Stake Relief Society Meeting in Sendai

On Saturday, April 1st we drove to Sendai to attend the stake women's conference. Though, of course only women attend, four priesthood holders in the branch drove the sisters the 2 1/2 hours and waited in the parking lot for the sisters.  Good men.  This year, nine sisters attended from our little branch. 

It was a delightful day of mingling with sisters from all over the stake.  We were divided into groups- each represented by a different fruit.  I was in the raspberry group. 

Sister Smith- another senior missionary was in my group- so we could speak English together.  That was nice.

Those darn kiwis got four of my dear friends from the branch.  I sneaked over there and took a picture of them while we were making our crafts.

The activity was to make little hat magnets out of pet bottle caps.  They had little kits all ready for us- so even a non-crafty person like me could succeed.  We made them for sisters that were victims of the recent Kumamoto earthquake.  The dear sisters from this stake know what it is like to get support from others after such disasters.  Many of them experienced the horrific 2011 earthquake/tsunami. 

When our table was finished making ours, we lined them up to take a picture.  I texted this picture to my family and asked them to guess which two I made.  One daughter got both of them right and another got one of them.  What?  How?  Can you guess?

We then bagged them with a little note that we wrote.  Mine are the two in the corner- pink and yellow.

I took this picture when they came by to pick ours up.  This was only about 1/2 of them. 

We then had a delicious lunch of :

Japanese Potato Salad

Green Salad

And curry and rice, mugichau (wheat drink), and little gelatin cups

This is Hikari and her cute daughter feeding her. I posted about her in October as her husband served in the Hong Kong mission when Ken's brother, Don was president.  We visited them in Sendai while Don and Ada were here.  It is always a joy to see her at stake functions.

We then played a fun trivia game, with the tables competing against each other for who could get the most right.  No one got them all right, but ours and three other tables got only one wrong.  They had a grand prize for the #1 winner and smaller prizes for #2 and #3.  To determine who would get which prize, they had a representative from each table "jon ken pon."  This is how they solve all kinds of problems in Japan.  You see it all the time.  It's "rock, paper, scissors."  They have a little poem they say and everyone knows it and knows how to play it.

Sister Hirayama represented our table "Jon ken pon"

We ended up getting 2nd place treats- choco pies. 

We then sang "For Health and Strength and Daily Food" round and then viewed the Women's session of conference.  This meeting took place a week earlier.  They translate the proceedings and send a DVD to the stake units in Japan to view a week later.  They set it up to be viewed in English in another room for the English speakers- four of us (two sister missionaries and a little gal here teaching English.) 

It's hard to explain what a meeting like this means to the sisters here.  They are isolated from fellow saints- Christians in a non- Christian nation.  It means so much to them to gather and feel the strength of their sisters in the gospel.  It has forever changed how I view the Women's session of Conference.  I now understand how important the word "worldwide" is. 

I Had Better Not Quit My Day Job!

A few Sundays ago, the teacher passed around a packet of paper and told each of us to choose our favorite color.  I took pink, of course. 

She then asked us to draw a picture of our favorite thing on the other side.  So I drew a picture of Ken, of course. 

She then had us all show our drawings.  Everyone knew immediately who mine was, and, soon everyone was looking at mine.  I was pretty embarrassed.  I know, I'd better not give up my day job!  I never did find out what the point of this activity was.  That is pretty common that I don't know what is going on!  It is also pretty common that I become the center of attention.  Ken came home from his meetings later and said that everyone, including a member of the stake presidency (who attended Relief Society that day) informed him that his wife drew a picture of him. 

Pretty good, huh?

Side by side comparison

A Special Sunday School Lesson

Each week I sit through sacrament meeting and Sunday school getting very little.  I can pick out words here and there, but really don't understand much.  I've developed some coping methods:  Every other week, I play the organ and that helps me a lot on those days.  I read a conference talk or scriptures during the meetings, I get "healthy sleep" as President Uchtdorf suggested, I have the sacrament prayers memorized, so I always say them to myself while they are being said in Japanese.  I get by. 

A couple of weeks ago, sweet Mami (a young single adult in the branch who has been called to be one of the gospel doctrine teachers) came up to us after sacrament meeting and asked if we would sit on the front row during Sunday school class.  She was teaching that day.  We didn't know what she wanted, but we complied.  She started her lesson, and we soon realized why.  As she said each thing in Japanese, she held up a sheet of paper that had a translation of what she was saying in English.  Mami speaks no English.  She had spent hours using a digital translator to prepare this for us. 

