Counting Our Blessings and Giving Thanks

Celebration was in order when Phil passed his Japanese driver license exam. Language issues aside, this is tricky business for foreigners. It's a multi-step process that takes both time and money. Many people warned that it is a long, tedious and expensive process. It is not uncommon to fail the skills/driving test 4 or 5 times. Phil passed on his 3rd attempt. In case you're wondering, it is legal to drive with an international license for only one year. After that, you are supposed to obtain a local license. There can be serious consequences for ignoring this law.

We spent Thanksgiving with the missionaries and a few hundred friends from the military community. The big feast was held at a school. It was a wonderful day. We count our blessings every day!

We learned long ago that regular exercise helps us feel well and stay well. Phil likes to exercise at a small gym near our apartment. When the weather is agreeable, I prefer to walk outdoors. I miss Chris, my walking partner of more than 20 years.

At long last, Phil has the hearing aids he ordered months ago. Apparently the order was lost in the mail for a while. He's trying to get used to them, though they need some "fine tuning". He was opening a package of cookies the other day when he remarked how noisy the package is. Everyday sounds are new to him!

The Japanese have a keen sense of business. They find marketing opportunities in American holidays - Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, Halloween, Mother's Day. Japan is not a Christian nation and they do not generally celebrate Christmas as a religious event. Still, Christmas decorations abound on the street and in businesses: Santas, bells, snowmen, lights and tinseled trees. Rarely are there any religious symbols of the birth of Christ.

So I was delighted when I saw this creche in the traditional Japanese kokeshi doll style. As far as I know, this kokeshi nativity is sold in only one gift shop on the island. I admired these figures last Christmas, and this year splurged to purchase them.

As we enter the Christmas season, our prayer is that we all remember to make room in our days and in our hearts for the Christ child and especially for the risen Christ. May PEACE be your gift at Christmas and your blessing all year.

Finally, we get to share a secret we have kept for many weeks: Risa and Brian are pregnant!! They are expecting identical twins in the spring. We couldn't be more excited for this answer to prayer.

Culture Corner: Shi-sa figures are popular all over Okinawa.
They are a caricature of the lion-dog, the mythical beast of ancient legends. Many older Okinawans believe the shi-sa to have magical properties and the power to repel evil spirits.

The shi-sa are traditionally depicted in pairs, one with mouth open and one with mouth closed.

Some say the open mouth is to scare off demons, and the closed mouth to shelter and keep in the good spirits.

A pair of shi-sa typically stand guard outside the gates of Japanese shrines and temples. They are also seen at the entrance to homes, businesses and public buildings. They come in all shapes and sizes.

The traditional designs are quite fierce and intimidating, although many have humorous facial expressions and designs.

A Milestone Month

New months are rolling around far too fast! Oct 5th marked one year since we entered the Missionary Training Center, and Oct 20th was the one year anniversary of our arrival in Okinawa. We can hardly believe we have crossed the half-way point of our mission!

I love the wooden Welcome plaque I made with the help of a crafty friend. It will hang at our door when we return home to Colorado next year.

On Oct 28th we experienced yet another typhoon. For school children, it's the Okinawa equivalent of a "snow day". It shut down the island, but fortunately there was no significant damage. Unfortunately, it happened to be Transfer Day! Flights were canceled. It took three days to accomplish what is usually one long day of shuffling missionaries on, off and around the island.

October's events also included General Conference and Zone Conference. Due to a 15-hour time difference between here and Utah, we view Conference delayed via DVD. Still, it was inspiring. I love Zone Conference too. It is generally conducted about half in Japanese and half in English. Almost all the missionaries on Okinawa speak English. They are a combination of Americans, Canadians, Australians, and Japanese whose English skills are very good. Here's a snapshot of just the sister missionaries taken at Zone Conference.

In some ways, Okinawa is not typically Japanese. It has a many-hundreds year old cultural history all its own. Additionally, there is a strong American influence due to military bases our government maintains on the island. American military presence plays a major role in defense strategy in Asia.

It is our great privilege to associate with amazing military families. Many have traveled extensively ~ working and living in all corners of the globe. These friends have lived in Turkey, Italy, Holland, Cuba, Guam, The Philippines, Korea, Germany ... all around the world! We benefit from their experience and global perspective.

