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My new Saturday AM English class; enjoying some tea time after our first lesson together (Sat. Nov. 6 ‘10)
Photos from Ontario
Milliken Wesleyan young adults group.
Photo of the Week : Laughter & Friends
This probably isn’t technically one of my best photos, but I really like it because of the candid moment of smiles and laughter that it captures. Also: sweet view from a 5th floor window. On the left is one of my church friends, Maiko. On the right is Eric, a new friend who was visiting me in Nagoya this weekend.
The interesting thing about having someone from back in North America visit is that it gives me a fresh perspective on my life here. I’ve been in Japan long enough now that what once seemed strange now seems normal. It’s easy to forget how much I’ve learned. It’s easy to take stuff for granted. So it’s always refreshing to see it all through a newcomer’s eyes again.
This time I was reminded of just how fortunate I am to be living in such a beautiful and interesting place, and to have such a great community of Believers as my Family here. I am blessed. And I am grateful.
A Good Day Off
Today was a full and tiring but really good day.
This morning I had an almost two-hour conference call on Skype sharing dreams with a couple of fellow-ministry-minded creative-types. It was inspiring and gets me excited about the future when I think about it. I left home immediately after that and met up with my fellow-Canadian, Hooch (whose blog is so out of date I’m not sure why I bother linking to it — hint, hint, Hooch), and went to Gifu Castle (as seen in the photos above and below). Great view. Good times.
I got back from Gifu with about a half hour to spare before our young adults’ prayer and planning meeting. After being out all afternoon sight-seeing, I was feeling rather tired, and honestly kind of wishing I didn’t have a meeting to go to. But I went, and of course I was glad I did. Not only was there some great food to be shared, but some great people to share it with. Have I mentioned how much I love these people? They’re a pretty amazing bunch.
All in all, a refreshing and fun day off. And I’m thankful.
Life is Fast
I’ve been back in Japan for almost a year now. Crazy. I wish I could say I’ve made more progress in my Japanese than I have. But the biggest thing I’ve learned is how to learn. Actually I’m still learning. Hopefully the next year I can apply what I’ve already learned — both the “how to learn” and the actual language skills — and really see some measurable progress.
It’s Sunday afternoon, a rainy day, and with this cold I’ve caught, a great day to say inside. It’s a pretty good time to get sick, though. At school they’re having our annual health checks this week. Yes, my language school gives us health checks; I think it’s a law here. And actually kind of nice that they take responsibility for their students’ well-being like that.
I really don’t have much to say today. I just wanted an excuse to post a couple of photos. I’m thinking I’ll completely can the photoblog and instead just post more photos here. Maybe a re-design would help, though, something that lets me post them at a larger size and really let ’em shine. What do you think?
The above photo, by the way, was taken at a Nagoya Station subway platform. Below, something a little more peaceful and traditional — yet another shot from the Nakamura Festival. These are dancers from the same group as the girl in my most recent Photo of the Week.
