Stewart:
In Japanese neighborhoods everyone is expected to be very quiet, you are expected to speak even more quietly than you would speak inside your own house, not listen to music, etc. even in the middle of the day.
A few weeks after adjusting to this environment I was shocked that a ritual involving loud drum banging at the nearby shrine could be heard for miles. Many places within that radius, it was the only thing that could be heard, and it continued for hours that afternoon, and all as sacrifice to foreign gods - that’s why such noise was accepted.
Very different from Sunday church bells in Oklahoma.
Emma:
There’s still some American soil on my shoes (maybe I should clean my shoes more…) but now it’s mainly the dusty dirt from Japanese summer. It’s hot and humid. Rain mysteriously arrives and pours then it’s back to a sunny day.
Judah is out of school for the week and recovering from a cold. We are still researching and attempting to find childcare for language school for me (Emma). Stewart is applying for jobs. It’s funny, we laugh about how things seem slow and busy all at the same time now. Slow because I’m waiting to start language school and get into a routine. Busy because we have two little wild ones who require a lot of care! Right now, we are praying for contentment in the waiting period. And for a language school that works with our family. Please join us in praying for that
I (Emma) so desire to communicate with the Japanese people. I’ve had moments where I open my mouth to speak forgetting I can’t speak Japanese. There are many things I want to say, but for now I will learn to listen and observe. Please pray for the Japanese people.
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