Hello Again....

 Well hello everyone, whoever and wherever you may be... I am me, sitting at a dining room table somewhere in Tokyo, Japan, with a baby in my lap. I have sad news... Colin is on his way back to Mississippi. Right now he is sitting somewhere near the middle of a Boeing 777 over the Pacific Ocean. My room looks so empty. The entire house seems just a little sadder....especially me... :( I hated to see him go. I wish his stay could have been longer... But why dwell on that when I could be telling of all the fun we had together while he was here! We had 13 wonderful days together, and I hope always to remember the fun we had.  Since it's been too long to go from where I left off last time to today, I'll start at yesterday, work my way backwards as far as I can remember until I get too tired to think... :)


 Yesterday morning started off well. After taking Eastin to school, Colin and I took Baby and left for the Imperial Palace. It was only a short train ride and walk away, and the weather was perfect for a long walk outside. It was overcast (good for picture taking), breezy (good for...something), and cool (to keep you from getting too hot walking for so long). I pushed Baby in the stroller the entire time, and we spent the whole morning just walking around the imperial gardens. It was amazing, not necessarily for the interesting landscape, but just because it was so big! There were actually huge patches with just grass and a few trees! I was continually commenting on the amount of grass! It was pure beauty! :) We took some pictures, but they are all on Colin's camera, so I don't have any to show yet... Perhaps soon. Then for lunch we ate at a little cafe type thing. It reminded me of a small corner place in London in the 1960's. The atmosphere was wonderful (not to mention the hamburger, fries, onion rings, and drink), and the music was all from the late 1940's to mid 1960's American.  Perhaps the prices weren't that great compared to America, but we each got all of those things for less than 1,000 yen. I thought it was pretty good, considering that just a coke in a restaurant here can cost up to 400 yen! Then on the way back we got lost for a while in Tokyo station. But we found our way, and then I picked Eastin up from school and we spent about an hour here. Then, Colin and I went to Hinako's house for a calligraphy lesson from Hinako's grandmother! I learned to make three kanji. We each did the word for 'big', and 'mountain', and 'earth'.  Hinako's grandmother even gave me my own set of calligraphy materials! I love it! I love doing it! She also presented one of her pieces to each of us. The one she gave me is 'mountain', and his is 'earth'. I love mine! :) After that we came home and had a full Japanese meal. We ate rice, yakitori (chicken on a stick), eggplant, fried lotus root, and Colin and I ate some Chinese rolls made by the mother of Eastin's friend! Everything was super delicious!!! After dinner I had pumpkin icecream. It was ok, but green tea icecream is still by far my favorite! We tried to watch an anime movie, but I fell asleep about 15 minutes into it, and didn't wake up until the end credits. :) I think Colin stayed awake for the whole thing, but I still don't have a clue what it's about... I'll have to watch it again some other time. :) 

  The day before that, Monday, Colin filmed me taking Eastin to school. I hope the video turned out well since he was having to film around all the other children and their mothers taking them to school. It was really cool, because the mothers kept saying good morning to us (as usual), but this time he got it on video so that I can always remember these days! My brother is amazing! After that I came back and made some bread while Colin worked on the video he's making for Grace City Church Tokyo (GCCT).  I think it's going to be good! Then we went to take pictures of the outfit I bought on Saturday. I bought the dress, boots, and jacket, and let Colin take pictures of it all. Then he and Abi went to film another part of the movie while I stayed here with Coen. I don't remember what we had for dinner that night, but I'm sure it was good too. :) We also watched an anime called "Princess Mononoke". It was in Japanese but had English subtitles. I really liked it. I had seen it before, but had no idea what was going on. Seeing it that night with subtitles made all the difference! 




On Sunday... Wow... Last Sunday was probably the best I remember since being here. I can't really explain what made it so different, it just was... And so totally better! I felt good all day, and everything seemed brighter and less foreign, and Coen was good during church, and the boys were good after church, and there were English words to all of the songs, and...I don't know... I just enjoyed it a lot more than usual. After church Colin, Jenna, and I went to LaLaport, the mall. That was lots of fun, too. We stayed until about 9:00. After that Jenna had to go back to Chiba and we came back here and went to bed. 




