Last night we had an outreach family concert at church with 3 (of the 6 pictured above) musicians- piano, violin, and clarinet. I have to say that my years growing up with 2 sisters who played the clarinet did not endear me to this instrument (sorry Beth and Hannah!)… but I was pleasantly surprised last night by the beauty of these three instruments together. The musicians were neat believers who shared between songs about the reality of Christ in their lives and in their music. We had been hesitant to invite friends, not knowing who would really be interested in classical music. We were really surprised by the turnout, and that the 2 families who we invited came, as well as numerous adult students from our English classes. There were about 120 or so in attendance, and everyone- kids and adults, loved the concert. It was great to be sitting together in the concert, kids and adults, believers and not-yet-believers, and enjoy listening to beautiful music. We had to wonder if this were in the US how many families would enjoy a classical music outing…

Our friends the Ishidas went with us, as well as Nats. and her family (see Parakeet and Open doors entry). Afterwards, a group of us went out for tonkatsu (deep-fried pork- wonderful!) and really enjoyed the time together.

(Below: our friend Jaye-san, the gospel singer, hanging out with Olivia. She loves men!)

Sin cake… is what I made for the tea time afterwards. I found the recipe in a magazine, and it intrigued me – called “Hazel Higdon’s Sin Cake.” (If anyone knows Hazel, give her a big kiss for me~!) It is a great recipe- and got rave reviews. I will include it below. I couldn’t help thinking as I had to explain the name of “Sin Cake” to our Japanese friends how appropriate it is. Sin (cake) and all- should be brought to church! It’s where we find out what to do with these yucky areas of our life…its where our friends around us can hear stories from real people about how God has made a difference in our lives. And it’s where we believers can constantly find redemption for the ongoing struggles we are dealing with. So often we segregate church from nonchurch, finding it too challenging to mix the two so we just don’t.

Elton Trueblood compared evangelism to fire. He said that evangelism occurs when Christians are so ignited by their contact with Christ that they in turn set other fires. It is easy to determine when something is aflame. It ignites other material. Any fire that does not spread will eventually go out. A church without evangelism, he said, is a contradiction in terms, just as fire that does not burn is a contradiction.

Keep our church burning, Oh Lord!

Here’s the sin cake recipe:
First layer:
1 box yellow cake mix
1 cup chopped nuts
1 egg
8 Tablespoons butter, softened
Layer 2:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 pound confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 13×9 pan.
2. To make the first layer: stir ingredients in a blow until resembles coarse crumbs. Lightly pack crumbs over bottom of pan.
3. Second Layer: Beat ingredients at medium until smooth; spread on top of the first layer. Bake until top is set and golden, 35-40 minutes. Let stand several hours or overnight before cutting. Yields 48 squares

Today we had to go and apply for a 3-year visa renewal in Kobe. While we were waiting, i took Annie to the restroom, and saw yet something else new…

Attached to the water fountain is a GARGLING MACHINE. If you push the left foot button, water comes out the left side. If you push the right foot button, special gargling liquid comes out the right side for one to gargle with. There is a sign that says, “do not drink gargling liquid.” (In case you’re tempted). Japanese gargle frequently to prevent getting sick. Owen has just started gargling, and we found out that they teach him to do this in his kindergarten. You just never know.

On Wednesday Owen and Annie went to play at one of his friend’s homes, along with about seven other kindergarten moms and their children. (Moms pictured below in the blurry photo I took on my cell phone).

While the kids played, I was so amused at how we moms spent the first 20 minutes or so… we would all hold our cell phones in together, and somehow by pushing the right buttons our cell phones would exchange profiles, so we would have each others’ phone numbers, email addresses, and photos. You really just never know here…

Then, this morning’s top newspaper headlines: “Suicides by students spike in ’06”. Eight-hundred and eighty six students committed suicide in Japan this past year…. one hundred of these students were elementary or junior high school. Bullying in schools is one of the reasons listed by younger children who commit suicide. One of the families we are good friends with has a seventh grade son who has not been to school for two years because he was so severely bullied in fifth grade. Another family has a high school daughter who has dropped out for the same reason. We’re glad that we’re here… wanting to bring hope to those who need it. Japanese are good at hiding their true feelings- our desire is to love through authentic relationships that allows for people to share with us. Because you just never know…

Yesterday was our day off, and Owen also had a free day because of his Saturday open house. So we took advantage of this and had fun at a nearby amusement park especially geared for younger children (“Toy Kingdom”: http://www.omochaoukoku.com/). It was the perfect family day- everyone, including Olivia, loved it. At one point we were all riding on little race cars (a bit squishy on adult legs!) and laughing as we went around the rink- and I felt such a sense of joy and contentment for the family God has given us. Sometimes, playing is really good medicine!

