こんにちは!
This past week has been CRAZY. Typhoon Hagibis was the biggest typhoon to hit 日本 (nihon= Japan) in decades, and Odawara was right smack dab in the middle. As in, the eye went directly over it. But we weren't there! Read below for more.
Spiritual Stuff:
A few days before the typhoon hit, I came across 3 Nephi 14:24-25 during personal study. At this point in the Book of Mormon, Christ has appeared to the Nephites after his resurrection and is sharing with them some of the most important teachings from his mortal ministry.
24 Therefore, whoso heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock—
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock.
Just as I am grateful that Japanese houses are built on incredibly strong faoundations, meant to withstand earthquakes and yes, rains, floods, and winds (aka typhoons), I am grateful that I have built my foundation on Christ and his teachings.
A strong foundation is the first step of preparation for a physical typhoon, just as building a spiritual foundation on Christ is the first step of preparation for life's typhoons. Of course there are many steps that come after, such as taping your windows, buying non-perishable food, and filling your bathtub with water. Studying the scriptures, going to church, and praying multiple times daily. However, if we have that strong foundation, even if sometimes we may be lacking in other areas, we will be able to weather the storms, no matter what kind. And that's a promise. We all know the rest of the story, and I will forever be grateful that Japanese houses are NOT built on sand, to be washed away in the rains, winds, and floods, just as I know I will be forever grateful for my foundation on Christ.
Daily Life/Fun Stories:
We heard early last week that another 台風 (taifuu= typhoon) was on its way. At first we didn't really think much of it because they weren't that bad this year, but as the week went on and we started hearing more about it and getting messages telling us to prepare, we started to realize just how big it was going to be.
On Thursday we were told to take time the next day to do our usual P-Day weekly shopping, and get some extra water. On Friday morning we received a lot more instructions, including buying non-perishable food, filling the bathtub and washing machine with water, make sure we had flashlights and extra batteries, tape our windows, download general conference, and make a big batch of rice and maybe curry. We were lucky in that we got to the store early, though we still had to splurge on expensive water because the rest was sold out. See pics for what the shelves looked like later in the day.
We spent most of the day preparing, and then in the afternoon got a call from our STLs telling us that President Esplin had authorized us to go to their apartment in Fujisawa for the weekend. They were a bit worried about us being so close to the ocean (we can see it from our window) and about the fact that our windows are floor to ceiling, facing the way the storm would come... Straight for us... So for those reasons we headed inland, to an apartment with 台風 shutters on its windows. The other sisters in our district came too because they're also pretty close to the ocean, and the weekend basically turned into a big slumber party. With general conference. See pics below.
Friday morning and afternoon were crazy calm, with no wind at all (very unusual for Odawara). It started raining in the evening. When we woke up Saturday morning, it started to pour. And the wind started to get stronger. We kept the shutters up until after the first session of conference because it wasn't that bad yet, but eventually had to close them once we learned the worst was on its way. It got VERY loud, and the curtains moved sometimes despite the fact that there were windows and 台風 shutters... Crazy. We had snacks, though, so we were good. Despite our worries about potential flooding, it was a lot of fun.
Last Tuesday we tried a different kind of 伝道 (dendou= missionary work), 音楽伝道 (ongaku dendou= music missionary work, this one doesn't really translate). We brought a keyboard outside the front of the church and set up a desk with Book of Mormons and pamphlets. I brought out my clarinet, and Ogata姉妹 and I played hymns and other church-related music. While nobody took any of the materials offered, several people stopped to listen and/or look at the church's various signs and the building's owner came over for a bit, pointing us out to people. Not only was it a great opportunity to make people realize there was a church there (it's a rented building, not a church building), but it was a delight to share beautiful music with people as they walked or drove past. There's also a stoplight right in front of the church, so some people HAD to listen to us as they were stopped lol.
At last week's 英会話 (eikaiwa= our weekly free English class), one of our 2 young, female regular students (such a rarity lol) brought us an お土産 (omiyage= souvenir) from her trip to Guam the week before. I knew it was a thing in 日本 to bring back souvenirs for almost everyone you know , but I hadn't expected anything at all. She's so sweet! And we love that she and her friend are still coming.
Some Stuff that the 台風 Caused:
-a lot of people in Odawara to evacuate to various evacuation centers. One of the people we teach had to take her kids to an elementary school and spend the day and night there
-at least 14 rivers to flood (2 of them in Odawara). In Odawara, one of them gouged up several baseball and other sport fields.
-several dams to overflow (one of them in Odawara)
-tens of thousands of people to lose power (thankfully only about 1000 in Odawara)
-A landslide that hit one of the train lines connecting Odawara to the surrounding mountains. It'll be closed at least until the end of the year for clearing/fixing.
-wind damage everywhere
-surprisingly low numbers of death, injury, and missing people (though any number above 0 is too big)
-A 30 meter wave (somewhere. Maybe. Might just be a rumor.)
-us going stir crazy after being stuck inside for almost 2 full days
Some Stuff that the 台風 Didn't Cause:
-the earthquake we felt at a magnitude 3 in Fujisawa.
-our excessive intake of snacks
-the genius idea the other 姉妹たち had to use chopsticks and one-sided chocolate-covered cookies to improvise s'mores roasted over the gas stove
New Foods:
-some sort of chip that kinda reminded me of barbecue lays but a Japanese version that tastes better
-chicken soy sauce ramen
-happiness souffle roll
-melon cream soda
About the Pictures:
- The 台風 from space.
- Radar after the worst passed over us (the X is Odawara, pin is Fujisawa)
- General Conference! Notice the tablet (mine) rigged up as a makeshift viewing screen, the pajamas, and the ridiculous amount of snacks...
- A grocery store after the rush
- Pumpkin cookies made by the STLs. There were at least three times this many... Eaten in less than 24 hours...
- We missed s'mores so much
愛してます!
-スナ一姉妹
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