Tales of College Tokyo

Book Review #6: Return of the King

2012-01-04T20:34:00.000-08:00

Sixth in a series of 8. The book for this review is courtesy of Amanda Sever: J.R.R. Tolkien's Return of the King.

The final film of the Matrix trilogy (remember when those set the cultural standard of cool?) carried this tautologous tagline: "Everything that has a beginning has an end." This has interesting theological implications* yet could have carried more meaning by speaking in terms of expectation. If a story grabs our attention, we want it to end in a satisfactory manner. And the more we are invested in the storyline and world, the more deeply we desire that the ending suits the story. Witness 8.3 million copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows being sold in its first 24 hours of American release or diehard fans of the cancelled TV series "Firefly" demanding further material, released in movie form three years later as Serenity.

Tolkien's desire to create a believable world for the Elvish language he invented ultimately blossomed into The Lord of the Rings, the gold standard of fantasy writing (although if you are more devoted a Tolkien fan than me, you probably think that The Silmarillion is his pinnacle achievement). This is not the book to begin with--the characters get no introduction and most of the events, including the climactic War of the Ring, are long foreshadowed in the earlier two volumes--yet given that any proper reading of Return of the King must be in context of the other two, I cannot count these facts against the work.

I reread the entire trilogy last summer and fall, and it was quite rewarding on several levels. Since it was read to me by my father in childhood, I had forgotten the value the book places on true, unhurried conversation--clearly influenced, I think, by Tolkien's peer group the Inklings and their pub meetings. While not explicitly Christian in terminology, the author weaves Biblical material throughout the narrative. My personal favorite point of overlap was the "healing hands" of the prophesied King of Gondor, modeled on Jesus's earthly ministry and displaying this other King's humble, servant character.

In addition to intellectual and spiritual satisfaction with the story, I thought Tolkien continued his fabulous job of crafting a world consistent with its own rules and history. Indeed, he went beyond wrapping up the requisite plot threads and in doing so proved that his fictional universe is bigger than the mission of destroying the Ring of Power. Though at times I felt he was taking too long to get back to the action in Mordor pre-war, I had no such qualms about the extended denouement. Why? Life doesn't simply derive meaning from any particular task or even what we get to do in the time allotted to us, so I appreciated the philosophical statement about the value of 'regular life.' Though I don't fully agree with the political implications of the Shire's scouring, it makes sad sense in the story. And the final scene--how dare I spoil it?--is a very rare moment of authentic and satisfying closure in fiction, made all the sweeter by the momentous journey it took to reach.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the clear Biblical worldview, imaginative milieu and satisfying end to the saga

Disliked its sometimes too-languid pace in the first half

I would recommend this book to anyone seeking true adventure, though starting here is nowhere near as rewarding as beginning with the first two books. It's worth your time and not replaceable with the filmed version.

Disclaimer: There are extended scenes of fantastic battle violence (not that meaning, though they are well written)

*God is the only uncreated One; everything else is by definition finite, and apart from His gracious sustenance will end (the world as tainted by our sin is the most obvious example). The Biblical teaching of eternal life for those who trust Jesus does not contradict this because He defined eternal life as both Himself and the knowledge of Him (John 14.6, 17.3), thus imparting His own eternality to those who are joined to Him by faith. This is completely different from one-with-God paganism or mysticism, which reduces God-likeness to an earthly experience and attempts to bring Him down to our level.

Slow is Fast

2011-12-28T23:17:00.001-08:00

Take 8 recent college graduates who are praying for a way to share Christ with students in Japan but aren't given official permission to live there and add 1 teammate soon to finish a semester of ministry in Tokyo. We were prepared for a stunningly efficient public transportation system, astronomical prices for rent and food, a bewildering linguistic environment (most of us), Biblically disinterested students who keep to themselves and some of the densest urban living possible on the planet.

Given our expectations and prayerful preparations, where would you have considered reassigning us?

Through Cru staff, who were incredibly helpful in the transition process, we believe God's will for the remaining six months is that we live and work here on the big island of Hawaii. True, it's a great contrast with where we were headed before: a mere 43,000 laid-back inhabitants who often embrace others when meeting them; full domestic cell phone and postal services; car-dominated roads with few reliable buses; and an abundance of the Lord's glorious creation from beaches to rain forests. But there are also great opportunities ahead.

Yes, Hawaii is part of America since it was annexed in 1898. Yet the culture here, particularly on this island, is strongly tied to the traditions of the native Hawaiians as well as Japanese immigrants. This doesn't just mean that living in this non-touristy small town will involve culture shock, but also that students who here surrender their lives to Jesus may head to serve in Asian countries rather than the mainland given their cultural affinity to the former. In a strange way, then, coming here may be a bigger step in reaching Japan (if, as we think, it's the Lord's will) than if we had been able to go directly ourselves. We are at least praying that this will prove true.

The realization of this dream, though, will have to wait until students return to UH Hilo the second week of January. For now, we are mostly accustomed to the time difference, PST + 2 hours, and attempting to get used to the incessant bouts of rain--anywhere from 5 minutes to 5 hours in duration. (Just to put things in perspective from the averages: 90% of days in a year are at least partially cloudy here, with 278 days on which a total of 126.3 inches of rain fall.) Since students have yet to return, we are locking down the logistics that the transition left undetermined: where will we live? And how will we get to campus?

The staff couple here has been super helpful, even letting us housesit during this period of transition as long as we feed their animals. That said, the days tend to flow like molasses: little to do which, given the island mentality of those managing apartments etc., takes lots of time--so different than the hurry-hurry lifestyle I've adopted in the Bay Area. I have to remind myself that part of this process of waiting (still) is being used by the Lord to grow us in patience and ground us in His love & a shared team mentality (best born out of frustrating and trying times!) so we can be maximally effective together come January.

The title of this post is a maxim one of the staff, a Hilo native, quoted to us in our re-briefing. Things do indeed run at a different pace here, but to best minister to the locals we must adapt and speak into this context. After all, didn't our Savior do the same in His earthly sojourn?

Book Review #5: Artemis Fowl

2011-12-27T23:30:00.000-08:00

Fifth in a series of 8. The book for this review is courtesy of Kimiyo Brown: Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl.

Children are too often sentimentalized, I think. They are complicated, imaginative and clearly sinful beings, their shifting personality gaining shape underneath a time-sensitive ration of cuteness. I dearly love playing with them--OK, most of them--and am intrigued at the thought that (to my knowledge) Jesus is the only major religious leader who is reported as socializing with them. But kids can also behave very badly, especially under the influence of bad examples, and a recent superhero movie titled with an expletive made headlines for a particularly profane 11-year-old character.

A good fictional portrayal of children, therefore, should not be sentimentalized (and even a cursory glance at Jane Eyre or most any story by Dickens reveals was not such a temptation in past centuries as now). Leaning the opposite direction, however, not only breeds cynicism but also sets a low standard for any observing children. It bears asking, then, if Colfer's portrayal of this book's titular protagonist--a 12-year-old prodigy seeking to step into the criminal shoes of his gangster father by robbing fairy gold--walks this fine line of reality or not.

In my observation, the answer is no. Artemis is clearly not meant to be a role model, but he is also short on redeeming qualities save his melodramatic habit of becoming the winner by staying intellectually ahead of his opponents. The one wrinkle in his cool facade is affection for his mother, living in a world colored by dementia and grief. Apart from the fairy costuming, this is a genre thriller for kids, with the requisite cast of one-note characters behind the scenes, high degree of violence and grey-shaded morality in its numerous double-crossing twists. What sets this tale apart for me is its notes of sarcastic humor, which add a level of sophistication and interest to both the characters and the plot (though I could have done without the appearance of a poop joke at a key plot point).

If this is part of the future of kid's literature, I would have to say it's more influenced by televised & filmed sources than written ones, as almost all of the material hinged on the actions and not the thoughts of the characters; to my thinking, this is tantamount to ignoring the medium's greatest strength and reminiscent of the later episodes in the Harry Potter series. I know it's not exactly fair to criticize the wandering nature of the plot and its several loose ends by the conclusion, as this is the first in a series and is not attempting to be conclusive. However, I didn't feel compelled enough by what I found here to want to further acquaint myself with either the fairy world or the overly static characters.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the sly notes of humor

Disliked the inverted morality and occasionally aimless plot

I would recommend this book to less impressionable readers (preferably adults) who want a mental break

Disclaimer: This book contains one scene of graphic violence and several other fights.

Bend in Plans

2011-12-21T18:57:00.000-08:00

My 'year abroad' has thus far been a giant exercise in trusting the sovereignty of the risen Christ Jesus over all things, including my emotions, bank account and exact location on this planet.

We have heard official word from the Japanese government: our visa papers were denied. There is as yet no explanation, but though eventually it would be nice, my team is learning to rest in the fact that the Lord has made His will clear through the bureaucracy.

Our leaders made the decision not to appeal their ruling for several reasons: 1) God calls us to submit to and obey government leaders so long as they do not command sin or forbid what He commands (Romans 13:1-2); 2) it's late in the year and better that we get on campus somewhere; 3) it's doubtful that the Japanese government, which doesn't respond favorably to what they may consider meddling, would reverse the decision; and 4) there are few options for sidestepping this barrier, all of which would involve going behind the backs of the authorities--which is far from a Christlike testimony.

Does it challenge my faith that through financial provision and personal leading, it was clear that He wanted us to go to Japan but the plan has changed? Somewhat. God is free to do what He wants; He is the Creator and I am not. And since I was called to serve with Cru this year not of my own will, but (in part) because I needed to be directly reminded that ministry is His work and not mine, this wrinkle in the mix comes as a further confirmation of His desire in molding my heart through these various circumstances.

If I could have chosen, I would be in Tokyo right now, meeting up with friends old and new, savoring the cuisine I became accustomed to (even with high prices for daily groceries and a dearth of fruit & vegetables given my budget) and telling more people about Who Jesus really is--the Creator of all there is--and why believing hearts have a reason to commemorate His coming to earth. But that would not be walking in faithfulness to the doors He has opened; it would seem spiritual, but in reality be a selfish escape to my own dreams. Ministry without Christ's presence and direction is truly pointless.

We are being redirected to the University of Hawaii, Hilo for the remaining six months of our missionary term. I look forward to updating you on this blog, despite its title, of our coming adventures of faith as we follow our great God and Savior on this new island.

Book Review #4: The Little Prince

2011-12-21T18:50:00.000-08:00

Fourth in a series of 8. The book for this review is courtesy of Sarah EuDaly: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince.

~

If life is a game, it is mostly mental. Witness the way people hang onto scraps of information, whether political headlines, sports statistics or celebrity gossip, and use it to give their everyday existence meaning. Observe the immediate absorption of young children in games with minimal or no props to aid their creativity. Think about how challenging it would be to sit alone in an isolation chamber without immediately setting your mind racing to a million memories or fantasies.

Airmail pilot Saint-Exupéry survived an experience far more extreme than that last hypothetical plunge into sensory vacuum: a 1935 crash landing in the Sahara desert, with only a day's worth of water. He and his navigator reportedly stopped sweating after a few days and experienced severe hallucinations before being rescued by a Bedoin. Out of that crucible of physical fatigue and mental exhaustion sprang a beloved classic of world literature.

Though it's regarded as a kid's book, much of The Little Prince is aimed squarely at adults who "never understand anything by themselves" and fixate on figures and statistics rather than the essential qualities of things, who are unable to see by the light of imagination. Children may chuckle at the buffoonish caricatures of wasted lives on various planets or coo over the Prince's devotion to his rose, but teachable older readers will drink a fuller draught of Saint-Exupéry's sarcasm and romance.

The story of the the Prince's quest throughout the universe is artfully inset within the desert dialogue between the Prince & the pilot narrator. The author's drawings are a key part of the story, though in my opinion there are a few too many of them for a book on imagination. Overall, though, it is hard to find a fault with a book which includes the following definition: "...Since it is beautiful, it is truly useful." Its depth and magic far exceed its slim size and have helped broaden my own imaginings. This volume would be well paired with Chesterton's Orthodoxy, which I highly recommend for its deeper look into the theological implications of fairy tales.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the poignant, often profound meditations on true value and imagination

Disliked the profusion of illustrations, some of which were more distracting than helpful

I would recommend this book to children at heart.

Disclaimer: This book will stick in your memory if you've read it right--casual reading is discouraged.

Emotions in Limbo

2011-11-12T14:46:00.001-08:00

Some of you may be wondering how it feels to be daily setting Cru's record for the longest visa delay. I could turn the question around and ask how it feels while you are waiting for Christ's second coming, but that isn't a direct answer--though hopefully it is convicting.

What's a more immediate illustration of what being in visa limbo feels like? Here are a few snapshots from today:

It's having two of my pastor's adorable little daughters sitting in my lap, playing with my shirt and offering me Play-Doh cookies, then remembering that I can't commit to doing kid's ministry because I could be gone any Sunday now.

It's overhearing the Christmas choir practicing in the sanctuary and wanting to join them, but knowing that I can't when Incarnation Day outreaches are perhaps the year's biggest assignment for my Tokyo team.

It's being somewhat embarrassed to admit to a friend that I don't have solid Thanksgiving plans, and probably won't be able to say for such if I'll be there until a week prior (and not 100% even then).

It's having to ask another friend for their car keys so I can drive someone needing a ride to the BART station, because I've divested myself of the automobile.

It's seeing planning happen for various long-term ministries and wanting to be part of things beyond prayer, but learning to say 'no.'

In short, it's a waxing & waning form of tension. Thanks to the dear friends & family I have in Oakland, Granite Bay, Auburn and Sacramento, it has been much more bearable than in the first few weeks. When deep in conversation with them, I almost forget that I'm 'supposed' to be somewhere else.

It is truly odd to hope almost against hope that you won't see your 'til-now favorite people in the world and make memories with them during the holidays. What makes it less odd is remembering that God is in control and His Fatherly care & timing are best. And because of His Lordship in all things, I am truly supposed to be here for now--my desires notwithstanding. They need to learn to yield to Him in faith, and His promises will hold true at last.

Rest: Witness to the World

2011-11-09T10:21:00.000-08:00

The previous two posts focused on God's command and our gospel-based obligation to rest. Now I'd like to highlight a third function of rest: its testimony to those who have not rested their trust on Jesus that life under His Lordship is different.

This is quite appropriate in connection with Japanese evangelism, as in the testimony of the famous author 三浦綾子 [Miura Ayako]. She has been called "the Japanese C.S. Lewis," as she's written both bestselling fiction with Christian themes and reflective essays on the Bible. The verses that she describes as first impressing her were those of Jesus: "Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

Submitting to Christ, though it does involve work in obeying Him, is here described in clear contrast to the burdensome work of slavery to sin and self. Though Miura-san may not have initially thought of herself as a slave to sin, she realized that Jesus was clearly promising a different life--and doing so with the authority to grant it to those who obeyed His word.

