Thursday, February 17, 2011

We all left about 8:45 am for camp, packed up our laundry to do there, took the lunch, finished curtains and shop vac for cleaning.  

We stopped for a few minutes at the beach they use for camp swimming.  It was clean, private and had tons of shells and coral washed on the sand.  Some of the clam shells were really heavy, others were buried in the sand and could not be dug out by hand.  It was a beautiful beach and we got some small things to take home. 

 There was alot to do at camp.  While the guys started the painting, I got the laundry going and did a couple of loads.  Terri and I then went and put the curtains up in the guest room and large dorm room.  They turned out rather nice.  
   
We got Sara to vacuum the floor downstairs.  There was lots of dust.  Dan emptied the container two or three times.  Anyway, while she did that, Terri and I dusted things and picked up stuff and took stuff to the shed and generally straightened up.  Then I got all the laundry folded and put in the van to take back.  Then I located a scraper and started to scrap up the dried mud on the floor of the new area.  That took a couple of hours total. 

After lunch Terri and I tackled a room upstairs and sorted sheets and towels and put them in proper containers for use in the summer.  That room got cleaned up nicely.


We left there about 5:30 and returned to the church about 7:00 pm.  Later we went to the Gardners for a marvelous dinner of baked spaghetti.  Different and delicious.    Then it was back to church for the night.  

 The ocean

 Okinawan family tombs. There are thousands of these all over the island.

 Coral and sea shells on the beach

 The walls were painted ivory and the ceiling white. 

Friday, February 18, 2011

It was nice to sleep in a quiet neighborhood--no music blaring or extremely loud motorcycles at 4:00 a.m.   The Gardners live in a quiet neighborhood except for the military plane overhead sometimes, but none late at night.

We got up a little later than usual, had breakfast and then went out to China Pete's to exchange Sara's cup.  The lady refunded her money and was happy to do it.  We then walked to the Christian book store to find something else for Grandpa.  Sara took her time deciding but finally picked a small wood cross that would stand on a desk, and a couple of other small items.  She insisted on paying for these herself and conducting the transaction with the cashier.  She is learning.  

The guys came back after 4:00 p.m. and we got ready to go to another church tonight.  Dan drove us over to the Stearns home where we met the family and had a very simple, delicious dinner.  About 6:45 we went over to the church.  Henry played the piano for the service to give Mrs. Stearns a break.  I think there were about 13-15 in church.  Henry preached as well.  After service, Pastor drove us back to the church.  

Tomorrow we will go to camp for the day. 

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

It was nice to sleep in a quiet neighborhood--no music blaring or extremely loud motorcycles at 4:00 a.m.   The Gardners live in a quiet neighborhood except for the military plane overhead sometimes, but none late at night.


We got up a little later than usual, had breakfast and then went out to China Pete's to exchange Sara's cup.  The lady refunded her money and was happy to do it.  We then walked to the Christian book store to find something else for Grandpa.  Sara took her time deciding but finally picked a small wood cross that would stand on a desk, and a couple of other small items.  She insisted on paying for these herself and conducting the transaction with the cashier.  She is learning.  


The guys came back after 4:00 p.m. and we got ready to go to another church tonight.  Dan drove us over to the Stearns home where we met the family and had a very simple, delicious dinner.  About 6:45 we went over to the church.  Henry played the piano for the service to give Mrs. Stearns a break.  I think there were about 13-15 in church.  Henry preached as well.  After service, Pastor drove us back to the church.  


Tomorrow we will go to camp for the day. 

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Today the guys went back to camp and Terri came over mid-morning. Dan called and said they were thinking of spending the night at camp in order to get more done; he is to call later about the final decision.


Since Terri was feeling better we decided to do a little shopping then Sara and I would spend the night at her house and have a "girls' night."   The guys had decided to stay at camp.   We did some shopping at the San-A mall where a jeweler was located.  He fixed Sara's new watch for just 525 yen and it fits nicely now.  


After we got back to the house in the afternoon we watched two of the movies in the Love Comes Softly series.   It is one of those tear-jerkers.  I read the books years and years ago as Janette Oke was popular then.  These were made by Michael Landon, Junior, and quite good.  

Monday, February 14th, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day from cool, wet Okinawa.  It is again overcast and rainy here today.  Terri came over about 10:30 a.m. and left us some goodies.  She was doing worse than yesterday, so I told her she needed to just go home and rest.  We did not need to go any place today, so Sara and I stayed here at the church.  I took a walk to the post office around the corner then walked a couple of kilometers around the streets near the church.  There was a crew of men that were laying asphalt on a parking lot next to a new apartment building behind the church.  I watched them pour it and flatten it starting about 4:00 p.m.  By this time they were over half finished and it started to rain again.  They finished about 6:00 p.m.  That was the excitement for the day.

