Koza Music Town - コザ・ミュージック・タウン

Koza Music Town, Okinawa (AP) – The Word is the Werrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrd! Sunday night, literally dozens (two, I think) gathered at Koza Music Town to listen to a concert event that will echo around the island for years. Hakugaijin (White Foreigner / Persecuted Person) did a couple of sets, and all the way from California, the Soap Box Poetz did their thing, and the night ended with a joint effort. Buffa (SBP) joined Tim (HG) on the stage for a song that got the crowd out of their seats.

Although the turnout was not as great as we might have expected, the Word still went out, and people heard the Good News. I do not

know for sure, but it seems to me that a couple of young ladies might have accepted Christ into their hearts. Praise the Lord! It doesn’t matter if only 5 people come… when people come to know Jesus, it’s worth all the effort!

昨夜、コザ・ミュージック・タウンでライブがありました。カリフォルニアから来てくれたソープ・ボックス・ポエッツや沖縄に住んでいるハクガイジン(白外人・迫害人)が演奏してくれてオーディエンスが超楽しんだ。たぶん2人の女性がイエスキリストを初めて受け入れたと思います。こういうイベントの目的は、たくさんの人々が音楽を楽しむことではなくて、たくさんの人々がイエス様の愛を感じる・理解することです。だから、たった一人が救われてもイベントが成功になってる。ティム牧師、アンドリュー、ロバート、ハンナ、そしてＳＢＰの皆さん、お疲れ様でした！続けて神様の道を歩み、音楽を通してたくさんの人々がイエス様の救いを受け入れるように！

Bye-bye, Tsuken House!

Welcome to the new “Josh House”! By the way, Josh can be pluralized and still be “Josh.” In this case, the new “Josh House” is singular, that is, he lives on his own. He was living with another Josh, thereby making it the “Josh (plural) House”. Anyways, the Tsuken House is no longer a “Josh House” but the Ginoza House IS a “Josh House”! It’s exciting and a much better place for Josh to be at, but of course for me it is indeed sad that my good buddy is no longer a 5-minute walk from my home. It’s now a 30-minute drive. This means less hanging out… but Sunday night he invited me and Cotton and Abraham over for a curry dinner. MmmmMmmmMmmm it was GOOD! As much as I am bummed that there’s no “Josh House” in the neighborhood anymore, I’m excited about the next 5 months of good times at the new “Josh House” (address blurred for privacy reasons).

The Perfect Move - The Videos

The Soap Box Poetz hit the stage to end things strong

My former student, Hadji, taking the Popping Championship!

Rhythm Unity 7 - The Perfect Move

金曜日の夕方に第7回のリズム・ユニティーを行った。たくさんのブレークダンサーやポッパーが参加しててみんなの才能に感動しました。そして、ソープ・ボックス・ポエッツ(カリフォルニアからわざわざ来てくれたヒップホップグループ)が何曲か演奏してくれて盛り上がりました。ティム牧師が熱いメッセージを語ってくれて何人かがイエスキリストを救い主として初めて受け入れて最高な一日だった。ティム牧師は元々ブレークダンサーなので、その人たちにいつも心を配ってくれている。今週末に3つのイベントを通して、神様に用いられてたくさんの人々に福音を述べ伝えることができました。神様に感謝します！ On Friday evening, Calvary Chapel hosted the 7^th Rhythm Unity Breakdancing Contest. There were a lot of breakdancers and poppers out, and I was blown away by their skills. One of my former students was among the winners in the popping contest. There were performances by Hakugaijin and Soap Box Poetz (a hip-hop outfit that came all the way out from California to reach out to the youth of Okinawa), and Pastor Tim shared the gospel in front of the whole crowd. It was a very passionate message, and there were a number of people who accepted Christ as their savior for the first time. Through Pastor Tim (who was once a break-dancer himself), many people got to hear about Jesus Christ this weekend. Thank the Lord for the work He’s doing through Tim and so many others at Calvary Chapel Ginowan.

Wow! 10 Years! 10周年おめでとう！

信じられない！僕は10年前に、初めて沖縄に来ました！長いようで短いようで。。。ある意味、沖縄が第二故郷になった。本当にこの10年間、いくつかの神様の素晴らしい奇跡を見たこともあって、すごい祝福であふれた時でした。これからも、神様の導きに従って、どこに行っても主の弟子としてがんばっていきたいです！皆さん、引き続きお祈りのほうをよろしくお願いします！


Can it be? It's been 10 years since I first arrived in Okinawa. It feels like just yesterday, and yet it seems like forever ago. I feel like I've changed a lot, and yet I'm still the same person. I know one thing for sure: God's been GOOD to me these 10 years! I'm hoping that the next 10 years of my life measure up to these, and I'm sure they will, so long as God is at the forefront of what I say and do!

What can YOU get for $20???

What a blessing.. yesterday I couldn't get on base with my buddy Josh, so I walked Gate 2 Street, and ran into the father of some former students. He showed me wedding pictures, talked about how my school had "brain-washed" his kid into Christianity, and so on... but then when I asked him about the hockey jerseys he had, he told me he'd sell me one for $20. Unbelievable! These would be about $100 in Canada, but I guess since they're made in Korea they're a lot cheaper. Here's the result of my shopping:

Not bad, eh?

