They Don't Drink Sake!!

Meet Brother Sato.  He is our guardian angel, but I'll tell you about that in a minute.  He was one of the first people we met at the branch.  He is always here at the church- serving.  He often comes and works at the church, cleaning and working outside.  He was the branch president here for ten years.  He is used to serving.  He often spends his days off work driving the elders around; helping with their work.  We had to go to a conference in Sendai by bus.  It was a big, grueling day.  There is no parking at the bus station, so Ken had to take the elders and I to the station, drive back home, then walk about 25 minutes back to the bus station to go.  We thought he would have to do the same thing when we got back.  We arrived at night in a huge snow storm.  When we got off the bus, there was Brother Sato waiting for us.  He drove us all home.  So you can see, he's our guardian angel.  But let me tell you how he got the title:
Last Thursday, he spent the entire afternoon with the elders.  He drove them to Sakata- a town about 25 minutes away and spent the day visiting people with them.  He then drove them to where we hold English class at 6:00.  He waited for them, then drove them home after.  Ya, he's that kind of guy. 
Ken and I had some visiting to do before class and then went to class, so we didn't get any dinner.  So, since Brother Sato was taking care of the elders, we decided to stop in Sakata and grab something to eat.  We approached a little place that said in Kanji "Yaki Tori"  That means cooked meat.  That sounds fine to me, so we pulled in and went inside.  It was a little café and no one was there except the chef and the waitress.  We were just getting settled in a booth when Brother Sato burst in the door and shouted, "They don't drink sake!" (Sake is Japanese beer.)  Then there was lots of Japanese that I didn't understand.  But when he left, he had negotiated the price down since we weren't drinking sake and he had ordered for us.  I guess that a Yaki Tori place is a bar and the cooked meats are little appetizer-sized dishes that people eat with their sake.  The elders told us later that they were right behind us and when Brother Sato saw us pull in, he pulled a U-turn and came back to save us.
Later that evening, we had to go to the church to do some computer work.  There was a group there, working on the Sweet Honey Pancake Party (which I'll blog about soon).  The first thing they asked, "How was the yakitori?"  Our reputation was spreading fast.  Later in the week, we were talking to someone from Sendai (three and a half hours away.)  The first thing she asked, "How was the yakitori?"  Oh, dear.  So when someone asks you, "Did you hear the one about the missionaries that went into a bar?"  say, "Yes, I heard that one. . . and it's a good one!"

Yaki Tori

See. No Sake!

Yaki Tori

The chef and waitress

Addendum:  The next day, we were driving the elders home after a meeting. We stopped at Yamaya.  It's a liquor store, but it's also an import store.  We had heard you could get American foods there.  So we stopped and went inside.  As we went in, I said, "Wouldn't it be funny if Brother Sato saw us here at the liquor store?"  A half-hour later, we walked out of the store, and guess who greeted us??  Yep, Brother Sato.  Unbeknownst to us, the elders had called him.  He lives nearby and came over to play the joke on us.  We're gaining quite a reputation!

Our Sweet Remi Comes to Visit

Our sweet "daughter" Remi came to visit from Japan.  She was only here for a little over a day, but it was so wonderful to see her.

Let me tell you about Remi.  Her parents lived in the little branch in which we served our mission in Japan.  We got there in December, 2015.  Her parents told us about Remi and her sister Rizumi who were living together in Tokyo at the time.  In January, Remi came home(about a 7 hour bus trip) for her Seijin Shiki Day.  That is a very special day for Japanese young adults.  It is a day honoring all who will turn twenty-years-old during that year.  Girls have their hair and make up professionally done, dress  in an expensive kimono and attend the ceremony.  It is a day anticipated by young girls all their lives, much like American girls anticipate their wedding day.  

The ceremony was going to be in the afternoon, but Remi came dressed in her finery to church.  I was thrilled when she walked in.  I fell in love with sweet Remi immediately.  No, really.  There was a bond right from the start.  She hugged me and, though we couldn't communicate, I could feel her sweet spirit.  

The next summer, she and Rizumi moved back home and to the branch to live.  She added such a spark to the branch.  Everyone, and I mean everyone, loves Remi.  From the littlest Amani kun (the branch president's baby) to the oldest sister in the branch, Sister Ikeda, everyone loves Remi.  She is pure joy.