I was tired…and not sure I could muster the energy it would take to be reacquainted with many special friends in Sendai (northern Japan) this past weekend. We had lived there for two years (2001-2003)… a relatively short amount of time, and yet an amazing time in our lives in which God blessed us richly with many friendships. I went back for our dear friend Hi-chan’s wedding (Eric couldn’t come because of other commitments here) — and I’m so so glad that I did.
The wedding was wonderful… Hi-chan was our nearest and dearest partner in ministry in Sendai, and is one of those friends who openly shared over our years of friendship that she really wanted to be married. (Some of you might remember her from a visit she made a number of years ago to Pasadena before we had moved to Japan). We often prayed together that God would bring just the right man into her life…and He did! Pastor Fujimoto (our Sendai pastor) arranged a meeting for her with the member of another nearby evangelical church, and, as they say in Japan, it was “love love” after that. The wedding was beautiful; the bride and groom glowed (and cried); we the witnesses were all united in our joy at this wonderful couple.

In addition to participating in this joyous occasion, it was also so great to reconnect with many friends whose lives have touched ours, and vice versa. Here are just a few “pictures” of people who are now far away, but still mean the world to us. God so clearly did many wonderful things during our two years there.

We thank God for Fujimoto Sensei, the Senior pastor(top photo), and Chie Sensei (teaching children on Sunday morning), the assistant pastor. They are both so committed to seeing God’s Kingdom come to Sendai through their work in discipleship training and reaching out to kids.

Kazue (above left); and Mai (right, center) were two of our neighbors in Sendai who believed in Jesus during our time there. They were both discipled after we left Sendai by Hi-chan (the bride above). They are now integral parts of the church, serving and using their gifts for God’s glory. It’s so amazing to see how God changes lives!

Kumiko (above) and her husband became friends when they called us in Sendai to find out about our adoption process with Owen. I won’t retell the whole story…but through our friendship and their desire to adopt, they visited our church, and Kumiko began studying the Bible with me and Hi-chan (she is an amazing discipler!). They both came to Christ and were baptized, and now are also serving in wonderful ways in the church and finding joy in their relationship with Jesus. In answer to all of our prayers, God brought them a little girl to adopt, Megumi, who is the same age as Annie.

God ordained our time. Olivia and I stayed with them this weekend, and they shared that they had recently received a phone call that Megumi’s birth mother just gave birth to a baby boy, and would they like to adopt him? (Sound familiar?) There are some concerns –the birth mother has some mental illness, and his family is somewhat opposed to another adoption (although foster care would be ok). Friday night the three of us stayed up late sharing our experiences and how God has been speaking to us through the Word, and praying together.

Kumiko is really trying to sense God’s timing and will in all of this. I shared Irene Webster-Smith’s favorite verse with them: “As you go step by step, I will open up the way to you.” (Proverbs 4:12, Syriac version). We don’t know anything about what will happen a year from now; but we can trust that God will faithfully open up the way for the NEXT step. What a great promise. We claimed this together, and are trusting God for the future of this new baby boy. Tonight I called and they are moving forward in bringing Megumi’s little brother into their family! Step by step…

Eric did a great job holding down the fort with Owen and Annie, attending Owen’s yochien open house on Saturday morning with both of them, and attending a gospel concert with them on saturday night in downtown Osaka. Despite a dead battery after the concert, and getting home around midnight, he was still cheerful when they picked me up at the airport on Sunday afternoon. The greatest joy in the world is coming out of baggage claim and hearing two little voices screaming “Mommy’s home!” and being bowled over by leg hugs from a 2 and 4 year old. This, perhaps, was the best reunion of all.

Today we’re so glad for Japan’s national health insurance. Owen had a trip to our local dentist for his first cavity at 4 pm; Eric went to the chiropractor around 5 pm; then I went to our local doctor just before they closed at 7 pm (a Urinary Tract Infection)… everything totalling less than thirty dollars. But more than the low costs and what we receive from Japanese doctors – here are some examples of good medicine for my soul:

Above is a photo we took off our pastor’s blog of Eric’s early-morning Pentecost message last Sunday on top of the mountain. Pastor Fujii apologized on his website for asking Eric to give the message just the day before, but he said he’ll be asking it a lot more from here on out (I guess that means he did a really good job!) Love this photo; love this man! Coming home after a full day of teaching English and meetings to see him taking care of the kids and the house was the first good medicine.

