Last week, something amazing happened.
My Kashiwa family came to Torrance!!
Every November, the high school I worked at in Japan, ICHIKASHI, sends students to Torrance for an exchange program. This November I was actually in Torrance to host them and was able to spend most of the week with them!
I had the privilege of teaching these 25 students in Japan…so seeing them stateside was so much fun. They enjoyed time with their host families, performing a dance at the assembly, attending the school fall festival, going to Knotts berry farm, the football game, shopping…and so much more!
The best part of this week was seeing the smiles on these kids faces. When I taught them in Japan, they were always in their school uniform, going about their busy schedules, stressed about school, family, friends, club activities, etc…so seeing them in Torrance living out their dream with the biggest smiles on their faces melted my heart!!!! This is what makes all the hard work, coordinating, and long days at school worth it!
Another really awesome part to this week was seeing Kawamoto sensei and Mami, two teachers who I worked with at Ichikashi. They both helped me so much when I when I was there, so I finally got to return the favor by hosting them here in Torrance. We spent a lot of time together this week, and it made me miss Japan life so much <3
It was an awesome week. God is so good. And I am truly blessed to have my heart in two places, Kashiwa and Torrance.