Life since the earthquake/tsunami 1-C

The experience of the days of the earthquake from our perspective in Mito

It was a Friday. Most people were at work. Teachers and students were in class. My school was lucky, because of a special schedule that day the students had gone home at 2:30. I had just made crepes with my 6th graders when they all hurried out to the playground for the school goodbye, before dispersing to go home. The kids gone, teachers went back to the teachers’ room or to their class room to clean up. At 2:40, the earthquake hit. We are used to decent sized earthquakes here, so at first we just looked at each other wondering how long it would last. When we realized it wasn’t stopping right away and that the shelves were shaking harder than usual, we unanimously decided to run outside. Now, they always say, if a disaster happens, leave everything and run. I’ve always said, if a disaster happens, I’ll grab my cell phone and run. Well, I forgot my cell phone. We all just ran outside and waited. We spent the next hour or two going back inside and running back out when a new one came. We stood out on the playground for about an hour with the after-school kids until we felt it was finally safe to go back inside. Some teachers drove around to make sure students got home safely. Other teachers searched the school for damage. All in all, the earthquake was big enough to be scary, but small enough to still be exciting. I would be lying if I said I didn’t think the experience was kind of cool. Our school didn’t incur too much real damage, so it was difficult for me to be in a state of emergency.

Even after leaving school and going home my feelings were more of excitement and wondering what work will be like on Monday. I hadn’t yet realized the extent of what had happened. Traffic lights were out. Some of the roads had cracks or had simply sunk in, creating huge bumps. When we got home we realized that water and electricity were out over a large area….we had no idea how large. We also learned a whole new way of interpreting the sentence “Our home is a mess!” But that was the extent of our worries.

We decided to drive around and check on some of our friends. Phones were still not working, so no matter how much we tried to call or message, we didn’t get through to anyone. We met up with Luke and Emily first. They joined us as we drove on to look for Chelsea and Kendon. We all got together and drove back to our place to keep each other company and try to share food for dinner. We wanted to drive around more to look for other people, but it was getting late and we needed to spare gas. So we just waited, and tried our phones every once in a while. During the course of the evening, more people made it to our place and we were able to enjoy good fellowship.

It wasn’t until later that evening that we realized how big this really was! Up until this point, it was just an earthquake that knocked out water and electricity. Then someone got a phone call from their mom. “Are you Ok? I’m seeing pictures of the tsunami and I’m worried!” We all just laughed. “What tsunami? We aren’t anywhere near a tsunami! We just had a big earthquake. That’s all.” Then we started hearing more about the tsunami and seeing pictures and videos on the news. That’s when we started realizing that this was bigger than ‘just an earthquake’.

That night, none of us got much sleep. Between the shakes of the earthquakes, the readiness to jump out of bed and run outside, the sweat from sleeping in my clothes, the constant sound of helicopters and ambulances and the worries of our large bookshelf falling on top of me, my dreams were laden with all of those same sounds and feelings, waking me up as often as possible.

Throughout that week, many things happened. People lined up at grocery stores and gas stations for hours. Food and gas were being tightly rationed. Little by little different parts of the area got electricity and water back. Some areas got utilities back within a day or two; some had to wait longer than a week. We started hearing more and more about the nuclear disaster and evacuations. All the while the victims of the tsunami were adding up to more and more missing and dead people.

Mito was still coping with the electricity, water, food and gas shortages in addition to damaged property. The world was worried about the radiation and watching the tsunami disaster. AETs in Mito and Mito church members were feeling torn between getting their life back on track, fleeing because of the radiation dangers, or planning how to get gas to drive up North with help.

Mito city, our school employers and our colleagues all did their best to not let the dangers and disaster further upset their lives. The last week of classes and graduation happened as planned in the elementary schools. By the time opening ceremony started a new year at the beginning of April, things were for the most part back to normal in Mito’s schools. Many gyms are still not safe to use, some schools could not have school lunch for a few weeks because the kitchens were not usable and school earthquake drills have a new meaning, but other than a few things, life is back on track here for the average person.

Life since the earthquake/tsunami 1-B

How Christians in Mito reach out to the community and the world

The Mito family has two main ministries that have been going strong for several years and other smaller ministries daily, weekly, monthly and even yearly. As already shown, the people here are also open to new ways of showing God’s love and are more than willing to go to strange places, do hard work and serve new people.

