Our first month in Japan

Well, that went by quick!

I’ve almost been in Japan for an entire month. I’m happy to say that so far, things are going really well. Danielle arrived 10 days ago, and we’ve been having fun exploring our new home everyday since.

Good news!

We found a place to live! Danielle, Ruke (our cat who joined us in Japan), and I move in to our new home in one week! We came into this situation knowing we would need a miracle, and we got one.

The deck was stacked against us: foreign students with a cat. We were told before-hand that being a foreigner alone cuts down possible rentals to a mere 5%. A pet friendly place, especially for cats, are extremely difficult to find on top of that.

But not only did we find a place, we had a bonus “wish-list” of items and got everything on that list and more! Even funny, but specific things like…

• a palm tree (random, I know, but I love them)
• 30 second walk from our missionary friends
• looking into greenery and directly across from a beautiful, 300 acre park

There was even 3 air conditioners, solid wood dressers and table, fridge, and washing machine left in the apartment which we were given. That’s somewhere in the neighborhood $3,000 saved.

If you read my post on the Language of the Spirit, you’re probably connecting some dots here like I did. On top of all this, (yes, even my palm tree), our two cats, the biggest obstacle for our move to Japan, even had representation. These little hooks, more than anything, made us feel we found the right place.

Thank you!

We’ve had so much help over the past few months: fostering a pet, encouraging us when we were down, driving us to airports, taking our stuff we had after our bags were full, missing work to pick me up, sacrificing your office space, putting your name on the line for us, making sure we’re safe during the Typhoon, building a brochure for us, and so, so much more!

We’re extremely grateful for each of you. Thank you <3. (Ya, I totally just made a heart there. But we love ya, so it’s cool.)

He knows what we need

During this giant life transition I’ve felt much smaller and incapable than I’m accustom to. After a month in a foreign land, the regular inability to do the smallest of things, like asking for no mustard on my hamburger (yuck, mustard), is an eye-opening experience.

We are all in a position of utter dependence. The extent to which we realize it in our day-to-day just varies. Having recently had my training-wheels re-affixed to nearly every facet of my life has adjusted my own perspective, in a good way.

It’s good to know that…

 “your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”

Matthew 6:8

I’ve become a lot more thankful recently.

First day of language school

Last week we completed orientation at the Osaka YMCA Japanese language school.

Tomorrow marks our first day in class, and the beginning of a two year journey. We have our work cut out for us, but we’re ready. Bring it on!

Picturesque

New environments are visually invigorating for me. Everything is just different enough to stir creative juices that have long been dormant. Though I’ve not busted out the DSLR yet, I’m really enjoying snapping pictures of the places we find as we’ve been wandering our new city. Here’s a few!

Prayer requests

I last asked that you’d pray with us that we’d find the perfect place to live and that I would adjust well to the new timezone. Well, on top of finding a place, Danielle and I both had zero jet-lag as we adjusted. So, thank you! Going forward, we’d love if you’d continue praying for us for…

• A smooth move-in with our apartment
• That we would create good, diligent habits from the get-go for our language study
• That we would keep our excitement about being in Japan, not succumb to culture stress, and continue to develop a heart for the locals.

Thanks for keeping up with us on this journey!