Here are three facets of the lightness of His yoke, which all stand in clear contrast to life apart from Christ.

1) "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

"So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

"Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." (Matthew 6:25-34)

This passage, familiar to many in the church, is more revolutionary than we think. A life free from temporal anxiety? Yes, if you are resting in the confidence that God your Savior is also able to provide everything you need as you go about doing His will. Jesus uses humor in comparing his followers to plants & birds, which are clearly taken care of by their Creator, and dismissing the need to fret over the future. A similar lightheartedness can be enjoyed by those who have taken His yoke upon them (repented of their sins and trusted in His death & resurrection on their behalf) and are stepping out in faith that He has done all the work for them to be saved and restored into the image of their Creator.

2) "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:1-5)

Earlier in 1 John, the "disciple Jesus loved" (as he referred to himself in his account of Christ's earthly life, so enamored was he with his Savior's nearly unbelievable care for him) said that the clear commandment of God was to love one another, even as Jesus loved us. This command, like the other commands God gives us, is described as "not burdensome"--leading rather to rest.

When we obey God's revealed will in the Bible, we experience life as it was meant to be lived. Though our own corrupt hearts tempt us with thoughts of sin, though there is a spiritual realm that is partially in rebellion against God and influences events unseen by us, though others assume that we should all go our own independent way, these things can be "overcome" by faith--resting in the truth God has spoken about His only Son. Living by the Creator God's guidelines not only leads the believer into experiential rest, but also demonstrates to the world that God's commands can shape a visibly different life.

3) "Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load." (Galatians 6:1-5)

Paul, writing by the Holy Spirit, commands brothers and sisters in the faith to help each other in difficulties. If we are not overburdened with our own sins and worries through faith in Christ Jesus, we are free to share someone else's trials--some of which are far too large to be dealt with alone--as we continue confessing sin and obeying Him in daily life ("his own load").

This also challenges the very individualistic view of rest many people hold, having been raised in cultures where rest is equated with doing leisure activities, often solo. Rest in Christ is both individual, as no one can escape the necessity of personally repenting and having faith in God through Him, and corporate, in that we are able to spur one another on to love and good works as His return draws ever closer (Hebrews 10:24-25).

I hope this mini-series has provoked new thoughts for you on how God defines rest and blesses His people with it in Jesus. Feel free to comment below, but I pray most of all that you engage with the truth of His word in this matter.

Book Review #3: Once A Runner

2011-11-03T15:00:00.000-07:00

Third in a series of 8. The book for this review is courtesy of Albert Li: John L. Parker Jr.'s Once a Runner.

~

I have an affinity to running. This doesn't mean I am one, at least not in the athletic sense. I habitually run for exercise, but I have only once run a 5K--and that because I had Cru friends running that same race with me, not for a competitive time. Some of my good Bay Area friends take it seriously, though, and one of my best friends helps coach a Sacramento track team, so in their wake I've begun to step up my involvement. A book that promised further inspiration? Why, sure.

The book concerns one Quenton Cassidy, mile runner at Southeastern U in the Vietnam-protest era. He is the track team's captain and enjoys all the perks of living fraternity-style with the team (while describing house in-jokes, Parker occasionally lost me in obscure prose). His left-wing views and relaxed attitude toward life are juxtaposed with the stodgy conservatism of the athletic department's leaderships, but the real contrast is one of dedication. The football team captain is painted as a flabby, nepotistic cad; Cassidy as a lean, stoic competitor.

His drive attracts the eye of graduate student and Olympic medalist Bruce Denton, who mentors him through the "Trial of Miles": daily long, repetitive jogs. Denton's encouragement becomes more individual when Cassidy runs afoul of the athletic department by offering him the chance to live as a jogging hermit and train obsessively while he still has a shot at record-setting glory.

The book's clear strength is its grasp on Cassidy's mental game, culled from the author's personal experience as a 4:06 miler in his youth. Some of the expressions were beyond my grasp, but the import was clear: dedication to the uttermost, to the point that it becomes routine. Parker apparently sees this as an almost animal drive, and repeated metaphors attempt to drive this point home, so much so that I wondered whether this was an indirect case for mankind's macro-evolution from beasts. But the skillfully handled relationships, particularly those among runners, humanize the zeal and sometimes affected prose. As in real life, it's the camaraderie that proves the most compelling case for athletic endeavors.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the psychological description of competition-grade athletic training and well-written bonds of friendship.

Disliked the extreme subtlety of certain chapters and overuse of animal imagery.

I would recommend this book to people who are at least sympathetic to sports, enjoy introspective writing and are either experienced readers or willing to read large chunks at a time.

Disclaimer: This book contains strong profanity and sexual immorality.

Rest: The Christian's Prerogative

2011-10-31T15:00:00.000-07:00

God is clearly honored when His people rest. But we can wonder: isn't this a secondary matter next to the important work of seeing people otherwise hell-bound, as we once were, rescued through faith in Jesus as their Savior? Can rest wait for heaven?

The answer, surprisingly, is no. Not if we correctly understand the gospel itself.

The author of the letter to the Hebrews (anonymous, parallel with many of the Old Testament books) put matters this way:

"...Since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said:

'So I swore in My wrath,
"They shall not enter My rest,"'

although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: 'And God rested on the seventh day from all His works'; and again in this place: 'They shall not enter My rest.'" (Hebrews 4:1-5)

Earlier the author quoted Psalm 95, in which the objects of wrath are the Israelites who turned back from the Land of Promise despite God's assurances that they would be victorious over apparent obstacles. They are the object lesson of God's word "not being mixed with faith"--their turning back showed their lack of trust in His promises. Faith alone makes the Bible's words truly profitable (though they are beautiful literature in their own right), both now and forever, as it opens up a relationship with the Creator of everything.

Next, the point is made that believing in God's word is entry to His rest. God is resting? Yes; the word choice in Psalm 95:11 there isn't arbitrary. The author backs up to Genesis 2:2, showing that God has finished everything He started in creation.

Do you believe that simple verse--that God is done with His work?

I'm not implying that He isn't active in the world. But He isn't laboring for anything now. When Jesus said on the cross, "It is finished [paid in full]," He wasn't kidding. In an eternal sense, the Lord's work is done, and the gospel--Christ the Creator voluntarily taking the place of sinful rebels who deserved death, paying in full their debt of punishment before God the Father on the cross--brings this idea of rest from creation into completion of His eternal plan of rescue.

So God is at rest, and trusting Him through Jesus means in some sense that we "enter that rest."

"Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience, again He designates a certain day, saying in David, 'Today,' after such a long time, as it has been said:

'Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.'

"For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience." (Hebrews 4:6-11)

The author points out that when David wrote Psalm 95, sitting in the land of Canaan from which those faithless Israelites fled (leaving Joshua's generation that victory), he chose the present tense under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. God through David was speaking of a rest greater than the one which Joshua accomplished in entering the Promised Land, a rest which Canaan itself foreshadowed.

If you haven't read Hebrews in full, I highly recommend taking an hour or two to do so--no need to rush. A recurring theme, seen in the phrase "remains therefore a rest," is that the promises of God are fulfilled in Jesus in a superior fashion to the lesser fulfillments of the old covenant under Moses.

This rest which is better than Joshua's means that the believer "has ceased from his work" like God. This is only possible through faith in Jesus, Who alone truly obeyed the Father while on earth. Our attempts at making ourselves impressive to God are lethally flawed--His loyalty never faltered, though we can see it tested to the uttermost in Gethsemane and upon the cross-wood.

Let us cease striving and, by faith in the completed work of Christ, be grateful to God. For from now on, anything He gives us the heart, strength and mind to do for Him is the overflow of His love for us, not the cause of it. We need not earn His approval--we labor from it. Resting at least once a week is a tangible reminder that none of our earthly efforts are ultimately required for salvation or anything else--only the free grace and provision of our heavenly Father.

That's an attitude which the world cannot produce or mimic. Walk in this freedom with me!

Book Review #2: Poison Study

2011-10-24T13:50:00.000-07:00

This is the second of an 8-part series, and the book behind today's review is courtesy of Nikki Maldonado: Maria Snyder's Poison Study.

The story starts in media res. Teenage Yelena, condemned to death by the new military government for pleading guilty to murdering the son of a top general, is granted a fresh lease on life with a new career: food taster of the Commander. Just to ensure that she doesn't run away, the Commander's right-hand assassin Valek slips her a dose of poison that will cause an excruciating death if she doesn't report every morning for a dose of the antidote--an artful leash. Almost as painful as the memories that drove Yelena to murder.

Admittedly, the prose has the artistic appeal of cardboard, as shown in sentences such as "I dodged ineffectively, hampered by the rope tied to my wrist, which anchored me to a post in the center of the room." Still, the story's set-up is clever: a haunted yet strong-willed anti-heroine struggling to overcome the confines of her situation. Additionally, Snyder plants not only doubts about the trustworthiness of her new friends but also details about the regime change, allowing the reader to question initial opinions about whose side Yelena should be on.

As the book progresses, we learn more and more about this world's use of magic, which sounds very close to occult practices of mind control and floating-soul experiences. Demonic arts are still repugnant to me even when secularized (no offhand references to God here, only "fate"), especially as I hope to see Christ's victory in the cross over such powers in Japan in the months ahead. The morality of the characters is also never seriously examined, suggesting instead that violence and sex are more than excusable in extreme situations. From a purely literary standpoint, I wish I could say that these failings and the stiffness of the writing was made somewhat tolerable by a thrilling climax and fitting denouement--but alas. The pacing of the story weakens as the story's focus switches from medieval-fantasy elements to a lust-mance, while the ending offers too many pat solutions to complex plot issues--the logic is apparently: 'resist your demons once and they flee'--and is too abrupt, though it is the start of a series.

Admittedly, my standard for the young-woman-resisting-government-with-hidden-talent genre is high after reading the excellent Hunger Games trilogy earlier this summer, which is much better written. Snyder does a good job realistically depicting a girl's response to abuse and danger, but in my opinion she only imprisons Yelena further in decidedly dark content and second-rate wording.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the political & plot intrigue and conceptual courage

Disliked the New Age elements of mind control & magic, wooden prose and collapse of plot potential in the final act

Though it has an interesting beginning, I would not recommend this book.

Disclaimer--Poison Study includes mild profanity, strong violence, sexual immorality and disturbing scenes.

Rest: God's Prescription

2011-10-12T16:46:00.000-07:00

Writing about rest, coming from a can-do culture with a let-things-slide personality and heading to the nation that gave the world a term for "death through overexertion"*, requires some labor. It is akin to describing the joys of playing music to someone who has never picked up an instrument and has no vocabulary or apparent use for the idea.

Yet in the handful of years I have been seeking to actively take Sabbath rests one day a week (generally Sunday), I know that rest is not only Biblical but extremely blessed. May this short refresher (ha!) of a review encourage you to more deeply depend on and glorify God.

Why do we rest? There are two variants of the same command given to God's people in the journey to Israel.

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it."
(Exodus 20.8-11)

"Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day."
(Deuteronomy 5.12-15)

The similarities predominate: it's God's will that His people keep this day holy; it's not merely for their own benefit but also that of their family, dependents (employees perhaps comes closest in modern terminology) and livestock.

But the rationale differs. The original command from the Lord on Mt. Sinai points back to the creation order that He set in motion--we were created to reflect God's ownership of all things and imitate Him in this rhythm. The repetition by Moses in one of his farewell addresses is equally of the Holy Spirit, pointing back to the redemption from Egypt. In that country, the Hebrews were given over to continual, unbroken labor; now and in the new land God is giving them, they are to remember that His rescue of them means that their identity isn't defined by their work, but His buying of them through a definite act of salvation.

My question to us: Is what we call 'rest' merely an interruption of activity? The Lord clearly intends that our down time would remember Him: His creative power, displayed from the beginning until now, and our redemptive history.

In future posts until we get word that our visa paperwork is on the way, I hope to explore this topic a bit more. At the very least it will help me think a little more clearly on the subject once the ministry floodgates open overseas.

*過労死 or karōshi; I knew someone out there would also care for this parenthetical detail

P.S. The idea of keeping the Sabbath weekly as not only feasible but desirable for a college student came from a conversation I had with Lisa Chu (now Ro) and was further encouraged by the Fulton family.

Book Review #1: As I Lay Dying

2011-10-07T09:52:00.000-07:00

This is the first of an 8-part series, begun as a team bonding exercise. I resolved to read one book beloved by each of my teammates as a way of getting to know them better and discovering new, good literature.

The book behind today's review is courtesy of Amy Ledin: William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying.

It's one of the most challenging books I have ever read. Bear in mind that I have a generally fast reading speed in English and am accustomed to cruising through books of Harry Potter length in 2 days or less. However, Faulkner deliberately toys with language, not merely to obfuscate the plot's direction (though it is tempting to believe this sometimes!) but rather to present the thoughts of his characters in a far more compelling manner than a simple summary of their ideas could ever do.

The book details the plight of the Bundren family, which is almost elemental in its tragedy: matriarch Adie slowly fades from life and her husband and children seek to bury her in her county of birth, as she requested long before. The real story, though, lies in the interaction between the characters as each tells their perspective in idiosyncratically narrated, non-numbered chapters. Key to this are the feuds between the siblings--as Amy pointed out to me after I'd finished reading, main narrator Darl constantly describes the actions of his hot-blooded younger brother Jewel, usually with an eye toward putting him in his place. Occasional narration by outsiders to the family keep at bay the natural inclination to take this sad clan at face value, showing just how pathetic they appear.

This unique structure forces the reader to read between the lines and infer what has happened to horrify or upset each of the characters. Faulkner repeatedly takes simple events, usually bad decisions, and describes them in ways that draw out their pathos and suggest the futility of man to overcome his own inhumanity and petty problems. Fire on one character's clothes, for instance, is described as flowers of sparks blossoming into holes in the fabric--beautiful in the abstract, awful in practical effect. At times the work bears hints of the despair that surfaces more clearly in some of Faulkner's other novels.

Though quite a bit of effort, in my opinion all the confusion and disparate opinions coalesce brilliantly in the powerful final chapter. I don't dare spoil it, and if I did it would have nowhere near its impact without explanation--not unlike a joke's punchline. This wisecrack, though, is not meant to draw forth laughter.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the deft characterization through narration style as well as viewpoint, descriptive power, tour-de-force of an ending

Disliked the pace of the story, which occasionally plodded along; the clearly evil hearts of the characters, though true to life in this respect;

I would recommend this book to adventurous, experienced readers looking for a change of literary perspective, with both a strong stomach for tragedy and quite a bit of free time.

Disclaimer--As I Lay Dying includes sexual immorality and disturbing situations, even though described in cryptic ways

"Hurry Up and Wait On the Lord"

2011-09-29T13:31:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Petra, for that great turn of phrase (from their song "More Power to Ya"). It's something I am learning to appreciate as it loses its humor in the matter of our team's visas.