Just like any other country, there are many people who have lost homes and the ability to take care of themselves. They live on the streets, eat what they can and just barely survive. In Japan, homeless people are not just looked down upon, but they are typically ignored even as a member of society. If you didn’t know Mito had homeless people, you just wouldn’t know. Mito church gathers clothes and food for Mito’s homeless and once a month a group of people gets together to make and serve a nice lunch and disperse necessary items. With some of these people, we have created a special relationship and we hope they are able to see God despite their troubles.

Japanese people are becoming more and more aware of the need to learn English. People pay upwards of $40 for a private English lesson with a native speaker. We offer a series of English conversation classes, much like Let’s Start Talking, with our own materials called English Bible Class (EBC) for free. Some people just come for the English conversation. Some people realize that they are learning new things about God and want to know more. Some people decide to give their lives to God because they have learned to accept Him into their hearts. Through EBC we have many activities to reach out to EBC students and their friends. We have parties, a talent show, A Christmas party and other fun activities where we can share God’s love.

Other ways Mito members reach out to people include weekly Bible studies, visiting college campuses to talk to the students, small concerts, adventures in the park, group outings, etc. The newest big ministry that the Mito members are excited about is Joel’s work with street children in Cambodia. Joel goes to Singapore and Cambodia two or three times a year. This past year, around 10 members of Mito’s church family joined him in this endeavor, more have committed to go this coming year and everyone has helped raise money. This family is becoming more and more aware of people’s needs and how we can help those needs. Many members are eager to help with the relief work for the tsunami victims through the church’s newly organized endeavor.

Life since the earthquake/Tsunami - Report 1-A

Dear friends and family,

As you know, March 11th was a dark day in Japan. Since the tsunami hit the coastal area in Northern honshu and the earthquake affected an even larger area of Japan, causing the nuclear disaster, many people have gotten their lives back on track, but many people are in a break from normal life and have been forced to pick up and change their life completely.

To help people outside of Japan better understand what's going on, the continuing need for help and the people who are involved in relief efforts, I wrote a report with my personal testimony and view of these things.

Today I am posting 1 part out of 4 of this report. This first part is to help you better understand some of the people who are helping with the Relief Efforts, ie. members of the Mito Church of Christ.

Miranda’s Testimony about

Mito Church of Christ

How I view

Who we are, how we reach out and our relief efforts

My name is Miranda Brazle Logwood. Second child of Paul and Carol Brazle, I

grew up in Belgium in the Antwerp Church of Christ. Now my husband, Derrick Logwood,

and I live in Mito, Japan as Assistant English Teachers and members of the Mito Church of

Christ.

In the aftermath of the Earthquake/Tsunami/Nuclear problems I have come to the

decision to put into words my testimony about my life and ministry here as it is linked to

the Mito church. In this testimony I want to share my general view of Mito Church of Christ,

explain the ways Christians in Mito reach out to the community and the world, describe the

experience of the days of the earthquake from our perspective in Mito and show how the

church members in the area have taken measures to do relief work for those who have lost

much more than us.

1. My general view of Mito Church of Christ

Three years ago, Mito Church was just the Church we decided to attend and

try to help out where we could, as a temporary place to worship God for our short stay

in Japan. Over the years, this group of people has become my Japanese family. I have

at least three or four mothers who would do anything for me. There are so many people,

American, Japanese and other, who I consider brothers and sisters and even best friends.

Mito Church of Christ is not just a group of people who get together to worship God. This

group is a family who worships God, loves one another and God, has fun with each other

and invites anyone to join in the fun and God’s joy.

Mito church has definitely changed over the years. Two years ago we had to say

goodbye to the main Japanese minster and his family (Yuki and Hiroko Obata) when they

moved to the States. Atsushi and Mari Tsuneki then decided to work with the Mito church,

along with their four kids! As former Abilene Christian University students, they have a

pretty good grasp on American culture and how to cope with the differences between

America and Japan. Through them, Mito church is getting better and better at bringing all of

the nationalities together as one family.