Culture Corner this month includes a number of activities and excursions:

I got another lesson in the art of kimono dressing. These sweet ladies dressed each participant in the traditional Japanese kimono. There is so much attention to detail! Notice the real flowers which were pinned meticulously in our hair. The kimono has many layers and parts. I counted no fewer than EIGHT belts and ties that went around my waist! The beautiful wide sash which completes the kimono look is called an obi.





We visited a small sheltered workshop where disabled men live and make crafts to sell. Kokeshi dolls are popular handmade wooden dolls, characterized by a head and simple figure without arms or legs.

The wood is left outdoors to season for one to five years before it can be used.

This man is shaping the kokeshi doll on a lathe. Then it is sanded, painted and finished.

War History - Phil has a special interest in military history and especially WWII history. Living here has given him a window into the Battle of Okinawa. We visited this small but very well done exhibit of war artifacts on Camp Kinser US Marine Corps Base.

September was a great month!

Our days were filled with activities both routine and exceptional...

Two topics mentioned last month call for an up-date. First the typhoon. Fortunately, Typhoon Kompasu struck with winds weaker than initially forecast. It brought only heavy rain and wind to our area. That was a blessing. [It went on to kill dozens of people and destroy roads, railways and thousands of homes in North Korea.]


But the storm hit Okinawa's northwest coast with enough strength to knock out electrical power and phone service to about 32,000 homes and businesses. Large trees were uprooted, some fences and structures were damaged.

Among the areas damaged was the popular Okuma Recreation Center, a US military beach resort. The resort remained closed for three weeks due to damage from the storm.

Coincidentally, Okuma is precisely where we were planning the Young Single Adult retreat mentioned in last month's post. Fortunately, cleanup was largely complete before our event there last week. Can you believe this is our work?


Whether we have a small role or a major assignment, we enjoy using our time to help others.

• We've added one more weekly service to our schedule ~ we now volunteer every Thursday with the Chaplains' office at Lester Naval Hospital.
• Twice this month we took part in Primary children's activities which focused on missionary service.
• Phil helped again with Transfer Day. He's actually come to enjoy this missionary version of musical chairs. This was the 8th transfer since we arrived in Okinawa.
• Once again it was time for quarterly apartment inspections. You may remember this involves much more than checking for cleanliness. We check appliances, windows and screens, fixtures and drains, and more. The process is very thorough. But it gives us a chance to work closely with each set of missionaries in the 12 apartments from one end of the island to the other.

Culture Corner:
Occasionally I find time to participate when American and Japanese women come together for fellowship and cultural exchange. Notice the bounteous refreshment table following a joint Japanese/American Relief Society event.

We sometimes see kimonos worn on the street by old women and young women alike. This is true especially at festival times.

Another fun cultural activity hosted for the benefit of the American women was this kimono dress up day.

The Drums of Eisa

Our greatest joy is the people we serve and those we serve with. Regardless what we do, we always seem to receive far more than we give.


While our mission president was here for training meetings, we "kidnapped" his wife for a day to tour the cultural theme park Okinawa World. Several houses over 100 years old have been relocated there and restored to show the rich architectural style of the Ryukyu Kingdom.

We had our picture taken in traditional Okinawan kimonos and walked amid lush flowering gardens. We watched demonstrations of cultural crafts including glass blowing, pottery making, textile weaving and dyeing,

We also enjoyed a lively demonstration of traditional eisa dancing. [More about that in this month's Culture Corner.]

Later, we dined with President and Sister Margetts at a traditional Japanese teppanyaki restaurant. Yummm.



We are helping to plan a young single adult overnight retreat for September. This should be lots of fun and give our military men and women a welcome change of pace from barracks life. On the north end of Okinawa, there is a recreation facility known for its outdoor activities including parasailing, ski boats, snorkeling... More about this in next month's post.

As I write this, we are in the midst of a typhoon. Warnings of this storm came early; we've been expecting it for a couple of days. The wind and rain have just begun, about 15 hours later than forecast.

Many friends have inquired about Phil's health. He is doing very well. He received the go-ahead from his doctor to resume all normal activities. He has joined Weight Watchers on-line program and we are working out at a small military gym three to five mornings a week. Regular exercise and losing a few pounds will do us both good.

