Women's Conference in Sendai

On the Saturday you all were watching general conference, a women's conference was held in Sendai.  We are a week behind in Japan because  we have to wait for the DVD with the Japanese translation of the women's conference to come from Salt Lake.  Then a week later, they send out general conference translated into Japanese.  I'm sure that is quite the undertaking to do that in all the languages.   So, anyway, that Saturday was ROAD TRIP!  From our little branch, five sisters went to Sendai.  Ken drove one car with me, Sister  Ritzu Nomura (left- our Relief Society president), and Sister Imi Satoh( right) and me.  The branch president drove the other car with his mother, Sister Endo and Sister Hirayama.  It takes about 3 hours to get there.  Sisters from all over the stake gather.  The excitement is palpable.

Though we come the furthest, we were among the first to arrive.

I love Ritzu.

The place was packed.  We were divided into small groups and sent to tables.  Each table either made "cakes" of cream puffs, whipped topping, fruit and candy OR they rolled sushi.  We then consumed what we made.  Awards were given for the best sushi and cakes.

They let Imi and I stay together so she could translate.  Sister Smith is on the left- our mission president's wife.

Then the stake presidency talked and did a little skit.  I'm not sure what was going on.  They also had some sisters bear testimony.

We then found our placard that announced our branch or ward and gathered around the edges of the cultural hall.

Go Tsuruoka!!

Each ward or branch had been assigned a line to sing from the first two verses of "As Sisters in Zion."  Though we had only five sisters from our little branch, I think we did pretty well. 

Following is a recording of our little Tsuruoka group singing our part.  The next video is of the whole stake singing the last verse.  I had tears as I looked around at my Japanese sisters all singing our joy in being sisters in Zion.  It was an experience I'll never forget.  I'm sorry I wasn't holding my phone right, so it's upside down.

The sisters then watched the women's conference in their own language on a large screen.  Two other sister missionaries and I watched it in the chapel in English. 

The program was very different than how we do it in America.  Great attention is paid to detail, but the overall plan is relatively simple.  So many of the Japanese units are so small that these sisters were absolutely delighted to be in a room where so many shared their faith and beliefs. It fills me with gratitude for the blessings we take so for granted in America.  The next day at church, the Tsuruoka sisters who attended were showing their pictures to all of the other sisters in the branch and encouraging them to attend next year.  Their joy made the great effort to go there so worth it.  Here is a picture of most of the active sisters in our  little branch Relief Society taken on an earlier occasion.  I love my Tsuruoka sisters:

Back:Sister Kobayashi, Sister Shin Satoh, Sister Chiaki Satoh, Sister Miki Endo, Sister Sachiko Sugawara

Middle:  Me, Sister Hisako Hirayama, Sister Imi Satoh, Sister Ikeda

Front: Sister Ayaka Endo (branch president's wife), Sister Fumi Ito, Sister Abe and her two daughters, Tomoko and Yuko.

May the Lord bless them, each and every one!!!!