Mid-April and /Camp Fuji...Twice

 

Still trying to figure out the best way to do this blog. This week all the pictures will be at the bottom and we will label them. Hope that helps you view the blog a little easier. 

It's been another great week here in the mainland of Japan. We tried our best to stay busy and navigate with the GPS to the various places we must go. So far we haven't hit anything or had too many serious wrong turns. 😐We have debated whether Google Maps or Apple Maps works better over here. The jury is still out on that one. 

This week we had a great Meet and Greet of the folks at the Behavioral Health clinic. Our predecessors, the Philips, had volunteered there as Red Cross volunteers and the clinic hoped we would also. To do that, they have to do a full background check on both of us and that can take 3-6 months. But we met the great people who work there, filled out the paperwork and now we wait. 

We have generally been making Tuesday's "P"reparation Day. This week we didn't feel like battling the traffic so decided to do some washing, clean the house, and then go to the local Costco. It's only about 10 minutes away down a few narrow alleys. A few familiar items but a lot more not-so-familiar ones. We took a couple of pictures of the fresh octopus for sale as well as a very large tray of fresh sushi. The price of the entire tray was about $27 with the awesome exchange rate we have right now. (100 ¥ is about $1.50 USD.)  Makes going out to eat quite affordable. Later that evening we had dinner at the Chaplain's house here on post. Chaplain Saxton is an LDS chaplain and has been very kind and helpful to us.  (we forgot to take a picture)

On Wednesday we took a trip to Camp Fuji to meet with an officer, also LDS, from a unit that will be deploying to Fuji next week. All the other marines from the last rotation have gone home and we were hoping to hear if he was aware of any more LDS marines coming on the next rotation. We briefly spoke with him and he gave us some people to contact. He wasn't aware of any marines from his unit that are LDS. We still have to do some digging. It was nice to get away and we spent the night up there in the visitor's lodging called Mountain View Inn. True to its name, the next morning Mt. Fuji showed up for about 30 min. The clouds dispersed long enough for a quick picture and then the clouds covered it up again. Such an incredible sight. It's about a 50-mile drive but takes anywhere from 90 minutes to 2 1/2 hours depending on traffic. 

We also met with the Chaplain's assistant and committed to coming up each Sunday to offer Sacrament Meeting to whatever marines are there. This is a really big commitment and we will be praying and exercising our faith that we can make connections with the marines there. Heavenly Father knows his children so he will know who is there, we just want to connect with them. 

Every Friday is District Council with the young elders and sisters serving here and we have been bringing lunch for them. This week they were challenged to only speak Japanese so Google Translate and I hung out and did our best to understand. There were 3 brand new elders so I wasn't alone. We shared all the fixings for hoagie sandwiches, chips, potato salad, jello squares, and Costco cookies (just like they have in the States). They filled their tummies and were very happy to have American food. 

Later that afternoon we jumped on a local train with the youth from our branch to go to the temple to do baptisms. There were about 11 awesome youths and a couple of leaders that participated. The ride there was about 90 minutes and 3-4 transfers. We also got there in enough time to stop at a ramen shop for fresh ramen and gyozas. The ride home was about 2 hours because twice as many Japanese people were coming home from work. We both had tired bones and feet by the time we hopped in bed. We also were able to randomly see our mission president and his wife at the temple. Such a beautiful place in the heart of Tokyo.

Saturday found us at Atsugi Naval Facility volunteering with the Red Cross for the Friendship Fest. An open base event where thousands, and I mean thousands of Japanese folks can come on post for food, games, music, helicopter, and airplane viewings. We helped man the Red Cross booth and hand out free stuff as well as give mini-training in CPR. We were also able to see an amazing Taiko drum performance. We both love to see the strength and skill these young men have. That night we were invited over to dinner at a member's house on Zama. Yummy Brazilian food and good company. (sorry forgot a picture.)

Sunday was another trip to Camp Fuji for a Sacrament Meeting with the last marine there who hadn't left yet. His name is Skylar, a returned missionary from the Philippines. We had a simple service with him and then cookies afterward. There were about 6 marines in this last rotation but we didn't connect with them until they were about ready to leave. The Stake has given us this assignment and we will do our very best to provide what is needed there.

All in all, it was a busy and productive week. We feel so blessed to be here and pray daily that we will be aware of the needs that are here and do our best to meet them or find others who can. We know the church is true and we pray to be a good example of it. We pray for all of you as well. May you all find joy in what you do each day and know that you are loved by us and your Father in Heaven.