Right now, my two least-favorite questions in the world are:

"So when are you leaving?"

"Any news on your visa yet?"

There are two main reasons why I dislike them. I hear them constantly, in almost every conversation, and I know in my head that friends ask because they care. However, when coupled with reason #2--my utter lack of knowledge and mild resulting frustration with the whole situation--I am put in the position of having no easy answer besides a shrug or head-shake on something that is clearly important to me. Feeling powerless, even when I know the reasons are bureaucratic and clearly out of my hands, still stinks.

I also don't like these questions because they suggest that my life and my trip are inextricable. The undertone, which I realize is only in my head, is that my time in the current liminal state is being wasted or at least not worth similar inquiry.

I wonder if other missionaries struggle with this problem: people from their home area only asking about ministry business instead of interacting with them as they would with friends back home and also asking a few questions to draw them out about their specialized role in the Body of Christ. Perhaps that kind of situation is simply another way we overly elevate those in full-time ministry work above 'regular' folk even though God clearly states through Paul that leadership in different areas is to equip all the saints to do ministry together, with no status differentiation (Ephesians 4:7-16).

Thank God for those of you who have encouraged me to take things step by step and invest this time in spiritual preparation balanced with physical & psychological rest. I have been able to do so, if with fewer immediate results than I might wish.

And don't worry; when I know the answers I will share them loud & clear. Our social networking technologies, while a Godsend for long-distance communication, have accustomed us (at least me) to thinking about people more as tidbits of data and factoids than whole beings created in the image of our Creator. In this respect, then, they curse us by trivializing authentic relationships--or at the very least carry the threat of doing so.

Yet while I realize this and don't like it, I know that personal data is important. I also know that I don't know squat about the current visa progress and that in God's timing that's quite all right.

"Many seek the ruler's favor,

But justice for man comes from the Lord."

(Proverbs 29:27)

If that's the case, then let's ask Him for it!

Prayer for Japan: Sins of Saul (Feb. 2011)

2011-03-01T22:26:00.000-08:00

Dear prayer family,

Thank you for your continued prayer support and concern regarding my calling to Japan! Not only am I blessed by your care, but it's a critical part of the spiritual battle for the glory of God there in the souls of Japanese--the "air war," as my pastor once called it.

In keeping with the pattern of providing topical prayer needs, this month we'll focus on perhaps the two greatest obstacles in the Japanese heart to true repentance & faith. Both are exemplified in the pitiful life of Israel's first king Saul.

The first sin is pride, which is linked to the second: witchcraft/demonic involvement.

...Samuel said, “When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the LORD anoint you king over Israel? Now the LORD sent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’ Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the LORD?”

And Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.”

So Samuel said:

"Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
As in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams.

"For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
He also has rejected you from being king." (1 Samuel 15:17-23)

So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance. But he did not inquire of the LORD; therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse. (1 Chronicles 10:13-14)

--

1. Please pray that the Lord would break down the national pride of the Japanese. Not only must every material import, from McDonald's to electronics, be adapted to their tastes, but outside ideas and beliefs must also 'fit' with what already exists rather than be accepted on their own merits. In addition, there has been no apologizing for the war crimes and imperialism of the 20th century. May Japanese believers lead their country and people in humility, especially in seeking to bless other Asian people groups.

2. Please pray that individual pride would be brought low. There is considerable personal cost to truly follow Christ in this society; believers are often alone in their families and religion that goes beyond annual rituals is frowned upon as abnormal. May the gospel be preached and listeners humbled to repent & believe!

3. Please pray that fleshly pride would be confessed and repented of in the church. Japan is in desperate need of bold, holy and pure groups of believers...but the few congregations are more known for division and legalism than heart transformation by the Holy Spirit and submission to the Lord's revealed will in Scripture. May love and unity in the truth prevail.

4. Please pray against the rampant spiritual deception. Fortune-tellers and palm-readers at street stands near train stations in the evening are perhaps the most obvious indicator, but the enemy of souls is having a real field day deluding this land. From Western cults (Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons) to a slew of so-called "new religions" mixing a bit of 'Christianity' into Buddhist and New Age techniques, there are thousands of counterfeits. Pray that those bound by these lies would be freed by the truth of the true Jesus--just as in 2 Corinthians 4:3-6.

5. Please pray for Christians to renounce all ways of darkness. In a land where most can still think "To be Japanese is to go to a [Buddhist] temple on New Year's Day," compromise is a daily temptation. This--not marriage, as commonly supposed--is the actual context for 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, good verses to pray for the Body here as well.

6. Please pray for Jesus's victory over all demonic powers in the cross (Colossians 2:15) to be powerfully displayed.

7. Please pray for me to give up my attempts to earn God's or man's approval and rest in the grace given through Christ's life, death and resurrection--that as I do so, He would open up doors in the Nagoya area for ministry soon.

Your brother in Jesus ("humble in heart"--Matthew 11:29 NIV),

Kylan

Prayer for Japan #2: Children (January 2011)

2011-03-01T21:29:00.001-08:00

Dear sinners made sons of the Most High in His only Son,

May a deeper sense of His mercy (Exodus 33:15-19) stir your heart to think of and praise our Lord today.

Thank you for your prayers! God has been showing answers in many ways, and one which some have heard is that while at a friend's wedding in the country town of Turlock, I made the acquaintance of a minister involved in training church planters. I told him that I was passionate about raising up new churches, was asked where and replied "Japan."

"Where in Japan?"

"Nagoya," I said, preparing to explain its location.

He then told me that he is training several pastors there already! Our God is so faithful to bring about His will before we even know what's going on.

Now as to my prayer requests:

1. The greater Nagoya area has over 8.7 million people (denser than 3500/square mile) and, as I mentioned last letter, the highest concentration of cities & large towns without churches in all Japan. Please continue to pray for not only more believers but holy and bold believers to be multiplied in this area, then gathered into worshipping congregations that are taught the rightly-divided Word of truth.

2. For the low number of Japanese children. The nation is at a crisis point given that its birthrate is one of the world's lowest, some factors being the prevalence of abortion (no Godly understanding of life's worth), the rising age of marriage (lack of family cohesion) and the tendency to see kids as a burden on time and finances (materialism and selfishness). Please pray that these spiritual barriers, so contrary to Genesis 1:25-31, would be broken down and the hearts of parents turned toward their children.

3. For the great opportunity afforded by children's ministry. Many of us know about the "10/40 window" of unreached people groups, but a new buzzword is the "10-14 window": the age range in which most believers either first believed or truly believed with understanding (myself included). Salvation is of the Lord and His grace alone, so please beg Him to have mercy on the current generation of Japanese kids: that they would be in contact with believers and hear the gospel; that many, hearing, would believe; that the enemy's strongholds of worldly pleasures, peer approval and despair (suicides by middle-schoolers sadden but no longer shock) would be broken; that new young believers would be effectively discipled.

4. For the kids of missionaries and believers. Many pastor's kids are more influenced by the school clubs where they spend the majority of their time and cultural values than the Word. Pray for them to repent and have their own faith in Jesus, as well as for their witness to and example among their peers. Pray for their parents to be filled with His love, wisdom and Godly counsel, and for many kids to spend their lives serving the Lord in Japan.

5. For orphans and kids from broken families. There is a near-total lack of cultural altruism, as the people you help belong to your club or social circle, and as a result adoption and care of neglected children is rare. There is apparently only one orphanage in the entire country with entirely Christian staff, as the others don't have enough believers (or those with the desired qualifications) to fill positions. Cults and social groups have stepped into the void, so please pray for the salvation of these kids as well as the church to truly serve the orphan & widow (James 1:27).

6. For my further preparation in repentance and faith, deepening in real love of the Lord and mortification of the flesh daily.

Your brother in Jesus,

Kylan

Prayer for Japan #1 (December 2010)

2011-03-01T21:07:00.000-08:00

Dear spiritual family,

Greetings from east Oakland! I pray that you are growing in obedient separation to Jesus and wonder at our Triune God.

It’s been over 3 months since I finished my church internship at ReGeneration, during which the Lord confirmed my calling as a missionary to Japan. It grieves me to know that over 400,000 Japanese live in 20 towns in or around the city of Nagoya—none of which has believers gathering in it! (Last I heard, there were more Jehovah's Witnesses--a mission field!--nationwide than professing evangelical Christians.)

Through the Perspectives course on world missions, I caught the vision for local church planting: trusting God to save [Japanese] people, training them in simple and reproducible Christian living, then appointing elders and departing in order to let them be sustained by the Holy Spirit. My heart is to become part of a mostly national team devoted to such work in this least-churched region of Japan in or shortly after July 2011.

What will it take? Being broken of my own pride and cowardice in personal witness—how else can I minister to a people who have yet to apologize for their actions in greater Asia during World War II and do not see themselves as needing to repent & find forgiveness? Being placed in a team—how else can the fullness of Christ’s body be seen and the Biblical model for sowing together ( ) be replicated?

And, most germane to you, dear reader: it will take being lifted up in prayer—only God can do these things, and when He answers it will be clear that His is the glory for accomplishing them!

1) Please pray for me to be broken in humility at my own sinfulness and totally dependent on the will & grace of the Lord—which will as a side effect produce boldness, I think

2) Please ask that God would be glorified in and Christ preached to the greater Nagoya area’s 400,000+ people in towns & cities without a church body

3) Please ask God to provide laborers, especially from within Japan, for this region and task

4) Please ask the Lord to give me wisdom for obtaining necessary or helpful personal things: a visa, contact with church planting mentor(s), experience in evangelism and other ministries, understanding of the Japanese language & culture

If you have any Scripture, advice, or questions, please let me know! I am so grateful I can send this to you and appreciate in advance your faithful prayers. Feel free to forward it to others who will also pray.

Your brother in Him Who was broken for us,

Kylan

Heart-Level Healing

2009-07-08T11:20:00.000-07:00

To sum up the trip, I'd like to talk about. I learned a lot through the six-week ministry experience in Tokyo, as I'd hoped, but this was the biggest inadvertant lesson.

I am prone to dismiss psychological talk. Yes, the Bible has much to say in terms of comfort and encouragement, and I realize the value of such edification, but seeing in childhood pain the root of today's actions seemed to avoid responsibility. That was before project debriefing.

A dear friend of mine, who was very honest about his personal struggles while in Tokyo, has long battled depression. If he feels down or excluded, sometimes voices inside his head tell him that he deserves what he's going through, leading him to further isolate himself. I noticed that while our team was getting ready to head back to the U.S. in high spirits, he was present for games (Nertz, Settlers of Catan) but otherwise shying away from group activity. Tried to encourage him in pursuing interaction--without success.

Back in LA, Campus Crusade had scheduled a two-hour period where we as a team could air any remaining concerns or apologize to one another. Though I knew I had some selfishness/isolation tendencies of my own to confess, I wasn't anticipating what came next. My friend had a panic attack! Another friend treated his hyperventilation by having him breathe into a paper bag, but then the struggle began.

We asked him what was going on; he began saying that he was "rotten to the core" and always ruining everything. The latter, as several of us pointed out, was not true at all--he had actually been a huge source of joy and strength by unashamedly sharing his weaknesses and growing in love for us & the Japanese students. The former was a lie of the devil, given that my friend is fully redeemed with the blood of Jesus and thus given His perfect character! We prayed truth from the Bible over him, but it was heartbreaking to hear him sob that we should be spending our time on someone else. Several people, including myself, were able to share deeper sins than expected because of his public struggle.

At the next day's encouragement session, he had retreated inward and kept silent while we shared what we each loved about every team member. When the time was over, his team leader came up and gave him a big, unreciprocated hug. I left while the embrace was still in progress. A few others stayed behind and read him Scripture, particularly Romans 5 & 8, as they prayed over him again. When confronted directly with the fact that Christ has already seen us at our worst and borne our every sin, requiring us only to have faith in [trust & obey] Him, my friend finally accepted healing--and I saw him next with a ridiculous grin all across his face. God restored his joy!

What did I learn from this?

1) The Word of God is true: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." (1 John 1:8-10) We must acknowledge our sins, even to one another.

2) The truth of God's Word, not even seemingly sound advice, is what we need to effectively combat our & other's problems.

3) God is still healing people, and this is something nonbelievers as well as Christians need from Him. Past hurts matter to Him Who has already dealt with them, and I trust that my brother will be specially equipped for ministry through this process of growth.

4) Perseverance in relationships & prayer bear real Spiritual fruit as God gives the increase.

5) God is merciful!

Deep Encouragement

2009-06-13T23:11:00.000-07:00

Rest is critical to our lives, as we have been given eternal freedom from our work through trust in Jesus and His voluntary sacrifice in our place. In addition, God has created the Sabbath for man so that we remember our limitations and have time to specifically acknowledge His Lordship over our lives. This weekend, I was able to enjoy my necessary rest by visiting my old church (Horizon Chapel) for Saturday night & Sunday morning services.

The first time I came out to church, each completely unfamiliar Japanese station name only furthered fears of missing the station; the half-hour train ride seemed endless. This time, it felt like I barely had time to continue reading the Japanese novel Freezing Point (an exploration of original sin) before stepping off the platform at Machida and working my way through streets crowded with Sunday shoppers. As soon as I saw the church building, I started running with excitement, eager to rejoin my Spiritual family!

Reaction of the night: Hide-kun, my closest Japanese friend. I snuck into the sanctuary without catching his eye and tapped him on the shoulder. He was so surprised that all he could say for a minute was my name! I was super-glad to see my pastor Jeremiah and former boss Kevin as well as several other familiar faces.

The message was focused applying Jesus's model prayer when on our knees (though Jeremiah stressed that only the position of our hearts is important to God). I was particularly reminded to be directly praising the Lord and giving specific thanks to Him--things we tend to omit when coming to prayer solely to receive from God. This is one of the reasons why Jesus placed worship and requests for the Father's kingdom before our personal requests.

Went over to "Auntie" Shigeko-san's house for a delicious feast, over which Michiko-san and I got to share about grace and true religion with Shigeko-san's husband. Kevin also persuaded two college students from Texas, also visiting for campus ministry, to try natto for the first time. I ended up scarfing down their "interesting"-tasting portions and thus tainting all my further cultural suggestions in their eyes. Those to whom it is given to enjoy tastefully decomposing food should accept it, right?

Today, I enjoyed breakfast at the Boeks just like old times (though I missed meeting their daughter, who's away at a summer camp). The two little dudes had a soccer tournament and took off as soon as Geigy finished making their Japanese-style boxed lunches. She then shared that she thinks Christians could be much more effective witnesses in Japan if church was moved to, say, Saturday evening and Sunday was a free day to develop loving relationships with the shoppers and resting businessmen.

The second service also focused on prayer, this time from James 5. Going to God in every circumstance with faith is clearly the key, but the verses on healing received unexpected emphasis when Scott shared about his wife's miraculous physical recovery (still awaiting doctor confirmation) last week in response to corporate prayer & oil anointing.

