All My Bags Are Packed (almost)....

....and I am ready to go! I only have a few more days here in Japan! Crazy! There is still much to do but trusting that it will all get done. I will be leaving this Saturday around 5:00pm and arriving in Seattle around 9:30am. Try figuring that out!:-) Pray for safe travel and health (I have not been feeling so great...probably due to lack of sleep). I will let you know when I arrive in the USA!

A Cloudy Heart

A teacher at one of my schools used this expression to describe my moods these last few weeks at my schools. It was cloudy on that particular day so he said "Your heart is cloudy". I think he described it perfectly. I am using this in regards to all the goodbyes that I have had to say to my students...goodbyes that have NOT been easy. Today was no exception. This week is really busy with goodbye parties so today (Monday) was my last day playing softball after school with the girls. I have been anticipating this time for a while. I prepared a speech and letters for all of them but I still struggle with telling them how much they have helped me this year. So, it is hard to explain in English and then I had to translate it into Japanese! Ugh! I did the best I could and only cried at the very final sentence. Thankfully I still have the rest of the week to enjoy. Pray for me right now as I go through all these goodbyes, parties, PLUS trying to pack and clean up my apartment. Oh, and due to all this busyness, I have not been getting enough sleep....I think this is just how it is going to be for the whole month of July! Last weekend, I traveled to Aomori for a goodbye party with many other ALTs in my prefecture...it was a wonderful reminder of all the great people that I have met as a result of being here. It was also great to be able to speak all in English AND know that there are others leaving after one year. I will try to keep you all posted....I leaving Japan on July 19th!!!!

Japanese Wedding Ceremony!

So, I just wanted to tell you all about my AMAZING weekend before things get too crazy this week. As many of you know, I have been to more weddings than I can count but over the weekend I was able to attend my very first Japanese wedding ceremony! I took the shinkansen (bullet train) down to Tokyo on Friday night (after a very emotional day of goodbyes at one of my schools). I stayed with my friend, Yoko, that night. On Saturday morning, I went with Yoko to a beauty salon....which just so happens to be where she works! This salon is also just down the street from the Tokyo Tower! She fixed my hair for the wedding ceremony and then I was off to the Tokyo Dome Hotel! It was a beautiful ceremony, followed by a wonderful party at the hotel. I also attended 2 other parties that day (after the one at the hotel)...yahoo! It was SO much fun and so cool to meet Akiko's friends. Akiko wore 4 different outfits during the day too. Today, I then met up with 2 other friends for coffee at Starbucks and then lunch at a fun little restaurant. I then made my way back to the Tokyo Station to catch the Shinkansen back to Hachinohe, followed by another 2 hour train ride to my city. As exhausting as this weekend was, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am so thankful that I was able to attend this beautiful celebration and experience my first Japanese wedding!

Precious Moments

So, I just couldn't wait to share with you all some of the "precious moments" that happened today. God blessed me in so many ways! There are a lot so I will try to list them....

1) Taking pictures after lunch with a class of students! Today was my last class with them so it was a little sad too. Their homeroom teacher is hilarious and makes me laugh everytime I come to this school.

2) Chatting with students at lunchtime and having them sign my "yearbook"...it is actually just a sketch book that I bought to have teachers and students write in it. I has become a real treasure to me as I reflect on some of the things people have written...wow!

3) Stopping by the nearby convienient store near my school on my way to the bus stop. I had a really nice chat with the worker there (in Japanese)! She was SO sad to hear that I was leaving. She explained (in Japanese again) how she always sees me walk by and it always makes her happy! Wow again!

4) Waving to some of my students from another school of mine while on the bus. My favorite was when I waved at a group of about 3 students who shouted "A-------M----------Y" and jumped up and down. Hilarious!

5) Being picked up by my friend's parents who happen to be driving by me after I left the City Hall. It was so fun to see them! (and it saved me a 45 minute walk!)

