Japanese Journey

Our good friend Tomoko got married last weekend! She asked McKinley to be the ring-bearer, and McKinley played cello at the wedding. Since it was an effort and an effort to get to Japan, we decided to do the thing we never could do when we lived there -- get a Japan Rail pass. What a deal that was! We took off for Kyoto, with our friend Tsujimoto, then arrived in our home town of Okayama to stay with Takasakis. We went to Hiroshima to be with the Kanahara family, then back to Tokyo to see the Totoro museum, my friend Rei Uemura, and Nikko, the most splendid of temple towns.

McKinley grew in grace throughout the week. It is tough for her to be in a culture where she needs to be obedient, but she struggled and managed in the end. She discovered that her personal Japanese god is one with hundreds of hands, each offering a gift. That was what the journey was like for her, right on the heels of her birthday -- a gift from each friend, gift after gift. Now that makes spirituality meaningful! It was truly a blessed journey, the best gifts of all being time with our close friends.