Finally, I was taken out to lunch (eel over rice--my favorite) by brother Stephen, a dear friend who continually shows love by Scripturally encouraging & exhorting me onward in Christlikeness. He specifically charged me with Isaiah 50:4, which speaks of the faithfulness of the prophecied Servant of Israel, to take time in the mornings to study the Word and hear from Him Who came as that Servant in order to strengthen myself and others. That's true education. May we also continue speaking the Word to one another and grow up together in all things into Christ our Head. Thankfully, that growth will develop through times of rest.

Ministry in Motion

2009-06-12T22:37:00.000-07:00

It's been three weeks on campus so far and the weather is slowly getting summery, a nice mirror of how our team has been growing together and slowly seeing the Lord work among our new Japanese friends. One thing that has been personally difficult is that few of the students I've met have become friends--I'm not used to slowly building relationships, and my desire to move things to a Spiritual level may have alienated some of the guys I've talked with thus far. That said, one person in Gakugei University's wind ensemble with whom I had a long chat came out to our English lunch, which was exciting.

To balance this out, I am learning to rejoice with those on my team who are rejoicing, sharing in their triumphs. My co-leader Jess, for instance, struck up a near-instant friendship with a girl who works at our local bread shop; after several brief conversations while she was on the job, they met and talked for 4 hours! Jack & Kyle met someone who could speak English well and had such a great conversation that their new friend skipped work to come to our "Discover Friends" party last night!

Yes, it's frustrating to spend an afternoon walking around campus (especially on a bright, sunny day) and find no one willing to talk--partially because class schedules are more like American high schools and lounging around isn't popular. However, I can take joy in the special things God lets me do, like serving as a translator when the language barrier is high or directly addressing Spiritual things in Japanese with other teammate's friends.

While we have gotten to share about who God is and why He sent Jesus with several people, it's awesome to know that two have definitely accepted Christ as their Savior and others are seriously considering it! Considering that the Japanese culture is generally apathetic to Jesus and hostile to religion, this is amazing. The other team has been barred from returning to one of their campuses, in part because the administration thinks that we are out to recruit their students. They are wrong--God is doing the work, and He cannot be stopped!

Group Go-Round

2009-05-30T18:44:00.000-07:00

Even now, being in Japan again as part of a long-awaited missionary assignment, everything feels slightly surreal. The cries of shopkeepers inviting customers inside, the otherwise quiet streets where no one looks you in the eye, the octopus and natto [fermented soybeans] and way-too-expensive cereal available in supermarkets...all familiar voices and vistas. This time, however, I am not alone.

No, I'm not subtly referring to Jesus, though His presence and love is the ultimate reason for my presence here. I came with 16 American brothers and sisters in Christ--from Arizona, Michigan, South Carolina and (boo, hiss) Trojan country [University of Southern California]. We have bonded over prayerful trust that our Creator and Savior would provide, as when we arrived at briefing we had about $20K of team expenses left to raise and one passport left at home in Arizona. Yet He faithfully provided for both of these and I'm glad to actually be here!

I am living with my team in Koenji, more centrally located than last time. We are in apartments that have tatami [woven bamboo matting] rooms, a wonderful feature that is unfortunately less forgiving as a mattress than I'd remembered. Despite prices, we as an apartment are still hooked on cereal, as well as juice, squishier bread, dango [rice balls covered with sweetened sauce] or doughnuts for breakfast.

Our team is visiting four major universities, so we divided in half. My half has been assigned to Hitotsubashi--back again--and Gakugei University, an college focused on training future educators. There have been several neat stories already, but in the interest of time I'll just share one.

As most of our team doesn't speak Japanese, we generally strike up student conversations by asking if they speak English. Andrew and I approached someone sitting by himself at Hitotsubashi, asked if he was able & willing to chat and sat down with him. Right away--probably clued in by my necklace--he asked if we were Christians, the obvious subtext being that he thought we were out to hunt him down and convert him. I said yes, but also explained that I had been a foreign exchange student there just a year before and pretty soon we figured out that we both knew one of my seminar professors. That put him at ease and allowed us to ask him why he was concerned about religion (most people regard non-ritualistic spiritual things with suspicion). Prior connections can really help!

Taking Shock

2008-05-12T06:13:00.000-07:00

The written word has long let me experience life vicariously. Never mind seeing that hit movie; I know who's in it and the general idea from reading the newspaper. Rather than approaching a new band's CD with an open mind, I tend to first check out a review online. Yes, I even read cookbooks that don't have pictures sometimes because the writing is, well, scrumptious in its own way.

This background may give me a slight advantage in trivia games or light conversation, but when we move beyond questions for points or first impressions, I sometimes feel like the proverbial jack-of-all-trades: master of none.

I'd read a fair amount about culture shock, both in the pre-departure materials and through my Anthropology material, and took the time to read about the very different environment that lay ahead. From these, I falsely concluded that my experience would be different; having lived in a foreign culture already and stuffed my brain with factoids was supposed to grant me immunity after the initial adjustment phase.

For a long time, it seemed I had calculated things just right. Even as the excitement of getting by with a foreign language dimmed into routine, the excellent food and time with host families kept things interesting but not overwhelming. My English-language church and Internet contact with folks back home were safeguards against feeling isolated or marooned.

Even so, when school let out for two months in February and March, a thread of the blues snaked into my mind. The dorm quieted down as people went home and I settled in to enjoy the routine and pursue a few personal goals (writing, language study), but before I knew it those dreams had gelled into lethargic inactivity. And as the doldrums set in, my Japanese suddenly seemed totally inadequate given the length of time spent in-country. I began rewriting my time here in my head: if I had only joined this club or taken this opportunity...

Looking back on that too-long season, what scares me most is how in pride I assumed truly frustrating culture shock would never happen to me and didn't even let myself affix that title to what I was experiencing. Even anthropologists get homesick sometimes, but only the honest and humble ones admit it.

Break Amid Blossoms

2008-05-05T06:03:00.000-07:00

About five weeks ago, this nation went through something catchier and more enjoyable than hay fever: marveling at the front of cherry flowers. Yes, I mean "front" in the same sense the weather report does, because an amazing amount of tourism cash depends on exactly when those buds open up in any given locale. In an apparently rare twist, Tokyo led the nation this time.

My campus is bisected by a long road deliberately lined with these trees, which bear token fruit but are of a separate variety specifically groomed for its profuse display of pink. Still, I saw quite a few vials of 'cherry blossom jelly' for sale as locals attempted to cash in on the yearly phenomenon.

The florified surroundings are merely the tip of the proceedings, however. To really enjoy the scenery, people are supposed to go out to parks and enjoy a meal with friends underneath the falling petals. As I did so, a gentle wind came and shook several blossoms off their branches, leading one of my foreigner friends to exclaim, "This is Japan!" At that moment, I didn't want to disagree; the suggestion of life's transience (James 4:14) and the mild weather were indeed just about ideal for our picnic.

This ritual is also a mark of democratization, in that so much which several centuries ago was only enjoyed by nobles (leisure time, disposable income, flavorings such as salt) are now regarded as basic to the average affluent lifestyle. When my grandparents & I visited the National Museum, the National Treasure on display was a wood panel painted with a scene of ancient courtiers and their boxed bento lunches taking in the flower view; I could only smile.

Metropolitan Diameter

2008-04-15T06:47:00.000-07:00

My three grandparents just got in tonight, happy to finally see some of the places I've mentioned before. They were also treated very well on their international flight, which was encouraging given the recent downer headlines about USA flights over here.

We took a bus straight through Tokyo to their hotel (2.5 hours), and I was reminded of a few things. First, it's a huge, sprawling city--easy to say but not exactly simple to realize when your address says Tokyo but two-story suburban housing surrounds you for 20 minutes in any direction. We passed by one office skyscraper after another, where many of those people crowding the trains are headed to or from at any given moment. Even at 8 PM, most of them were well lit; sadly, not every businessman will be heading home tonight.

Second: there is something beautiful about night city scenery. This may be obvious to some of you already, but this self-fashioned country boy has never seen much to enjoy about being surrounded by concrete--if I don't find any green somewhere, I'll probably write that place off pretty quick. Well, it's time to get off that snobbish horse and admit that modern group living can be attractive at times. The light dappling across ocean water under the massive bridges we rode was particularly charming.

Finally my thoughts turned to heaven, the eternal place that Jesus is preparing for those who love Him. What kind of residence would that be, where our light is not the sun but the Lord? where countless people experience Him? Concepts of space will be redefined; it won't matter whether my temporary earthly dwelling was mostly city or country; and the only lasting beauty can be fully understood for the first time.

Come Again?

2008-03-15T05:02:00.000-07:00

It's only fair that someone who grumps online about imports from English over here would make a stupid mistake himself. "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18)

So I was eating dinner yesterday with friends at a pretty good restaurant with a picture menu--standard here if most prices are under $10 a dish--and after we'd finished we decided to split one or two desserts. I went back up to the counter with my pastor, and we investigated the sweets section. What caught our eye was the subtitle of "hot ice [cream]," apparently of the green tea flavor.

The kanji characters indicating the official title were fairly indecipherable to me, but curiosity took over and led me to order the dish. For some reason, the waiter didn't understand my simple request the first time around, but I repeated my order twice and and pointing at the menu until he took it down.

Our whole table wondered how the cooks had overcome the apparent laws of physics to produce this paradox. Finally the dish was served and I saw it swish in its bowl; guess it was just heated until it melted. I took the first trial sip and was shocked at the unexpectedly bitter taste.

It was traditional green tea, no sugar included. Suddenly everything made plain, devastating sense: "hot ice" didn't imply 'cream' but a choice of temperature. No wonder the waiter was confused! Thankfully, I had just enough sense to order two dishes and the second one didn't disappoint.

All in all, I had it easy: my only losses from the false assumption were the aura of linguistic competence and $2.10 (reflecting the dollar's recent dip).

Brink of Insanity

2008-03-11T06:52:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I hear about people doing something very much outside the daily grind, like my uncle Willie on his periodic bike tours around the globe (currently Columbia). When my friend Matt suggested a hike to the Mt. Fuji area, I thought it was worth a day or two's adventure. Little did I know what was in store.

The two of us and the ukulele player from the contest music group started out at lunchtime with a bowl of "student discount" ramen--good carbohydrate fuel. We walked, walked, walked with periodic breaks--check out the size of the left pack--until sundown. Fuji's peak slowly drew closer.

After going to a blessedly well-stocked supermarket for dinner, we began to implement our brilliant plan of camping out in a tent with plans of continuing the next day. However, we miscalculated about the weather. Specifically, the fact that it was bone-chillingly cold.

A real blanket instead of a space tarp and tent walls thicker than construction paper might have helped, though we were all wrapped up in several layers. What drove me nuts and prevented any real sleep all night was my one personal mistake: forgetting an extra pair of socks. Nothing like feeling your toes freeze to while the hours away, trust me.

Between shivering and the not-too-comfortable ground, which had probably frozen a few nights ago, none of us caught much shuteye. We woke when the first train rumbled into town at 5:30 AM and hurriedly packed our gear up to catch the 6:05 back home; plans for continued hiking weren't exactly feasible under sleep deprivation conditions. I was able to get rested back at home and miraculously didn't catch any major diseases, save the inability to resist turning the dorm shower to 'Hot' every morning.

At least we had a nice view of Mt. Fuji (which we were smart enough to know we couldn't climb yet anyways) by the time we called it quits. I left the shot uncropped to better illustrate the 'country' environment we hiked through that first day.

Happy to stay inside the daily grind for now, and I think my toes agree.

Snow Country

2008-02-18T17:38:00.000-08:00

There is a famous and dry novel by Kawabata Yasunari that I read a few years ago with the same title. Perhaps someday it will become necessary for me to go through it again in the original language, but if that happens I won't be able to look at it the same way again...not after this tour to Fukushima Prefecture's Aizu-Wakamatsu region.

Once a semester, my university sponsors field trips to different parts of Japan so its exchange students can experience the surprising fact that not all of the country looks like the depressing sprawl of Tokyo, Yokohama and their suburbs. This was no American excursion, for in that case we would have been allowed to wander the streets and do a little exploring. No, "field trip" over here means that everything is planned out for you; our schedule budgeted 20 minutes for one history museum!

Not that I am bitter; there is definite comfort in turning over the reigns of your time to someone else's control and enjoying new sights. Beyond that, it was an interesting cultural experiment in how Japanese people generally take tours. But apart from the glorious relaxation of the hot baths + sauna at the hotel or the neat experience of painting on lacquerware, it's hard to look back on the two-day trip and think that I'd do it again. Especially odd for me was the everyone-must-win Bingo game we played both directions of the trip and the continual warnings to "watch our step" in the snow, even when only a few feet separated us and the destination.

The food was also interesting but not my preference. Styled after the kaiseki or formal, Kyoto-style cuisine favored in high-class settings, this well-
compartmentalized meal was pleasing to the eye but not exactly satisfying to my quantity-oriented stomach. At least they had a little dish of pickles, which I love in almost any form but the super-sour plum.

I wish my camera batteries had cooperated long enough to show you the amazing snowstorm that we enjoyed on the ride up, but at least I can show its results on the castle we visited.

Winter is still here, but not here to stay; the sun is outside my window and by the Lord's mercy will probably be there tomorrow. And though I have mixed feelings about having just penciled my return date on the calendar, I will miss the snowball fights when I'm back in California. Good thing we weren't warned against those.

By Any Other Name

2008-02-07T05:28:00.000-08:00

I've written before about the hybrid tongue that rules this country, but didn't give any concrete examples. English is a pirate language that steals lots of terms, so it's only fair that Japanese has turned around and begun doing the same.

This sign with smart calligraphy illustrates an example I learned as a second
-year student. In America, such a plaque would be reserved for, say, an old governor's residence. It's reasonable to expect that the use of this term is equivalent, right?

Wrong. When you look a little higher up, it becomes clear that "mansion" means something very different here. Specifically, it refers to an apartment building with a single, secure entrance and slightly ritzier facilities. Perhaps that's as upscale as most families can get in this tightly packed country.

Winter Wonderland

2008-02-01T06:42:00.000-08:00

Last week, everyone studying here got a great surprise. I woke up on Wednesday to a sight that I've never seen in my hometown and (barring a miracle and/or the complete reversal of global warming) will never see in the Bay Area: snowflakes trickling steadily down.

At first it seemed like a morning fluke. But the trickle changed to a strong downpour and pretty soon I heard sleigh bells ringing in my head (probably the result of that Carpenters album).

I don't know if anyone else is keeping score, but so far that's 2-0 in season beauty versus Cal in my book. Am slowly starting to understand why some Japanese boast that only their country has four seasons, even if they are wrong.

