When I think back to August 2012 when I moved here, the temperatures were in the 30's C and the humidity was high. Sweating was an hourly occurrence. We are now in the throes of winter, brrrr, it can be chilly. The temperatures outside aren't necessarily so cold, right around 0C, but the buildings can be cool. The best place to be in a building is by the heater.
The courtyard at school at about 10:30 a.m. taken from my classroom window on the 2nd floor.
On Monday, January 14th, I bicycled to school in the pouring rain. My experience has usually been that if I bicycle one way, it is dry by the time I have to go the other way. Well, Monday, January 14th was a different story. I have found that the weather predictions for this area tend to be incorrect, so I usually don't look at the weather too often. Well, I probably should have, that day. Brian and Bette decided to take the van and offered to take me as well, but I said I'd bicycle to school. As it turned out, by about 9 a.m. the rain changed to snow. It snowed for the rest of the day! After it was all said and done we probably had about 5 cm+ of snow. Now if you live in Red Deer, Alberta, or Hague, Saskatchewan, or Grand Rapids, Michigan, it's not a big deal, but here in Higashi Kurume or Kiyose, in Japan, it is a HUGE deal! There is not one snow plow in all of Tokyo. People are not used to driving in the snow, so driving in snow is as much about being careful with your vehicle as watching out for everyone else. Bicycling is not really an option since the sidewalks are not shoveled, never mind the roads. Fortunately, I was able to catch a ride home with Brian and Bette. The next day there was still a lot of snow around so, we had a snow day. It was quite timely, since we had semester grades due the following week and a number of other things due within a week or so. On a side note, the way the roads were cleared were mostly a result of someone shoveling the snow, or the snow eventually melting. There was even a picture in the paper of Sumo wrestlers shoveling snow.
A litter later in the day.
Thursday, January 17th was my second opportunity to go down to Ikebukuro station with a Middle School class, to pass out breakfasts and warm items. We again met at the Higashi Kurume train station by 5:40 a.m., took the train down to Ikebukuro, passed out the breakfasts, and traveled back to Higashi Kurume. Here are some pictures of our activities.
Waiting for students to arrive at Ikebukuro station.
Putting lunches by homeless.
Cardboard walls set up by a sleeping homeless person.
One of the hallways we walk down looking for the homeless.
These fellows were cleaning Ikebukuro's station walls.
We took the Kotesashi 6:44 a.m. train back to school.
On Tuesday, January 29th, my Homeroom/Bible class will be going down to Ikebukuro for our opportunity to pass out breakfasts to the homeless. Pray that we may be able to make a positive impact and that God will bless the recipients and as they read our pamphlets may come to see their need for a Saviour.
So, the first week back to school after Christmas break had lots of activities. It has been busy! Here's what we have on our plate for the next couple of months:
We have started in earnest on the Science Expo projects. Science Expo will be on February 21st and 22nd. There were many questions about topics and what would be approved experiments this week. Hopefully almost all the students are set and can begin working on their experiments.
This week the CAJ Middle School began the Homeless Outreach Ministry at Ikebukuro station. Each homeroom teacher has spent about three or four sessions discussing homelessness here in Japan. Before the actual date to go pass out breakfasts, each homeroom class will have each student prepare a lunch, randomly exchange their lunch, and then go to the neighboring park to eat it outside. Hopefully, this activity will give the students an idea of what homelessness is like.
My homeroom class is scheduled to go on Tuesday, January 29th. To familiarize myself with the ministry, I went with one of the grade seven homeroom classes this past Friday morning, January 11th. We began by meeting students at 5:40 a.m. at the Higashi Kurume station to catch a train down to Ikebukuro. The homeless are allowed to sleep in the station during the night, but by about 7 a.m. they are asked to leave, which is why we leave so early in the morning. Each of us prepares two to three breakfasts and include things like wool hats (toques as they are called in Canada), gloves, warmers, socks, or scarves. We also include a Christian tract written in Japanese. By about 6:10 a.m. or so we arrive at the Ikebukuro station, divide up into smaller groups and walk through the hallways of the station looking for people who are homeless. If they are sleeping, we just leave a bag beside them. If they are awake, we will greet them and give the bag to them.
Waiting at Higashi Kurume station for some of the students. Notice the two boys at the back? Not sure they wanted to be associated with us. :)
Arrived at Ikebukuro station and are walking around to find homeless people to pass out our breakfasts.
One of our students just left a bag by this man. (sorry for the blurriness. I was trying to be discreet.)
Riding back to CAJ
When we arrived back at CAJ, we had a delicious breakfast waiting for us. It also gave the homeroom class an opportunity to discuss their experiences with each other.
A delicious breakfast of pancakes and sausages was waiting for us at the CAJ cafeteria, prepared by the National Honor Society students.
Students sitting down to hot chocolate.
It was good to go along and see how the ministry is carried out. I plan to go along again with one of the other grade six homeroom classes Tuesday, January 15th. On the way back from Ikebukuro, I was able to take this picture of the train on the track beside us at one of the stations. You may notice how packed the train is! I experienced that on the way to Tokyo Disneyland this Christmas break. You literally are standing there surrounded by people holding you up. People are literally pushed into the car. Everyone sways with the car, and you don't even need to really hold on, because everyone is swaying with you.
