26

On Friday I turned 26! It was the last birthday i'll celebrate in Japan and one I will never forget. (Check HERE to see how I celebrated 24...and HERE to see 25!)

Three years ago, I remember sitting on the beach in San Clemente with my two dear friends Nati and Katelyn, and I told them, "I'd rather be the 26 year old that moved to Japan than the 26 year old that stayed safe at home." And when I spoke those words...26 felt an eternity away. It felt impossible to reach because there was this mountain of time in front of me.

But here I am...and I am 26. And three years has flown by. And God has been gracious to me every step of the way. 

I headed to school on Friday and taught three classes. In 4th period the 3A students sang happy birthday to me and gifted me with a bunch of snacks and goodies and then, after school, 2A showed me this awesome chalk board sign they made! I love how they referenced Kyrie, Lebron and Steph Curry HAHA. They know I love basketball so I think they threw any (and all) NBA players they knew on the board. 

The students gave me a bunch of candy and the cutest thing was they all wrote their names on whatever they gave me. Two of my favorite are below...

Potato chips with my name and picture of me on it...and even better yet, ONE piece of candy with my students name on it HAHHAA. That one cracked me up. Not a bag, not a few, nope...just one singular piece. 

After school my coworkers in the English office surprised me with amazing Costco cheesecake, a happy birthday sash, a lei and a notebook full of letters. AWWWW!! 

My coworker Ikeda sensei gave me gloves from him and his wife...and also a VERY special gift handmade by his son, Kai!! Kai is in elementary school and had to knit a scarf in class...and he GAVE ME THE SCARF!!! *tears* That was the sweetest thing in the world. 

Here are most of the English teachers I work with. These people are incredible and I love them very much. 

After work my coworker and fellow Torrance native, Alison, and I went to dinner. We decided on Hawaiian food and ate a really yummy meal with hawaiian sun in fancy mason jars!! Alison is also the sweetest and got me a pen (to add to my pen keychain collection) from Okinawa and...drumroll...a STICKER BOOK! Yes. A book that holds all types of washi tape and stickers. I know it sounds childish...but for the an avid journaler and schedule writer like me...it was the best gift ever!! We've only known each other for a few months and she already knows me well!

I went home Friday night with a happy heart and a full stomach. God has truly blessed me more than I could have ever imagined. Celebrating my 26th at Ichikashi was a dream!! I slept well Friday night and woke up bright and early to head to...

TOKYO DISNEYLAND!!!

I met up with my two good friends, Miri and Neath, and we headed to the park right when it opened at 8. As you can probably assume, Disneyland here is SO popular so often time the park gets full and they stop letting people in. So we bought tickets before and went right away to ensure we got in. Miri was kind enough to get me a Happy Bday sticker with my name on it! 

Fun note: My friend Neath is from Cambodia so this was her first time at Disneyland! Like, the first time in her whole life!! It added an extra layer of fun to the entire day because she was seeing everything for the first time. That was so cool. 

First things first...breakky and coffee yumm. The special set with a chicken pesto Mickey shaped pastry and strawberry muffin was so good! Tokyo Disneyland food forsure dominates Anaheim Disneyland's food. And I laughed at this sign I saw when we walked in "FOR SAFETY PLEASE WALK" so Japan!!

Disneyland goes ALL OUT for Christmas and we enjoyed all the themed stuff such as...the Christmas day parade and the warm apple cider in a cute Christmas cup! 

One of my favorite parts of Tokyo Disneyland is seeing the vending machines! Yes, somehow they created these incredibly themed vending machines for all of us to enjoy. Gotta love the creativity of Japan. 

I am a sucker for seasonal special deals and themed stuff...so of course I got every themed meal possible! haha. This one was a themed hotdog with green pesto sauce and red veggie sauce to be Christmas colors. 

