Week #26 Still Busy and Still Hot Here

How many days of 90+ degrees and 90% humidity is too many?  You know when it's summer, and you just tolerate the heat because it's summer, and what else do you expect? Then September hits, and you finally think you get a break from the heat, except not this year in Japan. Even when it rains, it doesn't cool things off. It just becomes a sauna. I know...good for the skin, right? Well, I'm ready for fall. Maybe next week?

This week, we attended a Volunteer Appreciation Dinner by the base chapel for all the folks who helped with Vacation Bible School and other events. I was most excited about someone else doing all the cooking. It was a catered event at the Zama Community Club. We hobnobbed with all the folks, ate some dinner, and got our certificates. Seeing how many community volunteers participated and came together for VBS was really nice. We will be here for it next year and look forward to sharing the time with them. 

Tuesday took us to the Tokyo Temple for our regular shift. It usually takes a little over an hour to drive there, and this time, we noticed the other side of the expressway was at a dead stop. There was a large truck that was on fire, and the traffic was at an absolute standstill for about 8 miles of backing. I don't know what those folks had planned for their day, but sitting on the expressway for hours wasn't it. We were more than grateful to be on the other side going the opposite direction. However, it was still very slow going through there on the way home 7 hours later. It took a lot longer to get home. PS We enjoyed our temple experience that day. 

The rest of the week was pretty intense, and by the time we got to Saturday, we were D-U-N Done. Thursday was really packed with a couple of different Red Cross shifts, and in the afternoon, we met with the Behavioral Health Clinic to further the process of getting our accreditation to start volunteering there. Still a few more steps. We then hustled off to the orphanage for another opportunity to share with the 20 or so kids there. Elder Nelson read "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" (Aomushi, the Japanese word for caterpillar) to them in Japanese while I reinforced the names of fruits and vegetables in English.  They got the idea because many of the names of things sound similar in Japanese. Our treat for them was a Fruit by the Foot, which they had never seen before. The paper liner kind of threw them. We tried to ensure they knew they weren't supposed to eat the paper. There are not enough pictures of the orphanage as they don't like us to take photos for obvious reasons. 

Friday dawned early (5:30 a.m.) as Brad had to take a shuttle for downtown Tokyo to go to a hospital for a dermatology check-up. I proceeded to prepare chicken enchiladas, etc., for the young elders and sister district council meeting lunch. One of the elders is leaving soon, and we didn't get to celebrate his birthday, so we chose September 19th as his pretend birthday. He requested anything Mexican and apple pie. They loved it ala mode. 

That evening, we met an investigating family at the Tokyo temple annex to show them the visitor's center and answer any questions about the temple. It is a mom and dad and their two kids. They loved the whole experience, and we were very happy to share the time there with them. They have a strong desire to be baptized and have been coming to church every week. 

Saturday, we spent the whole day putting away all the things we got out for the week and cleaning the apartment. Brad then spent time preparing a talk for the sacrament meeting, and I was asked to teach Relief Society, so I prepared my lesson. It was nice not to have to go anywhere. 

Camp Fuji was rainy and foggy this week. We met several folks hanging out at the USO lounge and shared our treats with them. One gal asked me if I could bring brownies the next time. She and her boyfriend are Marines stationed at Fuji as permanent party, so we may see her again. Most of the Marines at Fuji are only there for training, so we don't see any on a regular basis. We met a visiting chaplain from Iwakuni (a Marine camp south of us) who was there training. He may be able to spread the word that we offer services to other Marines coming to Fuji in the future.

We are working on trying not to do too many things in one day, as it can get intense and exhausting. But we love all the opportunities to serve so many good people. There are always places and people to serve and meet. We love the connections we have made and look forward to many more. 

Thank you to all the wonderful friends and family who love and support our efforts here in Japan. We will continue to serve faithfully and hope for cooler weather.