It is a BEAUTIFUL DAY! It snowed today for the first time this winter. There is something about snow in a new place that makes snow seem new all over again. Something also makes me feel at home. I will miss snow. I talk about being excited about leaving Iowa for the warmth of Phoenix, but I really do like snow. Sure it is wet and cold and it looks really gross when it gets dirty, but I am not sure if any picture is as pretty to me as one of fresh snow.

I have been in Japan for a month now. I have one month left. I am really starting to enjoy it. The students are back at school and the ministry is back in full swing. Thursday I went to English lunch table, at one of the universities. They should call it Japanese and some English table, but that is besides the point. We met up with some of the regular students, and Tomo had invited a couple of his friends. One is a nursing student. It was really fun to get to talk to her. I was able to learn the Japanese word for nurse and hospital. "Watashiwa kongoshi das." I am a nurse. That is pretty cool.

Friday nights are the regular meeting time for BEST club discussion. Typically there is a meal, a game and a discussion topic. Last night I taught four on a couch to Japanese students, but instead of changing names, everyone had an American slang phrase as their name. Wow, that was really funny. Just hear it, "sweet," "dude," and "sick me out" all in a Japanese accent. HILARIOUS!

The students are so fun. I have not tried to fit into their culture at all. I hope that I don't offend them too much. Last night Joanna had payback for a joke I played on her. To make a long story short I asked a Japanese guy to marry me, in Japanese. Oh well, he just laughed and said that he couldn't. Most of the people that come to best club are guys. I hang out with 20 year old guys. Oh man. At least I don't have to grow up. :)

90's Rock and my ever increasing iTunes bill!

So, I got an iPod for Christmas. Great gift. It has more memory on it than I could ever use, but still I feel the need to fill it up. This is not a good thing. ITunes lets you put in the credit card number once and use it with a password. This is also not a good thing. I am going to have to set up an allowance or something. It is definately NOT acceptable to max out your credit card on iTunes.

Recent downloads:

Burnin' by Rahsaan Patterson-free and not bad
Tu y Yo by Haydee Milanes- free and in spanish
Little Big Town: The Road to Here-Album

and some classic 90's
Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve
If You Could Only See by Tonic
Counting Blue Cars by Dishwalla
No Rain by Blind Melon
Inside Out by Eve 6
Save Tonight by Eagle-Eye Cherry
Barely Breathing by Duncan Sheik
Breakfast at Tiffany's by Deep Blue Something
Popular by Nada Surf

It is totally my Yahoo radio station on my iPod. Rock on 90's Rock Star.

BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS!

Woo hoo! I like to read again! So I read two books while Joanna was gone. It is so great to be able to read for fun! I am still studying for my board exams, so I have to read some. BUT I get to read fun stuff too. Here is a list of the books I have read recently.

What a Girl Wants by Kristen Billerbeck
She's Out of Control by Kristen Billerbeck
With this Ring, I'm Confused by Kristen Billerbeck
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Here is a list of the books I am reading currently:

Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss
Price Caspian by C.S. Lewis
Kaplan's NCLEX Review

Hello friends! Please forgive my lack of posts.

Joanna is back. She had a great time and I am glad that she had the chance to see the friends that she made when she was here two summers ago. If you want to see information on her trip, please she her blog which is linked to the right.

We were able to host students pretty much all weekend. I am glad that school is back in session, as it has allowed us to connect with more students. Although my main purpose here is to help out with they Hayes, I have a strong desire to connect and share with some students. Friday night we had a back to school party. Basically people came over and we hung out. It was great. I was able to meet a couple of ladies that are going to take me around and show me some Tokyo sites!

The next night we had some people over for dinner. We are quickly learning to always plan for more people than you are planning for! It seems as though Japanese students always bring a friend. That is so much fun. We ate some food wonderfully prepared by Joanna and then played a game. Oh man it was so much fun.

So, my Jo Jo has left me. I am by myself for a few days in Japan. Tear. Not only am I alone, which actually I am ok with, but I have succeeded in turning off the heaters in the two rooms I spend the most time in. Let me clarify. You can turn off the heater and you can apparently turn off the heater so that it doesn't come back on. I have done the later. I can't even read sweet potato in Japanese. Yet, I am too embarassed to call the family I nanny for and tell them what has happened. I guess I will be cold until I loose my pride. Praise the Lord for my electric blanket. Woo Hoo!