Chat-and-Run

2008-02-01T06:20:00.000-08:00

When I travel, I generally like to go there in a relaxed state of mind, with leisure time and optional plans that allow me to enjoy what the area has to offer. 2 weeks ago, however, I had a very different experience of Japan's most famous merchant town.

Osaka was my destination for two reasons: a summer semester classmate's work in his college photography club's exhibit and a chance to reconnect with the man who first spoke to me about being in Japan. 31 hours didn't leave me any time to explore the slightly more historic downtown, but I very much enjoyed the brief talking time God allowed me to have. Though I am only beginning to learn how to express love to others, I think physical presence (as much as possible) is key; this trip was, in that sense, good practice.

The picture show was quite impressive and several pieces could easily have be mistaken for professional work, partially because the line between hobby and obsession is easily blurred for many Japanese--and easy university classes with at most a part-time job often compound this devotion. If buddy Jerich gets sucked into that kind of fascination, or even just continues practicing, I think he could become a top-notch talent.

The other friend, who graciously lent me his apartment's tatami room so I didn't have to worry about where I would spend the night, also introduced me to some unique twists in the regional dialect (which is probably stronger than Southern-accented English to the Tokyo ear). Ryan is a missionary working in Osaka, and if he hadn't spoken at my college's Christian club about the need in Japan for people who love Jesus I don't know where I'd be now. But he did, and as I prayed & thought about his challenge I believe God changed my heart even at the level of desire--"Maybe going there is a good idea." It was a slow process, and I had to lose confidence in the dreams I had made for myself first, but I am here now and very grateful to Ryan for his help and encouragement. I also got some blessedly spicy Korean food for free.

Thankfully, though, I knew before crossing the ocean that the best times would probably be with friends and family, as in CA. As a follower of Christ the latter also has a Spiritual meaning, though I do miss my wonderful relatives. So even though this is not an exciting post, it is more typical of how I choose to spend my time. I'll take a quick conversation with a friend over the shopping trip any time.

Front and Center

2008-01-20T18:42:00.000-08:00

I know I wrote about a different talent show, but now I've participated in one myself--only this one was the showcase for a certain Foreign Exchange Student Performance Contest. The program even included laudatory letters from each student's home country ambassador to Japan (!), but this was as close we got to cross-cultural communication; instead, the thoroughly Japanese audience was content to appreciate the exotic.

How did I get here? A classmate from my summer semester of language instruction started jamming on this Hawaiian love song with a ukulele player going to his central Tokyo college, but they wanted a low-end pulse and gave me a call. We ran two casual rehearsals at their dorm, then auditioned and somehow were allowed to advance to the finalist stage. I liked playing with these dudes so much that participating in the Harajuku concert was icing on the cake, though several of the other 18 groups were clearly there in the hopes of winning.

Our song was 3 minutes long, so for playing it twice--morning dress rehearsal and afternoon debut--all three of us got 1) a full day's entertainment from Laotian wind instruments to a masterful piece on a guqin [oldest Chinese stringed instrument, somewhat like a zither] that was built like a koto [Japanese and derived from the guqin] to watching a few internationals live out the karaoke player's dream of a professional backing band, 2) lunch of o-nigiri [small piece of meat wrapped in rice and then a layer of seaweed] and sandwiches as well as a buffet banquet for dinner, and 3) a grab bag of prizes which I'll get to in a second. I think we were well compensated!

So yes, after our performance we were awarded the title of "Most Rhythmic," although to be fair this was one of the consolation prizes everyone but the top three received. And while I am very grateful for the generous grab bag of gifts, all three of us could only laugh when it turned out that everything had been donated...and half of those generous companies are apparently makers of women's clothing! "You want this skirt?" "Hey, check out these pants!" It was like getting Christmas presents from a Santa loaded on sake. True, they weren't Goodwill donations and our guitar player can really use the futon & electronic dictionary we got, but the prizes just made the experience all that much more wacky and ultimately memorable.

Tea For Free

2008-01-13T05:33:00.001-08:00

It's said that growth or adventure requires being pushed out of the ordinary. This is usually true. However, the catalyst for my recent experience with Japanese hospitals came not through tragedy or a Herculean challenge but sheer stupidity. I was rushing to get ready [translation: cram] before class and thought that a kitchen knife would help me open up a grapefruit. When I opened my left thumb instead, my day's schedule came to a halt as I skipped class for the campus health center. The professional nurse there took one good look at the cut and told me to head for the local clinic.

I have no real complaints about the hospital. A fair number of the sicker patients were wearing cloth mouth masks, popular here to prevent or contain colds & allergies, and I thus felt more protected from disease than American lobbies, where some sick child is usually hacking up a storm. Though it did take them a while to call me in, the doctor was very nice and turned in a solid performance on fixing my 5-stitch-wide accident.

The one small scare was that he at first thought I might have nicked a nerve in the process, so he probed around a little first to make sure. I doubted it because I reasoned this would have caused insane pain, but was nonetheless relieved when he gave me an OK sign during the operation. It was a little weird, though, to hear him asking the nurse for a digital camera with which to offer me visual proof of my thin, white nerve's continued existence. A little gruesome to look at, but at least this pushed my appetite clock back by a comfortable 30 minutes or so and let me take care of one or two errands first.

Only one major cultural difference, and it is a huge plus in my little opinion: the automatic tea dispenser. Tea isn't just a drink here, but more like an expected social grace (or grease, without any gritty connotations) whenever a visitor drops by an institution, e.g. when I first dropped by orphanages or when I went with other exchange students on local school visits. Here's what the modest machine offers: plain water (top middle), oolong tea (bottom left), barley brew (bottom center) and green tea (bottom right). Each of these can be had hot or chilled, which is why there are two buttons per kind, but it being a rainy day I of course went for the throat-warming approach. This is another reason why the wait was no problem, as I sampled each of the varieties and confirmed a previously inexperienced preference for green.

Hope everyone is well over there and exercising proper kitchen caution. My thumb is well and offered no problems when I played bass guitar today at a music competition--but the write-up will have to come later. Sick people are allowed to get tired faster than normal, right? And no, I don't plan on attempting more shenanigans just to get a few warm cups on the house.

Spa on Steriods

2008-01-05T03:54:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year! I spent two hours on the eve of this popular Japanese holiday enjoying a wonderful cultural experience--the public baths.

I went as the guest of one host family's father. We locked up our belongings & clothes save for a small hand towel, then entered the men's side. First came the water-only shower, to ensure that any dirt would not be carried into public pools. Then it was off into the various wonders provided for our relaxation: hot tubs indoor and out; a sauna room; cold baths to better appreciate the hot ones; and a rock slab where you could lie down on the smooth, hot-H2O-covered surface.

This was a wonderful break from long days with nothing warm outside 8-minutes showers, multiple layers and the occasional room heater. There were, however, two supremely weird and hopefully unique features.

#1: Electric massage...in a hot tub! I was pretty sure that water and electricity never mix well, but some foolhardy inventor must have reasoned that running a current through his pool's shallow end would prove invigorating. My host father emerged unscathed after a few minutes of this torturous-sounding treatment, so I had to try it as well. It felt like a strange, pulsating touch on my shoulders, but my hips translated that pressure into pain.

#2: The front wall of the sauna. The European rooms I'd been in before were all-wood and conducive to focusing all your thoughts on sweating, but this one had a built-in clock and TV set! I almost began to suspect that someone had ripped it out of a normal home and stuck it in this most incongruous of locations. There was some sort of screen to protect the gadgets from heat exposure, but no barrier to defend against the intrusion of noise and news. Call me Spartan, but I think some places here should be more private, or at least more conducive to personal interaction than information overload.

Despite these quirks, I am more than willing to sweat it out with some fellow students soon. Given that many Americans still seem hung up about changing in locker rooms, however, I doubt that this trend will hit Stateside anytime soon. I'd invest in the private sauna room business instead.

Santa Likes Seiza

2007-12-24T17:25:00.000-08:00

Ho ho ho! Japanese people tend to pray to their ancient harvest deities throughout spring and fall as well as New Year's, but there is no real doubt to the chief of Christmas: a pudgy white elf who loves to spoil children. Perhaps Mr. Claus is so popular because he fits all their best stereotypes of foreigners and gives generously while asking nothing.

Possessing one precious commodity (snowy skin) and one nice bonus (adequate conversational Japanese) as I do, it was no big stretch to say yes to an offer I recently got to play the jolly boss from the North Pole for a childcare center. The staff there had a fun idea: have Santa enter with an English "Merry Christmas!" and have the kids practice a few lines of English, then ask the fat man if he can speak Japanese and carry on from there in the language most familiar to the kiddos.

So we did just that. The bag has wrapped presents of candy for each boy and girl; the only two catches were that I offered a male present to someone of the female sex with a particularly short haircut and that there were too many gifts for the boys, leaving the staff to fix the imbalance as I left.

One fun little thing was practicing culturally proper sitting posture (see "Content..." from August, 5th paragraph) while in costume. They also offered green tea, as is customary when serving any visitor to an institution, and I plan on recommending that my toy workshop be retrofitted with tatami flooring once the blue-collar elves get their act together after New Year's.

This is my last post for 2007, a.k.a. Heisei year 19--the Japanese system assigns dates by emperor's rule. Please have a good holiday season and I look forward to seeing you, the Lord willing, at some point in the coming year.

Like Water

2007-12-21T14:54:00.000-08:00

This is a depressing post, so please choose the time when you read it wisely. I'd hate to ruin your day through my carelessness.

I was ambling through one of the temples in my Kyoto Sunday morning stroll. Photography was permitted in all areas of the place except for one altar hut, which had an idol of a Buddha surrounded by stuffed animals--Pooh, Mickey and Pikachu crowded in on the stony guy as if trying to cheer him up with a big group hug.

This seemed intriguing, but I couldn't quite make out the meaning of the explanatory plaque, which ended with the characters for "[cold] H2O" and "child." So I asked one of the people staffing the place, and learned that the hut was built in memory of aborted babies. They were given that two-character euphemism because they came out like...well...right. And I could only shudder inside.

I think this issue has become so clouded over with rhetoric and ideology in America that both sides forget the very real human emotions and situations underlying the whole debate. For the record, though, I will say that I do not believe in justifying abortion access on the basis of forced-pregnancy cases, as this seems like the same kind of minority logic that would paint all would-be immigrants as illegal migrant workers.

And now a moment of silence for the hurting mothers with the memories they retain. Please fill it as you think best.

Guitar Grandstanding

2007-12-17T06:09:00.000-08:00

Just attended a high school talent show this afternoon; my local host family's eldest daughter was playing a crunchy indie-rock rhythm guitar for two of the eight groups on the program. So naturally I am reflecting on what makes rock music, well, rocking. After all, the genre survived some bashing from one or two horrible singers and a drummer who dragged the beat so bad I had to resist the urge to go up & swap him out.

If it's true that a chain is defined by its weakest link (not always, though) then this entertaining block of time should help evaluate what makes the form strong. It certainly isn't lyrics, for when they weren't mumbled beneath the beat they were absolutely incomprehensible--ever heard "Smoke on the Water" from Japanese vocal chords? What kept my ears tuned in were the driving riffs [short melodies played in unison between guitar & bass to the rhythm of pounding drums]. Yes, it's a very old observation, but isn't 'original music criticism' an oxymoron? Writing about any art form can only strive to point others to the much better creativity within the work itself.

Now don't get me wrong; I'm not saying that Deep Purple forever define rock as a genre and that poetic lyrics are dead. My comments should only be taken to mean that when you overcook songs through continual download exposure and then strain them through a language barrier and a so-so school PA system a certain karate-chop strength remains. Let's see Josh Groban try copping that vibe one of these days...no, wait. The result would probably make me long for today's wince-worthy "Teen Spirit" cover.

Pushed Around

2007-12-17T04:28:00.000-08:00

You're in a small American farming town at night, cruising down the main drag, when all of a sudden you have to pull over. The locals appear to be rioting! They're partying in a wild abandon, completely shattering all your stereotypes about staid country folk, and what's more, they are dragging you and a bunch of other onlookers into the whole craze!

If you add hordes of tourists and switch pagan influences for nominally Christian ones, you can start to appreciate the harvest-shindig-meets-Mardi-Gras events the Japanese simply call "festivals." This one in Chichibu was only a convenient 1.75 hours from my Tokyo suburb and of the "float" type. And said floats aren't by any means the Rose Parade or slopped-together high school Homecoming carts but vehicles with decades or even centuries of history behind their ornate, gilded front.

The pictures didn't turn out too well, but here's kind of what it looked like: crowded streets with teams of headscarved youth pulling the gigantic vessels along with ropes (OK, only those right next to the floats were actually exerting much effort).

Each float was unique, but all had lanterns and riders perched on them at various points.

The whole spectacle was obviously exciting, but another key reason for coming was for the carnival-esque atmosphere, highlighted by seemingly endless rows of food stalls. This man here is preparing "octopus bake," dough balls with a small chunk of tentacle at the center and topped with generous helpings of parsley & Worchestershire-like sauce. Very tasty! Note also the cute little mollusk on his sign; adorable logos are prevalent over here to the point of market exhaustion--and by that I mean to say that even train safety alerts sometimes employ the Hello Kitty character!

Anyways, it was a good time for all because no one got lost and the mountain air wasn't as cold as expected (an unexpected benefit of global warming--though it doesn't justify this phenomenon). Guess even this notoriously hardworking culture needs some officially sanctioned party time.

That Losing Feeling

2007-12-13T00:42:00.000-08:00

I hope you don't know it well--that gut reaction of "Oh crap, I know I just left it [keys, jacket, wallet] back here; where did it go?" I've had more than a few pangs of this brain-overriding emotion here, but cultural norms have made most of them irrelevant. You see, it's very difficult to lose something here.

Gloves? Dropped one in a crowded street during a festival [will post pictures soon]; it was left to the side waiting for me. Bike? I've left my keys in the lock for hours--on accident, of course--and come back to find it untouched. Passport? An airport staffer ran it out to me when I left it on the counter in my rush to enter Tokyo!

This isn't to say that theft is absent here, or that it's the world's safest country. However, I've been extremely blessed so far. It's also clear that leaving anything in my buttery fingers is dangerous!

It's just my opinion, but I think the Creator of all things and Father of us all has given this Spiritually dark country this ray of common grace in their culture. Jesus said: "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." (Matthew 5:44-45)

And while we're about that work of holy imitation, maybe we should take the scarf that guy dropped and set it at eye level on the fence. After all, he might be an absent-minded type who will come back for it later.

In Quiet Temples

2007-12-10T04:28:00.000-08:00

Kyoto is renowned for being the epicenter of traditional Japanese culture, with over 1200 years of history. I figured, then, that 24 hours would suffice.