For as many people that visit TDL in one day...it never feels as crowded as Ahaneim Disney does. I think that's because the layout is so different. The roads and various areas feel much wider than the OG Disneyland, and on top of that everyone is so obedient and orderly that lines form properly and people are so polite when walking anywhere. Also, people are crazy fans here and will wait the entire day just to see one parade or show. They bring their little portable chairs, blankets, and bentos and sit all day. I've never seen that kind of commitment in the states! 

We stayed at the park until it closed at 10...and had the best day. ahhh.  Neath has lived in Japan for a year and said this day at Disneyland was "the best day i've had in Japan so far!" and I was so happy to spend the day with her and Miri! God has blessed me with great friends here in Japan.

          As I reflect back on 25... I can say with confidence that it was the most formative year in my life thus far. I learned a lot about Japanese culture, teaching. independence, relationships, heartbreak (yep, it happened), devotion, worship, God's faithfulness and...myself. I journaled more this year than I ever have in my life (I think I went through at least 5 notebooks) and walked through some very deep things with the Lord. All along the way, God spoke clearly and graciously to me, giving me guidance on where to go, how to get there and what to do in the process. I am thankful for God's relentless love, unending faithfulness and undeniable strength, power and wisdom. 

A verse that covered my 25th year of life was Matthew 7:13-14

   "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that
leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and
narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." 

In my 26th year of life my goal is to continue on the narrow road, regardless of what society says, regardless of who joins me, regardless of the difficulty...because it is the road that leads to life, it leads to peace, it leas to freedom and ultimately it leads to Jesus!! 
     

THE POCKET MIRACLE

Today, something miraculous happened. 

Before I left for Japan, my good friend Kimi got me a sweet deal on a Patagonia down jacket to wear in winter. I wear it almost every day in December-February and it's become a necessity for me to survive the cold winter here! 

me wearing my lovely patagonia jacket earlier this year in Odawara city. 

On a tragic day last year, the left side pocket of my nice, warm, stylish Patagonia jacket got stuck. And I mean, absolutely-completely-this-aint-moving kind of stuck. It was as if the zipper ate the entire inside of my pocket and all I could do was barely fit two fingers in. This may seem trivial...but when you walk to the bus stop every morning and can only put two cold fingers in your pocket...it becomes a thing! a very very bad thing!!! So I suffered all winter with this stuck-pocket situation, asking everyone to help me get it unjammed and fitting whatever small item I could in there. I even had plans to take it to the Patagonia store in Tokyo to get it fixed. 

But winter ended last year and I never fixed it. So this fall, when I brought out my jacket again...I was reminded of the tragic reality that my left pocket was jammed. Lord help me.

Then, today, a miracle happened. 

During 5th period, I walked over to the main gym where they were having a seminar. I wore my patagonia jacket because I knew it would be ice-cold in there. Listening to the guest speaker was... in all honestly, boring. Not only was it hard to keep up with her Japanese, but she spoke with the most gentle and calm voice that was hard to not nod off to...which therefore provided me with the perfect environment to tinker with my zipper. My poor, stuck zipper. Thanks to the peace and quiet of the arena and ample time...I decided to tug at it in a way I hadn't before...pulling the fabric up and trying to move it under the zipper. And within 30 seconds...IT UNSTUCK. VVVWOOOOOOP. Just like that. After a year of living my life with this inconvenience...in an instant my pocket was back to normal.

HAHAHHAAA... A TRUE MIRACLE!! 

I was in complete awe and shock. How was it so easy??? How had I not thought to do that before??

What makes this all the more epic is that today is officially my last day as a 25 year old. Tomorrow I turn 26!! So it felt like a very real metaphor from the Lord that.... much like my pocket: Things that one seemed stuck, impossible, immovable...are NOT! HAHAH. And also...there is always another way to look at a situation, which often times takes a while before realizing.

So on that note, folks, I walk into my 26th year of life with an extra boost of hope, a bit more confidence and assurance in my step... and two very accessible pockets. 

God is good!! 