Plus, Joanna has me completely figured out. I started this book a couple of days ago. It is the second in the series to the book I had raved about so much before. Mind you, I am already a day behind on my study plan that I created only a week ago. I told Joanna that I would have lots of time to study and get caught up while she is gone, but she told me I would have the two books done before she got back. It is Monday night and I am finished with the first. Do I dare start the second.

Oh, on a fun note. I totally got to bake with Lil J today. It was so much fun. She is super cute. Too bad she didn't eat her supper. She didn't even get to try our great creation!

More fun cake pictures

This is JUST FOR JOANNA!

You say it's your birthday?!

The day started off great! Joanna and I slept in and then I made us some French toast. Yummy!

Then, we heard this noise that we did not recognize. It was the door bell! I looked outside and there was a truck. Then, Joanna walked in with a package from RACHEL!!! She sent us our very own package and it came on my BIRTHDAY! How great is that? Rachel, you will probably read this before you get your letter, so thank you very much and I will save everything else for the letter.
After we basked in the glory of the present Rachel had sent us, I headed off for Tama Center. I had been wanting to go explore for a while, so the day warrented that trip for me. I looked around a few stores and then met up with Joanna at the Starbucks. Seriously what is a birthday without your favorite coffee beverage.

We checked out the Uni Clo and then headed back home. Uni Clo is kind of like the Gap or Old Navy in Japan.

At home we got ready for the evening and Joanna finished the present she had been faithfully working on.

At 4:15 we started on our treck towards downtown Tokyo. We had a little bit of walk and then several trains to catch. One of the students met us at the first stop. That was a huge blessing because she showed us the rest of the way. We met up with the rest of the students in downtown.

Eddie, a midtermer like Jo serving in downtown Tokyo, picked out a place to eat. It was called Christon. It was a resturaunt decorated like a gothic church. It was actually kind of cool. We ate with some of the students. Megume (sorry about the spelling, I am sure it is not correct) gave me a card that was a puzzle-very cool.Megumi, Joanna, Birthday Girl

Takayasu, Mitsuru, Tomo
Dinner, Oishi! (That means yummy)
Woo Hoo! Puzzle

We then found a place to do karaoke. Japanese students are very serious about karaoke, and by serious I mean, serious about havin fun! We tried to go to one place, but the students said it was expensive and they would not let Joanna bring in her surprise. So, we headed for another location.

I'm not sure if they would have let Joanna bring in her surprise or not, but it did not matter, because she put it in her purse. Yes, her purse. It made a huge chocolate mess. Mind you, I am not allowed to know what the "surprise" is at this point.Jo Jo worked so hard on this cake, isn't it pretty?

She even rememberd to bring candles?

Karaoke is SO much fun. The students really get into it. It was almost as fun to watch them sing as it was to sing myself. Way fun. Enjoy the pictures for yourself. What a night!

Costco

Have you ever been to Sam's Club? Costco is like Sam's Club. We went there the other day. This is not a bad thing. Actually, if you are looking for comforts from home, it is a really good thing. There are all kinds of American products and everything is sold in bluk.

But, as I was walking around I could not help but feel a little bit sad. Is Costco the way that America should be impressing its ways upon Japan? Just a thought.

New Year's DAY!

In Japan, New Year's Day is a big day to go to the shrines and ask for blessing for the new year. They put in some money, shake their hands and pray. Since we don't believe in those gods, we went on with our celebration.

It was Sunday, so we had church. This was super cool. It totally shook up my vision of church, in a good way. In the U.S. we get so used to church being a building and a service. What it really is about is believers of Jesus Christ, gathering together to read and study the Bible and encourage one another. The first churches had no buildings or fancy worship bands, it was people getting together in each other's houses. How great is that?!

So, Sunday morning, Joanna, Mr. and Mrs. H., the kiddos and I had church. We started off by singing some songs. Then Mr. H. read a Bible story specifically for the children. They then went down stairs and watched a DVD so the adults could have church. We read from Galations and talked about it. Then we talked about our lives and how Galations applyed and the different things in our lives that were brought up by Glations. Very cool. Oh and we prayed and ate together. Church for sure.