Last year, the American minister and his family (Mark and Mayumi Hancock)

also made the decision to move to the States. Once again, God blessed the church with

someone willing to come to Mito as a minister: Joel Osborne and his intern Sasha Ingle

came with their loving Japanese friend Gaku Osugi from Sendai. Since this change, many

of Mito’s non-Japanese members have become more and more comfortable with calling

Mito church their church home and are becoming a more active part of the family. College

students from nearby universities (mostly Ibaraki Christian University) are coming more

often and getting to know more Christians in Mito. Probably the biggest change to Mito

church since Joel, Sasha and Gaku have come is the globalization of Mito Christians’

view of God. Joel brought with him his ministry to Cambodia, alongside the churches in

Singapore. In Mito, God’s global presence is becoming more and more tangible.

Mito Church is filled with God’s presence. The family is changing and letting God

work through its members daily. Of course, the church family still experiences problems,

difficulties and challenges. We are definitely not perfect. But more and more this family is

realizing what it means to be just a small part of God’s global family, and what it means to

trust in God. I pray that God continues to bless and strengthen this group of followers so

God’s light can shine greater to the Japanese population.

The Flight Saga

From Japan to Belgium!

Everything was perfect, abeit very long, for the 11 hour flight to Amsterdam, until we got to Amsterdam...10 minutes away we were told we couldn't land because of a snowstorm. They decided to fly us to Germany instead, Dusseldorf. We landed, and waited, only to hear we were just waiting there for the storm to blow over so we could fly back to Amsterdam. Dusseldorf wouldn't let us disembark. So we waited about 2 hours, before we were told we'd return to Amsterdam. Finally on our way again, we landed in Amsterdam to hear that all the gates were occupied. So we waited. And this started a series of shorter periods of waiting. Taxiing to the gate, waiting for the airplane there to leave, waiting for them to clean off the snowy ground in front of the gate, waiting for gate officers to come and hook up the gate, waiting for them to attach the gate, and then to open the frozen door...then we waited at immigration (but that was expected). And then we waited about 45 minutes at baggage claim, only to hear (by hearsay from people around - not an intercom announcement) that NO ONE was really getting their bags and they were handing out forms to fill out for baggage claim. Got that done! Looked for mom and then we had to wait for a train to Antwerp that no one could really tell us WHEN it would come or even IF it would come. BUT we finally made it to the Antwerp station at 12:30 (instead of 6ish)!! YEY! I'm in Belgium!!!

What we've been up to!

Gomenasai!

Once again, this is the first blog in a long time. Let me try to give a quick, yet informative update since September!

Fall was a time of much excitement. We were really busy with a bunch of different things.

For a short weekend trip, Derrick and I visited the city Nikko, which is known for its many buddhist temples and waterfalls with great hiking opportunities. We went with our good friend, Kristin Creekmore. Nikko is also known for its temple with the engravings of the famous "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" monkeys.

That weekend in Nikko we met a family from Spain, living in Yokohama: Josef and Monica and their children Joan (pronounced like Johan) and Marta. They told us about a Greek restaurant in Yokohama and we decided we just had to go. So, in October, we decided to visit our new friends and try out some good Greek food. (By the way, Japan is seriously lacking in the Greek food area, so we miss it). They were very hospitable and showed us around town too! It was great!

That weekend we got to see the Blue Man Group perform in Tokyo! We went with our awesome Japanese friends from church: Norio and her parents Fumie and Chikara Namae. That evening we also saw a famous Japanese play in the Traditional Kabuki Theatre. (Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura: Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees).

Up through December 6th both of us studied Japanese harder than normal to be able to pas the level 4 Japanese Proficiency Test (easiest level). This was a very challenging time for us, but we made it through without too much stress. We received our scores this month and both passed, so we are very happy and ready to take on the next level this December. After the test, we had our second annual Logwood Christmas party (our first one was the year before). We combined forces and "hospitality" with our friends Chip and Heather Riley and renamed it the LOGLY Christmas Party. Many of our friends came and we had a great time with fun and games and prizes!

After having a Christmas party in Japan, the two of us packed up and got ready for Christmas back home in Missouri with Derrick's family there! We had a great time with everyone in Columbia and wish we had more time! We also got to go to Oklahoma for a few days to see some of my family and more! Derrick's sisters, Jordan and Hannah, went with us. (Below is a picture of us with Derrick's sisters, my granddad Bob Morris and his lovely newlywed wife Esther Marie and my little cousin Dylan).

