Monday, August 19, 2019こんにちは!
Yes, you read that right. And it may have been downgraded to a sub-tropical cyclone (or something like that) after it hit Japan, but it still a lot of rain. Read more below!
Unfortunately, this week we did a whole lot of planning and not a whole lot of teaching, due to people not being home, not showing up, or just straight up canceling. However, we do have several leads that will hopefully make this week a lot more successful! A lot of our planning has involved finding scriptures about family, and it's made me even more grateful that I know that I can live with my family forever.
We had zone conference last week, and basically the whole day was filled with spiritual messages and lots and lots of learning. And even more 模擬s (mogi= roleplay). One of the many things I took away from zone conference was the importance of the gift of discernment. President Esplin invited us to pray to receive it every day, and I have feel that it is something that I need to do. I am certainly not fluent in 日本語 (nihongo= japanese), and even if I were I would still need to be able to figure out the needs of the people I teach, my 同僚 (douryou= companion), and others around me. I know that as I pray for the gift of discernment, I will be better able to discern those needs, whether I know what they're saying or not, and I know that as any of us pray for any of the gifts of the spirit, and work for them, Heavenly Father will bless us with them.
Last Sunday, a man we'd never seen before walked into church. We went up and introduced ourselves, and he said he was Tsuchiya from the Kamakura Ward. At that point, I was like, wait, hold on a second, Tsuchiya from Kamakura... When I asked if he had a son teaching at BYU, he said yes. I then proceeded to tell him that his son had been my Japanese professor and was fantastic. I hadn't thought that I'd be able to meet his family because the Kamakura area is closed to sisters right now, but apparently his dad is a speaker for the stake and so he came to speak in Odawara! I'd say it was lucky, but it was probably more than just luck.
So, typhoon story time. It had been raining on and off for a little while, occasionally pouring, but nothing too bad. There were several long breaks, and we were only outside in the rain for a couple minutes due to timing and scheduling. So, when it was time to go try to visit an investigator we've been trying to see for weeks, we figured we were fine but put our rain jackets in my basket anyways. She wasn't home, so we started back. It had started to drizzle, but not nearly enough to be worth it to wear a rain jacket (that thing is so hot. Even more so when paired with the pants). After about 5 minutes, it started to rain a bit harder. Then, it started to pour. Add in the fact that by this point it was dark, and there was also wind, it made for a fun experience. By this point we were already drenched so there was absolutely no point in putting on those jackets (see pic). It was actually so much fun. Though I am grateful that the wind wasn't that bad, the rain probably would have hurt more.
On Saturday, we went up into the mountains with that convert couple we did a 模擬レッスン (mogi ressun= role play lesson) with last Saturday. They said they had a work barbecue up there and that there would be a waterfall, but it was not anything like I'd expected. There were a LOT of people there, all just doing their own thing, who had brought tents/pavilions/other things and were sprawled all along the banks of a wide stream. In that stream, adults and children alike were cooling off and catching what I think were crayfish. Also in the stream were various things being kept cool, mostly drinks. We walked a short ways to the waterfall (see pics) and ate WAY too much food, most of it from the Philippines because that's where the wife is from. After a while, one of their friend's kids walked into the stream and fished out a whole watermelon, which they proceeded to place on the ground and basically open it the same way as a piñata (it just broke in half, thank goodness). If you're a fan of anime/manga, you know what I'm talking about. While there, we got the opportunity to talk to the couple's less active daughter and other nonmember family and friends. All in all, a great time.
I've learned that my face gets very red very easily. Expecially in the heat. And especially after riding my bike. And even more so when it's hot and rainy and I have to bike while wearing a rain suit. Fun, but way too hot. So hot I forgot to get a picture before I'd taken everything off lol. Next time, I promise.
About the Pictures:
Spiritual Stuff:
Unfortunately, this week we did a whole lot of planning and not a whole lot of teaching, due to people not being home, not showing up, or just straight up canceling. However, we do have several leads that will hopefully make this week a lot more successful! A lot of our planning has involved finding scriptures about family, and it's made me even more grateful that I know that I can live with my family forever.
We had zone conference last week, and basically the whole day was filled with spiritual messages and lots and lots of learning. And even more 模擬s (mogi= roleplay). One of the many things I took away from zone conference was the importance of the gift of discernment. President Esplin invited us to pray to receive it every day, and I have feel that it is something that I need to do. I am certainly not fluent in 日本語 (nihongo= japanese), and even if I were I would still need to be able to figure out the needs of the people I teach, my 同僚 (douryou= companion), and others around me. I know that as I pray for the gift of discernment, I will be better able to discern those needs, whether I know what they're saying or not, and I know that as any of us pray for any of the gifts of the spirit, and work for them, Heavenly Father will bless us with them.