Then we hung out at the H home. Joanna and I talked with Mrs. H about things going on in our lives and in our pasts. We talked about our desires for families and the reality and challenge of being a wife and a mother missionary.

Later a student came by and he played a game with us and the children. It was a lot of fun. It is cool how you can play a game together and not even really understand eachother's words.

We all loaded up in the van and went to Mos Burger. Mos Burger is like the Japanese McDonalds. It is so great. The portions are smaller and the whole place seems healther. It is decorated well too. As someone put it, "If Martha Stewart had a fast food resturaunt, this is what it would be like."
Jo and Mitsuru at Mos Burger
Note the glass dishware, silverware and fine looking furnature

After Mos Burger, we were not ready to be done having fun, especially Mrs. H. So we decided to look for more fun. This was a challenge though, because most things are closed. We ended up having ice cream at McDonalds. Yummy, if Japan teaches me one thing, it might be to enjoy smaller portions.

The children needed to go to bed, so we headed back to the house. We were still not done with our fun though. We stayed up and played Catch Phrase. If you have not played Catch Prase with someone whose first language is not English, I highly recommend it. So much fun.

There was no football, but there was still a ton of fun.

Wow, so many things to talk about:
New Years, Costco, My Birthday!

New Year's Eve

I've never been a big person for New Years. My birthday is soon after, and we would sometimes have girls over to celebrate my birthday and the holiday. This year was fun though.

Joanna and I did not have big plans. Mr. and Mrs. H even forgot that it was New Years Eve. So, after a day of work (which wasn't a big deal, what else was I going to do?) Joanna and hung out. We played a couple rounds of Phase 10. If you do not know this game, you are missing out! Then we played Pretty, Pretty Princess. Wow, that game is great. I think that it is made for me. It is a board game where the point is to collect all the jewelry and the crown to become the Pretty Pretty Princess. Joanna is definately the winner, but I made her play until I won once.

Here are some pictures from the retreat, as promised.

The first one is Sarah and Joanna displaying our "Christmas Feast." It was after Christmas, but it was complete with turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, and even green bean casserole. Turkey was a big surprise to everyone. It is really hard to get turkey in Japan.
The second picture is Kyle playing guitar with his tongue. Yes, tongue. It is disgusting, but if I didn't have a picture, would you believe me?
The third picture is swing dancing! Woo Hoo!
And last but not least, Eddy and Stephen are very photogenic.

I know where I am at!

So I have this bad habbit of not knowing where I am at. One time when I was in high school I visited a friend that had moved away from Des Moines. I drove there and still was not able to tell you what direction her town was from mine.

This has transfered to Japan. I live in Tokyo. Actually, I live in a western suburb of Tokyo. Only starting today could I tell you where that is. Hachioji. That is where I live. Please click on the name to see a map. You would be further a long than me only a few short hours ago.

The reason I now know where I live is that Joanna and I found our way home today. We were dropped off with very specific instructions on how to get home from the Omiya train station. Actually, we were not even quite at the station, but we were told that it was up on the left and we couldn't miss it. But by the Lord's grace, we made it home quickly and safely.

We only had one embarassing moment. The first train we got on was really nice. Joanna and I were thinking, this seems too nice. It was. We were in the first class car. To ride in the first class car, you need a special pass. This pass turns the small indicator light above you from red to green. I saw a man do this. I though, my light is red. This cannot be good. Shortly after a very nice attendant directed us to our proper car. No problem.

We got home. I know where I live. No sweat.

P.S. Picked up my passport from the police station on Monday. No problems. PRAISE THE LORD!

Karuizawa, Missionaries to Japan, American Food

Joanna and I just got back from a trip to Karuizawa. Karuizawa is a small town in the mountians west of Tokyo. The trip was great.

The group that went consisted mostly of midtermers. A midtermer is someone like Joanna, here for 1-3 years. Stephen and I were both exceptions. He is a missionary kid, born in Japan, but technically from South Africa.

The trip was a blessing beyond what I could imagine. Most of the people were ending their term and were happy to have the time away from the busy student ministry life. They planned American snacks and a traditional Christmas meal. I am sure they appriciated the American good more than I did!