If you look at the other train on the next track, you can see how packed the train car is.
Friday afternoon, half of the grade six class went to a nearby school for students with special needs. Our grade six students played some games with their students. It was a good 45 minutes of interactions and games.
CAJ students sitting on the floor listening to the welcome.
The Gakugei students officially welcomed us in English (although it was tough to understand), loved the thought though.
One of the Gakugei teachers gave instructions for the first game.
Playing our first game
One of the games we played had to do with the song, "When the Saints, Go Marching In."
Someone forgot her indoor shoes even after sending an email reminding students to bring indoor shoes!
Today I took Hana on a fairly long walk, probably the longest yet. She was pretty tired by the end and basically crashed on the floor after getting a drink of water. On our walk, I noticed that some of the houses sure are built close together. I would say they are about four or five feet apart.
Look how close together the houses are.
The semester is ending next week. That means the grades must be all complete and preparing report cards. Students have also started putting together their portfolio for their student/parent conference that will happen in February.
Lots of good activities, but it is busy. I am praying you all have had and will continue to have a great 2013!
Happy 2013! I hope the first days of the new calendar year have been a blessing for you!
I have had a very relaxing break. Jenny, the yellow lab, has now returned back to her home and right now it's just Hana and I sitting here in the house. Only a weekend left and it is back to teaching. I have sort of begun to get into the swing of things by filling in some forms and getting a couple of things prepared. I do have some other things to fill in and papers to grade, so that is what I'll be focusing on in the next couple of days.
Before I get to that, I wanted to share a couple of things. First of all, this really neat invention they have here. Since many people take the train and not all people live near a train station, many people take their bicycles to the train station to catch the train. Back in Canada and the US there are some areas for bicycles but nothing like they have here. At the Kiyose station, they have an underground bicycle parking lot. You bring your bicycle down the stairs (the person walks down the stairs and there's a flat surface for your bicycle to ride down), walk through a gateway picking up your ticket as you go, and finding a place to park your bicycle. No matter how long you park it (within the day I believe), it costs 100¥. So, how do you get your bicycle back up? Well, you walk through a gateway again, put in the ticket, deposit the 100¥ and go up the stairs but they have a bicycle escalator to help you with your bicycle! Watch this!
Isn't that just the best invention?
The other thing is the gas truck. It comes through the neighborhood on a regular basis to sell gas for residents. It has a distinct tune so you can hear it coming. Have a listen.
I was wondering what New Year's Day would be like here. It is a very family orientated holiday. Many people travel back to visit their parents and have a special meal on New Year's Eve, usually some sort of soba is included. I think of it as our Christmas where many family members travel back to their parents to visit and share a special meal. I understand that the tradition is to clean the house thoroughly for the new year. It's a way of starting clean. They also put up some boughs or wreaths that have pine in it somewhere. This one was on the local flower shop the other day.
The following pictures are taken of the pine on the neighbor's houses.
New Year's Day, many of the Japanese travel to the temples to go and give their indulgences for the first of the year. When I was walking the dogs, I saw many multi-generational family groups walking together, carrying an arrow that they brought to the neighborhood temple. I understand they also offer money to the priests, to help them start of the year on a good foot.
Construction is different here. Just a couple of blocks from where I live, they began building, what I believe is a house. They pour the foundation and when they begin to frame and build, they put up scaffolding and then hang this covering around the house. I'm not sure for the exact reason for this, I've heard safety and I've also heard that it looks cleaner. Once the outside of the house is complete, they take down the covering and continue to work inside.
Today, January 4th I had a couple of firsts here in Japan! My first was riding a public bus! I generally use the train, bicycle or ride in a vehicle, but this time I took a bus. It looks very much like a public bus in the US or Canada, but it's all in Japanese. Trains have English translation for what the next station is, on the bus, it's all in Japanese and Japanese characters. I was traveling with friends and they knew which bus to get on and which stop. Here's my view from the back of the bus.
My second first, is I got a hair cut here! That's where I was going on the bus. For those of you who have seen pictures, my hair was getting long and hanging in my eyes. I have heard a range of prices for hair cuts. My friends found a decently priced place that cuts your hair in 11 minutes (although my hair cut took a bit longer, not sure if it has to do with my hair being different or if it was the style), the price was decent and they seemed to do a good job. We signed in with the wait being about 30 minutes and since it's located in a mall, we went walking around. With about 10 minutes left we sat down to wait and looked in hair magazines for a hair style I'd like. I also had a picture of me on my iPhone with a similar style. When my name was called, I showed the pictures (she seemed a little worried that I wanted to much cut off) and off to the chair. She did a really good job! Here's what I looked like before:
This is what I look like now:
Doesn't it look better? I know the angle isn't the same and I really didn't set up for a before picture, but I'm really happy with the shorter hair. Gotta love it that you can see without hair in your eyes!
I do wish you God's blessings in 2013. Thank you all for your support in so many various ways! This break I have been able to Skype, FaceTime, iMessage, and email with so many of you! Thank you for the Christmas cards, letters, phone calls and packages! God has blessed me with so many good friends!