I must not be very Japanese yet, because irony is rarely thought of as funny over here (though regardless of country my all-too-cryptic humor rarely hits home). In any case, I arrived at the one-day option by necessity rather than choice; I had only the weekend, and the first half was already booked for writing with new friends also participating in National Novel Writing Month. Here's how my two-day, night-bus (combining travel and accommodation) itinerary came out:

Friday: Made the bus stop five minutes before departure. Paused to let my heart start beating normally again, griped into my diary about the intrusive ads scattered all over Tokyo and then enjoyed the provided slippers (hooked just above the foot rest in front of me) on a pre-sleep bathroom run.

Saturday: Kicked off the bus at 6 AM, an hour from my destination and 4 hours from the agreed-upon rendezvous time. Read and prayed for a while in a cafe, then noticed this little station shop I hope to patronize the next time I'm in the Kansai region (it's a branch of Cafe Du Monde, which I've visited twice in its home city).

Met the other writers--all English teachers from America--and enjoyed a leisurely stroll around the Buddhist temple where Murasaki Shikibu [pen name of the world's first novelist] is said to have begun work on the renowned melodrama Genji Monogatari. We boosted our word counts over a cheap spaghetti meal and I then crashed in the cheapest place possible: a rent-your-own-cubicle Internet cafe.

Sunday: Woke up just in time to avoid extra charges. Rented a nice bike and tooled over to the western area of Arashiyama, where I spent restful time visiting three temples, all of which had gorgeous fall foliage and one of which was connected to another famous work of literature: Heike Monogatari, in several ways Japan's Iliad although it was written in the Middle Ages. It was fulfilling both due to literary-geek dream realization and the abundance of silence, not really attainable in Tokyo. I can see why country people are renowned for loathing living conditions in that metropolis.

Spent the rest of the day visiting two summer-program friends and biking around the Gion district, famous for geisha entertainment. Had a split second of pure poetry: on "Flower-Viewing Street" I saw a kimono-clad, sandal-shod woman with white makeup and a bright-lipsticked smile ushering a business-suited Japanese man across an intersection. She was definitely either a high-level maiko [apprentice geisha] or master, as no one else would accompany an obviously important customer. No room for pictures, but that only underlines the ephemeral spirit of much Japanese art.

Monday: Woke up with my back complaining from the third night sleeping in a chair. Took longer than usual in the shower to make up for skipping the two previous days. Unpacked presents for dorm friends (social obligation over here, usually in packaged-cookie form) and uploaded photographs. Flipped idly through my country guidebook in search of the next adventure.

Best personal souvenir: free 8x11" posters from a Kyoto temple when I asked where I could buy the lovely one hanging by the ticket window
Best food: soba topped with mackerel at a 300-year old restaurant Sunday evening
Best sign on the trip: One that promoted litter cleanup by inventing the phrase "Beautification Enforcement Area."

Law's Long Arm

2007-12-04T08:09:00.000-08:00

So it finally happened last week: I was biking down a residential street, minding my own business, when I got pulled over by the police. Sure, they were riding bicycles just like me and didn't command me to move over, but I understood. In their eyes, I probably had little business cycling around there on what looked like a pilfered machine.

I'd heard stories about foreigners getting sidelined out of what appeared to be ethnic profiling reasons, but here I was not 50 meters from my destination (a local orphanage where I've been volunteering) and the talk had become reality. One of the two coppers asked for my ID; the other one remained silent throughout and was thus probably a subordinate. Thankfully, I had my well-stocked wallet on me and was able to provide the card he asked to see; otherwise my day would have quickly become a lot longer.

They seemed impressed when I mentioned that I was a foreign exchange student and pointed out the corresponding International House decals on my bike. The dominant officer still radioed my machine's specs in, but I was then let off the hook and free to complete my trip on a vehicle that on second thought looks crappy enough to have been swiped out of desperation. It wasn't a big deal in the long-term scheme of things and I'm thankful for greater contact with the reality of power and old cultural mindsets here...yet I am not quite as carefree as I once was when errands take me off-campus. Perhaps this is part of the reason why minority groups in the States, particularly within inner cities, often seem weary: they are tired of fending off other's unverbalized but blatant suspicion.

Ghosts in the Material World

2007-12-02T05:47:00.000-08:00

Cultural differences are obvious even in children's TV shows. A lot of the programming for kids, based on what I've seen orphans here watching, is centered on an American "edu-tainment" model and the rest is cartoonish. However, even in those not explicitly tied to Japanese tradition, things of the past often pop up.

One of my dormmates channels surfs every morning over toast so that he can hear easy-to-understand Japanese and get one step closer to immersion. In the program he was watching today, an employee of a company is continually oversleeping and causes the rest of his co-workers, like one big extended family (to be touched on in a coming post) to gossip about why. They eventually decided that something special had happened, perhaps a new baby, so they came over with presents only to be greeted at the door by the ghost of one of his ancestors!

In Japanese fairy tales, ghosts malevolent and benign play a large role, as I imagine they do in other countries once centered on ancestor worship. Even today grave-visiting ceremonies are taken very seriously, though I have my doubts as to how many people under 30 actually believe anything spiritual goes on there. Anyways, the ghost on the show sits down and eats with the company crowd, despite increasingly giving away his presence by inadvertently flying and letting slip lines like "Well, food isn't necessary for me." There's thankfully no laugh track, but the intent is clearly humorous.

These and other experiences have caused me to reflect a little on spectres and other wraiths, and the unoriginal conclusion thus far is that any discussion of ghosts--either side of the Pacific--centers, spoken or not, on death or the fear of it. Perhaps becoming one ourselves, passing through the grave only to find a Sisyphean half-life back on earth, would be the worst fate of all. This stands in stark contrast to the words of my hero Jesus, Who despite coming from heaven to willingly die for us all speaks only of His eternal life, which His passing allowed us to gain in Him. Indeed, we who believe in and trust our all to Christ are confident in His promise that He has conquered death for us so we need never fear it! True, some delight in expounding upon His agonies, but to be Biblical such thoughts must always circle back to the "life to the full" (John 10:10) He offers to us in Himself even here & now.

All that to say: you can keep the remote, my couch-potato friend. I'd rather look at the rising sun and think of Him Who rose than dwell on nighttime myths couched in electronic form. That future is much brighter than the long arm of the endlessly rehashed past.

Fall Foliage

2007-12-01T06:28:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the month-long absence; blog-writing attempts were completely hijacked by National Novel Writing Month participation and various other endeavors, but I now can focus on showing off my surroundings again.

So here are a few shots of the ephemeral beauty that surrounds me, proving that for 30 days or so my place is prettier than Cal.

This is the view from the station, and it's heartening to see that the true natural beauty of Japan can outshine the drab-
ness of 'modern' designs. Unfortunately the two tallest trees are already clad in Christmas lighting (barely visible as threads) and it looks like human plans will win the upper hand all too soon.

Here's the campus--I am so thankful for the clear weather today.

Now the explosion of gingko color that I saw when I turned around:

I will indulge myself with one last shot that I hope you all enjoy, taken right from the top of the back-door dorm stairs that I use everyday.

When shooting these in the style of the typical Japanese tourist, I realized that never-
changing pictures are somewhat contrary to the spirit of passing beauty they attempt to capture. Perhaps too philosophical a dilemma, but it does encourage me to enjoy the real thing while I can in God's artistic timing.

Sanctum, Plus Snicker

2007-10-31T20:21:00.000-07:00

If you haven't noticed, I'm working to make up for my long silence by posting a lot of stuff while it is still technically October because this site records entry dates from American time. Anyways, this last one for a time collects two things that didn't fit well with the others and would have made them overly long anyways.

Here's the best part of my room, taken at a head-tilted-left angle for a dash of excitement that might cause a few of you to actually read this superficial post. My messy desk and four-stringed friend, named "Solomon" as an ironic comment on its rock-bottom purchase price, take center stage. Unlike my last apartment, I didn't go through the motions of cleaning any accumulated clutter for your viewing ease this time, so if you feel moved to do so please pray for my future wife (Lord willing, in His timing) and her willingness to give somewhat sloppy me extra grace here.

The other thing is a literally translated sign that made me smile when I saw it in the Daiso store I mentioned last time. Plain forms of verbs in Japanese don't sound like commands at all and can even be a natural sentence in casual conversation, but the effect in English...well, judge for yourself.

Money To Burn

2007-10-31T19:45:00.000-07:00

A lot of people were watching the World Series recently because it's the first time in history that two American teams competing for the title had Japanese players--and do Americans give half a rip about what their players do overseas? Very interesting. However, this recent diversion doesn't change the entrenched fact that the national pasttime over here is clearly shopping!

So let's say you are visiting me and want to spend some of your tourist cash. Where would I take you? Answer: I would probably make you buy me a fancy meal and train ticket to someplace I haven't been yet.

'No, no, no,' you say, 'I want to spend where you spend, experience the life of an exchange student for a day.' I would laugh at you, because you must not understand that I am a closet ascetic, a cheapskate who gets a secret thrill out of buying random, expiring vegetables and using them in some improvised way at my next home-made meal. I get much more satisfaction out of using what I already have well and living frugally than in securing a lot of new things.

However, if you were to beg and plead, I would probably realize that I was being selfish in imposing my own opinions on you, as well as not much fun. So we would go together down to the local bakery, or in Japanese pan-ya ["pan" comes from Portugese, I believe, and means bread, while the character for "ya" simply means shop or establishment].

There is almost always a pretty saleswoman out front trying to draw new customers to try the latest seasonal recipe. Please let me digress for a minute on the apparent fascination with/promotion of Halloween this year. Next to the jack-o-lantern there are a few shelves of pumpkin-shaped cookies, and two weeks ago many of the trains had advertisements for Tokyo Disneyland's "spook-tacular" shows. Why? Well for one thing it's from America and thus exotic or worthy of imitation. For another, it accords well with the ingrained Japanese habit of taking a few days in the year to dress up and throw off societal restraint; back in the old days this meant festivals, while now it means "cosplay" at anime conventions. Either way, I think it's pretty silly to have all this top-down promotion of an age-old harvest ritual in any society where the average person isn't farming for their sustenance.

Where were we? Right--buying bread. There are a lot of delicious varities here, as the rule seems to be 'any flavor that the customers like is worth selling.' I was a bit concerned in my initial months because most bread seemed to be of the soft, bleached-bland sort and I very much appreciate European-style seeded wheat bread--hard on the teeth, but good for fiber and very tasty once you stop relying on pure-sugar spreads for flavor. (I get preachy too easily, don't I? Please be patient with me.) However my first purchase at this shop, a crusty wheat loaf chock full of dried figs and walnuts, countered this trend in a delicious manner. I am not a big fan of the artificially flavored 'melon bread' that so many foreigners rave about, but maybe I haven't loosened up my sweet tooth enough yet.

OK, so you want something besides food? First stop is Daiso, where basically everything is 105 yen (currently 91¢), the Japanese answer to dollar stores. Some of the stuff is cheap junk, but much of their inventory was purchased in bulk and can thus be sold for cut-rate prices. The pink sign on the far-left window says "Night help wanted," though I think neither homework nor my current skill in the respectful language required to do business without offense would allow me a spot on the payroll, and the circle around each logo on the double doors says "Welcome" in both English and Japanese (please see my "Tongues" post below if this seems strange).

What's that? You still want to keep spending? Fine; the window shopping district is over that way. I've had enough for the day and will see you back at the dorm, OK? Some quickly perishing spinach is begging to be tossed into a makeshift salad.

Construction Nation

2007-10-31T19:10:00.000-07:00

Now for something completely different--and unfunny, at that. A recent sea change in my view toward this new homeland of mine came while reading Alex Kerr's Dogs and Demons. It was not unlike meeting a charming stranger in class and then having one of your friends come up and tell you how that person cheated and was put on academic probation last semester. However, I pray that my love for Japan and all its many good qualities will not sink into cynical disillusionment at its various problems (and what nation doesn't have its issues?) but be strengthened and deepened as I see more of its true state.

I recommend picking up this book if you have a deeper-than-passing interest in this country, though chapters 9 & 10 are fairly redundant and it is definitely a discouraging read. For those of you without much time, as well as those who will read it but may doubt some of its claims, I offer an example from my hometown (which the Haradas, my geographically closest host family, first brought to my attention).

Once upon a time in this suburb called Kunitachi, there stood a very well-built train station. The architectural style wasn't lavish, but tasteful and stately. It was regarded with pride by its residents and was a sort of town symbol, even earning a spot in the pavement of the long pedestrian road that heads to Hitotsubashi University.

Unfortunately, that plaque and a few old pictures are all that remain. The government and the train system, flush with construction cash and steeped in expansionist dreams, made the executive decision that the station needed more platforms and a redesign more fitting with modern styles (historical retrofitting is, from the little I've seen, almost never taken into account as a viable option). When you lift your eyes from the walkway pictured above and walk in front of the nearby bus stop, this is what you see.

True, it isn't Wurster Hall on the Cal campus or some other such visual monstrosity, but Kunitachi has lost a part of its unique charm and become homogenized into the bland functionality that characterizes almost all of the buildings where everyday Japanese people work and live. The influence of their country's world-renowned architects doesn't exactly trickle down to something most people see.

For another sad example, this is the street which I bike up and down every time I need to get to the train station. Advertising clutters the sides of every building, telephone cables needlessly hem in the sky, and the sidewalks are not only narrow--two people alongside each other is almost cramped--but also freely given over to bike usage, another good reason to cycle rather than stroll. Apart from designated parks, there is very little nature to be found in this mammoth metropolis.

I realize that these things are small complaints and I am blessed to be here with all this convenience and efficient transportation. However, a little regard for streetside appearance and more concern for nature at the planning stage isn't, I think, an unreasonable request for change. Those of you out there studying architecture or interior design, please change the world wisely! OK, off the soapbox.

Please Enter My Domain

2007-10-31T01:18:00.000-07:00

Many of you have been waiting quite some time for these exclusive pictures of my wild and uncharted habitat. The BBC documentary deal has been indefinitely postponed, but international rights agreements have enough loopholes that I was able to sneak these shots off the set.

We'll start from the building my Friday seminar (3 hours of discussion in acad-
emic Japan-
ese, but I'm learning things slowly) is held in. About half the campus buildings are in this elegant style; the others could have been stolen from your average community college. The smell of the older ones, though, always brings my nose back to the school buildings of Germany--does this make me sound like an elitist wine connoisseur or what?

A quick turn as we cross the street back to my dorm and it becomes clear that students, accust-
omed to an excellent train system and no longer required to take PE-type courses, are habitual bicycle users. As a fellow addict, I can't offer much criticism; I rode the 50 meters to this computer center just to save a few seconds!

OK; we're getting close. The dorm is straight ahead on this path, and the Sherlock Forest that greets me every time I bike out in the morning is on our left.

Here's the main entrance! I'm glad the picture is of a sunny day, which we have more of and with better tempatures (though probably worse air quality given the distance from the ocean) than in Berkeley.

Just one flight of stairs brings you to my floor, which was a big relief when I arrived with over 150 lbs of luggage. My mailbox is among the gray bins on the far left.

