite nights in Auburn. Most of that is because of my dear friend Hannah, she articulated it better than I ever could : http://hannahefrost.blogspot.com/2009/01/laughter.html

Hannah:

Thanks for being the friend you are to me.

I mean, not many people would gladly walk with me down college street while I wore my hood.

Thanks for laughing with me. Really laughing.

"Like I always say...seize the day."

day 6

[day 6] laughter

In our small groups before the meetings started we split into groups to pray. A precious lady from Korea named Myoung-Seok prayed over the group of 4 women I was seated with. All of the women I was with were missionaries in Japan and it was an honor to sit and pray over what God has for each of our lives as we press forward, led by His call to the nations. Myoung-Seok prayed in her native language: Korean; I didn't understand a word that she said, but I felt the Spirit as close as my heartbeat in that moment. I stepped out of our time together refreshed by exhortation and encouraged by the evidence of Love in each of their lives. ...

This day in particular we laughed a lot in our classroom. Mainly because of Timothy:

Timothy discovered that when he stuck things up his nose Mrs. Janice and I couldn't help but laugh. He thought it was funny too. I love the imagination that flows from children. Simple things can become extraordinary:

stories: epic adventures

play dough: a boat filled with fish

blocks: a tower to a castle

toy cars: race cars that could drive on the walls

Mr. Potato Head parts: fit in Timothy's nostrils too

They are always so curious and eager to learn. I hope that my spirit will always be eager to see God in fresh ways, to let him dream bigger dreams and to step out into His majestic story.

snapshots from play time this day:

train station observations

Japanese love puffy winter jackets with fur on the hood: every 'walk of life' uses the metro system in tokyo:

day 5

[day 5] the kids

We traveled to Tsumagoi [Tsumagoi is about 3 1/2 hours from Tokyo, near Mt. Fuji] the day before and also had the chance to set up the children's rooms in our hotel. We had to be very creative with our space to say the least.

The morning had finally come for us to meet these precious kids that we had only known the names of for so long. They slowly showed up one by one with their parents kindly guiding them into our small room. As I started to know their names and hear their stories, they started to steal pieces of my heart. I had no idea this first day at Tsumagoi the amount of laughter that would echo through the room throughout the week. I know that some people may not understand why I traveled halfway across the world to take care of 2 and 3 year olds, but I can tell you that it was such a joy to be able to serve the missionary parents that I met. I can assure you that it was worth every moment.

About halfway through the day we had a much needed 45 minute break for lunch. We walked the kids to meet their parents and took a seat with our team in the dining room. [For breakfast and dinner we had buffet style Japanese meals, but for lunch everyone was served the same traditional Japanese meal] This particular day we had soup and beef cooked with egg on top of rice-we ate lots of rice. The meal itself looked great, but as we began to survey the table closer we noticed our 'dessert'. Here is a picture of my pal Sandy with our dessert:

I love trying new food, especially in a foreign country, but when someone describes a 'dessert' as "this jello, sweet bean paste like type-thing that is in flavored juice"- I have to draw the line. This thing looked like a green slug. But my dear pal Sandy loves Coca-Cola and so I told her if she ate our dessert I would buy her a coke, well folks, she took the dare. She said that the texture felt like chewing an oyster. Yum.

The rest of our day with the kids was really great. As expected, 2 and 3 year olds bring lots of laughter. When I got back to my room that night, I got ready for bed, laid down on our concrete-like pillow and fell asleep almost instantly.

fully convinced

I was reading yesterday and have yet to get my mind to process much without thinking of these verses. Romans 4:20-21 says this:

No distrust caused him [Abraham] to waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.

I can't help but think that is what you and I are called to. That's faith. May I be fully convinced that my God is faithful and able to fulfill his promises. May I be fully convinced that his word is truth and life. May I be fully convinced that my doubt doesn't waver his faithfulness. May I be fully convinced that glory belongs to God alone. May I be fully convinced that he loves me. May I be fully convinced that his grace is sufficient in my weakness. May I be fully convinced that he has begun a good work in me. May I be fully convinced that he has blotted out my transgressions for his glory. May I be fully convinced that my God is able.

I beg to be fully convinced moment by moment.

three and four

[day 3 & 4] snapshots

thoughts from Clive Staples Lewis

The great thing to remember is that, though our feelings come and go, His love for us does not.

It is not wearied by our sins, or our indifference; and, therefore, it is quite relentless in its determination that we shall be cured of those sins, at whatever cost to us, at whatever cost to Him.

day 2

[day 2] multitudes

The Japanese love New Years. The first 4 days of the year are traditionally called 'holiday' and most people take off work to

travel back to their hometown to see family and go to various temples. The roots of tradition are deep within the Japanese, and in spite of the extreme modern day demeanor of Japan there is always a sense of respect and homage to traditional ways. On our second day in Tokyo we met up with a missionary in a downtown Starbucks to hear his perspective and insight from

living there. He shared so much with us about the culture, everything from religion to cuisine was briefly covered. Then it came time for a first hand experience of 'holiday' in Tokyo.

