Japan

I hiked Daisen again last week and the fall colors are incredible!

I went to a tea ceremony festival last month at the castle near my apartment (how cool is that sentence, really). Here are some pictures from that. So many women were dressed up in their best kimonos and of course were constantly in formal manner. Several of our older women students are pretty well-known tea ceremony teachers in the area.

We actually sat inside a tent and watched the whole process, then, they served us the matcha (ceremonial green tea) and Japanese sweets. Matcha is a little bitter and thick, and our sweets were made from sweet potatoes. Sounds weird, but it was really good!

Here are some photos from my crazy birthday party. We went to my favorite restaurant in Matsue and had a big ole banquet!

The most amazing, charasmatic and warm-hearted man, Robert "Jack" Fagan has left this world to be with his Heavenly Father. His laughter and cleverness was unlike any. If it weren't for this incredible man, I wouldn't be in Japan living out my dreams. He supported me through the most confusing time in my life and changed the lives of everyone who knew him for the better.

He was always doing the most fun and clever things for everyone, lifting up everyone he knew. He was always taking in stray dogs, one of which was Irwin, who he nursed to health and took care of for many years. He was so bright and clever and funny, and often, he had me laughing so hard at times I doubled over and cried. No one could make you laugh or feel as good as Jack Fagan could.

He leaves behind the most amazing, loving mother who needs your prayers. Please pray for BJ Fagan Croonquist that the Lord will bless her and give her strength through such a sorrowful time.

Thank you for your prayers.

Well, after one year of training, I was FINALLY alowed to test for my orange belt!! Although it's only the second level, I'm feelin' pretty full of myself!

I was so nervous I wanted to cry, seriously. Actually, several of the kids were crying and I wanted to start bawling with 'em too. I didn't know what to expect. I thought my sensei, who has trained me all this time, would be doing the testing, but no. Some big scarry dude in a suit from Osaka was there to do it and I couldn't understand half of what he said. But it's all good. He let me pass, shaky knees and all.

I also didn't expect the test to last for three and a half hours! We not only did katas, but our sensei conducted a class as usual and the Osaka inspector watched all of that too. We also had to do other things like push-ups sit-ups and stretching. If we passed the exercise, we had to yell our name out to him. The whole process was surreal.

Karate here is just so different from martial arts in the States. Here, you do the same moves over and over and over until you've perfected one, and then you can learn the next thing. Most of our class time is spent doing basic punches and kicks, and honestly, I was starting to get really bored, but, after testing and finally getting to spar quite a bit, I'm seeing the benefits of repeat, repeat, repeat. Yelling is also important. They judge your power based on your voice, which I still don't get completely, but I can say some of the black belt guys sound really really scary! Maybe I could get my black belt in about eight years - which actually is the average.

It was so strange, but one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had. I never thought I'd say I have passed a karate test in Japan!