The sun came out today...

I can't believe it!! The sun finally got over its lengthy and dreary depression after several long weeks and showed its face across my Aomori sky. I was so happy that it didn't even damper my spirits when I stepped out on the pure 4in. thick ice and fell flat on my side...that would be twice in two days so far, a record for me. But I hope nothing that some Tylenol, a soak, and someday a backrub or chiropractic visit won't cure. Anyways, I HAD to take a walk, ice and all. I love WALKS!!! So here's the scoop, the scenery, the melted snow...after all it hasn't snowed in like a record 4 days or so, and who would have believed there was rain in the sky only yesterday???!!!

(The crosswalk signal finally appears!!)

(Above average winter driving conditions for non-major roads...ok folks, and this has to fit 2 cars!!)

(Gotta love this sign...cracks me up every time! Everything in Japan must be made "cute".)

(Mt. Iwaki shows her shy face behind the local bowling alley.)

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the LORD is to be praised. (Psalm 113:3)

My door?

"Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in." (Psalm 24:7)

This verse hit me hard out this week....to realize I was making a door to God...only letting Him into certain areas of my life, thoughts, actions. Not only to God, but to my friends and my ownself. What kinda door???...and why?? Only God knows the thoughts of my heart and the reasoning behind my own doors; but perhaps we all have similar doors we put up between ourselves and God, family, or friends in our lives...What is your gate like???

Do you look through it from the darkness to see the light?









Are there distractions that lead you off your path?









Is it hidden behind a mysterious curtain?












Do you post a note or give a knock without waiting to hear an answer?









Do all the doors seem closed?

Is it only found behind lock and key?

Are there too many choices and does the path seem too long?

Is it fortified like Tolsky's?

Is it wide open and exposed?

Is it dilapidated but surrounded by awe-inspiring beauty?

Do we need a door...when God shows us His magnificence and love in everything??

Well I guess I still have a door after all...I am who I am. All the doors above are a part of me, but this is how I envision my own gate as it creaks and swings from side to side more and more to hear, see, and listen to my God...and He is so good to me. And by the plant that is blooming there, I hope it will one day invite you all to know and grow in God's glory by letting your own door be opened to Him and as your friend to invite you into my life more!

(All pictures compliments of my lovely trip to Mexico, 2005.)

Satchel and I

A cutie petutie with plummer's butt...and my sweet Satchel cat putting up with all the TLC I could give him. (From the collection of forgotten photographs that were rummaged thru on my trip home!)

"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me." ~Matthew 18:5

三沢 (Misawa)

The first time I went to Misawa was over 1 1/2 years ago. I always remembered the kanji name because of the slants meaning "3" (mitsu) and I always thought the other kanji looked like crawdads....not that this is relevant to anything but I guess that's how my brain works hahaha. The day I went there I attended the yearly AirShow. It was a drab and overcast day. So overcast in fact that the actual airshow was pretty much cancelled. But that didn't stop the Japanese and foreigners alike from parading up and down the runways in search of food, fun, and more food.

Since then, I now have other reasons for making the journey across Aomori to see my friends!!! And I can now say that there is nothing drab about the Misawa sky....And could there be jealousy in my voice when I say there is no comparison to the amounts of snowfall between the west and the east sides of the state!! This became all the more apparent after traveling home late on Sunday. The trains were running late because of having to plow through the snow and the general fact of having to wade through 2 feet of fresh snow on my walk home somewhat tainted my spirits. But here's a few pics of my weekend away!!! There was brunching at Mike's, devotions and general chillin' at Drea and Patrick's, and a small get together at the off-base Hospitality House.

The dusty old wall...

The previous headmasters at one of my elementary schools...Man oh man, these guys are really ancient...some I dated back to 1885 (Meiji 20). Amazing the photos still line the the top of the dusty old walls. Some photos have been cut out and superimposed onto an old grey background and the images appear cloudy, and others are more modern with crisp, clear features. All of them men so far at this school.

And the future headmasters of my schools are below....kids, ya gotta LOVE 'em!!! They are soooo precious!!

"But Jesus called the children to him and said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. '" (Luke 18:16)

The pleasures of JUSCO

JUSCO is the equivalent of an American mall. It has all the necessary stores...shoes, bags, books, housewears, clothes, and the stuff store (my favorite place). This is the place I go when I have too much time to kill in between changing my schools each day...the most important reasons being 1. it's heated in winter 2. it's air-conditioned in summer. In JUSCO, among other things, you can find penguins...

