I Am Alive

It is Sunday evening and I am finally recuperated from my jet lag (I think!).  I arrived home from my trip to Japan at 2am Friday morning.  What a LONG journey home!  My flight left Japan at 430pm Tokyo time Thursday (which would have been 230am Thursday here at home.  So basically I traveled for 24 hours.  My cats were so glad to see me 🙂  They were a nice welcoming committee for sure and have not left my side all weekend.  Friday I slept like a cat myself all day with them…I was exhausted.  Saturday I managed to get out and about at a decent time and go visit my Dad at the nursing home.  He was doing great and glad to see me.  I gave him some snacks from Japan and a t-shirt that Noriko sent with me to give him.  I showed him my pictures…he really enjoyed hearing about my experience 🙂  After that I stopped by to see my friend Stephanie…she was at her parents house visiting…on the street where I grew up.  It is always a strange thing to go back “home” and see the house where I grew up.  The people who live there now have made some changes and it looks really nice.  Anyway it was good to see my friend for a bit and her parents.

Today I went to a new church and really enjoyed the music and the message.  The message was that we all need to have a mission.  I think I am finally starting to figure out what my mission is in this life…and I hope I can continue this ride of positivity.  Life is so precious and sweet.  It is too short to be moping around and dwelling on my little problems in life.  I do not have cancer.  I am not hungry.  I have a job and a roof over my head.  I have a car and although it is not new, it gets me where I need to go. I have friends and family who care about me.  I am truly blessed in so many ways.  My marriage is ending but my life is not ending. I will go on…I am strong and I get knocked down at times but I always get back up.  This time I want to really change my way of thinking and let go of negativity which hopefully will change my life.  I want to use my experiences to make a positive impact on others somehow.

This blog is very personal and I appreciate anyone who is reading it.  It is a glimpse into my thoughts which I do not easily express to others outwardly.  It is my “diary” in a sense.  I enjoy writing to express my feelings and thoughts and this is the first step in my “mission”.  I am excited to see where it goes…

 

I have no pictures yet to post today.  But I have good memories to share.  Today Noriko, Aki, Kazu and I took a Duck bus tour through Tokyo…it was a bus that turned into a boat and we traveled on land and water.  They gave us duck whistles to blow and when prompted we had to blow the whistle…people on the streets were probably annoyed lol This was definitely my first experience with this kind of thing!  I had noooo idea what the tour guide was explaining but it was a good little trip around an area of Tokyo I had never been to.  After the bus/boat we went to a nearby shrine where we cleansed our hands and prayed, grabbed a fortune, and saw a pond full of turtles.  Very peaceful place.  Then we took a taxi to Sky Tree tower/mall and had a good lunch…a fried pork platter that we shared that was shaped like the tower building lol and then looked around the shops…it was really an amazing place.  This building just opened last year and is a very popular destination for people all over Japan.  The tower is the largest in Tokyo.  We came home in the afternoon and I took a big nap and when I woke up Dad had made steak dinner for us.  (I am going to miss these home cooked meals every night!!!)  After dinner we went to a Karaoke place nearby and Kazu and Aki sang their hearts out 🙂  I may post a video later on…it was pretty cute.

Now I am ready for bed.  Tomorrow afternoon I begin my long journey back to the USA.  It has been a good vacation and a good escape from my normal life.  I love Japan..it is definitely a different world than where I come from but really, the people here are the same.  They work hard, take care of their families, and enjoy life.  The Watanabe’s and Kawahara’s are the most hospitable people I have ever met.  Hopefully I can repay them for their kindness someday.

Okinawa now holds a special place in my heart. My life starts over again when I return from this trip.  Today I am thankful for new beginnings.