Some Things I Forgot to Talk About Last Week:
For the first two weeks here I had to use a bag I found in the apartment. Long story short, my old bag's strap snapped. Literally the second I walked in the door that first night. Small miracle lol. But I finally got a new bag! It's smaller and crossbody and blue and fine in the rain because it's fake leather (probably).
Last Sunday, a man we'd never seen before walked into church. We went up and introduced ourselves, and he said he was Tsuchiya from the Kamakura Ward. At that point, I was like, wait, hold on a second, Tsuchiya from Kamakura... When I asked if he had a son teaching at BYU, he said yes. I then proceeded to tell him that his son had been my Japanese professor and was fantastic. I hadn't thought that I'd be able to meet his family because the Kamakura area is closed to sisters right now, but apparently his dad is a speaker for the stake and so he came to speak in Odawara! I'd say it was lucky, but it was probably more than just luck.
Daily Life/Fun Stories:
So, typhoon story time. It had been raining on and off for a little while, occasionally pouring, but nothing too bad. There were several long breaks, and we were only outside in the rain for a couple minutes due to timing and scheduling. So, when it was time to go try to visit an investigator we've been trying to see for weeks, we figured we were fine but put our rain jackets in my basket anyways. She wasn't home, so we started back. It had started to drizzle, but not nearly enough to be worth it to wear a rain jacket (that thing is so hot. Even more so when paired with the pants). After about 5 minutes, it started to rain a bit harder. Then, it started to pour. Add in the fact that by this point it was dark, and there was also wind, it made for a fun experience. By this point we were already drenched so there was absolutely no point in putting on those jackets (see pic). It was actually so much fun. Though I am grateful that the wind wasn't that bad, the rain probably would have hurt more.
On Saturday, we went up into the mountains with that convert couple we did a 模擬レッスン (mogi ressun= role play lesson) with last Saturday. They said they had a work barbecue up there and that there would be a waterfall, but it was not anything like I'd expected. There were a LOT of people there, all just doing their own thing, who had brought tents/pavilions/other things and were sprawled all along the banks of a wide stream. In that stream, adults and children alike were cooling off and catching what I think were crayfish. Also in the stream were various things being kept cool, mostly drinks. We walked a short ways to the waterfall (see pics) and ate WAY too much food, most of it from the Philippines because that's where the wife is from. After a while, one of their friend's kids walked into the stream and fished out a whole watermelon, which they proceeded to place on the ground and basically open it the same way as a piñata (it just broke in half, thank goodness). If you're a fan of anime/manga, you know what I'm talking about. While there, we got the opportunity to talk to the couple's less active daughter and other nonmember family and friends. All in all, a great time.
On Friday, we spent the morning doing 草取り (kusatori= weeding). Or in other words, we spent the morning literally hacking our way through a trash-filled jungle of a backyard. Thank goodness the typhoon had just passed through so it was fairly cool, though the bugs were still an issue. It ended up being a lot of fun, though I had to just keep my mind blank at all the bugs. Ones that I knew ended up on me at some point because I flicked them off or found bites. And the spiders... But everything was OK because they had puppies! (See pic). Also, it was a fantastic opportunity to serve a less-active family, who in just the last couple weeks has started to come to more activities and even to church!
I've learned that my face gets very red very easily. Expecially in the heat. And especially after riding my bike. And even more so when it's hot and rainy and I have to bike while wearing a rain suit. Fun, but way too hot. So hot I forgot to get a picture before I'd taken everything off lol. Next time, I promise.
New Foods:
-legit omurice
-taco rice
-harusame soup
-first instant ramen in 日本
-onigiri from a konbini
-a bunch of food from the Philippines that I have no idea of the names of lol
About the Pictures:- The weather coming in over the mountains
- The aftermath
- Waterfall! Yes, a bunch of people stood under it. And yes, most of them did "that pose." And yes, they very quickly came back out because it hurt.
- Love the cool shrine rope symbol things (no idea what they're called)
- Drinkable mountain water (yes, I drank some)
- So pretty
- Unfortunately too high up to grab
- Me and Ogata姉妹!
- Adorableness! Also, you can see where my gloves went up to...
愛してます!
-スナ一姉妹
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