Or you can opt for a more relaxing time of it by partaking in the massage chair section...but be forewarned, this is not for the drowsy individual if that same drowsy individual must carry-on teaching for the rest of the day...

Hmmm, which button should I choose?? So many options that I can't understand anyways!!

I'm not sure if I'm in agony, pain or enjoyment in the middle picture....but the experience couldn't have been any better than this ojiichan, he definitely has the right idea...and all this could be yours for the small sum of about $3000!!!

And let's not forget the primary aim of the excursion to JUSCO with the Elliot family...to see Pride & Prejudice. I found the movie poster interesting...Pride (プライド) is written in katakana...meaning it is a "foreign" word or not necessary having an original Japanese equivalent. While Prejudice (偏見) is written in kanji which is the mainstay of the Japanese language....what are they trying to say here??? Is the type of pride in this movie not found in Japan?? Just wondering..... No reviews, not 'cuz I didn't like it but what can I say....please read the book!!

The forecast as seen thru my windows...

Ummm....was it gonna be sunny today???

Ahhh, shucks....I guess only snow, snow, and guess what....more snow!!!

This 'n' that...

I get really excited when I get to kick the frozen snow build-up off of my tire guards...I'm not sure if this is a good thing or bad????? ^_^ But it definitely marks the highlight of my driving experience.

I brought my ちゅうがっこう "chuugakkou" (junior high school) teachers some good old fashioned Chase's Cherry Mash candy for the traditional little token or gift that is given after visiting someplace on vacation or on business. It's called "omiyage" おみやげ and it's a large part of Japanese custom or maybe it just lets everyone in the office smile at you for once?? If you haven't had a Cherry Mash, you'd better run out and get yourself one before you die of curiosity...they are my mom's favorite treat, so I was excited to share them with my co-workers. It's always interesting for me to watch 'em taste something for the first time...didn't really get a reading except the Cherry Mash is maybe way too sweet...as a couple teachers ran to the drink area for some tea to wash it down. But I was disappointed to find one in the discarded omiyage dish in the cupboard...I'm gonna sneak over there one of these days and give it the respect it deserves...to eat it!!! I guess it went over a bit better than the cacahuete candy I brought back from Mexico...and then there was the unknowingly illegal buffalo sticks another time...oh well, live and learn and LAUGH!!!!

Hangin' with the Christoffersens

Wow, I thought Heidebrecht was loooooonnnngggg!!! Spent the last couple days with a sweet couple, Mark & Ayako, who originally met at my own little Itayanagi International Chapel. Did some baby store shopping with 'em and they fixed me up some very tasty quesadillas sabrosas and gave me the leftovers!! Mark was a JET in Nakasato (in the same programme as me) some 8 years ago and Ayako grew up around here...but they are now living in the DC area. We enjoyed bouncing around old and new stories of this place and seeing how God is working in each of our lives. Of course the highlight of the room was always Luke くん!! What a cutie pie...with cheeks like mochi ^_^!!

It was also my first time to see an all out Japanese altar for ancestors. Akayo's parents carry on the Japanese tradition and religion of Buddhism and Shinto. I'm sorry I don't know all the proper names nor do I really want to learn...but it was astonishing to see the amount of preparation that goes on each day just in order to keep the altar or ancestors...should I say...at peace??? Not sure how to phrase it. It was a bit overwhelming with so much detailed, delicate goldwork and lacquer. It makes me reflect on how we give respect to our dead without worshipping them....and how our own American customs at a funeral and afterwards at the cemetary could be seen to an outsider with no knowledge of Christianity as something like this Buddhist or Shinto ritual.

The Buddhist Altar

The Shinto Altar

The great grandparents on Ayako's father's side.

Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? .....
Are we trying to arouse the Lord's jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

(1 Corinthians 19-22)

Christmas trees

This posting is a bit late...but trying to adjust to the jet lag and waking up at 4 AM lent itself to motivating me. I was wondering about the origins of the Christmas tree. The spruce itself was worshipped quite extensively in the past by the Egyptians, Druids, Celts, Romans, etc. The Christian tradition didn't start until much later with the Germans and slowly it spread over to the Americas. I won't bore ya with what might be a long history...but you can read here or research at will!! But I like to compare peps trees...I wonder if it's like "you are what ya eat" hahaha???