Tomorrow I will be flying with Olivia for the weekend up to Sendai in northern Japan, where we used to live for two years. Our good friend Hi-chan is getting married- hip hip hooray! She is 43 years old- we prayed with her for many years that God would bring her a husband, and He has. Our Sendai pastor arranged this match, with a Christian from another church in the area. It should be a great occasion as we celebrate God’s faithfulness.

Back on the homefront, Eric will be attending Owen’s kindergarten open house (with Annie, too) on Saturday. This is a special open house that allows Dads to attend who normally can’t make it during the week. Then, Saturday night they will attend Jaye-san’s annual concert- it should be a fun time for them. Please pray for our family as we are separated and very busy, and pray that I will be feeling better so I can travel tomorrow afternoon. It will be fun but crazy being reunited with many friends in Sendai for a short amount of time, as well as caring for Olivia.

This afternoon my friend Kazumi and I had our weekly LTG (Life Transformation Group). We read Proverbs this past week, and Kazumi shared from Proverbs 17:22 – “A cheerful heart is good medicine.” I told her that she so often is good medicine for me because she has a joyful, cheerful heart, no matter what is happening. Being with someone like this can change my mood so quickly.

Tonight at dinner our family grabbed hands (this is to keep kids from grabbing food) and sang our grace song. Even Olivia joined in the “Amen” part… And I thought that even while feeling pretty lousy, God has surrounded me with some great medicine. I am very thankful.

Here’s a short video I took earlier today of Molly and Olivia battling it out over a monkey. Who do you think wins?

Today Annie, Olivia and I had a playdate with one of my good Japanese friends, Nat. and her daughter, who is Annie’s age. I always love being with her, and am so thankful that her family lives nearby. Since her older son is two years ahead of Owen, she has also been my culture guide in learning Japanese preschool life.

We had a fun time at an indoor park this morning with our children, and then lunch at a food court. At the end of lunch, Nat. got a sad look on her face. They have had two parakeets for almost four years, who always greet us when we visit. Recently her husband built a new, larger, cage for them, with a nesting area. To their surprise and pleasure, the birds mated, and “Lemon”, the female parakeet, got pregnant. The last few days, however, she became sick, and Nat. shared with me that this morning when they woke up Lemon had died. Her words got caught in her throat, and I could tell this was a very hard thing for my friend. She didn’t know what to do, because the male parrot “Sky” had been in a different cage, and didn’t know that Lemon had died. I suggested that maybe it would be good to put Lemon in with Sky for a little while so Sky would not keep waiting for her to come home. I could tell this would be hard, so I offered to come over and do it for her.
After lunch, we went back to her house, and I took the little lifeless body of Lemon and set it inside the cage with Sky. As Nat. watched, her eyes filled up and she just cried in my arms. These little birds were part of their family; and one was gone.
We have prayed for ways to reach Nat. and her husband (who’s studying English with Eric) – but they have never seemed too open spiritually. After our time with the birds, though, we went inside and had coffee, and Nat. began asking me questions about what it means to be a Christian. She is especially intrigued by another family in our church in which the wife is a Christian but the husband is not. She wanted to know how this could happen…
Today it felt like God arranged our playdate on just the right day when my friend needed a friend, and He allowed me in a small way to care for her. Later this afternoon I was cleaning out some old notes and found this quote, that inspires me to keep waiting and asking God for brighter light:

“There have been times when I have waited months, and even years, at someone’s door. You can’t force your way into a house – it would be breaking and entering. You must simply be there, like warm sunlight, so that seeing you through the window, the other will want to come out. You must imitate God’s unwavering patience with his children, whom he loves… But if the other hesitates too long to come out of his fortress, perhaps it is because my light is weak, so weak that it cannot illuminate the way.” (Michael Quoist, from his book, With Open Heart)

