Tidbits

So, Here are just a few fun facts, tidbits, and videos from our trip so far! They are from both Jiyu Gakuen school in Tokyo and Iwaki:

# of Languages being spoken at GMC (Global Missions Center): 6 (Japanese, English, Romanian, Korean, Spanish, Russian)

On a scale of 1-10 (10 being highest):

How cute the cars, packaging, grocery stores, and houses are here: 7-8

How much I am tempted to cut my hair and get bangs while here: 10

How adorable the children are: 1,000,000

How ready I am to come home: 1

We sang the "Be a Man" song from Mulan, and Enoch drew inspiration from it (This is in Iwaki, clearing the path for the water reservoir)

We decided to have lunch in town, 15 minutes from the Global Missions Center, as well as have a team meeting. At the end, right in the middle of our closing prayer, we heard trumpets sounding! Next thing we knew, a parade with tons of people dressed up in random costumes was marching through the open area in which we were seated. (Awkward timing rating: 9.5)

Steven's phone for Japan. We love the pink bow. (It's really Barbara's daughter's, Megumi, who let him borrow it for the duration of the trip. Cuteness rating: 9)

1000 paper cranes in the temporary housing area

We thought we were going grocery shopping only, but in the confusion between 2 languages, it was decided that we would take a trip to the public baths! Only, we weren't aware of it. We were a bit surprised when we pulled up to it (surprise rating:10, giggle rating: 10)! A very different cultural experience, to be sure, but fun just the same :)

One of the top Christian Japanese singers graced GMC with her presence. Here's a video of the impromptu performance she gave us (with help from the more musical team members)

One of the days we spent with a woman named Maria and her son, Daichi (Both working together and seeing different parts of Iwaki). They were praising God for sparing them. They had planned to go to one of the towns that ended up being hit by the tsunami very badly, but due to oversleeping, were just leaving their house (They lived an hour away from the coastal town) when the earthquake hit. They did, however, lose people they loved in the town. (% of people the town lost in the tsunami: 50%)

We are having a great time getting to know the people and helping out, but it's sometimes easy to forget that many of the people working alongside us are also hurting and are victims too. Many of the older people in the temporary housing are depressed and alone, having lost their families and the homes that they and their family had lived in for generations. They rarely come out, so it's difficult to keep up track of how they are doing. So, keep the people of Japan in your prayers as we continue to work here in Iwaki, and also keep our team in your prayers, that will be sensitive to their needs.