What happened?

Well, I've been home for a couple of days now and I'm still suffering from jetlag. I'm going to blame it on my best friends who have slept over the last couple of nights and kept me up late with giggles and pillow talk. How I've missed home.

It's been exactly a year since I left LA for Japan. Crazy to think that an entire 365 days has passed since then. It doesn't seem that long ago.

Let's see what happened in a year...

July: Tokyo orientation. Made friends for 4 days and then got sent to our final destinations with no way to communicate and keep in touch other than Facebook and e-mail. I finally met my boss and make it to my village...after an hour and a half plane ride from Tokyo, 2 train rides, and a lift from the mayor. Quiet, beautiful, and kind--nothing what I expected.

August: Explore. Where the heck do I live and what can I do? Discovered morning bazooka blasts and the 5:00 "A Whole New World" chime. Started teaching my adult night class. No internet and nothing to do at home every night. Emotion explosions.

September: Classes. Holy smokes, I never knew I'd be so busy. At first it wasn't too bad, but I soon discovered I had good classes/teachers and bad classes/teachers. My uncle cameto visit--first visitor! I started running every day to prepare for the Ekidentaikai.

October: Fall. I hiked with the bicycle riding club. Saw leaves change color for the first time. Practiced piano every night to play for a school festival. The temperatures started dropping below zero. October 26--first snow fall. Ran Ekidentaikai and almost froze to death.

November: Sick. My first cold--caught from watching TV in the cold room. I should've heeded everyone's warning. Crammed for the JLPT while attempting to write a novel. Poor choice.

December: HECTIC. Crammed for JLPT. Went to Sapporo, took the test, came back at midnight, got up at 5:30 and drove back to the village and went straight to work, worked 3 days, went back to Sapporo for conference, came back to the village immediately after conference finished, went to office end of the year party, worked 5 days, got on a plane and flew home.

January: Cold. Came back to the village at -23C. Started playing nagabutsu aisu hokei. Wrestled with contract papers. Started baking to pass the time and develop some good wife skills.

February: FRIENDS. Trekked up to Abashiri to watch drift ice. Drove out to Sapporo for the Snow Festival and Otaru for the Snow Candle Festival. Took a bus out to Tomamu for a weekend of perfect snowboarding. Homesick but grateful for new friends.

March: Chaos. Teachers got their transfer notices. School was winding down. Spiritually dead Gospel concert. Earthquake. Chaos. Absolute chaos. Uneasiness, sadness, grief. Hope, relief, patience. Solemn graduation ceremonies. Spring break trip to South Korea.

April: New. New teachers. New school year. No sign of spring yet. Snow kept falling. Attempting to clean up the house and make my house feel like home.

May: Golden. Golden Week trip around Japan. Old friends and family. Spring finally came...and that only means the snow stopped.

June: BUSY. Usually worked 10+ hours a day and undoukai (sports day) festivals on the weekends. Exhausted and on the verge of burning out. Planned vacation with Mom and Dad. Trekked out to Sapporo for the Yosakoi festival.

July: Kept my eye on the prize--summer vacation. Gritted my teeth, bit the bullet, worked long hours, and made it. Drove to Sapporo alone, visited Costco, picked up Mom and Dad, drove around Hokkaido, crashed my village, flew to Tokyo, and landed in LA.

One year. 365 days. Every one of them showing me how much more I need Jesus. I remember the first month sitting at home with no work and no friends and no internet at home. I remember asking God why He would send me there...to the middle of nowhere. I remember starting to get honest with God about everything--frustrations with language, loneliness, anger, past hurts and bitterness. I remember asking God to reveal Himself...and starting to see Him everywhere and in everything. I remember asking God if we could be best friends. I remember the nights I cried because I ached and longed for home...and how He wrapped me in His arms and held me tight. Every day--the good ones and the bad ones, the warm ones and the cold ones--I need Jesus. I need Jesus not because I'm alone and can't quite understand the language and my house is old and I don't have many friends. I don't need Jesus because of that. I need Jesus because I'm me. I could have all the friends in the world, the nicest, warmest, biggest house, and the best dictionary/personal translator, and I would still need Jesus because I am me. I am in need of His grace and mercy and love every single day to survive...anywhere. After a year, I'm finally figuring that out.