6) Playing softball at the Sports Park with the city league. The funny thing about this is that not only was I the only foreigner but I was also the only FEMALE playing! Ha! I think I showed those boys what I was made of! I had a blast the entire time....this was definately one of the many highlights from my time here in Japan! They all want me to come back next week to play too! And silly me was thinking about not coming....! Oh, and apparently we went a little over the time limit because as we were packing up our stuff, the lights were turned off!

7) Running into several people that I knew at the grocery store. This actually happens a lot and it makes me SO happy to be in a city where I have been before!

So, I have decided to ENJOY every moment of this week. I now only have 2 more days at one of my schools so Friday may be very sad:-( Please pray for me as I prepare a goodbye speech in Japanese and for my emotions to not go out of control!

Time with Friends....one last time!

So, I just returned from another wonderful evening with 4 dear friends here. As most of you know, I have been to Japan many times and I am still in touch with many of the friends that I met years ago. But these 4 friends are new friends that have come into my life during my year here. God placed them into my life for a certain reason. I am SO blessed to have them in my life now and so sad to be leaving these precious friends. But, I do believe that I will see them again someday!

The goodbyes have started here, which is hard for me. I am NOT a fan of goodbyes but I also don't like NOT saying goodbye. So, I am preparing myself for some tears as I say goodbye to the many wonderful people that God has blessed me with. This weekend, I will get to see my dear friend that I have known for 10 years (who is coming into town to take wedding pictures). I plan to enjoy every moment with her. Next week is my final week at one of my schools too:-(

As sad and stressed as I am right now, God gave me a sense of peace this week that I did make the right decision to not stay another year. I also realized the source of my stress....I was not giving everything to God but instead thought I could do it all on my own. Boy was I wrong! I need God so much right now. Please pray for me!

Weekend Fun!

So, I just finished up another AWESOME weekend! On Friday night, I went out with 2 dear friends for dinner. We have been friends for the last 10 years so I was sad to have to say goodbye. Then, Saturday was filled with unexpected blessings and Sports Competitions. It was the weekend of the Chutairen, which is when all the junior high schools on the Shimokita Peninsula compete. Saturday wasn't quite what I expected but God worked everything out even better than I could have imagined! I watched volleyball, softball practice, track & field, tennis, baseball, and even managed to squeeze in a game of badminton at the Dome. Saturday night, 5 of us helped celebrate our friend's birthday with dinner and karaoke! Good times! I spent Sunday watching 3 great softball games and enjoying every minute of it! I was so proud of those girls and felt so honored to be there. I am anticipating a very tearful goodbye with them when the time comes. Sunday night, I went out with another friend and her precious 3-year-old daughter and played at their house. Are you tired yet from trying to keep up with everything that I did? I sure am! Now, I am going to enjoy 2 days of no school!

Enjoying the Journey

Life here is SO crazy busy right now but overall LIFE IS GOOD! I have a little over a month left here so now starts the farewell parties, packing, goodbyes, tears, and preparations for my next teaching job. I have decided to not let my stress get in the way of me enjoying my last few weeks here. I have come to appreciate each day that I am here, love my students, and be amazed at all the blessings God has given me. I am especially sad at the thought of having to say goodbye to my softball girls. I can't even begin to express how much they have meant to me this year. It is so fun for me to get to know each other them with their own personality, dreams, and skills. They make me laugh every time I am with them and amaze me with their desire to speak English. I told one of them this week that I would be leaving on July 19th. She wrote on her hand "7/19 Amy to America . I am sad. " I have been having students write a message to me in a book. One softball girl wrote "I want to become a woman like Amy". Wow! I have come to realize that I would be sad to leave Japan no matter how long I were to stay. I have absolutely NO regrets about my year here and definately feel as though I have changed from this experience. Now comes the hard task of showing others here my appreciation for them. This weekend is the big junior high school sports competitions all over Mutsu. So, I will be getting on my bike to go to as many events as possible to cheer on my students! LIFE IS GOOD!