The translation wasn't perfect, but it gave me an idea of what was going on. 

It was such a kind, thoughtful, Christ-like thing to do for us.  I was so very touched.  Later, in Relief Society, Mami's mom said (Sister Hirayama translates Relief Society for me) that Mami had been up until five a.m. that morning preparing her Sunday school lesson. 
How do you express gratitude when someone sacrifices so much for you?  I don't know either. 

What Did the Prophet Ask Us To Do?

What Did the Prophet Ask Us to Do?

April, 2017

Sunday Morning session

Read the Book of Mormon every day

Do what is necessary to obtain a testimony

Obey Commandments

Daily Prayer

Daily Scripture Study

Promises

We will hear the voice of the spirit

Resist temptation

Overcome doubt and fear

Receive heaven’s help in our lives

Priesthood Session

Be kind, loving, and charitable

Promises

Call down the blessings of heaven for ourselves, our families, and others

The Family Is of God

On Sunday, when Mackrorys were here, we provided the musical number.  Elder Nathan- a fine pianist- accompanied us.  This video is of us rehearsing the day before. 

Kristen, Brielle, and Nathan Come to Visit: Sunday-Wednesday

Sunday, March 19th

Here's Part 2, starting with Sunday.  It was so fun to have Kristen, Brielle, and Nathan at church with us on Sunday.  Ken conducted and I played the organ, so they were kind of on their own.  We provided the musical number, "The Family is of God."  I will post a video of our rehearsal of it after this post.  Then, Ken needed someone to say the closing prayer, as the one assigned wasn't there.  So Kristen did- in Japanese!  We were proud of her.  After the three hour block, we had Shokujikai, which, being interpreted, is Food Meeting- my favorite kind of meeting.  We have shokujikai the third Sunday of every month, and it just so happened that was the week they were here.  Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures.  But we had a fun time eating and visiting.  Afterward, we got some good pictures.

We asked Ryohei to tell us his conversion story.  It was a little noisy in the other room, so we went in the Relief Society room and he told us his story.

The few remains of dinner.

Amane is just one day older than Kristen's Samuel.  She was missing her baby, and Amane let her hold him- for a minute.  He likes his mama.  And who doesn't?

Brielle, Nathan, and Remi

That evening, we went to Kadowakis for dinner.  We met Kazuko at the volunteer center when we first came to Japan and they have become dear friends.  First, they gave the kids a lot of gifts.

They prepared a delicious Japanese feast for us.

This is scattered sushi.  It has all of the ingredients of sushi, but it's served more like a salad.  Notice the little quail eggs that they carved and decorated.  It was a work of art.

Look at that delicious feast- served in the Japanese way- in many little, beautiful bowls.  Afterward, they presented each of us with our soup bowl to take home.  Each had been carefully chosen for us.

A very popular treat here is tacoyaki- fried octopus pancake balls.  Shiho had prepared everything so she could help the kids make tacoyaki after dinner.  They had a blast. 

Pancake batter is put in the pan, then octopus, then more batter.  There is also dried fish and seaweed. 

When they were done, the kids served each person a tacoyaki with Japanese mayonnaise and okonomiyaki sauce.

These are some of the funnest people in Japan.  Kazuko is just a crack up. 

Dessert was fresh fruit

Nathan was after-dinner entertainment with his kendama.

Then Kazuko schooled him in kendama.  She is really good.

They both were going great.

Kristen and Shiho are close to the same age and really hit it off.

Shiho was so good with the kids.  Everyone had such a good time.

BFFs!

Monday, March 20th

On Monday, we drove to our favorite beach on the Sea of Japan.  It has a bridge you can cross to a little island.  It was a beautiful, though windy day.

Ken, Kristen, and Nathan hiked to the top of the island to a little shrine.

A view from the island back to Yura.

I didn't get a picture, but when we got to the mainland, the kids and Kristen had a fun time beach combing.  This is THE best place for beach combing as there is a lot of beautiful, polished sea glass and pottery shards. 

We then headed up to Atsumi so they could try the foot onsen (hot springs.)  The water was hot, but the day was windy and cold.

We then shopped in a little curios shop up there and the kids participated in a treasure hunt- running from business to business collecting stamps.  When they filled up their paper, they each got a candy prize.

We then drove back to Tsuruoka and ate at a ramen shop (owned by Kadowaki's son.)  The kids were so excited to sit at a Japanese-style table.

And the ramen was delicious.