 Saturday was lots of fun. Colin and I spent the entire day out (didn't even make it back for supper), and had loads of fun. In the morning, we went to the Meiji shrine, made when Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken died in the 1960's (I believe). It is truly huge, and took all morning to explore! This picture is one of my favorites. It is me standing beside one of the huge arches outside the shrine. Seeing me standing beside it really helps put it into proportion... and I'm over 5 and a half feet tall (about 176 cm.)! I'm the tiny thing wearing white... Then after that we went to the Oriental Bazaar. I love that store, even though it was obviously designed for tourists. It has everything in it basically, and at more decent prices than you usually find... For lunch we stopped in a little two story cafe and had Italian. We just both happened to be craving something Italian. I don't think the fact that it was after 1:00 and it was the first restaurant we came to had anything to do with our decision. ;) We stopped at a Starbucks for a green tea frappachino after that, and went clothes shopping. Then we came home and had onigiri, sushi, and popcorn for dinner. (Only Colin had sushi. I wasn't in the mood for it. I just had a small onigiri and some popcorn while we tried to watch a movie.) I fell asleep during that movie as well, and Colin was working the entire time it was playing, so he didn't see it either. :) 


Now I'll skip to Wednesday, because I don't remember at the moment what we did on Thursday and Friday. On Wednesday Colin and I went to Chiba for the English worship service at Honda Chapel. I was so excited, and thankful, that I was able to find it on my own. We got to the station and I led the way to the church from there. It was the first time I ever remembered walking that way before, but we made it with no problems. Colin was able to meet the Chiba team (or most of them), and we ate lunch with them. He enjoyed talking to Mr. Drews during lunch. I also loved the English service. It was a full service, with hymns, a sermon, and the Lord's Supper. It was great. 


Well, I'm pretty tired now, so I'll have to fill in on more details at a later date. Perhaps tomorrow...? 


Remember to pray for the safe arrival of Colin!


All my love,
Hannah

Day 4...again...

 Well, I've been back in Japan for four days now, and it already seems like a week and a half has passed. I feel like I have done so much, but at the same time it feels like I haven't done anything. So let's see if I can take it one day at a time and tell what happened... :)


 On Saturday Colin (my brother), Roger and Abi went to Ginza to interview people. They are making a short movie about Grace City Church, and wanted to interview several people for that. I stayed here at the house with the boys while they did that. While they were gone I got bored and was trying to stay awake, so after I made sweet tea I washed the fronts of all the cabinets, cleaned all the glass (windows, doors, mirrors, etc.), and then I sat on the sofa to read Lord of the Rings. I ended up falling asleep about halfway through the chapter though... :( But overall it was a good day.


 On Sunday, ...I won't even go there. I had better just say that it was a very hectic day for me that started out too early, was too full in the middle,  and ended with my tripping coming up the subway station stairs and nearly tearing off my toenail! The weather was nice, though, and it was cool enough for me to wear my favorite tiered skirt. Colin was filming on that day too. They are making two different movies. This one is about what all goes into making a church in the middle of a huge city where you rent a room for four hours every week as your sanctuary. I think that both movies will be very good when finished.



 On Monday Colin and I went to Asakusa, to visit the major Buddhist temple that is there. It is a major tourist location, and I felt that it was worth seeing since I had never seen it before. There were SOO many people there! Colin and I took lots of pictures while we were there. We also explored the surrounding area. I think it was possibly the best day I've had in Japan the whole time I've been here.  I feel like I keep harping on this, but having someone to talk to and with whom I can relate makes an entire world of difference!!! We had lunch together in a little ramen shop a little ways away from the main tourist stream. It was very good. I love this first picture for several reasons. Not only can you see a glimpse of the old and traditional ways of the Buddhists as this woman gives an offering and prays before entering the temple, you can also see the flood...the masses... of tourists in the background as they make their way up the street. I took this picture after we had come through that mass of people. As I turned around to leave the temple this scene caught my eye. I couldn't believe I had just come through that! The other two pictures are fairly good as well. In the second picture you can see Colin and me in front of the temple doors. The last one is a picture of the gates leading to the temple itself with the huge lanterns. Colin took many more on his camera, and perhaps I'll be able to share them later. We got home around 3:30, and then I did the boys' English lessons with them and baked potatoes for dinner while Roger and Colin worked on editing the movies. I took the boys to the park to let out some energy right before it got dark... Then after I had cleaned the kitchen, and everyone had finished practicing instruments and editing movies, we watched a movie together. I liked it a lot. It was called 'The Man Who Knew Too Much'. I sat on the edge of my seat almost the entire time... It was suspenseful yet funny. Also, it had James Stewart as the lead character, so that made it all the better. :)

  Well, I suppose that is about all the interesting things that have happened lately... Of course, just being here and the every day things in life are interesting, but they are far too numerous to relate! I'm sure that in a few hours I will think of something else I meant to write, but I don't remember anything else at the moment. :)


 It is nearly lunch time, so I suppose I shall go and find some leftovers to confiscate. :)


All My Love,
Hannah

Three, Two, One, Zero!!!!

