I heart Japan.

I've got some catching up to do. We've been quite busy these last couple of months, but we've been having a really great time. With only about three months left, we're trying to seize every opportunity.

Late last month, we headed to Hakuba for one last ski trip. We celebrated Ayako's birthday, and we had a wonderful time. Things didn't exactly go as planned when it took us almost two hours to rent all of our gear, but we still managed to enjoy a fabulous half-day on the slopes. I even learned how to turn both directions on a snowboard. I still have a long ways to go, but I have fallen in love with it. It's so much fun! I can't wait to head out to Colorado and try it in the U.S. I'm going to miss the Japanese Alps so much, though!

This picture is of the four of us in our Passo. We actually traveled with a really large group, and we had a hard time finding space for all of our gear. I can't remember the exact totals, but we fit something like six snowboards, four pairs of skis and ski poles, four persons worth of luggage, boots, three Americans and one Japanese all in our little car! It was pretty hilarious.

I told you we went with a large group! Seventeen of us slept in the same room, too. I'm telling you, we have to bring the slumber parties back to the U.S. It's always such a fun time.

This picture was taken after an afternoon of bowling with our Japanese family (as I like to call them). They really do feel like aunts, uncles and cousins to us. I beat Travis in both games of bowling, which I don't think has ever happened before. Then, we pigged out on some yakiniku together. I can't believe how much food we ate!

On one rainy Saturday afternoon, Travis suggested we visit the Toyota Commemorative Museum, which has been on our to-do list for a while. It is a very nice and well-done museum in Nagoya. It explains the entire history of Toyota, and it's very interactive. I really enjoyed it for the first hour and a half, but I was losing patience for the last sixty minutes. As you can imagine, Travis loved it and could have spent the entire day there!

The picture above is of me with a huge loom machine of some sort. Toyota's initial endeavor was looming.
Here's Travis in some sort of futuristic chair thingy. Unfortunately, it was disabled so we could only take pictures in it.

Another evening, we went to dinner with Travis' close friend and Japanese tutor. He suggested a himono restaurant.

It's basically sun-dried fish. It reminded me of jerky. It was much better than I expected, but it did taste extra fishy.

We also attended a huge flower expo at the Nagoya Dome, which is where the Chunichi Dragons play baseball. I won some free tickets so we decided to check it out.

We had a nice time scoping out all sorts of flowers from around the world. There were especially lots of beautiful orchids to view.
Several days later, a friend of mine invited me to take an English tour of Yagoto Temple. It's funny that I never even realized a five story pagoda existed in Nagoya! The temple tour was really interesting, and we were able to take part in a traditional tea ceremony afterwards. I enjoyed it but had a little trouble understanding some of the worship styles explained. For instance, within the temple, individuals can get a stamp card. If an individual goes to the temple to pray seven times for seven months (once a month), they have their card stamped each time. After accumulating seven stamps, one is assured to have a long and prosperous life. Really?! A point card for prayers?

Last weekend, Travis and I took a day trip to Ise, also on our list of places to visit before we leave Japan. In Ise, we visited Mikimoto Pearl Island. We were able to tour the museum, see lady pearl divers and of course see some gorgeous jewelry.

Here we are at the entrance. We had a great day!

At Mikimoto Pearl Island, you can watch lady pearl divers called ama dive hourly. They wear no scuba gear and must have been freezing!

How's this for the cheesiest photo of the year? We actually learned a lot about how Mikimoto pearls are cultured. Did you know that inside every Mikimoto pearl is the shell of a mussel from the Mississippi River? Yep.

We also visited Meota Iwa, known as the sacred rocks of marriage. The larger rock represents a husband and the smaller, a wife.

See, I said we've been busy! And, I didn't even include everything. We're so excited to be moving back home, and we look forward to catching up with all of our friends and family. The move will be bittersweet as it represents the closing of a unique and exciting chapter in our lives. This is experience has far exceeded all of my expectations, and not a day goes by that I don't thank God for this amazing opportunity.

Only a life lived for others is worth living

Upon our return from Hawaii (in the airport actually), we learned that one of our good friends, Dan Shinozaki, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. We were, of course, completely shocked and devastated by the news and immediately began praying for him. We began thinking of ways we could be good friends to him during his battle and began making plans to visit him in the hospital. He was staying in a hospital nearly seven hours away so a quick trip wasn't feasible. Exactly one week and one day after we found out he had been diagnosed with cancer, Dan passed away. As you can imagine, we have been trying to cope with the loss of our friend ever since.

We were able to attend his funeral service at his family's home in Japan. I am so glad we were able to go to the service because it was wonderful to meet his parents and brother and sister. After meeting them and being in their home, it was so easy to see why Dan was such an amazing and kind person. He was the type of person that immediately put you at ease. He always listened attentively and showed genuine interest in others. He was such a kind and caring person, and he's already missed so much. He had a magnet featuring, "Only a life lived for others is worth living," a quote by Albert Einstein. Dan lived those words.

This picture was taken after the 5K last year. Dan is in the middle holding #547. He was planning to run the 5K race with us again this year. We will run it in his honor instead.

I don't know what else to say. I will never understand why things like this happen in life, but I have already learned so much.

You have no guaranteed tomorrow.

Dan would have been 28 this coming Friday.

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.'" Psalm 91:1-2

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18