Culture Corner - Festival of the Dead Obon or just Bon is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the deceased spirits of one's ancestors. Most Japanese people associate themselves with Shinto and Buddhism. Ancestor worship is common. It is believed that at the time of Obon, the spirits of ancestors revisit the household alters. Obon has been celebrated in Japan for more than 500 years and traditionally includes a dance.

The eisa is a folk dance performed at the mid-summer festival. The men play large barrel drums and small hand drums. The dance may be performed by both men and women. On the night of July 15th, after the ancestral spirits have returned to the world of the dead, the dancers of each village gather and begin the eisa. After offering the first dance to the village gods, the dancers make the rounds of homes and businesses performing the dance. We caught this performance at a corner gas station!

Unfortunately, my little camera does not record sound. You won't hear the drums but you can see the energy of the dance.

July Review

As always, our July calendar was full with activities. We did a lot of what I have written about before, only more of it. We are so happy to be here doing what we do. We find great satisfaction in sharing our testimonies and service. It is the best thing we could do at this time in our lives. Part of our assignment is to be seen in public places. This snapshot was taken at a military open-house.

Recently, our mission borders were expanded to include Hiroshima; the mission gained 24 additional missionaries for a total of 133. This is the Japan Fukuoka Mission, of which Okinawa is a part. I find it interesting that both Hiroshima and Nagasaki are now within our mission boundaries.

We have been in Okinawa for nine months now. That has given us time to "ease" into the summer season. Humidity this time of year adds 10 degrees or more to how hot the temperature "feels". For example, right now it is 86 degrees F with [only!] 77% humidity. According to The Weather Channel, it feels like 98 degrees. We are not in the rainy season now, so the chance of rain is only about 40% each day. With air conditioning, it's really quite bearable.

The other evening, we stood on our porch at sunset and watched as fruit bats filled the sky. It's claimed that Okinawa bats have an average wing span of more than three feet; they look something like a flying squirrel. I wish I had a picture, but that would take a National Geographic caliber photographer. Unlike vampire bats which feed on insects and small animals, these bats eat only fruit and other plant materials. They lack any taste for blood, which makes bat-watching a safe and fascinating activity.

Speaking of nature, the cicadas have just ended their buzzing. Cicadas (sa-KA-da) are large insects (up to 2 inches long) common in tropical climates. At one stage of their life cycle, they shed their "skin", leaving it behind on a tree. They do not bite or sting, but the males produce a very loud buzzing noise which goes on day and night for weeks.

We celebrated Pioneer Day, July 24th, with a group of missionaries and Marines. Our hosts prepared the most delicious, awarding winning (no kidding!) barbecue recipes. As we licked our fingers, everyone was sharing where they hail from - Texas, Washington, Missouri, Colorado, Ohio, California, Arizona. Our hostess spoke up, "I'm from Sierra Vista, Arizona." Surprised, I responded, "I'm from Sierra Vista!" It turns out Brenda Atkins nee Hall and I went to high school together, though she is two years younger than I am. It's a small world, all the way from Buena High to Okinawa, Japan!

Culture Corner: We took an afternoon to visit the ruins of the Nakagusuku castle ~ a long name but very easy to pronounce: Na-ka-gu-su-ku. Only moments after paying our admission fee, and before we could make our way up the trail to where the ruins are located, the sky opened up with a tropical rain storm. It went from no rain, to a few drops, to a deluge in about 15 seconds! Caught completely off guard, we were immediately soaked. We made our way to the ice cream stand and waited out the 15-minute downpour. We fetched our umbrellas from the car after we were caught in the storm.

When it was over, we explored the amazing ruins. This well-preserved 15th century castle boasts breathtaking views of the surrounding area. At the same time, one can see the East China Sea to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east, separated by only a small strip of land. This relic of ancient history has been designated a World Heritage site.

Butterflies were everywhere...

... as were large spiders.

Our 4th of July fireworks ~

[Warning: this is a blow by blow account of a medical incident; it may be more information than you want to know.]

It was not the sort of red, white & blue holiday we anticipated… the traditional fireworks with our American friends on base. No, instead Phil landed in two hospitals – one American and one Japanese. I played the part of photo journalist.

