Doncha just hate it...

when somebody starts a blog and then just lets it sit there, un-updated, for just ages. Yeah, I hate that too! But I can attest that it happens so easily, and on my part it wasn't intentional.

Here I am back again. Hoping that all of you readers are still with me. The picture at left is of a flower shop in Ichikawa, resplendent with cyclamen, orchids, and we spotted a few daffodils and tulips in the mix too.

I spotted the photo op on the way back from a free concert of the Ensemble Ichikawa Orchestra on the Emperor's birthday, which is a national holiday here. It was a family concert, so we heard "Peter and the Wolf" and some Disney movie themes along with "You Raise Me Up" and others.

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve and in addition to the year 2009, Thursday will be the first day of year 21 of the current Emperor's reign in Japan. Many documents are dated using the Emperor's year rather than the years since Christ's birth. Dates are normally written with the year first in Japan, then the month and the day. Working in a mission where many are from other places where they put the day then the month then the year, it's safer to write 30-Dec-08 which is what I try to remember to do.

'Twas the Sunday before Christmas...

Here the children from Grades 1-3 are practicing before their performances at the church today.

We had a special service and a celebration afterwards. One of the members had friends visiting who were from Hong Kong, presently living in Switzerland, and had them sit next to me in what I like to call the "Japanese Language Impaired Section" of the church. Right at the back where sometimes someone is available to give English or sometimes German or Chinese interpretation of the Prayers and the pastor's sermon. Gareth did an admirable job of interpreting into English today.

After the service we went downstairs to the fellowship hall and had a lunch together and were entertained by two different groups of children. Then each person was given a wrapped present. They were of all different shapes and sizes. We were then given elaborate instructions to pass them, in an orderly fashion ,while singing "Silent Night" in Japanese, to the person on our left, passing a gift at the end of each line with our left hand and accepting another gift from the person on our right with our right hand. At the conclusion of the song we were allowed to open the gift in our right hand.

After the presents each person who had a birthday this month, or who had been baptized in December was asked to come to the front. I think there were close to twenty people who each stated their name and birth/baptismal date. We then sang "Happy Birthday" to that person.

We sang some carols together and as had been announced at the beginning of the program we were dismissed with prayer at 2:00 pm.

Pookette

Introducing...Pookette, the newest member of my electronic communications family. Ta Daaaa

Cell phones in Japan are called Keitai, and this one is utterly amazing. OMF'ers are encouraged to get a phone from a company called Soft Bank so we can call each other at no charge. Ruth and I went to Akihabara aka Electric City yesterday and found this jewel. Not only is it a classy shade of metallic mauve, I can use it as an mp4 player, camera, video camera, and television. Crazy. Of course, it can communicate with my computer, and that's where the name came from. My original laptop's name is Pookie, my newer netbook is Pookie Jr so, it just naturally follows, doesn't it...Pookette.

Sushi Party

Ikura, Ika, Maguro, Ebi, Bream, I don't really know much Japanese, but I do know food words.

Was invited to a sushi party yesterday. We were celebrating some missed birthdays and comings and goings of people in the group.

When the food was gone we watched a skating exhibition and a Japanese historical drama on television. Episodes of the drama have been running since the first of the year, and this was the end of the story with bunches of flashbacks. It covered the transition from the Edo Period to the Meji Era. At the end there were previews of a new drama starting in early January. It was great to have a mixture of Japanese and foriegners watching together. Translation and commentary were plentiful.

December flower

Cyclamen is prominent beside Poinsettias and Christmas Cactus, in shades of pink, rose, red, lavender and purple.

Stubby-chan

I'd like to introduce you to the Guest Home Cat. Stubby-chan came to the Aylings when they supervised the Hostel at Chefoo School in Hokkaido. She has made each move with them as they worked their way to the Ichikawa Guest Home.

I was her mistress for the year that Gareth and Ruth were on Home Assignment before they took over the Guest home in 2002. She has not seen me for four years. On the evening I arrived she sat in my lap quite happily, although she has not come up to see me in my room. Sachiko-san says Stubby remembers me, but being a cat, it's not very important to her.

The Autumn Leaves

The little maple out in front of the Guest Home is showing some lovely colors. The leaves have also started to fall. In Japan, each property owner takes responsibility for the sidewalk and or street adjacent to their building. In many neighborhoods in the early morning the women come out to sweep, and to socialize, sharing the latest news of the day.

It can be a way for foriegners to show willingness to help with the work in the neighborhood and to begin to understand how this society functions.

Jet Lag

As I attempt to recover from subjecting my body and mind to a trans Pacific flight, I look from the window of my room at the Guest Home and see the houses across the street. Boxes for flowers; umbrellas drying in the sun to discourage mildew. The Mercedes belongs to Dr. Ando the dentist.

I am more amazed by how much has stayed the same here than by the changes. The 100 yen shops are still in the same places. At the bakery they are still rolling things like nori seaweed into yeast rolls and baking them. (Not too bad, really.)

Down to the Wire

'Bye, friends from the Missionary Activity Group at Living Word. (at right) 'Bye, friends at church and school and neighbors. 'Bye, family and friends I've known since High School, (Oh, yeah, there's only one of them.) 'Bye, car and driving on Rte. 19. 'Bye, America.

Take care of things till I get back.

Welcome to Willow Moon who has joined my followers. Glad to have you. Thanks for your prayers. Jamie Marie, that is such an interesting picture. You'll have to explain it to me sometime. And your blog, is it all in Japanese? You are so bright!

Talk to you all soon from Ichikawa City!

Send off, etc.

It was a lovely day yesterday, dispite dark skies and intermittent showers. I was commissioned in the later morning service and with many others in the evening service, gave a short testimony of God's continuing Mercy,Grace, Love and Adoption (bullet points from the morning's sermon.) Afterward we had a fun time of fellowship and food. Many many thanks to everyone who participated and contributed. I carried my camera around all day and constantly forgot to take pictures, so you'll just have to imagine. (I will work on doing a better job of photo documentation. It should be easier in Japan where everyone takes pictures of everything all the time.)

A couple interesting things from yesterday: It is common when you go to work in missions for people to relate to their own experience. I am often asked if I know of a certain person who worked/works in Japan. I almost never do. So, imagine my surprise when one of our Canadian Snowbirds showed me a brochure from a conference they had there last summer and asked if the people in the picture looked familiar, and I saw David and Rosemary Harley! They were former International Directors of OMF during some of the time I was in Japan. They stayed at the Guest Home a couple of times, and we became acquainted. Then, one of our newly elected church board members asked me if I knew a missionary in Japan named Ralph Clatworthy. Yes! Ralph and his wife Miho serve with OMF in Hatazawa, Japan. Some days the world does seem a little smaller.