It was good to be surrounded by people that have given their hearts and years of their lives to Japan. I tried to take in everything they said, and I pray that the Lord would continue to use that time.

Plus the trip was fun. Way fun. Joanna and I are both such extroverted people. We ate, we danced, we laughed, we played games. I feel kinda like a slacker because I have only technically "worked" one day in Japan. It was Mamma H's idea for me to go on this retreat. At first I was concerned about how much money it was going to cost. It was not an expense I had planned on. Totally worth it though.

I will post some pictures later. :)

To my Grandpa, and other people that would like to know the answers to his Questions!

How do I post comments?

Click on comments. If you are not a member, click on "Other" under choose an identity. Please type your name. Type away your comment. :)

What is the deal with Japanese houses not having central heat?

I think it has something to do with high cost of living. It must be cheaper in the long run to only heat a room at a time. Most people only heat the room that they are in and don't even run the heater at night. I'm learning to deal with it.

What does the title or your blog mean?

Philemon 6 is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. It says, "I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you will have a full understanding of everything good thing we have in Christ Jesus." It is kind of a life verse for me. I have found it to be quite true. The more I share my faith, the more I get excited about it and the more real it seems. The title serves as a reminder and an encouragement to me and hopefully others.

Also, I'm interested in your flight -- Did you just stare out the window, daydream, watch movies, read... Anybody interesting on the plane? Strange persons on the plane?

My flight was rather uneventful. I was in an isle seat. That is a good thing for me. I get rather fidgity and want to get up and move around. Plus, I have a small bladder. On the short flight I spent most of the time talking to Michael, the guy I was sitting next too. He is from Austria. He owns a bakery in Des Moines, which he closes every winter for about 4 months to go home and work at a ski resort where he serves wine and such.
The transition in the airport was quick. By the time I arrived to my gate, they were already boarding, so I hopped right on. I didn't even have time to stop at the bathroom.
On the next flight I sat next to a man from the Czech Republic. He is going to Japan for a year to write his thesis, something about economics in Japan in the 1940's to 1950's. Interesting, but not interesting enough for me to inquire of all the details. I spent most of the time reading. I finished the book I was reading, What a Girl Wants by Kristin Billerbeck. It was quite enjoyable.
I then took a bus for 2 hours to the Tama Center. I slept most of that ride.

What are your initial impressions of Japan? Being a nanny?

I like Japan so far. What I have seen is very interesting, aesthetically at least. The architecture is unique. The time I have spent with Japanese people is limited, but from my experiences so far they are very nice and helpful. Joanna and I had several people talk with us while we were in Starbucks. They were trying to help her learn Japanese and curious about our stay. The family that we ate diner with last night was very nice and hospital's. The culture is very giving, but there is also a sense of indebtedness. It is a gift oriented culture.
I have only been a nanny one day. The family was gracious enough to give me time to adjust. It is great so far. I feel like I am learning to be a mom. They are very thankful for what I am doing. It is great to be able to help them out and me being here allows them to be better parents. If I take care of the things that need to get done, they have more energy and time to do the things they want to do with their children. The mom is very organized and I hope the rubs off on me some.

I'm particularly curious about Japanese culture... television... etc. As time allows, I hope you can share your impressions, commentary, views, etc...

I have shared some about the culture. It seems to be very family oriented. They work a lot though. I have not watched an television yet. If I did, I am sure I would not be able to understand it. ;) I will comment more on this later as ideas and thoughts develop.

Merry Christmas!-My gift to you, pictures!
The top picture is the home where I am staying. The windows that you see are actually the room that we (Jo and I) live in. When I say "live," I mean that literally. It is the warmest room in the house.
The next is the path between where I live and the H's. The neighborhood is really beautiful.
Here we are at Starbucks! Woo hoo. I was soooooo tired. If you want to see some more pictures you should look at Joanna's blog. Click on "My 'Japanese' Roommate" to the right.

Not cool, really not cool, we are cool again.

So last night consisted of me realizing I didn't have my passport and ending up in jail.

Here is the story: I was in this cold room, that I am in now. It is cold. I mean really cold. So, I had my winter coat, hat, and gloves on. Then later on during the day I realized that I didn't know where my gloves were. NOT COOL. I started searching for them.