TSUKUBA MOUNTAIN - 筑波山

Fall is a wonderful time of year in Japan, thanks to the incredible weather (albeit a little cold) and beautiful scenery. In Japanese there is even a specific word for autumn leaves... "koyo" (紅葉). This past Saturday I joined a few ladies from my church on a nice fall hike at Tsukuba Mountain to search for some koyo! Lucky for me, Tsukuba is towards the direction I live, so I didn't have to traverse too far to get there. Also, we were blessed with perfect hiking weather - clear blue skies and crisp air!! Thank you Lord! 

We all met up in the morning at Tsukuba station and then took a bus up to the mountain. The bus ride took about 35-ish minutes and wasn't bad at all. The bus can take you to the Shrine at the base of the mountain, or to the start of one of the trains higher up (where we went). I was able to use my PASIMO and the bus was 700yen one way. I am always thankful for Japan's excellent public transit!! 

At the start of our hike, we saw a small childrens amusement area...that had this FREE giant slide! So random, and so Japan. 

We started the hike and it was pretty steep at first...just climbing over a bunch of rocks. Along the way, we saw this GIANT tree that had time stamps on it...saying it was over 2000 years old. YOWZA! 

One of the most interesting things on the hike was the social atmosphere of it all. It was a Saturday morning, during peak "koyo" season, so there were a lot of people along the path. And since Japanese people are extremely active at all life stages, there were a lot of elderly people as well as children hiking the same path! It was so impressive. But since there were so many people, there were many moments when we all had to pause, wait in line, let the people coming down pass, and then move forward. It was this...silent understanding where everyone obeys the order without talking atmosphere that is so Japanese!!! Amazing.

Midway through the hike...about 40 minutes up...I started to see some beautiful leaves and an awesome view! 

After...an hour and a half or so? (I kind of lost count hah!) we made it to the summit. What a view! 

This particular summit (theres also a few other peaks) was super narrow so we all had to take turns walking up to the overhang and seeing the view. But, since this is Japan, everyone was so polite and proper...cheerfully obeying the unspoken rule of - take your photo quickly and move so others can come. 

ahhhh....nature! 

After that, we walked another 10 minutes to another peak...the bigger one that the rope way takes people to. There we found an oasis of snack booths and omiage shops! Also, I came to find out that Tsukuba is famous for this "frog oil" that has a whole story behind it of how it's good luck and heals people. So they had frogs everywhere! And these tiny gold one you're supposed to put in your wallet to bring you more fortune. 

There is also a famous type of storytelling that happens at the top of the mountain, usually by an older ojisan (uncle). He usually tells the story of the frog oil with great passion and drama! The baseball team members that were there were very entertained. 

At this mountain top oasis they had dango!!! (aka mochi... aka rice cakes) This type of dango was smothered in miso paste with walnuts in it...so good!!! 

We enjoyed a restful lunch at the top of Tsukuba san...and then headed down around 1pm, in search of more koyo!! 

The hike down took about an hour...and towards the bottom I started to see some color pop through the trees and I was getting so excited...EEEEKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We finally arrived at the base of the mountain, where Tsukuba Shrine is...and we entered KOYO (AUTUMN LEAVES) PARADISE!!!! fo real...LOOK....

**insert all the HEART EYE emojis!!!**

The Californian in me was just in complete and utter awe. One of the ladies I was with even asked me, "oh wow Amie, is this your first time seeing leaves in Japan?" and I was like..."no, I've been here two years haha! I just..can never get used to this beauty!!"

We followed the road down that lead to the main shrine...and the entire path was lined with the most pigmented trees you will ever see! The brightest red, yellow, and orange on earth. Is God an incredible creator or what!?

We soon realized that we could have just taken the bus to the shrine and seen the foliage without having to do the hike...but I almost feel like the hike made it that much more worth it in the end! 

And of course...there was a group of elderly people doing their proper post-hike stretching in complete unison. Amazing!!