 About 4:45 p.m.

Finished

 One of the Japanese ladies from church invited us to dinner at the same restaurant we went to last week with Dan and Terri only this time Terri did not go.  She insisted we all get steak so we obliged.  It was delicious.  

On the way back to the church Henry got an email from Noseh-san saying that Kobe had four inches of snow!  It was clogging up traffic terribly, like snow usually does.  We missed it, but it could not have been that much colder than it is here.  Anyway, February is being February here in Japan.  

Sunday, February 13, 2011

We went to the Faith Baptist Church here in Okinawa.  Henry spoke in the 10:30 a.m. service while Terri, Sara and I went upstairs to the small group of kids for junior church time.  There were a total of 22 people in church, including the 5 Americans.   Then we had lunch in the fellowship hall and  Henry preached at the 2:00 p.m. service.  There were 9 in that service; two of which did not come in the morning services.

We then went over to Maranatha Baptist Church, a military work started back in about 1968.  That church has supported us for probably 20 years and it is the first time we have reported to this church.  Henry showed the presentation then preached the message on A Cup of Cold Water out of Matthew 11 (it was about the 5th time I've heard it).  It is still a good message about service God by giving a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple,to someone you don't like, and to those that hate you.

 

The chart on the right wall there indicates the church has just two more payments on their property and they will be debt free!  That is such a good place to be.  


After the service, Pastor Monteith and his family took us and Dan to the A&W Root Beer place where we ate a late dinner. Good food. (hope I have not gained too much weight while down here).  It was good to talk to Bob and Tammy.  We saw them at West Coast last May and again in June at BIMI's 50th Anniversary.  

Tomorrow Henry and Dan will head back to camp for more work.  Terri will not go as she has a cold, so Sara and I will stay at the church. 

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln and my friend Glenice in Australia!

The day was cold again here in tropical Okinawa.  I don't think we really got warmed up.  Anyway, we Wards did some cleaning here at the church building  like mopping floors and cleaning the restrooms.  It smelled really good about 10:30 when the Gardners came over.  

Dan and Henry passed out church tracts and made some visits.  Terri worked on her Sunday School lesson and practiced the piano.  

We made a visit to China Pete's for some gifts then had a hot stew dinner.  Now it is time for rest before Sunday Services.  Henry will be preaching at two different churches tomorrow.   

Friday, February 11, 2011

Dan and Henry left for camp about 8:40 a.m.    
It was actually cold in Okinawa today.  It had rained hard overnight and was overcast all day; the temperature was in the lower 50's.  I needed my jacket and mittens when I took a walk around the neighborhood.  The wind was blowing hard sometimes, so that made it seem much colder.  I saw people with heavy winter coats and hats.  When the sun does not shine down here, it is really cold.  Anyway, not like Tokyo or Washington, DC, but cold for the tropics.  

Terri came over about 11:00 and we worked on things for Sunday. 

After Henry and Dan came back, we went to a local restaurant located on a new golf course where we had an early Valentine's dinner.  The men had steak, Terri and I had the fish platter, and Sara ate chicken fingers and fries.  It was a lot of food.  Delicious.

When we got back to church, we were having something hot to drink and Sara wanted to play the Chocolaopoly Game.  It is similar to Monopoly only everything is chocolate related.  Fun facts to know and tell about chocolate:
What is the holiday that has the most chocolate sales?  

We finished about nine and left the game up in case we get a chance to play again before Sunday.  

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Boulders that rolled down the hill

This week and next we will probably do a couple of overnights out there to get as much done as possible,  Henry will help Dan with the construction, mudding, painting and whatever else.  Terri and I will clean and make some curtains for the rooms.  Sara will help where she can and read the hymn books.  

Henry doing some mudding.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

This morning Dan and Henry took off about 8:00 a.m. and went to camp to do more mudding and other stuff.  Meanwhile, Terri came over later and we ate lunch then went out in search of curtain fabric for the rooms at camp.  We went to a place called Shalimar, House of 66 Cents.  It is a fabric store in two buildings.  There was a variety of Japanese prints by Quilt Gate.com, a Japanese company.  The prints and colors were so gorgeous.  The cotton prices were very reasonable so I bought about two meters total of three or four fabrics.  I told Terri I did not need to be in this store.  :-)

She found a neutral fabric for the curtains also at a reasonable  price.   We saw some items made from waterproof fabric--a small purse and a folded book cover that was really spiffy and looked easy to do.  Maybe someday.