July 3 – Following a missionary correlation meeting at 8:00 AM and a baptism at the beach at 10:30, Phil confided that he’d been having “minor chest discomfort” for a couple of days. And he had been self medicating with aspirin. Now, he said, it was time to pay a visit to the ER for an evaluation. Before we left for the hospital, we prayed together and we both felt assured that everything would be okay. At the hospital, the doctor scolded him for not reporting in sooner and for taking multiple doses of aspirin!

1:15 PM we arrived at the hospital. It’s true, when you say “chest pains” in an ER, everyone swings into action. Monitors, EKG, blood draw. It’s a symphony of motion. Tentative diagnosis: some sort of cardiac event has taken place. At 4:00 PM he was admitted to Camp Lester Naval Hospital. Lester is a full service hospital with outstanding resources and care. He was monitored, further evaluated and made comfortable with drugs. His pain was never above 5 on a scale of 1 to 10, and averaged about 1 or 2. In this case, however, they want a zero. He received a priesthood blessing, which of course encouraged and sustained us both.

July 4 – The doctor is “not happy” with the cardiac markers in his blood tests. He wants Phil evaluated by a cardiologist. The bad news is there is no cardiologist at Lester Hospital. After all, the vast majority of the military population here is young, healthy and fit. What would they need with a cardiologist? The good news is the Naval hospital has an association with a Japanese hospital which has a quality cardiac care unit.

At 10:30 we were sped by ambulance down route 58, accompanied by a staff of doctor, nurse, technician, fully qualified EMT driver … and wife. [Let’s be honest: it was Sunday morning, there was little traffic on the road. Maybe they used the lights and siren because it was fun to kick up a little speed on Okinawa where the posted limit is 50 kilometers per hour, which is only 31 mile/hour.] I think the nurse and technician had not seen the inside of a Japanese hospital, so it was a bit of a field trip for them to come along. Nevertheless, we were grateful for their support.

By 11:45 AM the initial procedures were underway. One of many blessings we count during the weekend ordeal is that their Japanese cardiologist came to Okinawa just last fall after 11 years in New York where he earned his credentials. He is U.S. board certified and speaks very good English. With catheter and tiny camera (inserted at the wrist, not the groin), he determined there was blockage of a small artery on the left side of the heart. Before the actual procedure took place, he explained to me the problem and how he planned to treat it.

Meanwhile, I hung out in a typically bare Japanese waiting room. The seats - both height from the floor and depth of the cushion - are built for Lilliputians, those tiny captors of Gulliver’s Travels.

By 1:00 PM, Phil was out of surgery. The small artery had been cleared by a tiny wire and was now flowing freely. He had had a “small heart attack”, meaning it had caused only minor damage to the heart muscle.

At 2:45 he was settled in a private room with a bathroom. By Japanese standards, it's about average. By American standards, it showed a lot of wear.

The Japanese are by culture a gracious, polite, patient people. Though the staff spoke little or no English, they made us comfortable. This nurse knelt on the floor while tending to his IV.

Nevertheless, differences are evident. Hospitals in Japan do not provide the same amenities one expects in America. For example, there was no soap or paper towels at the sink. Scant meals of rice, fish or fish soup with chunks of potato were served but they do not normally provide eating utensils. No spoon or chopsticks! No clock in the room. No bath towel. No Kleenex. Not even a pitcher or glass of water for the patient! The pillow was a small sack of what felt like dried corn. These are things the family is expected to provide. Families generally supplement the meals also. Interesting. A dear friend was kind enough to drive me back to our apartment where I could collect a few things Phil needed and return me to the hospital. She missed the 4^th of July fireworks with her family to serve me in this way. I spent the night on a small couch in his room.

July 5 – Pending good results from the 8:00 AM blood test, we were hopeful he might be released from the hospital. The wait turned into hours; more consultation and tests. Finally the doc said no, he was not yet comfortable sending Phil home. We discussed the options and decided he would return to the Navy hospital. 4:00 PM – Another ambulance ride up route 58.

July 6 – After one more night in the hospital, complete with monitors and regular vitals checks, he was discharged this morning. The doctor made some changes to his regular meds. He is ready now to get back into our routine. We are so grateful for the availability of quality medical care, and for friends who helped us in numerous ways. Most of all, of course, we are grateful to God for blessings large and small, today and everyday.

End of Story