And that folks...is Tsukuba mountain for you. A wonderful place of natural beauty and incredible fall leaves!! I was so grateful to spend the day with ladies from my church. It was a blessing to chat with them along the way and appreciate what our creator has created for us to enjoy! God has blessed me richly in my life here in Japan...with the people I get to spend time with, the experiences I get to have, and the views I get to see. AMEN!! 

WORK

Contrary to popular belief, I do work here in Japan! HAHA. I know most of what I post on social media is of my Tokyo escapades, but in reality, I spent 80% of my time at work! So I thought i'd spend some time sharing a few work related things recently...

• WORK: Last week I judged the Chiba Prefectural English Speech Contest, which was a big deal considering the winner will attend the Kanto Region contest! Myself, along with two Japanese teachers (principals and VPs) listened to 19 students give their self-written speeches. We had to choose the top 2 to advance. WOW. It was not easy. Each speech was 5 minutes, and I had to not only give them a score based on their composition, English level and delivery, but also write a comment for each. After all of it, they asked me to give a speech to all 40+ participants about how to improve! I left that day so exhausted. From the work of course, but also because I wore heels all day HAHA. I never thought judging anything would be a part of my job...and yet here I am. 
   
• VENTING: One thing I WILL NEVER (I repeat, WILL NEVER) understand about Japanese schools is the "after PE situation" and by that I mean...(for example) the students have PE 3rd period. I have to teach them in 4th period. They rush into their classroom, still in their PE clothes with 2 minutes to spare before my class starts and they CHANGE RIGHT THERE IN THE CLASSROOM. All students. Boys and girls. Take off their PE clothes and change back into their uniforms. I CANNOT UNDERSTAND THIS!? Why can't PE end 5 minute earlier, giving the kids time to go to THE LOCKER ROOMS and change?? How hard is that? I just don't get it. 
   
• CULTURE: As we all know, Thanksgiving in on Thursday, and many of my coworkers have been curiously asking me, "what exactly does turkey taste like?" and "why is black Friday black?" and "why is Thanksgiving on Thursday?" and a bunch of other questions I had no answer for HAHA. Living in a different country really makes you think about the holidays that are so normal to you back home...and yet so foreign here. 

• PERK: This week the 2nd year students and teachers are in Okinawa for a class trip, therefore the school schedule is a little less busy. The teachers in the English department always take advantage of this and head to a nearby golf course that offers a 1600yen lunch buffet that is amazing! It is always fun to be outside the office with my coworkers...and this place has an Ochazuke (rice+green tea) bar that is my absolute favorite! 

• COLLIDE: this past week, my worlds collided! My two coworkers, Takeda and Tamaoki, took 24 of our Ichikashi students to Torrance for the annual exchange trip...and this time around they met my family!! EEK!!! My brother picked them up and took them to target and then delamo, where they had lunch with everyone. I can't fully express how much this means to me...to have my Kashiwa family meet my family-family!! And the funniest thing about it all is that Takeda and Tamaoki have officially met my niece, Tayah, before I have..HAHA!! 

And that wraps up my random work post! It's already November 21st...and I'll be home in exactly a month for the holidays YAY!!!! 

1998

Today, my coworker, Alison, introduced me to HUJI...it's this app that takes photos that look like they came straight out of a FUJI film camera (get it? HUJI lol) and needless to say, I'm obsessed. We cruised around school today during 4th period and got some shots.

HUJI's slogan is literally, "Just like the year 1998" ...brilliant.

The road behind school. 

The 中庭 (center garden) 

One of the smaller classrooms I teach in. 

Strollin to the vending machines. 

Bikes on Bikes on Bikes. 

Shoe lockers for the 3rd year students. 

A view of the ground (soccer field). 

A shot snapped by one of my students, Juna. 

The teacher in charge of the 生花 (flower arranging) club at school always leaves beautiful flowers in the corners of the stair landings.