Yesterday was a big event in the life of every yochien (preschool) child and parent at our school…it was strawberry picking day! Owen, Annie (siblings were allowed to come too), and I rode the train with a hundred or so other moms and children to a nearby strawberry farm. We had paid in advance – about eight dollars/person — and I was excited to eat these strawberries that are usually as delicious as the best in New Jersey.
At the farm, we gathered by classes on large veneer sheets, waiting for our turn to take a group photo (nothing is done in Japan without taking a commemorative photo!) and then being given about 30 minutes with our little containers to go through a given greenhouse and pick as many strawberries as we would like. Since we were near the back of the line, we had to cull pretty carefully to find some good ones, and were disrupted by a snake also making his way through (see photo). After exiting the greenhouse, everyone washed their strawberries in a bucket and sat by the side of the road eating them. Unlike the American custom of picking strawberries to take home for baking or freezing, the goal in Japan strawberry-picking is to eat as many as you can…none go home.

After the greenhouses were thoroughly picked over –it didn’t take long with lots of hungry kids and moms– we returned to the veneer sheets to eat the lunches that the moms had brought. Shortly after lunch, and catching a few frogs in the nearby water troughs, we headed back home by train. The video below shows Owen and three of his buddies playing the very-familiar Japanese game of “paper/scissors/rock”. Owen, as you can see (on the right), doesn’t seem to care about winning as much as doing scissorsover and over! But he’s so happy to know how to do the game.

I loved the chance to get to know moms better, and to watch Owen interact. He is very happy, and loves playing with his new friends. There was one point, though, that nearly killed me… We were changing trains, and Owen and his 3 friends were walking together…They went to join hands, and when Owen went to hold his friend Noa’s hand, Noa said, “No- I don’t like Owen.” I don’t know if Owen understood or not- I tried not to look back because it was clear his mom was upset by the comment. Owen went over to the other two boys and they quickly held Owen’s hand. And two minutes later Noa and Owen were playing happily. But me? My stomach was churning still. Oh- that I will not be overly sensitive! It’s only just started, and is still so innocent— but I know there will be hard days of parenting ahead where we will want to shield our children from meanness (and stop them from being mean, as well). Some things we don’t have control over, but some things we do. I hold tightly to my mom’s words, which echoed through our home when I was growing up: “The world is always trying to tear us down, but here, in our home, we will build each other up.” Help us, God, to create a nurturing home where we build up no matter what the world outside tries to do.

(Sunday evening)
This morning Eric and I did split shifts. He got up after just 2 hours or so of sleep and went with about 12 members to climb the nearest little mountain and have a morning worship service in celebration of Pentecost Sunday. Why so little sleep? Because only yesterday he was asked to give the short message- in Japanese! He pulled it off spendidly, I heard – and they all had a really wonderful time of fellowship on top of the mountain.
He came home to me and the kids, and then I went out- with Owen…to join the rest of our community for “Clean Day”. This is a quarterly event in Sanda – always 9 – 10 am on given Sunday mornings, where at least one member of every household is expected to go outside and do one’s duty in cleaning up, weeding, raking, and beautifying the neighborhood. We find out about it by a note and trashbag placed in our mailbox the week before.
This morning as I was pulling weeds in our nearby park, I observed everyone industriously working alongside of me. There were two neighbors working on a nearby patch who obviously had a long history but hadn’t seen each other for a long time. One was telling the other that her oldest son is no longer attending high school… after a long three-day weekend he decided not to go to school the next day…and then the next and the next and just has not gone back since. They continued talking about this problem- one very severe in Japan right now.
Next to me was an older woman pulling weeds, and no matter what polite conversation I made or how much I smiled, she didn’t budge. She was doing her duty, but she didn’t like it. Nor did she like me trying to make her like it!
Thankfully, one of our neighbor friends, Natsuko, came up with her daughter and we enjoyed the last thirty minutes. We are going to take our daughters out together on Tuesday morning, which should be fun.
Several hours after this, we had an afternoon special Pentecost Sunday worship service and baptism. Since most Sundays we meet in smaller groups as house churches, it is always a treat to be together with everyone in the larger group. Two special friends were baptized today, as well- one was the pastor’s son, and the other is a newlywed who we have prayed for the last few years. What a neat day to be baptized!

I have to admit my attitude grew a little less excited as the hours wore on and the service continued (we left after 4 hours and it wasn’t quite finished!), but overall it was a joy to be together.