Later we returned to church and the men came back so we had dinner about 5:30 p.m.  There was a 6:00 p.m. English class in which a Mr. Miyashita came.  He was saved last August; his wife has been a Christian for a long time.  Henry then preached the service at  7:00 p.m.  He preached out of First Corinthians chapter 2.  

It was a long day, but we did get a lot done.  Tomorrow we will be cutting and sewing curtains.     It is a nice warm 70 degrees down here.  I am thawing out.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Dan and Henry left for camp about 8:40 a.m.    
It was actually cold in Okinawa today.  It had rained hard overnight and was overcast all day; the temperature was in the lower 50's.  I needed my jacket and mittens when I took a walk around the neighborhood.  The wind was blowing hard sometimes, so that made it seem much colder.  I saw people with heavy winter coats and hats.  When the sun does not shine down here, it is really cold.  Anyway, not like Tokyo or Washington, DC, but cold for the tropics.  

Terri came over about 11:00 and we worked on things for Sunday. 

After Henry and Dan came back, we went to a local restaurant located on a new golf course where we had an early Valentine's dinner.  The men had steak, Terri and I had the fish platter, and Sara ate chicken fingers and fries.  It was a lot of food.  Delicious.

When we got back to church, we were having something hot to drink and Sara wanted to play the Chocolaopoly Game.  It is similar to Monopoly only everything is chocolate related.  Fun facts to know and tell about chocolate:
What is the holiday that has the most chocolate sales?  

We finished about nine and left the game up in case we get a chance to play again before Sunday.  

Sara in front of shark Jaws

We left about 2:00 p.m. and ate lunch in the van on the way to camp which was about 45 minutes from the aquarium located in the mountains.  Before we got there we went up a mountain to see the cherry blossoms in bloom.  The trees in Kobe are a lighter pink and bloom in April.  These were very pretty.




Dan has added an extension to the main building.  Henry helped do the mudding.  Terri and I cleaned upstairs.  There are three large rooms with bunk beds and room enough for about 35 campers.  They have had as many as 50 for family camp so they put futon out on the floors.   Each room has its own shower and toilet plus portable racks to hang clothes.  The bunks are all hand made and sturdy.

The camp sits on the edge of a hill and probably is about 2-3 acres all told.  They have had two retaining walls installed.  However, one was not done right so when it rained heavily the large boulders rolled down the hill.  Now that needs to be redone.  
Boulders that rolled down the hill

This week and next we will probably do a couple of overnights out there to get as much done as possible,  Henry will help Dan with the construction, mudding, painting and whatever else.  Terri and I will clean and make some curtains for the rooms.  Sara will help where she can and read the hymn books.  

Henry doing some mudding.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Today we took a flight from Kobe to Okinawa where we will spend the next 11 days helping the Gardners do some work at their camp.  We took a Skymark Airline flight which lasted about 2 hours.  The entire way down over the ocean we were above cloud cover.  As we approached Okinawa, it was still hazy, but we landed safely and deplaned out on the tarmac.  Passengers were loaded onto buses and taken to the terminal.  We got in about 30 minutes later than scheduled due to a delay in departure.

Three years ago they put up a steel-framed building for their church called Shinko Baputisuto Kyoukai  or Faith Baptist Church in English.   Henry and Joe flew down then to help out a couple of weeks; Joe stayed a month.  It is a nice square structure with classrooms, offices and a guest room on the second floor.  The first floor is half church and half kitchen/restrooms.

It has been nice visiting with Dan and Theresa, also called Terry.  It is also nice being in warmer weather and we may finally get over the flu from the past two weeks. 

The first photo is the wing of the Skymark Airline.  The second is approaching Okinawa.  The last is a display inside the terminal near baggage claim.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

We are getting over the flu after 11 days; it is still hanging on.  However we all are on the mends.  The weather here in Kobe has warmed up a bit into the 40's now.  The ice in the buckets is not near as thick.

Sunday we have a guest missionary speaker, Mr. Sato from China.  We will have lunch after the morning service and then the afternoon service at 2:30 
p.m.  After church is over we get to pack for our 10-day trip to Okinawa starting Monday.  Henry will be helping Dan Gardner do some work at the church camp and I suspect Sara and I will be helping.  The current temp down there is in the 60's F.  much warmer than here.  Now, what to pack?
 

Sunday, January 30, 2010

This past week Sara and I have had a doozy of a cold starting off with a cough, then a fever, then the general achy feeling.  I think it has gone to the chest.  I've slept for three days mostly, something that is not normal.  The cough now sounds more like a hoarse horse.  We are on the mends.  The upside is I have lost one kilogram!  I've been stuck since November and could not get over this hump until last week.  This is good news.