If we go left at the top of the stairs, we enter this little communal hangout nook, where people watch silly enter-
tainment shows or maudlin TV dramas and pretend to study. No, I don't know why there is a separate hand-washing sink when the communal kitchen is on the other side of the right wall.

Here are three of the four other UC exchange students working in my favorite part of the dorm, preparing a group dinner of spaghetti topped with soy sauce and salmon. Yes, it was delicious, largely because I didn't pay for it. At times it gets busy in here, but I love that people are always dropping in to cook and chat.

That's all for now. Here's to cross-cultural bonding!

Quirks and Quotas

2007-10-30T05:40:00.000-07:00

Finally, a chance to update after many busy days getting settled into my university environment. I now feel that I've truly moved here because I just today changed my cell phone billing address to my dorm room; what makes this monumental is the nasty fact that my first month's bill was apparently sent to my old address and not forwarded, leaving me with a disconnected & useless phone for the past twelve days. But, of course, that is now blessedly over--I am free to have my personal space freely invaded and rack up insanely expensive charges again.

One funny thing over here is the urinals, and I must ask approximately 75% of my readers to bear with me here. In America things are fairly standard; you use the facility and flush, period. Here, however, as soon as you approach the basin a jet of water comes down automatically and washes it for you. Seeing as there is an automatic flush as well, the initial jet has no actual function aside from assuring the soon-to-be-user that everything is sanitary. The logical next step, which is probably only a few years down the line in this politeness-conscious society, is to attach a voice which says "Please forgive our unsightly facilities and the time it takes to clean them for your use."

Another unique country feature is the meditation practice company workers do on the train.

Just kidding! As you can see, these two gentlemen are clearly dozing in public with no thought whatsoever for the safety of their belongings. Can you do that on Amtrak or a bus? Now here's the real question: why? I think two parts of the reason for the situation here is a uniformity of social training and expectations which lead people to believe that they can do this without being disturbed. Another small piece of the puzzle is that trains over here are generally so crowded that a thief would have a very hard time moving away from their mark quickly.

Here are a few statistics about my stay so far, should you care to read them.

Number of host families: 3
Host families who have let me stay the night: 1 (2 if you count my
pastor's family)
Number of self-performed haircuts: 2
Price of a 3-month commuter pass to my church's train stop: $25
(half-price student discount)
Price of a 5-pack of apples: $2.80
Karaoke experience: Once, following summer language program with
all my classmates
English songs chosen: U2's "Pride (In the Name of Love)"--a little too
high-pitched for me--and Stevie Wonder's "Golden Lady"
Visits to sushi restaurants: 4 (all kaiten...see the cuisine post)
Visits to McDonald's: 0
Visits to TGI Friday's: 2...and my church friends made me do it, I
swear! Come on: if everyone was going there for dinner hang-out
time and you wanted to join them, would you bring your own food
or sit there & starve it out? Even cheapskate me is not quite that
ascetic. And the quesadillas are pretty good after months without Mexican.

Clicked En Route

2007-09-30T04:11:00.000-07:00

Apart from the people and the home-
cooked food, this is why I love the country: the views. Sky unadult-
erated by arrogant high-rises or the fog of lifestyle excesses. It reminds me of the small town in Germany where I lived for a year, though in my picture you can't see the roads and power lines (no city in Japan is free of those). Thankfully, though, unlike other cities, in Matsumoto you can bike far enough away to get past that unsightliness and enjoy the natural color display.

Here's a traditional Buddhist family grave. It has the two black pillars with individual names, two small black boxes for incense and water offerings with a small white box for flower arrangements in between (very small, brown flowers), and a tiny statue of a Buddha on the right.

OK, OK, a tourist shot. However, Matsumoto-jou is gorgeous enough that I don't feel bad coming off my high horse of snobbery. Though originally built to face gunpowder weapons, it never saw battle and is still beautifully preserved. Another reason it is well-preserved and -designed lies in the Japanese utilization of castles: they weren't houses, even for the nobility, but armored forts serving as pure displays of prestige in peacetime.

On the other hand, this gassho-
zukuri farm house at an open-air museum was well-used as a communal residence & storage facility. These type of buildings are quite famous both in world architecture and this area, but what really struck me when I visited them is the smell: fires are kept burning in them every night so that the lumber is kept in close-to-original condition.

I could fill this whole post with nature pictures, but they really don't need commentary (which says something about my writing vs. God's creation). However, I will add that water is fundamental to the Japanese conception of nature, which can be seen even in Zen gardens; rock "flows" often stand in for streams. Even in such places, though, a small trickling ornament is usually added for that critical sound effect.

Here's a very atmos-
pheric Shinto shrine in Takayama, with two guardian stone dogs right and left of the torii or bird gate. One dog is making an "aah" sound and the other a "nnn" sound with its mouth, the reason being that these are the A and Z of the phonetic alphabets and represent an attempt to protect against all calamities.

This small statue was just too cool. I'm not in the West anymore...and it is possible for men to look manly in a robe.

Check out the traditional geta [wooden thonged footwear, which combine a flat sole with 1-3" high platforms] which are still worn by apprentices to the sumo and geisha professions as well as by those who prefer the dress of older days.

Finally, a picture to show off my recessed left toe--the badge of my mutant status--but I have no idea why standing on small plastic pegs is thought to be good for your feet.

Traveling Accomodations

2007-09-26T22:12:00.000-07:00

My one-man trip was really awesome! I've never enjoyed America's legendary "country hospitality" and so this trip in Japan showed me by analogy just what I've been missing by holing up in a city for the past few years.

The Lodging

I wanted to put edible things first, but for those of you who are similarly stomach-driven, my waiting will encourage you to actually read this part.

I stayed at two ryokan (Japanese-style, futon pad on bamboo rattan mat [tatami] floor inns) and one youth hostel inside a Buddhist temple. One thing I was initially concerned about was the adjustment to tatami sleeping--wouldn't it be painful on the back and harder to sleep comfortably? Thankfully, I was completely wrong; my body loved the mat more than a Western-style mattress!

This is what the rooms typically look like, with bedding in the center of the single room and a little sitting table with tea utensils inside the circular box. All the bedding is stored inside deep cupboards which are covered with sliding wall panels, making it easy to use the room for a multitude of purposes. This multi-purpose ingenuity comes from the time when ancient aristocratic houses used to have all rooms with tatami.

The youth hostel had the same flooring but multiple dudes to a room and common sit-down areas instead of an in-room table. Here's the entrance, and if you look closely you can see the "JYH" sign above the door. Those windows on either side of the main door are styled after the lotus flower, which to many Buddhists is not only a metaphor of pure mind rising above the murk of worldly illusion but also the chair that devout followers will perch on in the afterlife.

The Food

OK, OK, I give in. Matsumoto, my first stop, is famous for oyaki [dim sum-style buns stuffed with regional veggies], basashi [horse sashimi], and inago [crickets coated in a sugary glaze]. The middle one was expensive and the first one a roadside snack, but I couldn't resist the chance to tell people I'd munched on crickets. (There's my pride, I confess.) So I headed off in search of the elusive insect treat, and ended up being let into a closed restaurant by a kindly woman--here's that hospitality--who served me not only crickets but some kind of insect larvae with the same preparation. I didn't ask too many questions and can report that while the taste is a little too cloyingly sweet to be eaten alone, crickets have an excellent texture. Yes, I will return if the Lord wills to this town so I can order a proper meal at this restaurant...it's called reciprocity.

Takayama, my ending destination on the other side of Mountain Peak National Park (also known as the "Japanese Alps"), is famous for its miso [salted soybean paste] grilled with mountain vegetables on a magnolia leaf, but I went for something a bit heartier: a stew of the same mixture with chicken and dumplings. It was delicious! Miso takes some getting used to, but it's an excellent source of vegan protein and very versatile (apparently used instead of butter or salt on Japanese corn-on-the-cob). And this stew, like almost every BBQ or pot-based dish over here, was served on a tabletop stove to ensure that it finished cooking right in front of you.

I know school is just getting into gear for everybody now, so rest assured that I'll only torment you with one or two more entries on my freedom, which ends Monday.

Appetite for Instruction

2007-09-17T12:39:00.001-07:00

After six weeks of morning language class in a nondescript room, I have gained a fresh appreciation for those rare breaks in scheduling that allow more involved methods of learning. One example would be our field trip to the Disaster Prevention Museum, where Tokyo kids can learn from several fun demonstrations that life is full of faceless threats like the earthquake being simulated below.

It was actually neat to walk through a darkened 'apartment' filling with simulated smoke and watch a 3-D movie about the aftermath of a potential nightmare on the Richter scale. But most impressive of all was the firefighting practice; everyone got to shoot water from a full extinguisher at a virtual fire on a large, high-resolution screen. It's good to hear Smokey say that we should prevent the next blaze, but I think California kids should be similarly ready to yell "Fire!" and not have to waste time reading the instructions on the can.

The following week, I went on another cultural outing, following the enjoyable times at the cooking class and tea ceremony. This one, however, was to an elementary school only half an hour's walk away from my future location on the west side of the city. All the participating exchange students were paired up, guy-girl as much as possible, and sent off to classrooms for an hour of not-super-demanding assistance with English instruction. I got to enter a 4th grade classroom, and after my partner and I gave simple self-introductions each kid came up and introduced themselves by name (all in simple English), ending with a high-five.

Our teacher proceeded to have everyone sing "Head & Shoulders..." together, pointing to the appropriate body parts, and I was very grateful for still remembering the lyrics from my grade school years. The tape of backing music quickly got faster and soon everyone was laughing while trying to keep up in double time. After this, we played a keep-away game (which is called "Fruit Basket," according to my partner) that involved recognition of basic animal and color words. It was great to be around kids again, even if we were only playing for about 45 minutes, and perhaps I'll get to come back occasionally in the future.

Finally, I got a taste of my coming campus life by taking a short orientation and dorm tour at Hitotsubashi. Unlike almost every other university I've heard about in Tokyo, there was actually enough room on the property for an international dorm; paying nothing for commuting costs will really add up in time and spare change, thankfully. Most of the other buildings are brick in a tasteful Ivy-League mold, but my favorite part is the pervasive greenery, which was given a clear boost by the mild shower that added atmosphere & wet socks to the visit.

Only two short weeks of free time before I plunge into the fall semester! I hope to spend the first on a solo vacation (details when I return) and the second on intense language review and kanji character memorization. Finally I can set my own classroom location...wherever I go.

The Muddle of Tongues

2007-09-07T04:46:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I look around and feel like I'm in some kind of linguistic Twilight Zone. Ads blare four different alphabets, with sometimes every fourth word in English; some train lines have announcements in both languages; people hesitate when meeting you, unsure if the foreigner is competent enough to understand slow Japanese; companies and colleges proudly display their names in Roman letters for its connotation of international standing.

What would it be like if America resembled Japan in this aspect? The second option wouldn't be Spanish--too politically loaded outside California and higher education. Probably wouldn't be from this country, either, as with a declining population and geographically precarious location Japan's future is quite unstable. My bet would be on China or India, but the former better suits me for clarifying the Rising Sun by analogy.

So the land of the dragon takes off economically as the pundits predicted, but something else happens: the popular culture--and I'm not talking about martial arts movies--becomes incredibly trendy. "Made in China" is suddenly stuck with pride on designer clothing, technology, and Internet-based youth entertainment. What would happen linguistically if the parallel were very close?

Well, Chinese characters would be taught from elementary through high school years. Most people would pronounce their few basic greeting phrases with a strong accent but be able to read and occasionally write (skills more emphasized in languages where the proliferation of symbols leads to outright memorization) at a roughly middle-school level. University or business school students would be required to prepare abstracts and proposals in both languages so as to be ready for the job market. Immigration breaks would be granted to Chinese willing to teach in America, but the majority of instruction would be by Stateside natives with a tiny bit of practice.

This is basically the case in Japan, save that English has an unpredictable grammar system as well as a varying pronunciation system. Poor Japanese students, starting as they are from a language that has consistent and less complex pronunciation--no real distinctions between U and W or R and L, as well as ending nearly every syllable with a vowel--are starting at the bottom of a steep hill made harder by applying their rote-retention teaching methods for Chinese characters to a much more fluid tongue. I can't really criticize their system, though, without noting that America has nothing like it and no momentum to change.

One last note: the longer I stay, the less difficulty I have with words from my first foreign language (German) jumping into my mind faster than Japanese. Perhaps when I move into the international dorms and make some Berlin-based friends I will take a few more steps towards becoming fully trilingual. That faculty is possibly the strongest argument I could make for U.S. language education reform...but there are definite advantages to avoiding a national melting pot of speech. Completely understandable advertising is not one of them.

Tale of Two Districts

2007-09-06T06:42:00.000-07:00

It was the geekiest of places, it was the trendiest of places. Tokyo may be most famous for the technorazzi [speedy tool change] skyscraper glitter and congestion, but every resident has their favorite spot to unwind. Some settle for the pachinko [pinball gambling] arcades right outside their company, while others change neighborhoods like clothing for different occasions. I recently did a little unsubsidized urban anthropology (a.k.a. people-watching) of the latter kind.

"Otaku" is slang for a fanatical geek. Owning Dungeons & Dragons or both Halo games doesn't have quite the same cache in a cutting-edge metropolis, so the herds congregate in Akihabara's "Electric Town." I was reminded of nothing so much as the merchant stands in Shanghai where people browse from one crammed sidewalk shop to another.

In addition to the computer parts, video games, household gadgets, and luxury goods--these higher up in the department stores away from the street bargain seekers--were easy to find. Acting on a "free thing in Tokyo" tip, I tried out one of the massage chairs here, ready for a little muscle relaxation. In fact, it was actually stress-building; notice how the man's arms are locked into the machine! When the pads clamped around my legs, I had fleeting doubts about whether they would ever loosen. The masseuse fingers also turned out to be more insensitive than the most heartless Swede...but I asked for trouble with the "strong" setting.

I was pretty dismissive of the shallow samurai-land image projected by most Japan-related pop culture products in America, but apparently a similar historical oversimplification holds true for many people over here. How else can I explain this suit of displayed shogunal armor--an attempt to reassure buyers that their purchases affirm a consumer-oriented modern version of the warrior spirit? A stereotype is sadder when people custom-fit it to themselves.

Harajuku as a neighborhood has much less to fruitfully describe here, especially since I didn't go to glimpse the Sunday fashionistas who spring out of the suburbs to display their garish taste in costume to anyone with a camera phone. A good woodblock-print museum and vegetarian restaurant are in the area, but most Tokyoites come to spend and stroll in European style. If it wasn't for the flags and license plates, that street might be in Paris--but not having been there, all I can compare it to is downtown Sacramento. Ah, the places to go...