We had so much fun! We didn't want it to end! We also got to visit with Derrick's dad, Wayne Logwood, and his girlfriend Jan while we were in St Louis!

Christmas over, vacation finished, we decided it was high time to start having weekend ski trips. SO, I taught Derrick and Chip and Heather how to Snowboard in Minakami, Gunma Ken for 2 days. Then Derrick and I went to Marunuma (also Gunma Ken), with Austin Powell and John Smith, to continue those awesome skills Derrick picked up, for two more days. As if that was not enough, we took a long weekend just last week with our friends Brett and Heather to Nagano. Many of you might know that this is where the winter olympics was held in Japan in 1998.

While in Nagano, we also visited the Matsumoto Castle. This castle is awesome because of its unique architecture, interesting history and the ability to see it in its original form.

Of course a visit to Nagano is not complete without seeing the Monkey Onsen! A hotspring bath full of soaking and relaxing monkeys. How cool is that!

We also got to witness some family drama... to see a video, watch for a link for it on a future post or on facebook.

AND in the midst of all our travel and fun and full time job, I was training for a Japanese Speech Contest which took place on February 6th. My speech was just under 5 minutes long. I talked about growing up as an American living in Belgium and obtaining both citizenships. I pointed out both some of the confusion this dual citizenship presented in my life, as well as the many benefits I have been blessed with.

To watch a video of my speech, please go to this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2nVImKrwpM or go to YouTube and type in "Miranda's Japanese Speech Contest".

This is by far not all we have been up to these last several months, so I am so sorry that I have neglected this blog and have not been able to post more about our exciting life!

Opening Ceremony in a Japanese Elementary School

Have you ever wondered how elementary schools in other countries start their new trimesters?? Yea, I never thought about it either. I never realized how ... uhm....interesting and different other cultures' opening ceremonies could be, even for the little ones.

Growing up in Belgium, I honestly never remember any type of ceremony except for when I graduated highschool and received my Highschool diploma...and even that wasn't very organized or strict compared to anything I see here.

Just to give you an idea about what ceremonies here are like, I want to describe step by step the opening ceremony for the 2nd trimester. Please keep in mind that this is one of the least important ceremonies....nothing compared to 1st ceremony of the year where 1st graders are new, or last ceremony of the year where 6th graders graduate.

(Also, bear in mind that other schools in Japan may vary and I am giving an account of what I have seen in the schools where I work)

Everyone meets in the gym, facing the big stage. Students sit down. The vice-vice principal (VVP) stands to the side with a microphone (and one of those pulpit like podiums with their notes). All other teachers are either standing to the side, or behind the students to make sure they behave.

VVP: "Stand up." (everyone stands up) "Bow" (everyone bows to nothing/no one in particular....perhaps to the Japanese flag to show respect, I'm not sure)
"Let's have the starting words for the ceremony" (this is a very loose translation)

Vice Principal: Moves toward the stage. On her(his) way there she stops in front of the principal and bows. She goes up the steps of the stage, stops at the top and bows toward the stage. She moves to the podium with the microphone. She bows to the audience who bow back to her.

"Opening Ceremony will now begin."

She bows to the audience again, who bow back to her again. She moves to the top of the steps, stops, turns and bows toward the stage. She goes down the steps, stops in front of the principal, bows to him and then moves back to the place where she was standing.

VVP: "sit down" (all students sit)
"~~~student from 6th grade and ~~~~ student from 1st grade (says their names) will now read their comments"

One 1stgrade student and One 6th grade student come to the front. They bow to the principal and VP on their way to the stage. They go up the steps and stop and bow toward the stage. They walk to the podium with the mic. The 1st grader steps forward and bows to the audience who bow back. Student reads his/her comments that they had written down....comments about last semester and what they look forward to for coming semester. Student finishes comments, bows (with a return bow) and steps back. 6th grade student steps forward. Reads comments. Finishes and bows. Together the students walk back to the top of the steps, they turn and bow toward the stage. They walk down the steps walk to the principal and VP, stop and bow, and then move back to their spot.

VVP: "stand up" "Now we will sing the school song"

A teacher moves up to the stage, bows at the top of the steps and sits down at the piano. She starts playing and the kids sing the school song. (This is probably my favorite part!)

