festival season

each night the sky is graced with hanabe, fireworks, and the air smells of tayaki, takoyaki and kakigori. i love it. shannon and i are currently shopping for a yukata, or summer kimono, to wear to all the festival fun. we have "dance" practice tomorrow night because on september 7 we will be a part of shiranuhi's, our local town, matsuri. tonight friends of ours will be dancing in the uto matsuri. so we will venture to the next city to take part in the fun.

with help i have finally learned to play around on blogger, my next goal is to conquer the photos. more to come...

today i had another tea ceremony class. this time shannon joined in on the fun! when we arrived the ladies had yukatas ready. they dressed us and class began.they love hearing about our lives in japan and we enjoy the genuine interest they have in hearing our stories. we hope to get to visit more.

off to pick up shanade at the station!

all my arkansas love! im missing the natural state these days!

cultural captian

this summer i decided with my "free" time i would take on a few japanese traditional classes. i have taken shuji for a year now and i have really enjoyed my time spent with my teacher and learning a bit of the heart of japan through the lessons. however, i though it was time to branch out and see/learn more about this country i am currently residing in. i enrolled in tea ceremony and ikebana (flower arranging) classes. i was a little frightened to go. after a year i speak little japanese. i showed up to the matsubase community center last tuesday afternoon with a note asking for the class in japanese to find the cute old front desk worker waiting to show me to the room. i walk into a traditional tatami room with two women in full kimono gear and three other women. after being at school everyday where my reality and existence is often all together ignored (apparently the gaijin before have left bad impressions, and unfortunately for me and my staff all foreigners are the same, or are they? my teachers will never know, or care)so sadly, i was not expecting the wonderfully warm welcome i received. each women, 62-75, was overjoyed to see me. it took them over a half hour to figure out i truly did not speak japanese. they were over loading me with maccha and sweets and even allowed me to serve them, teaching me the traditions and rules (all with out words- see actions are important!). a true smile did not leave my face the entire two hours. the entire two hours, that i thought i would be sitting seiza! luckily, the allowed me to sit on normally, and when i began to shift my weight they continually offered a chair and eventually gave me a floor pad. i hope to soon be able to write more on the beauty and history of the japanese tea ceremony, but before this gets too long I want to get to my point. when drinking the maccha it is very important to admire the cup/bowl that it is served in. we were using two exquisite bowls, one from the cultural capital of japan, kyoto. after admiring it i asked where the other was from, one of the lady's face began to shine as the others explained that her husband was a local potter and had made it and many of the other supplies they often used during class. they disappeared for a few minutes and returned with samples, and ultimately giving me a beautiful beautiful bowl! I was so touched by their kindness and genuine happiness in spending time with me. I hope to return in a few weeks, where they want to help me dress in traditional clothing!

recently i have been inspired by a few blogs i have stumbled upon. while being away, somewhat isolated in rural japan, i have found that exploration of thought has been a large part of my time here. although i am busy with school and the challenges of living abroad i find that often my mind drifts to deep questions i spend little time contemplating while in my comforts at home. actions have always been a very central part of my being and i truly believe the cliche saying that "actions speak louder than words," but how can i here make my actions speak? i have few words to communicate with those around me and little contact with those i can communicate with...its a question i am struggling with every day. i want to encourage and love those around me.

joy is a lesson i am learning. isn't it true when we become proud we are tested? man, am i realizing the truth in those words. a challenge for me this past year has been finding true joy. challenging my faith and trust in the one who can give me true and everlasting joy. joy in ALL circumstances. i am so blessed to have a true rock, a castle not built on the sand but an ever so deep belief in my creator and the belief that all things come together for good. there is a lesson to be learned from my time here, i am here for a reason, to be used and to be challenged, to show love and accept love, to better myself and those around me. life is so surprising.

misumi visit

this morning was my first visit to kindergarten. i walked in to see the precious children all wet and with swim caps. it quite possibly was one of the cutest things i have ever seen. then i met with the kind principal who was overly concerned with me being able to experience, see and eat my way across japan- why cant my junior high have that same mindset? then it was time to start, in the back classroom were seven very nervous children sitting in a straight line. i was told one child was hyperventilating with the thought of my coming and could not calm down all morning. i am still trying to process exactly how i feel about that, regardless she was smiley by the end of our eigo hour. we practiced colors, numbers 1-7, danced, danced, danced, danced, danced, danced, danced, and i sang. after class the students went to "shower" before lunch. the "shower" consisted of the teacher spraying them with the water hose. at lunch the students were seated ever so cutely. the youngest at one to the oldest at four. the three two year olds were extremely distracted by my being there and could not stop staring and making strange noises. they did however ask me back! most of the students who were not in eigo hour were still weary of my presence and couldnt bring themselves to come close to me. it was really interesting. i cant imagine how strange it really must be for them to encounter a gaijin for the first time. it is something as an american i can not fathom. we are exposed to so much diversity that it seems almost wrong for them to be afraid of me, but it is all they know-- which hopefully will change in the future and from being here i can say there is a large chance they may always dislike foreigners. that is why i am here, to internationalize and broaden views and mine in exchange are broadening. there is so much to learn about japan.

tomorrow i will visit another kindergarten. this time with forty students in eigo hour. i think it will be a bit overwhelming but nonetheless fun! then it is off to tokyo for the summer sonic music festival and back to kumamoto on monday.

japanniversary

august 1, 2009 i left my brother, haynes, and my mom at an airport in san francisco. a large pink suitcase and my trusty blue backpack were stuffed to full capacity- what's a girl to do with weight limits and a year abroad ahead of her? upon arrival to kumamoto i quickly learned that packing could have been more simple, but hindsight does lead to 20-20 vision, no? my, how time has flown by this year. i have been so lucky to experience so much in my time here already and i look forward to my last year of adventure in japan. happy first japanniversary to me! and with this "new year" i do hope to become a more frequent and committed (pictures would be nice?) blogger. with new passport stamps, drinking habits (GREEN TEA- I CANT GET ENOUGH!) and a language to conquer i start another year of my japan journey.

I want to extended my cute uki city apartment to anyone who wants to experience a little japan adventure of their own! My current resume includes two southern visitors under my belt (thanks kelsey and katie leigh!), a planned rendezvous in thailand with a sweet brother (haynes), another great rendezvous in china (with miss paige), a random run-in with an arkansan (mitchell), and skype dates galore!

oh japan. here we go again!