On the 7th we are to fly to Okinawa for 10 days to help a fellow missionary do some work at his camp.  It will be much warmer down there.  Currently it is -4C where we are; Okinawa is about 25.  I may actually enjoy going to the beach if given the opportunity.  Now, what to pack?

This week we will be passing out over 4,000 flyers for a special meeting on the 6th.  We have a Japanese missionary coming who serves in China.  He will preach in the morning, then we will have lunch and then an afternoon service where he will show his presentation.  Please pray some new people come. 

There were just 10 in the service this morning as several people were out with illness.  

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Fun Cargo by Toyota.  We have a "new" little car.  It is a 5-passenger vehicle with a huge cargo area.  The seats can like flat in the floor!  The color is silver; the interior is gray and it is about 9-10 years old.  We needed to replace our older van and decided the smaller vehicle would serve us best.  Since we don't have so many people living here, the three of us do not need a van as much.  We still have the Honda Step Wagon, also in silver, and is still a great vehicle.  We have not had such a small vehicle since before 1987.  

 Front Dash board with Navi! There is also a CD player behind it.

 Rear door opens like a door.  Plenty of cargo room

This is the rear seating area--5 would be a bit tight, but 4 comfortably.

 
The Fun Cargo will cost less to operate and maintain.  The tires are fairly new; mileage is low at about 76,000 km so there is some long life in it.  

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Today Teresa is 22.  Happy Birthday!  She said she celebrated by working!  There was a winter Bible conference at college and she is on the cleaning crew.  Teresa is also hoping to be hired off campus this semester.  As for the summer, she is not sure what she will be doing.  Could be back to Camp CoBeAc or staying at Lancaster, or going to Independent again.  We shall pray with her on this. 

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Happy Birthday to Henry!!  He is 57 today; does not feel any different than 56 he said.  We already celebrated on Sunday past by taking the January birthday people to lunch--Noseh-san, Mrs. Akamatsu and Teresa in abstensia.  Of course, Mr. Akamatsu came as well as Mrs. Miura who actually paid for the dinner.  

Sara asked since she paid for the dinner we have some money to go out tonight?  We went to a new udon restaurant which was actually inexpensive and really good.  You got your bowl of thick noodles, then could choose from several tempura items like chicken, shrimp, sweet potato and other veges. I'd go back just for the tempura!

November 14, 2010

We got a call early this morning, about 6:30, waking us up (we overslept and it was a Sunday).  Peter was calling and said he had been in an accident.  He and Joe were driving someplace looking for a car part and Peter ran a red light and smashed into a car.  The air bags deployed; Joe got a bloody nose and they were calling from the hospital in Waldorf.  They were fine, but the car is probably totaled.  It was a nice car.  He did not get collision insurance.   Character learning lessons. 

Friday, October 1, 2010

Peter seems to have secured a job in Vienna, Virginia, in the area of building maintenance, i.e., cleaning, which is similar to what he was doing at college.  It is a long commute from Clinton by either car (a pain in Northern Virginia traffic any time of the day) or via the Metro bus/subway.  Praise the Lord for answering this prayer rather quickly.

We learned Matthew's old Bonneville dropped an axle and is in need of repair.  He bought parts so hopefully he can get it fixed this week.  Trying times for #2, but also character building lessons.  Sometimes it is difficult to sit back and watch your kids go through testings.  However, God is good, all the time.

There were four new people in Wednesday night's service!  It was great to have our visitors, a very unusual happening.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

This is a statistical summary of the last three months, for anyone interested.  I like to keep stuff like this, details, details.
 
We traveled over 12,000 miles by car from California to the East Coast before the car was wrecked at the end of the trip.
 
We drove through or visited 30 states: California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Utah and Hawaii


Henry spoke in 18 Independent Baptist Churches, three of which were non-supporting ones.

 
I saw my five siblings: Joe, Bob, Barbara, Mary, Tom, and their families. Sara met her cousins for the first time: Nathan, Debbie, James, David and John, on my side and Chris Lynn's three kids on Henry's side.

 
We paid for seven different hotels on our own between meetings, and stayed in 5 other hotels supplied by the churches and in the homes of at least 14 families and friends.

 
We ate at numerous restaurants with good, All-American cooking. Had fresh lobster and clams in Maine and wonderful homemade ice cream.

 
The digital camera took 1797 photos, all saved on the computer. I made separate folders for the American Flags and the Water Towers which included in that number.