The song finishes. The teacher leaves the stage, not forgetting to bow at the top of the steps.

VVP: "Let's have the finishing words"

Vice Principal: Moves toward the stage....again. On her(his) way there she stops in front of the principal and bows. She goes up the steps of the stage, stops at the top and bows toward the stage. She moves to the podium with the microphone. She bows to the audience who bow back to her.

"Opening Ceremony is now finished."

She bows to the audience again, who bow back to her again. She moves to the top of the steps, stops, turns and bows toward the stage. She goes down the steps, stops in front of the principal, bows to him and then moves back to the place where she was standing.

(Whats coming next doesnt happen all the time, but it happened to me last week because we had a teacher who was leaving.)

VVP: "It is time to start the goodbye ceremony for ~~~~sensei."

Vice Principal: Moves toward the stage....again. On her/his way there she stops in front of the principal and bows. She goes up the steps of the stage, stops at the top and bows toward the stage. She moves to the podium with the microphone. She bows to the audience who bow back to her.

"The Goodbye ceremony for ~~~~ sensei will now start."

She bows to the audience again, who bow back to her again. She moves to the top of the steps, stops, turns and bows toward the stage. She goes down the steps, stops in front of the principal, bows to him and then moves back to the place where she was standing.

OK, I'm not gonna go through this whole ceremony as well....I just wanted to point out how funny it is to see one ceremony has to be completely finished before a next ceremony can take place, even for something as simple as starting a new trimester and saying goodbye to a teacher in elementary school.

The return of the Logwoods

Well, March, April, May, June and July have been busy months. I am sorry for doing a horrible job of keeping people informed of our daily excitements. Please enjoy this quick update of our current situation in Japan.

The new school year started in April. Derrick and I are both teaching at the same schools as last year, so we are happy with that. In Mito the schoolboard does this funny thing where they can send a teacher to any school and any grade. The choice is never the teacher's and the teachers never know where they will teach and in what grade until the middle or end of March. Then they only have maybe two weeks to pack up and change things before having to teach in the new school and new grade.

Anyway, after a couple of changes to the staff at our schools we have gotten used to this new year. The highlight of working at the same school for me is to be able to get to know the kids better. I am learning more names and enjoying more conversations with my students.

Japanese learning. Derrick and I have stepped it up a bit. We are now going to two classes a week each being 2 hours long. One is Saturday morning, which we have been doing since January, and we have just decided to start going to the Tuesday evening class at the same place instead of continuing the volunteer class at church. We will miss the class at church, but the other class gives much better preparation for the Japanese Language Test we plan to take in December. We hope to continue to meet with our love church volunteers to teach them English.

Church. I have recently been added to the list of women who prepare the Flower Arrangement for Sunday worship. This means that once every two months I am responsible for buying and arranging a bunch of flowers that sits at the front of the auditorium. I really enjoy doing this! Also I have been taking more responsibility as an attendance counter person (don't know what the title of this responsibility is, but I sit at a desk in the back, check people's names off, meet new people who walk in and just generally make sure everyone's comfortable has a seat and song book and stuff). I enjoy this because it allows for me to meet more people and learn more names.

The people at church are wonderful. There tends to be anywhere from 60 to more than 100 people in attendance. Its a pretty big church (especially considering the one I grew up in in Antwerp). Songs are mostly in Japanese and some in English. I enjoy singing in Japanese. It definitely helps Japanese reading and pronunciation skills.

Unfortunately we had to miss the Church Camp Retreat because that same weekend was the only weekend it worked out for us to meet our friend Masashi in Tokyo while he was home for the summer. We had a great day with him in Tokyo and really enjoyed meeting his father!

AET summer training. Every summer a group of AETs plans a training session for the whole AET group to learn things about how to do our job better and to get together and retrain together as a group as English Teachers. This year I have been asked to take on the responsibility of leading this summer training. I have really enjoyed this responsibility. It has kept me busy and it has taken a lot of effort, but it has been a real blessing to be able to be a part of this. 1 week of this training is already finished. We did it in July at the very beginning of the school's summer vacation here. Then we went on a two week Thailand/Cambodia trip with some friends. The trip was awesome! I will update the blog about the trip on my next post. Tomorrow we start the last 3 days of training.