Spirit and Squid

2007-08-23T04:09:00.000-07:00

Another cultural activity, this one a group trip to Kamakura, a small town 2 hours down south which served as the country's capital nine centuries ago and is accordingly loaded with tourist-accessible history. Perhaps the closest American comparison I could make is Philadelphia, if the town's iconic Daibutsu [Great Buddha] statue were somehow analogous to the Liberty Bell.

First stop of the Saturday: Hokokuji, a Buddhist temple famous for its bamboo garden. All 18 students and our 3 helpful staff coordinators burst in upon the small building's grounds, which apart from the few moss-covered structures didn't seem to hold much. I refrained from paying the extra fee for green tea in the garden, but as soon as I'd entered the actual bamboo forest I realized that my critical judgment was made too soon. The stalks towered three stories above the small walkway, putting each of us back in our small place, and the tea house offered a lovely view of an almost invisibly sculpted garden. A small waterfall trickled away in the background as the others and I sat quietly, enthralled by the midmorning peacefulness.

Quite in line with the foundational Buddhist doctrine of impermanence, we were soon shepherded off to the next destination: the Hachiman-gu shrine. It's named after the guardian deity of the Minamoto clan, which ruled the country from here (imagine the Greeks from the Trojan War or the North in the Civil War, as the historical reality is between those two struggles). In contrast to the tranquility of the temples, this place is paved with concrete and designed to lead its throngs of visitors to the altar for customary good-luck prayers and charm souvenirs--not very picture-worthy or enjoyable for me.

I had to chuckle when I saw this, though. Where else but Japan could you find a fortune-telling vending machine?

Later we went to the Daibutsu itself. I had seen pictures of the statue from a distance and was expecting to be underwhelmed, but I was again wrong. The colossal bronze figure was larger and more artistically serene in person, and despite the crowds it was easy to appreciate the sculpture's beauty. A lone pilgrim walked around the figure, chanting "Amida Buuuuuddha" with every step, and reminded me that this was not merely art or even a cultural symbol but a spiritual reality for many people there.

This brings out a fundamental paradox in my studies: I follow Jesus alone yet study life patterns from an anthropological, relativistic perspective. This doesn't mean I am intimidated by the idolatry in these temples--their only reality is in the reactions of those who view them--but when there is no art to distract my mind, the depressing fact of false worship is all that's left. As a side note, I wonder whether I will ever be able to glimpse Japanese attitudes towards religion aside from the standard lines: "Japanese only follow rituals," "A Japanese person is someone who visits a temple at New Year's," etc. From the little I know, most people under 40 apparently believe in the shrines as much as I do.

There's little else interesting to share about the trip, but walking around much of the day (even without the characteristic humidity, thankfully) was pretty tiring, so I broke out my snack: a debeaked and dried cuttlefish. It was quite salty and therefore tasty, but there's a reason why the package has the word "chew" written five times on the front!

Content with Food and Drink

2007-08-20T01:18:00.000-07:00

I'm well into the morning routine of language instruction, but this schedule leaves me a lot of free time. The program staff, in a kind-hearted effort to ease us into cultural activities and stave off days wasted on nonstop anime viewing, have arranged group events about every week and I have to say they're well worth the small extra expense.

First we went to a special cooking school ("Tokyo Gas," despite the fact that the stoves there are decidedly electric) and as the Martha Stewart stand-in demonstrated each step of the preparation we followed suit. The menu consisted of chirashi-zushi [a bowl-sized helping of vinegared sushi rice mixed with vegetable & egg pieces and topped with fresh salmon & shrimp] followed by sakuramochi [a thumb-sized lump of sweet red bean paste--which they say is an acquired taste but was immediately delicious--wrapped in a thin pink crepe and then a preserved cherry leaf].

"Not very much personal space...I must be in Japan. And just how am I supposed to pull the intestines out of this shrimp with such a dinky little stick?"

"Ahhh, lotus root. Finally, some breathing room and a real weapon in my hands. Too bad all the aprons weren't a proper, manly color."

"Careful, careful! Pour it all in, quick quick --that's it! Oh, well done! Well done!"
Instruction is only hands-on in the sense that student hands get to make the food, but at least they're generous with compliments.

"This leaf may look pretty, but whoever thought to pluck it off a tree, stick it in brine, and call it a garnish?"

Application: if you want to learn how to cook good Japanese food, buy an automatic stove with the snazziest timers and hire a maid. I'm only half kidding; in this land of specialization, there's a nationally administered proficiency test for personal cooking! Verdict: It was fun, but not exactly budget-level survival skills for a student kitchen.

Next up: the tea ceremony. Modestly subtitled as "the epitome of Japanese culture" in our student handbook, this ritual dates back 800 years and was summed up by our teacher in the phrase "ichi-go, ichi-e": one meeting at one time (and never to be reproduced again). There's quite a bit of Buddhist philosophy underpinning this, but suffice it to say that life is short and everything changes, so every second with company should be treasured. Such valuation is conveyed in the unhurried pace as well as the painstaking attention to traditional details--one's dress, the serving utensils and bowls, the room decorations (all of which are coordinated with the current season)--and above all the courtesy and generosity toward others contained in polite expressions of thankfulness, proper posture, and deep bows.

This tea sensei has conducted several ceremonies for California university students and thus was quite lenient with us about matters of dress and sitting position. Technically we should have been required to wear yukata [light summer kimono] or formal Western clothes, but the only stipulated item was a pair of fresh, clean socks. We were also able to sit cross-legged if we so desired, but the standard is seiza [kneeling while sitting directly on your feet, hands folded in your lap, and keeping your back straight but not stiff]. I was fine like this until I had to get up and awaken my legs--twenty minutes on bamboo wicker flooring was longer than I realized!

First we were served a sweet, delicately shaped like a firework, which had to be taken from the serving bowl with chopsticks in a fixed fashion (right hand lifts the pair from above, left hand comes from beneath and gently holds the other end, etc.) and set onto a sheet of paper in front of us before partaking. Before even this, though, each person had to bow to the next in line, acknowledging the privilege of getting to come first. This was followed by a bowl of bitter green tea, placed before us by charming young students and accepted with another bow.

The kids were well-trained (note their proper posture, even when off-duty) and fun conversation partners afterwards. The ceremony is considered such a high art that children usually begin studying around 5 or 6 at the latest--try putting that on your American resume!

All in all, I was quite taken with the calm environment and deliberate sensory enjoyment, as well as the respect for each participant. It's not unlike the feeling you get from gazing out over a mountain lake in the evening before the sun burns up the clouds (just add leg pains). I hope to further adopt this attitude of valuing every moment with others, though as an anthropologist I can't say the ritual sums up the entire culture. How simple are the elements of sustenance that bring us together...

Cuisine of the Rising Sun

2007-08-09T05:24:00.000-07:00

I realize that when I write "Japanese food" many will think of sushi and tempura. My experience so far has been rice and noodles, with the occasional topping of sashimi [fresh, raw fish] or natto [fermented soybeans]. And I love all of it!

Restaurants here fall into two main classes, the all-around eateries and the specialists, with the latter generally being higher in quality and price. As a student who tends to be overly concerned with money, I have only been to one of those restaurants so far. Its delicious soba [buckwheat noodles in broth] were worth the 15-minute hunt in a rare burst of rainfall, but I want to keep such occasions a treat.

The broad-menu eateries usually have picture menus, plastic models of their cuisine outside, or both. This picture was taken in a store that specializes in such model-making...it all looks so good! Personally I think they're tacky but preferable to, say, the French restaurant with the indecipherable menu. The rice dish in the top left, called cha-han, is like regular rice with the other ingredients of Chinese-restaurant fried rice--yummy.

At that model shop, a few phrases of German caught my ear. I then turned around and asked where in Germany they were from, and the three students were surprised but happy to find another German speaker. We all ended up going out for lunch together to a restaurant I'd been meaning to try, which serves okonomiyake --imagine mixing the ingredients of a savory crepe into the dough and pouring the whole thing on a griddle in front of you. See below for our still-cooking meal and their smiling faces with that of their kind Japanese family friend, who helped us order.

There are, of course, sushi restaurants, and the cheapest of these are called kaiten-zushi; the first word means "rotation" and refers to the conveyer belt around the bar counter from which you select desired 2-piece plates of sushi, priced by the type of dish they're on. Below you can see the wall's per-plate expense guide as well as the chefs at work and individual spouts for tea water. At this local and tasty-for-its-class establishment, I discovered my taste for raw mackerel.

But what if I want something quick and cheap? Off to the convenience store, where you can find a whole bevy of plastic-wrapped eatables. I've picked up a dish here about every other day, including the Japanese-style curry in the lower third of the shot, but have so far managed to keep my dignity intact by avoiding the mayonnaise-topped rice rolls. Oh, and if you buy a meal-in-a-bowl the cashier will politely ask if you'd like it heated in their microwave.

But what if I want a break from Japanese food? Well, there's no shortage of international style restaurants, from Western-style breakfast places to (no joke) a Sizzler in the nearby shopping mall. Up until now I have stayed away from these, but I did go to a Korean place for lunch today with my new friend Michael--he enjoyed the personal BBQ and I tucked into my affordable bibimbap [assorted veggies over rice with kimchi--the Korean answer to sauerkraut that pops up alongside every entree].

But what if I don't really want to spend money and don't mind eating alone? Back to my room for my now-standard dinner, which is natto over rice and whatever vegetables I can find on sale. It's filling and healthy, and as a deliberate bonus I'm slowly becoming fond of the fermented beans which are known for turning foreigners away. I confess that normally the ingredients aren't as artistically arranged; this was just for aesthetic effect tonight, but I may invest that little bit of extra effort more often, as it was more fun to eat. The chopsticks below were given to me by a friend who's working as a missionary in Osaka, and using them at every meal is one way I'm working against waste--every restaurant provides disposable chopsticks, but those quickly add up in their environmental impact.

Just came back from the local grocery store, where I not only picked up more cereal (my breakfast luxury), but also discovered a new way to save money: the evening bargain sale! At the day's close, all the store-produced entrees go for around 50% off--an even better deal than the AM/PM lunches. With expiration dates looming, however, it may just be a matter of time before I try something I really can't stand. We'll see if the cheapskate or the connoisseur wins out.

Around the Apartment

2007-08-03T04:07:00.000-07:00

I'm quite enjoying my little pad; here's your chance to see why.

This is the room from the corner of my bed. Yes, it's messy, but at least I have my cheap generic-brand bass standing proudly in the corner. The stand and several other small goodies were included in its package deal--score!

This is taken from the above-seen corner of the bed. As you can tell, there isn't much space behind the computer I'm writing this on, but I really don't mind. After all, the place is nonsmoking (sign just below the lamp) and air-conditioned (top left, and not standard over here even in these humid conditions).

Note the little entrance where my shoes are patiently waiting to be walked; in an actual house this would be a raised step. I had to smile when I came in and saw two little hotel slippers perched on the other side of the line--they are my constant companions.

The gift-wrapped box in front of the closet is the 10-watt amp that came with the bass. Packaging is a big deal here; my lunch today (marinated tofu on rice) had a layer of plastic between the two components, was shrink-wrapped over its packaging, and handed to me in a carrying bag! Because space is at a premium, I took some liberties in rearranging the furniture for my stay, which explains why the microwave is balanced on the never-to-be-used TV.

This is the "park" that divides the street in front of the building. It is much prettier than other drab alleys, but I believe those trees are partially responsible for housing all the cicadas which start buzzing like crazy as soon as the afternoon sets in. The
bugs are so pervasive that they're practically taken for granted; one of my teachers was surprised today when I told her we don't
have any of the noisy things in California.

I'm having second thoughts about living a bicycle-based life; they're legally treated as cars--B.U.I. citations are handed out-- and fatalities are apparently more frequent than in the U.S.

Finally, here's the convenience store next to the building. Unlike in America, there seems to be no real stigma attached to the cafeteria-style food they sell, though perhaps this is offset by the respect accorded restaurants that specialize in one particular dish. Please note the three garbage cans--combustible, bottles, and non-combustible waste--as well as one of the ubiquitous vending machines.

How (Not) to Enter a Country

2007-07-31T05:06:00.000-07:00

I surprised myself at the airport. While sitting down in front of the Narita Airport-bound gate, I was overcome with a sense of ironic joy, laughing at the improbability of what I was doing while enjoying the sense of impending adventure.

The flight didn't seem quite as long when it was punctuated by brief 30-minute naps. Reading The Acts of King Arthur got me thinking about how our desires affect and define our actions, as the disciplined affections or explosive tempers of various knights shaped their and other's fates. How, then, will my character and temperament affect those I meet over here? We'll see.

On the air-conditioned bus ride over to a nearby hotel, I got a glimpse of the Japanese countryside and road system. Both of them, aside from the switched road sides, reminded me very much of Germany: pockets of thick green trees, grassy plowed fields, and clumps of buildings huddled together for protection from the foliage. If I looked away from the kanji advertising characters, I could have been heading to Simbach from Munich half the globe away.

(When I got to the hotel, I still had to schlep 140 pounds of luggage to the apartment complex. It was already dark, and I'm sure all the onlooking night owls thought that foreigner dragging a year's worth of clothing through the streets was pretty hilarious, but I didn't care--I'd arrived, and why should a little muscle strain deter me from this fascinating people and language? Also: I didn't have the funds for a taxi.)

Another similarity to Europe is the humidity, which restricts movement in the afternoon but comes as a welcome change. (The mosquitoes, who attacked my exposed legs when I tried to enjoy the comfort of a park, are not so welcome. A "park" in my neighborhood, by the way, means fifteen or so trees planted haphazardly in an open area paved with gravel and dark sand...hardly nature for my rural tastes.)

The coming days bode well: new cuisine opportunities, student life orientations, and plenty of new faces. (The coming days are ill-fated: everything is greasy, several cliques have formed, and I was warned repeatedly that students tend to get sick in the first few days.) Perhaps I will stop learning to speak in parallel (but perhaps not).

And It Comes...

2007-07-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when change looms on the horizon, I freeze. This happened to me just before taking summer school last year; despite plans to discipline myself into a routine of reading, writing, and music practicing, I ended up spending two free weeks huddled in my new apartment, unwilling to venture outside.

Now here I am preparing for a year away and I'm dragging out the packing process, looking over each book and listening to favorite old tunes instead of maximizing efficiency. As shoes and winter clothes disappear into shipping boxes, the reality of the unknown life that I will have upon reopening these cartons looms ahead. I don't regret following the Lord's direction to this point, but like a kid stalling for time at a spelling bee by asking for the word's dictionary definition I'm keeping the inevitable back with the feeble tools I have at hand.

So many small doors of face-to-face contact have shut that it's hard to fathom them all. In about 48 hours I will be off the airplane and heading to my hotel, but thankfully Jesus will be present even if those I love cannot. Though the world changes around me, I don't have to pull back in vague fear. Unless, of course, that anxiety concerns a dinner plate of unidentifiable seafood.