Remi's mother, Imi, speaks and writes pretty good English, and is a dear friend.  She and I continue to communicate often.  So we were happy to hear that Remi had reconnected with one of our elders who we served with in Tsuruoka (he went back to visit with his family) and that Remi and Walker were skyping frequently.  They arranged for Remi to come to Salt Lake City to visit for a week during her break for New Year's Day.  She insisted that, as part of her visit, they come to St. George to see us. She calls us her American parents. We were SO excited.  How we love this precious girl.

And we aren't the only ones who love her!  She and Walker got engaged on New Years Day!  So Remi will most likely be living in SLC after they are married.  We are so happy for them.

As is so customary for Japanese people, Remi came bearing lots of gifts from her mother.

Remi and Walker arrived about noon and we served them barbecued hamburgers for lunch.  Beef is a real treat for Japanese people as it is extremely expensive there, so they don't eat much of it.

As a joke, Imi sent these little plastic mice, which Remi immediately arranged on our fruit basket.  So Remi!

This was my favorite gift that Remi brought.  New Year's Day is a HUGE holiday in Japan.  As part of their celebration they all hang a special wreath on their door that looks like this. I was thrilled to get one to hang on our door each New Years.  

That evening, we skyped with Imi and Hiroyuki.  It was so fun to talk to them again.  We love them so much.  If you follow this blog, you may remember the "They don't drink sake!" story.  That was Hiroyuki.  They helped so much in so many ways.  We really miss them.

What a miracle we can talk with loved ones clear around the world.

That evening, we took Remi to see Olson's beautifully decorated home.

On Friday, we took Remi and Walker to Zion National Park for the day.

These deer ran right in front of our car to welcome Remi to America.  She was thrilled.

For lunch, we went to what used to be "The Bumbleberry Inn" in Springdale.

Remi's idea to reenact this statue.

Remi had a terrible cold while she was here, which did subdue her a bit, but you can see her adorable personality.  She was thrilled with her berry salad.

The sandwiches were delicious, too.

We hurried home and packed them a sack dinner for their travel back to SLC.  Then we went to the St. George temple and walked around.

The Christmas nativity was still up.

They had to be on the 5:00 shuttle back to SLC.  Remi left for Japan from the SLC airport early the next morning.

As is Japanese custom, we stayed and watched the shuttle drive away, bowing and waving until out of sight.  We are so grateful Remi and Walker would take a day of their precious week to spend with us.

Easter Dinner with the Satohs

On Easter Sunday, we had the Satohs over for an almost traditional Easter feast. 

Ham, asparagus (thank you, Costco!), potato salad and yogurt parfaits.

I usually make Funeral Potatoes on Easter, but sour cream is hard to find and is very expensive here, so I made potato salad instead. 

I have a Jell-o salad recipe I usually make for Easter dinner, but Jell-O as we know it, doesn't exist here.  So I made yogurt parfaits instead.  They were delicious.

Imi brought delicious custard puddings to add to our feast.  Eaten with our strawberry shortcake, it tasted almost like strawberry trifle!

Brother Satoh was branch president here for about ten years, so they told us a lot of the history of the branch.  Easter isn't celebrated here as we do at home, so it was fun to share our Easter traditions and foods with them.  We enjoyed our evening with the Satohs.  As I was preparing the meal, I got a little intimidated.  I asked Ken, "What am I doing, cooking for the best cook in the branch?"  He asked me, "So why are you cooking for the best cook in the branch?"   I thought about it.  "Because I love her."  We really do love these good people.  She cooks every week for our Family Home Evenings.  Her food is delicious.  You've met Brother Satoh before.  He's "They don't drink Sake! Satoh"  They serve tirelessly.  Often when we're at the church, he'll be there deep cleaning the church, just because.  One day he had lifted the mats in the genkan and was vacuuming and scrubbing underneath.  Each of them work two jobs.  When they have time off from their jobs, they spend it serving.  He showed up in a pouring rainstorm the other day to change the tires on our car for us.  It was Imi that showed up with that delicious cake for Elder Hinton on his birthday.  They do a lot for the elders, too.  That's just the way they are.  It was a privilege to have them in our home, and made for a happy Easter for us!