2 years in a row...

Another year, another heartbreak. Okisho, the defending champions of high school baseball, will not be able to defend their title in the summer national tournament. Yesterday was the Okinawa Prefecture finals matchup, and unfortunately when I got to the game (late because of heavy traffic), I was greeted by this scoreboard. (In case you can’t read it, Urasho – our mortal enemies – were winning 5-0 in the 5th.)

After a rough beginning, however, Okisho’s team started to show some grit and comeback power by mounting a serious threat in the 6th inning: bases loaded and only 1 out! But sadly, it ended in a double play, and the score remained 5-0. Then came the 7th, and an even better chance to score runs: bases loaded with no outs! Unfortunately, our batter grounded into a 1-2-5 double play (for non-baseball nerds, this means they got our guy out at home and third), meaning no runs and now 2 outs with runners at first and second. A much lower chance of scoring. And yet we put up one run that inning, and another in the 8th, but alas, it was too little, too late. Higashihama and the boys played so well, but could not make up the 5 runs scored against them in the 1st inning.

It rained in the 9th inning (a reflection of our hearts’ condition?), cooling things down and putting a ‘damper’ on the day. But overall, I’m glad I went, and I’m still proud to say I work at Okisho, and I still believe we have the best baseball team in Okinawa, if not the whole nation. We just let too many chances slip away yesterday.

ありえない、2年連続、浦商に負けた！今回は東浜君が怪我しなかったけど、前日の完投で疲れたため、今日の1回表で浦商はなんと、5点取った！僕たちは交通渋滞で試合に遅れてきたけど、入ったときから沖尚の勢いが良くて、浦商の攻撃をうまく抑えた。沖尚に6回にも7回にも8回にも大きなチャンスがあったけど、残念ながらタイムリーが来なかった。逆に、ダブルプレーが二つあって、満塁のチャンスが逃された。

負けたのは本当に悔しいけど、沖尚は沖縄、いや、日本の最強な野球部を持ってることに確信がある。東浜君、嶺井君、波照間君、仲宗根君、高甫君、西銘君、新垣君、伊古君、伊志嶺君、ベンチプレーヤー、大屋マネージャー、比嘉監督、大城部長、お疲れ様でした！そして沖縄にいる沖尚のファンの皆さん、いつも応援してくれて、誠にありがとうございました。

To e-bay, or not to e-bay...

Today after our long staff meeting, I got a pleasant surprise: Okisho President Masajiro Nashiro signed one baseball for each staff member. Not just any baseball, though, but an official "Koshien 2008 Spring Tournament" baseball! So mine has two important signatures on it (his son, the vice-president, Masaichiro Nashiro also signed), the school's name, my name, and all the "official baseball" stuff that collector balls have on them. Check it out, it's sweeeeeeet! The only question is this: How much could I get for it on e-bay? One more question: If I removed my name, would the value increase or decrease???

あぁ、また職員会議？嫌だぁ！って思ったけど、終わったら沖縄尚学学園理事長から素敵な物をいただきました。それは、画像のとおりに、第８０回記念センバツ高校野球大会ボールでした！理事長、及び副理事長サイン入りボールで、絶対にe-bayで大金を得られる球なんだけど、一生保管すべきボールだね。改めて沖尚で採用されて良かったなぁって思います！

ちなみに、日曜日に北谷野球場で準々決勝を観戦しに行きました。もちろん、勝者は。。。沖尚！土曜日の準決勝も日曜日の決勝戦も観に行く予定だよ！一緒に行きたい人？！？

Leaving already?

My dear friend and co-worker Grace graced us with her presence for almost a year at Okisho, but the time has already come for her to leave. Actually, she's still here for another 3 weeks or so, but Sayaka (2nd from the right) is going to the States for a few weeks to chaperone our exchange program, so we had the farewell party early. Let me say a few things about Grace.

She likes pockets and trees. She must never wear glasses ever again. She sings the awesome song from ELF where Buddy meets his father and the father thinks he's some telegram. She loves The Princess Bride and has been "reading" my book now for about 3 months. She made fun of me in front of many students back in the day when we used to team teach together. And last but not least... I'm going to miss her.

Thanks, Grace, for all the awesome times, for listening to me vent about my less-than-successful classes, and for giving your all, even on days when no one knew what was going on. I wish you all the best in the States. Do not forget about us, let us know how things are going, and one more thing: "Would it be okay if I called you the 'crowning beauty' of everything?"

金曜日はスペシャルな一日だった。アメリカの独立記念日でもあったが、皆さん、覚えてください：僕はアメリカ人ではありません。カナダ人です！金曜日はグレース先生の送別会だった。グレースは私のとって最高のコーワーカー＆友達だった。たぶん学校とだいこんの花以外、一度しか遊ばなかったけど、あの日の花見、愛実と圭佑と一緒に回ったり、良いレストランを探したりして最高だったね！本当にグレースが沖縄に残って欲しいけど、彼女は色んな夢があって、どうしても帰らなければならないと言ってので、アメリカのほうでもがんばって欲しいです。

だいこんの花でまたいつものメンバーで大食いして帰りました。ケニーは遅れてきたので、いきなり大量の食べ物を集めてガツガツ食べた。とても楽しい夜だった！