I started thinking – what is different about these events today? In some ways all three of them reflected the group mentality prevalent in Japanese culture– those a part of a group come together and all follow very similar and predictable ways of being. But the difference – ah!- the difference! – is that one of these 3 events was done out of obligation – cleaning the community (we felt so so guilty one Sunday when we were out of town and couldn’t participate!). Everyone does it– but not everyone likes it. It just HAS to be done, so it is done.
But worship – at sunrise; or all afternoon and into the evening – this is voluntary. I counted nine women there this afternoon who have husbands and children waiting at home for them – but they wanted to be together to celebrate baptism, Pentecost, and to participate in the healing ritual of worship. I somehow felt that our small gathering of forty or so brought joy to the Father. It’s not about the oughts, but the heart. Yet… how many times have I gone to worship because of the ought? Sometimes the oughts need to be acted out. But how I need to be reminded of the privilege of community, participation, and worship. Acts 2, as we read today, tells us that the early church couldn’t stop meeting together- it was daily – it was their joy.
(Below- Annie and Olivia taking worship breaks)

And, after Pentecost worship, we had another joy- a chance to celebrate Eric’s 44th birthday (actually it’s tomorrow) with a number of special friends at OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE in Osaka. Go Outback for having free steak dinners for member’s birthdays!

I’m giving in! And starting a blog. I have to say I have resisted for a number of years, convinced that blogs are pretty self-focused. But I guess that most people just stop reading the real narcissistic blogs… So if I find that no one’s checking in to the Takameter after a time… I’ll know more about myself.
(Disclaimer: This blog will generally NOT be profound. This blog WILL contain many photos of our children.)

Yesterday, Eric took our partners Peter and Wendi and their 4 children to the airport, as they are flying back to the US for a three month home assignment. Already Sanda feels lonely without them. I have felt strongly the need this summer to pray for God’s protection on them. Please pray with me for these friends who will be covering a lot of ground.

This week has been a notable week for Olivia, our one year old. Last night Eric heard her say her first word (besides mommy and ba-ba, or daddy)… and I heard it myself today. Her first real word is “pocha pocha”, the Japanese children’s word for bath. It’s one of her favorite pasttimes… we frequently find her crawling into our shower/bath room and trying her best to get wet. Then, today our friend Yasko was over, and Olivia took 2 steps from her to me with no one holding on! We keep telling her to stop growing- where is our baby??

Owen continues to do well in yochien (Japanese pre-school/kindergarten). He seems to be a friend-maker… today another mom came up to me and said that her son keeps talking about Owen every night, and asked if he come over and play soon. Apparently several moms have heard their sons playing at home saying in English, “Everybody!” — guess who they learned that from?

Our favorite recent incident happened last week, when I went to pick him up. In true Japanese-school departure form, Owen and his classmates were all sitting on the step in front of their classroom, waiting for their teacher to dismiss them. As I walked up, I noticed that one of Owen’s good buddies, Sousuke, had written all up and down his legs in magic markers. I glanced over at his mom, also waiting for the teacher to dismiss the class, and felt really embarassed for her. When the teacher dismissed Owen, she motioned me to come over, and in a quiet voice she let me know that it was OWEN who had written all up and down Sousuke’s legs in magic marker! NOW which Mom was incredibly embarassed? Thankfully Sousuke’s mom and I have become friends, and we had a good laugh. (Keep laughing, Mom! keep laughing! Sousuke’s in the forefront; Owen in background)

We are already finding that Owen’s school provides a wonderful place to build new relationships… to begin walking with new friends in their places of joy and pain…to care for people and become part of their lives. Yesterday 3 moms and I took our kids to the park after class. (Owen and Annie are in the center).
We were sitting eating lunch, and one mom shared with me that her first daughter died as a baby from a heart condition. She would be 8 today. Suddenly my friend N. became more real as she opened up and began sharing layers of her life…. Isn’t this what it’s all about?
Henri Nouwen says it well:

“More and more, the desire grows in me simply to walk around, greet people, enter their homes, sit on their doorsteps, play ball, throw water, and be known as someone who wants to live with them. It is a privilege to have the time to practice this simple ministry of presence. Still, it is not as simple as it seems. My own desire to be useful, to do something significant, or to be part of some impressive project is so strong that soon my time is taken up by meetings, conferences, study groups, and workshops that prevent me from walking the streets…. But I wonder more and more if the first thing shouldn’t be to know people by name, to eat and drink with them, to listen to their stories and tell your own, and to let them know with words, handshakes, and hugs that you do not simply like them, but truly love them.”