We have returned back to Noriko’s house in Chiba from our 3 night trip in Okinawa.  I had such and AMAZING time there 🙂  The flight was about 2.5 hours from Tokyo and we stayed in Nago which was about a 2 hr drive from the airport once we landed.  We stayed at a really nice hotel…Mahaina Wellness Resort.  The weather was perfect, the food was great, the people were friendly…it was a beautiful/relaxing place.  I wish I could transport myself back there again right now!  I tried the local food (soku soba noodles), took a Japanese hot spring bath for the first time, finally. (Noriko says I made my “debut” lol)…which was AMAZINGLY relaxing, tried the local beer, local ice cream and local potato chips 🙂  Took a boat ride to the most beautiful island-Minna Island…where we had almost the entire beach to ourselves.Took a bicycle ride through a very primitive area near Emerald Beach famous for “fortune trees”.  Ate way too well and way too much, relaxed by the pool, made friends with a cat (which I seem to do everywhere I go!).  Spent quality time with my friend.  This is just a brief summary…we did a lot in just a couple of days and I enjoyed every moment of it.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) is my last full day here in Japan.  I am already feeling sad to leave but I know I will be back again someday.  My friends here are truly like family to me and I am feeling very fortunate to have them.

Today I am thankful for waking up this morning and knowing that I am going to be ok no matter where I go or what life throws at me.  

As I posted earlier…I woke up to the news that my uncle had passed away.  My brother wrote and told me that he died in his sleep of heart failure.  I am relieved to know he went peacefully.  His wife and family are definitely in my thoughts right now.  As well as my Dad…I am sure this was not easy for him.

Today we had a leisurely day around the house.  We went out for a bit to the grocery store which had a a kids arcade so Kazu could play some games.  We rented a movie and watched this afternoon and then went for a walk to the nearby park and caught a couple of gigantic cicadas.  Dad cooked a great dinner once again.

Noriko and I leave for Okinawa in the morning so I do not think I will have internet access until we return Tuesday.  Looking forward to being away from everything for a couple of days.  Will post pics when we return.

I just got a delayed message that my Dad’s younger brother passed away earlier this week.  I do not yet know all of the details but I am very saddened by this news.  Today I will be praying for my Aunt and his family.

Life is so precious.  Since my mom passed away 10 years ago I have truly understood what it means when people say life is short.  You cannot live waiting for things to happen in the future.  You need to enjoy and cherish each and every day.  You really never know when it can all be taken away.  Tell the people you love that you love them…

You will be missed Uncle Gary.

I was worried I wasn’t going to be able to eat much on this trip…I was wrong!  This morning Noriko and I went to a pastry shop…this place was gorgeous with all of the fresh pastries and smelled SO good.  We brought back breakfast and got ready for our day out with Aki and Kazu.  We left around 9am and drove about one hour to the middle of “pear country” to visit H.C. Andersen Park.  The city where the park is located, Funabashi, is a sister city to a city in Denmark where H.C. Andersen was from.  The buildings were dutch style and in the middle of the park was a wading pool for kids with fountains and playground equipment etc. We spent a couple of hours there relaxing while Kazu and Aki played in the water and cooled off.

After the park we went to the mall and had a BIG buffet lunch.  I ate way too much but the food was excellent.  Of course my favorite pastime is eating so I am really enjoying the different places we are going and food I am getting to experience there.  After lunch we did some shopping…it was a gigantic mall with every store you can imagine.  It was fun to sit and people watch there.  The last stop was the 100 Yen shop (dollar store).  I did find a few souvenirs that I needed to get today so it was productive shopping.

After a long morning and afternoon…we arrived home and Mr. Watanabe prepared dinner for us.  I was not hungry at all but I ate once again!  Noriko’s Dad is an excellent cook…and he goes to a lot of trouble to make dinner for us.  I have not been taking pictures of the food he has been preparing but should have.  Anyway, I am so full and sleepy and it is only 730pm here and I am ready for bed. I am actually feeling guilty like I do not deserve to be here experiencing these things.  I realize how fortunate I am and do not take it for granted.

I think I am finally adjusted to the time change here…about 14 hours ahead of home.  I leave one week from today…it will be here soon enough.  I have a lot of great memories so far.  I am missing my loved ones and my cats!  Noriko’s cat “Panda” finally made friends with me this morning for a few minutes…I felt so honored 🙂

Today I am thankful for never having to go hungry.  I really do not understand why God has blessed me the way he has but I am truly thankful.