Today was a busy food day!
In the morning, I taught my ladies’ English class. We were studying how to order food at a restaurant. Since two of the ladies are planning trips to the US this year, I copied real menus from Cracker Barrel restaurant and helped them learn how to read a menu. WOW– American menus have TONS of words!

They had fun taking turns dressing up as servers with aprons and taking each other’s orders.

It made all of us hungry for good ole’ American cooking… Fortunately, my afternoon ladies’ English class was having a lunch potluck party! Not quite American cooking, but it was still good. This class has only been meeting for a month, so it was a fun time for casual conversation and getting to know each other better…

During both classes, we shared the historical legend (is that an oxymoron?) of St. Valentine… They were surprised to learn that he was a christian in the Roman Empire. I think it’s great for Japanese to hear examples of Christians who aren’t Americans… that Christianity is so so much more than a western religion…

When I came home, Eric and I pulled out our combined “bounty” from Valentine’s Day.

In Japan, every year the amount of chocolate being sold on Valentine’s Day increases, as does the creativity! (If you look closely above, there are chocolate penguins; chocolate sushi; and plastic fruit filled with sushi). School girls make or buy chocolate for that special boy as well as a dozen of their girlfriends…and teachers like us are included as well. For whatever reason, in Japan, valentine’s day is when girls make their desires know to boys (and women as well profess their love to men)… One month later, on “White Day”, men are supposed to reciprocate.

After my class, I went to the home of one of Owen’s friends, where a group of moms and their sons had gathered for a play date. Oh…the chocolate flowed freely, as did my love for these friends to whom God is allowing us to minister.

It was a sweet, sweet day.