This is my family's tree. It changes slightly from year to year, sometimes real, other times the old fakey. Sometimes tinsel, other times straw chain. But the little wood ornaments are the most special to me because my mom painted them when I was a little tike and they've always hung in their place each year. The lights are usually multi-colored and on occasion we get out the old heated, bubble candle lights. This year is our Mexican tree hahaha...or we liked to imagine it so.

I last put up my tree 3 years ago in my Wisconsin apartment...I loved that place and my specially painted orange walls and happy colors. The tree now lies somewhere in deep storage along with all the other parts of my life before Japan. I fancy myself a retro gurl at times, so it's no surprise that I have a silver tree. The glass ornaments are my very special to me...an assortment from my Grandma Mary Jane and Grandma Orpha, given to me after they passed on. White lights are my favorite and always go on this tree as the silver reflects the light like a brilliant star. Nothing more could be added to bring a smile to my face. I think I left it up until March or later that year hahaha.

And for some reason, I not surprisingly had a craving to go to Mexico this morning. If there was a plane, I'd take it...but I had to resort to my collection of pictures. So please enjoy a few of my haunts if you like!!

ようこそ 日本 (Welcome to Japan!)

I have flown. Flown for work, play, work, and some more play, oh and work too!! As I was traveling back to Japan this time, I was recollecting some of my more interesting seatmates and incidences. There was the chap from Australia (twice), the psychic, the Philipinian with 3 maids and a driver, many men in business suits, the nanny from S. America, the scientist studying the bird flu disease, the missionary from SE Asia, the college student, the people that wanted to talk and I only wanted to sleep and probably the reverse too ^_^....

The incidences and people could go on forever...but one in particular that I chuckled about was the prim and self-absorbed lady that I sat by on a flight back from NewYork to Chicago. I was wearing my headphones and she huffed and puffed for a bit while looking over at me. I was thinking "What's her problem?" So I closed my eyes and tried to rest. Well, not long after she taps me, "Miss, could you please turn down your music?" I was a bit annoyed as my music wasn't in the least loud to my own ears but I said, "Sure." I got some more huffing and puffing for quite some time and even a few dirty looks. She once again taps me and proceeds to rant about my music. I pulled my headphones off and in whatever you can imagine a most angry Sarah voice to be, told her "It's NOT my headphones, it's the PLANE!!!" As soon as she realized she couldn't hear any music from my headphones, she was quite embarrassed. It was quite a while before she decided or had the nerve to apologize. I was surprised she did...and she went onto explain that she had some rowdy neighbors at home...and so her wits are basically fried when it comes to loud music. I can't say I was too warm and fuzzy to her in conversation afterwards, but I think we've all felt that embarrassed feeling on making an explanation that was completely in error or assuming too much. I actually have that feeling quite often hahaha!! Or at least the times I do, I never forget because I always learn from them and hope to be more wise and less ignorant in the future.

Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. ~Proverbs 12:18

And now that I'm home or home as in here....Japan welcomes me to winter with some whiteness and shivers that will never be equaled in any other place I live. The loud speaker is saying what I imagine to be "Sorry about the snow, but that is just the way it is." And I am now back to my own warm and cozy heated rug with a miniature dachshunds pattern...believe me it's not my style but style versus warmth...hmmm, I can now say I'll go with the latter any old day.

B'Gosh it's Oshkosh!

So I'm in between a million thoughts and pictures on layin' out my last week in the States. The gurls at Oshkosh (and their respective husbands ^_^) treated me fabulously as usual. No detailed was spared in what seemed like 4-star lodging and good times. Heated bed, leasurly magazines to read, coffee in the AM just the way I like it, mint chocolate chip ice cream, car and cell to use as needed, prayers and cathing up with my old pastors, an American haircut, so much good food, so many good discussions, so many friends and not enough time, the Oshkosh B'Gosh office (like nothing and everything have changed), turn of century houses, aveda in the bathroom, fruit, tea.....ok, well you get the idea. So enjoy the pictures even though you won't as much as I did!!

"I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers." ~Ephesians 1:16

Becky, Wendy, Sam (Wendy's daughter), Leah, Lilly (the pup), Sarah

(Michelle, Sarah, the bear, Kim)

Sarah and Leah at the video store.

Becky, who will be mortified that I put her picture up...but I made it small for you ^_^!!

My old upper.

The lovely First Congregational Church with oldest and most splendid organ in the NE United States.