I'm Back!!! After a grueling 13 hour flight, preceded by an hour and a half flight and a two hour and fifteen minute flight, we (my brother and I) finally arrived in Narita, Japan. Going through customs was no problem since I had a re-entry visa and was able to go through the shorter lines. It only took us about 30 min. to go from the airplane door to the lobby. Abi met us there, and we got back to the house around 8:15. After that we both went to bed as soon afterward as possible. I was able to sleep for about 8 hours through the whole trip process. I slept about 7 hours during the long flight, and an hour during the flight from Dallas, TX to Chicago. Colin only slept about 45 minutes the whole time. We were able to have seats together on the long flight, and I had a window seat. Colin took lots of good pictures out the window during the flight. I might have slept longer if he had not been opening the window blind all the time and leaning over me to take pictures. But I'm glad he was able to sit next to me. I think having him there was one reason I was able to sleep as well as I did...Just to know that there was someone there that I could trust, and with whom I could talk. 
So in the last 48 hours, I was on three airplanes, I crossed the Mississippi River twice (and got further away from home each time), I had one LONG flight, and zero accidents! :) The only accident worth mentioning is when a one year old seat buddy spilled a cup of ice all over my leg while I was asleep... Other than that it was a smooth day. 


I am back here into the normal routine, and have already made a trip to the local grocery store... :) Well, it's nearly lunch time here, so I'll go for now.


All my love,
Hannah

safe and sound...and sleepy

Hello everyone, I just wanted to let you know that I made it home safe and sound. I have now been awake for 25 hours straight (excepting the 1 hour I was able to sleep on my 12 hour flight). :( So now, I am in a state of high sugar, high caffeine, and low sleep. :)

Going through the airports and doing everything I needed to do was easier than I had thought it would be. I was very blessed!

Well, I am very tired now, so I think that will be all... Perhaps I'll give more details from my flights later.

All my love,
Hannah

Tomorrow

Hi everyone. I just had to say hello from Tokyo one more time before my vacation.


I am leaving bright and early in the morning... Pray that I won't forget ANYTHING! 
I have finished packing now, and my laptop is the last thing for me to pack. I am so excited! I figured it out, and I'll see my family in just about 24 hours! 
It'll be soooo good to visit home, but also good to know that I'm coming back. Doing this has allowed me to realize all the things I wanted to do and haven't yet! Perhaps I'll be more prepared next time. :) 


Well, it's off to bed now. I have a really long day ahead of me. 


All my love,
Hannah

Three Days Remaining!

Hello everyone, whatever time it is for you! It is pretty late here on Saturday night, but I just wanted to say 'hi' and say how very excited I am that I'll get to see my family in just three days. I plan to arrive in MS on Tuesday. It's funny, but looking at the times of departure and arrival it seems as if I will only be flying for 45 min. In other words, I will land in Mississippi 45 min. later than I left Japan! The only thing is that it will be more like 15 hours later... :( Oh well, it will be good to be home! My family and I have planned carefully the 10 days I plan to spend there... And I have been planning what my brother and I will do during the nearly 2 weeks he is here. 


  On a different note, yesterday and today went well. It did not rain yesterday, and I was able to play soccer with Eastin and Hinako after the lesson. Later yesterday afternoon I took Baby downstairs and we played until he started eating dirt out of the giant planters... Then I decided he was bored, so we came back. Speaking of Baby, I've got to share something he did today! I think it was last week sometime when he started nodding his head 'yes' in true Japanese style....just one short nod... Well today while I was sitting in the den after we had been playing his new favorite game, he came and stood right in front of me and actually bowed from the waist! It was so adorable! So I bowed back to him and he did it several more times, just like Japanese people do! Then of course he broke into his uncontrollable little giggle. :) His favorite game this week has been "get ya'-get ya'-get ya'" Sometimes he comes up to me and then runs off trying to say that. He knows when he does that I will run after him repeating him, and when I 'get him' I tickle him and throw him up in the air, turn him around, set him down, and he runs the other way! I am going to miss him! Anyway, yesterday's babysitting job went well. Aidan and Baby were no trouble at all, though I did miss Eastin. I made vegetable soup and BBQ chicken legs and rice for dinner, and made lemon squares for dessert.  The lemon squares were absolutely delicious. They were so sweet, though, that after I ate it I felt sick for nearly an hour! And, they were gluten free!!! After I put the children to bed I had time to video chat with my family for a long while.... 
My family is so wonderful. God has given me a father and a mother who both love Him and who love me and care for me so much! He has given me an elder brother to be my friend, and little sisters who love and look up to me! I can't express my love for them all. One harsh word from any of them means so much to me... I wish always to please them and do my best for them...because I love them! 


 Ok. I know that was sort of a rabbit trail... :) Today went well too. It didn't rain again today, and the boys had soccer this morning. I stayed around the house today and had a very relaxing day! I caught up on some sleep and then read for a while out of Fellowship of the Ring. I am up to the chapter now about Tom Bombadil. It is very interesting! I really like Tolkien's style. It makes me feel like I'm sitting around the fireplace with him as he tells me a story. 


 Well, like I said, it is late here, so I think I'll turn in for the night. I have to make bread in the morning for communion at church, and I think we're having company for supper...


Good night!


All my love,
Hannah