Welcome 2014

Welcome 2014 !! 

In Japan, New Years is the most important day of the entire year.  In preparation for this big holiday, families spend all day on Dec 31 doing an Oosoji or a deep cleaning of their homes and then on January 1st, the family gets together and enjoys food and family time.   We asked all of our missionaries to not go out and dendo, which would be a bother to people on Dec 31st and Jan 1st, but rather they were to stay home and do a big Oosiji on their own apartments.  I gave them a long detailed list of things they were supposed to do to clean their apartments.  It was amazing how much almost all of the missionaries appreciated having time to clean and organize their living spaces.  We have opened many new apartments in the mission this past year with the "wave of missionaries" coming into the mission and most of the apartments are in pretty good shape.  I was worried about one apartment in particular that has lots of issues and needs deep cleaning and organizing badly.  It is an Elder's apartment in Sendai.  I challenged them to perform a miracle in their apartment and get rid of everything in the apartment that didn't belong to or was used by someone living in the apartment presently.  They threw away dozens of bags of trash and cleaned their hearts out.  These are pictures they sent to me of BEFORE and AFTER.  It looks better.

The disgusting shower room

It looks better.

Ceiling in the bathroom

Much better

I was horrified when I saw how bad things had gotten in this apartment.

They really did perform a miracle on this apartment.  All of the missionaries expressed how much more pleasant it is to come home to an organized, clean place.  I hope it was a good lesson learned for them.

New Years Day at the Jinja near our home

Sister Noonchester and Sister Kakuda went with Gary and me to this Jinja  on News Years Day.  All Japanese people visit a Shinto Shrine (Jinja) on News Years Day and it is a wonderful cultural experience to see what they do.  This particular Jinja was built by Date-a very famous Samurai from Sendai area "back in the day" because this was the location of his castle. The shrine is still standing but his castle was destroyed.  This place is just a mile from our home and the grounds overlook the city of Sendai.

Japan has many of these wooden cutouts where people can get their pictures taken.  This one is of Date (who wore a patch over one eye) in the costume of a Samurai and a Kimono clad woman.

We met this darling little family and talked to them.  

They seemed like really good parents who loved their kids.

This is the entrance  towards the Jinja where people lined up to be able to ring the bell and pray. Notice the picture of the horses.  2014 is the year of the horse.

These girls were dressed in traditional costume and were selling trinkets appropriate for New Years.  Some of the trinkets were front door hangings.  Also, people would buy either wooden ornaments or strips of paper (depending on how much money they wanted to spend) to write their New Years wish and hang them on the fence or tree provided. 

These grandparents bought something very expensive for their grandchildren and the Shinto Priest did a little purifying ceremony for them.  They are bowing to him.

This Father is showing his son what to do.  First you bow looking toward the Jinja before you throw money into the pot.

Then you ring the bell by shaking the rope.

Then you clap three times and pray or a moment of silence.  (I'm not sure who they are praying to or what kinds of things they are saying in their minds)

Overview of the city of Sendai with Izumi's big statue of Budda (actually it is a female version of Budda) that overlooks the city of Izumi.  Aizuwakamatsu is another city with a statue like this in our mission.

Our handsome Mission President.  Gary had just spoken to an older woman who looked over the city toward the ocean which could be seen in the far distance near Tagajo.  She told us that her younger sister had a 2 week old baby on the day of the big earthquake and tsunami  who were both washed away and killed.  She was so sad.  Gary told her that she would see her sister again one day.  She was crying and just walked away.    Without a belief in God and his Plan of Happiness, life is hopeless.  So many people in Japan are basically sad in my estimation.

Sendai

Statue of Date.  (Note: A good sister in the Kamisugi Ward, Date Shimai, is a descendant of this famous Date.  She is a faithful member of the church who loves the missionaries.

On New Years night, the Noonchesters, Sister Rollins and Sister Kakuda and Gary and I went to dinner and then to see this famous street of lights in Sendai. Beautiful!!