That evening we had to attend the Buddhist funeral of a sister in our branch up in Sakata.  It was a very interesting cultural experience for the kids.  I led the branch members in singing "I Believe in Christ" and "I am a Child of God," adding Christianity to an otherwise Buddhist funeral.  It was a moving experience to testify of Christ and the plan of salvation through music in that setting.  After the funeral, we were invited to share some sushi and other little treats with the deceased's family.  We then went to tempura restaurant and each had a piece of tempura.  I had squid- my favorite.

Tuesday, March 21st
Kristen's hotel was just behind our local mall.  We met them at the mall that morning and did some shopping.

Before we left, I took this picture of the sign outside our apartment.  I realized I didn't have a picture of it.  Random.

Nathan was far less interested in shopping than in playing his kendama all throughout the mall.  In the foreground you can see that Ken is not interested in shopping either.  He is looking up Japanese words and writing them in his notebook.  He spends a good deal of time doing this every day.  He truly is fluent in two languages, but he is constantly studying and learning more.  (That's what he's doing right now in fact as I write this.)

A bread store or panya is a delightful cultural experience.  You get a tray and a pair of tongs, then put what you would like to purchase on your tray.  The kids were so excited to try the doughnuts.

Nathan said it was the best doughnut he has ever had.

We then headed to Tsuruoka City park and walked around.

And took a few pictures.

We then went across the street and toured the ancient school here-Chido School. It was a school for children of Samurai.  It is now a museum.  The kids had fun imagining what it would be like to attend the old Japanese school where you remove your shoes and sit on tatami mats to learn.

We then went to a local bakery that sells strawberry daifuku- one of Kristen's favorite treats from her mission. 

We ate our daifuku in the little shop.  They were delicious.  In the middle is a white-chocolate dipped strawberry.  That is surrounded by an (sweet white bean paste) and soft, sweet mochi. 

We were driving by here one day and Ken saw this sign in the window- advertising the strawberry daifuku.  It was just before Kristen came.  We felt it was a sweet, little miracle to find it just before she came.

We then went to Kapazushi's- a sushi place where you order the sushi and it comes on a train to your table. 

It is delicious sushi.

They also have fried chicken nuggets and French fries if you aren't into sushi.

We then went . . .you guessed it- back to the mall shopping!

This was my favorite store- the Japanese version of Vera Bradley.  Just seeing this picture gets my blood pumping! 

I may or may not have purchased a beautiful treasure!

Love these three!

We drive by this statue in downtown Tsuruoka (in front of the train station) all the time, but I finally took a picture of it.  It represents farmers bringing in the rice harvest.  It's a perfect representation of this agricultural area.

We had a little scare while we were shopping.  Kristen, Brielle and Nathan went elsewhere in the mall while I sat on a bench to rest.  I actually fell asleep on the bench.  When I woke up, there was Brielle.  She had become separated from her mom and Nathan. and couldn't find them, so came back to where I was.  Soon, Kristen came so upset.  She couldn't find Brielle and it really scared her.  There were some tears as relief set in.

Nathan REALLY wanted to ride a train.  He had never ridden one before.  So we walked over to the train station to check into it.  We decided to do it in the next day before they had to fly out.

That evening we attended our branch's FHE.  They put on a feast for a king that evening.  It was such a fun, fun night with so many people we love.

They call it FHE, but it is also choir rehearsal.  I took this picture from the little keyboard I play for our rehearsal.

Tuesday, March 21st

Sad day.  Their plane was to leave at 1pm, so, after loading up the suitcases and checking out of the hotel, we took them to the train station so they could ride the train.

Ken and I drove to the next station to meet them.  Here it comes!

A happy boy!

Signs of spring- my favorite color.

We then headed to the airport. 

As there was on their way here, there were problems checking in.  It took a very long time and caused quite a bit of anxiety- but, in the end, all was well. 

The Satohs came to see them off.  They are such dear friends.

The Hina matsuri (children's festival) doll displays were all over town.

Sad goodbye.

Headed through security.

Just after they went through security, Ryohei showed up to see them off.  He was so apologetic at being late. 

We finally got Kristen's attention and she was able to say goodbye over a phone they have set up just for that purpose.  Can you see the glass wall?

We all went out on the observation deck to wave them away.  All of this is beautiful Japanese tradition.

Kristen said they saw us waving as they left.

Even the airport employees pause to wave goodbye to the plane. 

And so ended a grand week with Mackrorys.  Thank you for facing the rigors of international travel to be with us.  And thank you to Jared for tending the three youngest children at home.  We made memories to treasure for a lifetime!