After going through all of my stuff I realized that I did not have the envelope that had my passport, ticket information on and all that jazz in it. REALLY NOT COOL.

My next thought is, maybe it is in the van. I was really tired and it could have fallen out without me knowing it. We call the H's, it is not in the van. REALLY NOT COOL. I am pretty much in panic state at this point. But I just said to the Lord, Lord you have this in control. I probably lost my gloves so that I could realize that I did not have my passport.

Mr. H and Mrs. H told me that since I had an e-ticket that losing that was not a big deal and the worst thing that would happen would be that I needed to replace my passport. We could do that at the embassy and that would not be as big of problem, because being the looser, yet thinker I am, I brought a color copy of my passport. We would go look for it at the Tama Center, where I got of the bus, after diner.

When we arrived we looked around, not there. REALLY NOT COOL. So we went to the police station to find out if they had it or not. Praise the Lord the police in Japan don't hate Americans and were doing their job. We filled out some paperwork, when I say we, I mean Mr. H because I don't speak or write Japanese, and Mr. H just asked me how to spell my name.

What seemed like the main officer called up the main police station. After "we" had finished filling out the paper work, the other police station called. They talked to Mr. H and PRAISE THE LORD, they had it. WE ARE COOL AGAIN.

So, I lost my passport, but it was found. Mercy.

If you are using Mozilla this might be hard to read, I cannot see my most recent post. Sorry, maybe use explorer.

Hello from Japan!

I have made it safely and so far I am having a great time. My flight was uneventful. I was able to meet some European guys. I didn't sleep much. I did finish reading the book What a Girl Wants by Kristen Billerbeck. If you want to understand how I felt this last semester, ready this book. There are differences, but our general attitudes are the same. :)

When I got off the plan I purchases my bus ticket to Tama Center, where Joanna and the entire H family picked me up. I actually am staying with Joanna at the house of another American missionary family here. She was going to live with them until her partner Mary came, but due to family circumstances, they have not yet returned from furlow. It is a comfort to live with Joanna. She cooked me my first Japanese meal last night.

The H's are great. Big J, Lil J and I are just as cute in person as they are in pictures. I am going to make Big J teach me Japanese, he is four and speaks it well. Joanna and I took J and J to the park yesterday to let mamma H rest.

Joanna took me to the Tama Center last night. There are many shops there. It is all decorated with Christmas lights and is beautiful. We spent some time reading and studying at the Starbucks (sounds like America right?!). She worked on her Japanese and I spent some time in Luke. It is refreshing to read about the birth of Christ at Christmas time. I was encouraged by Mary's song:

Mary's Song (Luke 1)

⁴⁶And Mary said:
"My soul glorifies the Lord
⁴⁷and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
⁴⁹for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
⁵⁰His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
⁵¹He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
⁵²He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
⁵³He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
⁵⁴He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
⁵⁵to Abraham and his descendants forever,
even as he said to our fathers."

Oh how I wish I could honestly call myself a humble servant before our Lord!

I am posting very early this morning. I went to bed at about 10:00pm last night, and woke up at 5:00am. I have not quite adjusted to Japan time, yet. 5:00am is not that bad though. The only problem is it is so cold! Japan does not have central heat. There are small heaters in each room and you only turn on the one you need at a time. It takes a long time for a room to heat up. It is a good thing that I am from Iowa! If you have heard that the toilet seats are heated, it is true. But, with the toilet rooms not being heated, it is more of a neccessity than a luxury.

I'm not sure what they day ahead holds for me. Please pray that I would adjust to the time and that I would be a humble servant of the Lord for the H's.

Email me with any questions! (hollybartlett@gmail.com) I will try to post some pictures later.

So I have decided that this is where I am going to keep people informed about Japan.
1. I leave for Japan on Tuesday, December 20th.
2. Yes, I am excited.
3. I am nannying for a Navigator couple there for a couple of months.

***Sorry I took off the photos. Jo asked the fam if it was ok to put pictures up on her blog, but mamma H was not so sure, so I have taken them off for now. If I get the ok, I will put them back and more super cute photos, or you can ask me and I will email them to you. :)