Suddenly, It's all Very Real

Hi everyone, It has been quite the whirlwind over the past 5 or 6 weeks. One of the biggest updates is that we've hit 90% of my monthly financial support needs! This is a huge milestone so thank you again to everyone who has been a part of this effort. There is still that last 10% which is about $400 a month left to still raise, so please connect me with a friend, or family member who you think may be interested in partnering with me too!

Because of hitting that 90% I was able to buy my one way Plane Ticket and I have (nearly) secured my temporary housing for the first few months while I will be in Japan. So... things are starting to feel very real very quickly! That surreal feeling of "it's really happening" is coming quite often which is both exciting and bittersweet, because of all the wonderful people and ministries that I've come to love in Chicago. So, while I'm holding both excitement for what's coming and gratitude for all that's here, let me start with catching y'all up on the thing that's been eating most of my hours lately: Japanese.

Learning the Language

I finished my one-month Japanese intensive, and it was a real challenge, so I'm very glad to have pushed through the 8 to 10 hours a day of lessons and assignments! (A big thank you to my church for letting me use the office for this class!) In many ways this short course gave me the confidence that I'll be genuinely prepared for the next 18-month Japanese course waiting for me in Japan, maybe even overprepared. (which will be at a slower pace, more like 5-6 hours a day).

However, the Japanese learning hasn't stopped . I've been continuing with in-person tutoring here in Chicago, which has been an amazing unexpected gift. Paul and Hisae are a married couple I know through one of my favorite ministries, the Chicago Welcome Center, where we all have served as volunteer English tutors (ps. they always need more volunteers😉😉). Paul is American of Japanese descent and usually teaches the English side. Hisae is a native Japanese speaker who came to faith in Japan before eventually moving to the US, and she now tutors Japanese in her retirement. So, having that in person support and learning 3 days a week has been a real blessing, especially because they have been teaching me the Japanese words used in the bible/church and even praying and reading scripture in Japanese as a part of my lessons. To get both in person Japanese learning and Christian vocabulary is rare, much less just in Chicago and 10 min away from where I live!

A Window into Japan

To continue the pattern of little info sections to learn about Japan I'm going to talk about ramen.

Everyone knows ramen, but the rich, creamy "tonkotsu" (pork-bone) style it's famous for was actually created in my new home prefecture of Fukuoka. As the story goes, a man influenced by the Chinese-style noodle soup (called "la-mian" in Chinese) that had traveled to the port trade cities of Kyushu, started a little noodle stall back in 1937. One day he left a pot boiling too long while he stepped out, and came back to find the broth had turned rich and cloudy. That little accident became the thing people love, and Fukuoka City later made it world-famous as "Hakata Ramen." or "Tonkostu Ramen".

The picture is me actually getting that Ramen in Hakata Fukuoka. And while it was a really cool experience, and I got to go with friends, the restaurant was also a reminder of how present loneliness and isolation are in Japan. Many ramen shops like this one are designed so you never have to talk to a single person the whole time. You pay at a vending machine on the way in, slide your ticket through a little window, water is on tap at your seat, and there are dividers on every side for maximum privacy. It's efficient and also quietly sad.

What's Ahead

Things are moving quickly now as I have ~2 months left in the US, and while I'm excited, there's a lot still in motion. My visa application is coming in August, there are a hundred little details that come with an international move, and I'm working to finish this season well.

I'm also planning on having a goodbye party in Chicago in late August but as things still need to be formally planned details will be coming😅. But if you would like to come please let me know what weekend would work best for you here: Link

Personal Prayer Requests

🙏 My visa application in August, that the process would go smoothly.
🙏 The last 10% of my monthly support. That God would provide in him way and his timing
🙏 The MANY small details of an international move, that nothing important would slip and it would all get done in time.
🙏 That my goodbyes would be done well, and this season would close with gratitude.