As we stepped onto the street I learned what the real meaning of multitude is. I found myself completely overwhelmed at the magnitude of it all. We were literally shoulder to shoulder with millions of Japanese on the street walking towards the Sensoji Temple. The first picture at the top gives you an snapshot of the path leading up the temple. It was lined with small shops selling kimonos, lanterns, trinkets and food. Multitudes of people all slowly moving towards the gate of Sensoji.We didn't actually go into the temple but we walked along the outside perimeter on the edge of the gate. When the people walked inside the gate they could approach drawers full of blank paper to write their prayers on. These prayers were tied to trees or small wire that surrounded the trees. There was a small barrel of burning incense that also represented their prayers rising up to

their gods. Right beside the barrel there was a statue that was gated off. I was told that the water beneath the statue is usually ladled out and sipped to 'purify their mouth so that they may speak well'.

Everything seemed so routine. It seemed empty. I think that the weight of watching all that went on will stay with me for a long time. I long to see salvation spring up through the nations. And the gravity of what it means to be separated from God pierced my heart that day. If I believe what the Bible says about God's children, I must also believe what it says about not knowing God. Praise be to my God and Savior that I know him and I have the utmost privilege of being called His child. I am incredibly thankful.

But along with my thankfulness comes a brokenness for those who have

bought into the lie that there is any god besides the one true God. To be completely honest my heart was very heavy as I made my way

between vendors and seemingly inexpressive multitudes. I wanted to

them to know that this isn't The Way. I wanted them to know joy. I wanted

them to understand forgiveness and salvation. I wanted them to know the love of the one righteous God. More than that, I wanted them to know that God wanted all those things for them way more than I ever could. I could talk for days about these few moments, the Lord spoke a lot into my heart as I watched and prayed for these precious people.

We left the temple grounds and walked to an area called Harajuku. Harajuku is the place where a lot of the younger, more outspoken Japanese hang out. If you can imagine lots of chaos, Japanese anime characters, gothic dress, tons of street food, roar of trains rolling in every 7 minutes- you're in Harajuku. I loved people watching there. I took a lot of pictures from this day so I just included a few of my favorites.

Day 2 in Tokyo was fantastic and overwhelming. I felt like I was completely submerged into the culture.

Sorry this post is so long, lots happened this day.

overdue: day 1

I took my laptop with me to Japan in hopes of posting a blog each day and some pictures if I could. Well, it turns out in Japan there are only the 2 prong plugs and my computer has 3, so my little heavy laptop traveled to Tokyo and back without being turned on. All that to say... I wanted to share parts of my trip, so here's the overdue day-by-day adventures in Tokyo and Tsumagoi! [day 1] flying backwards We headed to the airport at 3:15 a.m. on New Years day. Our plane departed around 6:00 a.m. and the sun rose to greet us as we started our journey to Japan. I am usually really apprehensive and nervous when I fly, but this trip was different. I was calm and actually relaxed on both flights. So thank you for remembering me in your prayers, they were felt from Huntsville to Tokyo.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. .2 Corinthians 1:3-5

The plane ride from Dallas to Tokyo was about 13 hours and I slept maybe 10 minutes. Here are some things I attempted to do to make the time pass swiftly:

• listened to 2 podcasts
• read some letters from friends
• journaled
• watched a couple episodes of The Office
• read a few chapters in Mere Christianity- then they turned the lights off and when I tried to turn my little personal light on it was evident that they had just replaced it with a spotlight because it lit up my entire row which woke people out of their slumber and summoned them to glare at me
• I turned the light off, plugged my headphones back in and listened to some Ray LaMontagne and decided to watch the little animated plane slowly moving west on the screen. The longer we flew the more time we 'gained', then there was this point when we crossed the international date line and flew into the next day- this thought still makes my brain hurt. So just about the time I quit watching the cartoon airplane and attempted to sleep the flight attendant goes on a mission barreling down the aisle to wake up everyone in the cabin with her metal cart full of ice and plastic food trays. And then she slowly made her way back down the aisle to deliver our dinner...

please look closely, notice anything different about Japanese airplane food? If you have yet to find the new addition to the fairly predictable airplane meal: Japan's special touch is in the top left corner. Sushi. That's right, in case you were wondering, the Japanese love sushi so much that they don't fly without it. After 13 hours we made it! I was so thrilled to walk off that plane.

We were finally there, the place that God put on my heart this summer, I was finally there. We landed around 2:00 p.m. on the 2nd and I honestly don't remember much of that night because I was so tired. I think we actually fell asleep around 8:30. Traveling is always an adventure, and the start of the journey to Japan was no exception.

"hi-ya"

i don't have much time but i wanted to write a little post to say hello and tell you a funny story.

we've been practicing our basic BASIC japanese while we are here and one of the things that we say a lot is "arigato" which means thank you and you bow at every greeting or conversation. [side note: i will probably be bowing for the next month or so just out of habit] so this precious lady is talking to me in japanese right as an elevator is closing and i'm making eye contact just nodding my head pretending to understand and as the doors close i bow and look right at her and say "hi-ya" like i'm about to karate chop her or something. needless to say, my japanese is rough. 

sorry to be so short.

japan is amazing.

i love it here. 

please pray for Japan today. 

may God move your heart to speak His love and truth. 

He is jealous for you.