02/17/2019
This weekend went by much more quickly than I had expected. On Saturday morning, I had another video date with Alex! It was so much fun. I love seeing him when I can. We watched the third X-Men, because it is one of his favorite Marvel characters. I thought it was very good! We talked for about three hours, it is honestly my favorite time each week. Afterwards, I headed to Kodo station, where I met my friend Sue. Sue has lived in Japan for around 7 years now. She originally is from Akron, Ohio! However, she hasn’t lived in the United States for many years now. Together, we walked to a young Japanese mother’s house, her name is Masako. I met both Sue and Masako at chapel last week. Masako invited us over for lunch. Apparently, this is a big deal in Japan, as many Japanese do not invite you into their homes. She was so kind and hospitable. We all had lunch together which consisted of a vegetarian salad (broccoli, avocado, carrot, tomato, mushroom, and soy beans), fried potatoes, mushrooms, and some classic Japanese white rice! It was all wonderful. Japanese homes are traditionally small, and I would say that it is much smaller when you are comparing it to the average American home. However, it was very welcoming and bright. We talked for many hours after lunch, about politics and mostly about our walks with God over tea and a few Japanese deserts (pictured below). I truly felt the depth of God’s love here in Japan during this time, for the first time since I have arrived. I think it is so cool that he led me to Christians in Japan, because there are not many! At around 6:30 pm, Masako offered to drive me home and Sue came with us. She has a kei car, which is a much smaller boxier car than you would typically stay in the United States. I think it is cheaper to own a kei car than a regular car in Japan, but it still seats 5 people!
Today, I went to watch the Kyoto Marathon with our company, Omron. Terry went with me and a co-worker, Higashi-san. We missed the first train, and it was 100% my fault. The doors close so quickly on some trains, so you must be really confident that it is the one you want and jump on. I found this funny because last weekend I thought I had conquered the Japanese train system, but I am glad that God humbles me. Omron was sponsoring the marathon, so I think it was expected that many employees go to cheer on marathon runners or run in the race itself. It was so cold. It was nice when the sun was out, but that was probably only for 15 minutes. We stood out there for about 3.5 hours, and I couldn’t feel my feet afterwards. Two of Higashi-san’s friends went with us to get lunch. We went to a popular Japanese restaurant with relatively quick service… but I cannot remember the name, sorry! I didn’t eat Japanese food anyway, as everything had meat in it, so naturally I ordered a margarita pizza. It was actually really good, much better than the one I bought at the grocery store to try last week. It was very disappointing. After lunch, Terry and I returned to Kizugawa-city, where is where we live. We went to the grocery store to buy food to use for breakfast for the week. I listened to a sermon from Greenville Grace Church this evening, as I wasn’t able to attend church this week due to the marathon. It was discussing Hebrews 2. Yesterday, I was reading Hebrews 11-13, and I would really encourage anyone to read it. It specifically spoke to me, and I am so happy that God was able to reveal his character and love for me through these passages! I am trying to be optimistic about this week. The transition has been very tough for me and my work has also been challenging. I am also disappointed that I will be missing Alex’s birthday this week and spending mine by myself. However, I know that it is God’s will that I am here, and I would appreciate your thoughts and prayers throughout this journey! Thank you!!
Love reading your blogs! You are an incrediblely strong young lady! You are in all of our thoughts and prayers!🙏❤️😘