Welcome to the House of Frugality!

It's been nearly a month since Josh and I moved into a place together, but finally we've got it more-or-less organized! We had a post-church luncheon last week, and hopefully will throw another party in the near future! Here's a short video to give you an idea of what the place is like:

By the way, if you're checking this from facebook, I don't think you'll be able to see the video, so go to my blog: http://t-raysblog.blogspot.com/2009/04/welcome-to-house-of-frugality.html

My Favourite Baseball Player

This is an essay about my favourite baseball player. He has never played in the major leagues. He has not hit a homerun (not to the best of my knowledge). He does not boast a pristine ERA or a championship to his name. But he is a hardworking guy who plays with all his heart. And he also plays for his Lord. His name is Robert Eugene Wunderlich.

Rob used to wake up early every morning and practice baseball by himself at Okinawa International University (Okikoku). One day, my friend Tim and I saw him doing sprints or something, and we threw a tennis ball at him. Of course we didn't throw to hit him, but to make him look up. We ducked. Then we did it again. Then we laughed and called him "Uncle Rico" (see right). He did not let that faze him, but kept on waking up early and preparing himself for the day when God would call him to play baseball again.

The Samurai took him on, but they really didn't practice much. Then Teru Clinic took him. But before he knew it, God was calling him up to a bigger league. Now he's in Wakayama playing for the Kishu Rangers. He's getting PAID to play the game he loves, and he gets to share Jesus with his teammates, fans, and opponents. This, above all, is why he is my hero.

Open House

It's been 3 weeks since Josh and I moved into our new place. Because of our busy schedules and such, it's been hard to have people over. But we threw caution to the wind and invited the whole church over on Sunday after morning service. I figured 20-25 people would show up. Oops! More like 40 or so! It was amazing. Josh did most of the preparation work, as we frantically put everything in its place (or out of sight) and shopped for things we needed and prepared food. The menu: curry and taco rice. I heard a lot of positive reviews, so I guess we did something right! My highlights were hearing Pastor Tim's roaring laughter while they watched Open Season 2, serving ice cream (not quite Baskin Robbins, but we did have 4 flavours and 2 types of cones), and spending the afternoon talking with my "Okinawan mother." Thank you everyone for coming over and breaking in the "House of Frugality"! And thank you, Lord, for providing a place, the means to host people, the ability to cook, and most of all, for Your love and Your family in Christ!

引越しして３週間経った時、やっとパーティーしました。ジョシュさんのスケジュールは半端ない忙しいし、二人とも片付けは全然できなくて人を迎える自信がなかった。けど、パーティーを開催したくてしょうがなかった。昨日の礼拝後にみんなを家に誘いました。ジョシュさんは「食べ物絶対足りないだろう」と心配しながら僕は「そんなに人が来ないかもしれない」と主張しました。結局はどっちも間違った。人数が多かったのに食べ物が足りた。っていうより、あんまりにも食べ物が多くて夕飯の分もありました。神様は本当に食べ物の量を倍増してくださった！３時ぐらいにほとんどのメンバーが出たけど、５人が６時半まで残ってくれた。アイザ久、トキト、藍ちゃんが「ダークナイト」を観た。アンドリューと私の“オキナワンマザー”と私、３人で色んな話をしました。本当に最高な１日だった。主に感謝します！この『フルーガル家』を与えてくださって感謝します！あなたの愛、あなたのキリストにある家族のことを感謝します！これからもこういう機会が与えられますように！

I'm in! やった！

Check it out, folks. You are now reading the blog of Anaheim University's newest graduate student! I'm so excited about this... pray that I will make it through and that God would guide my steps as I further my education.

今朝、いつもどおり早めに学校に着いてメールを開いた。普段は１通、あるいは着信メールゼロなんだけど、今回は嬉しい知らせがありました。大学院に入学決定です！これから２年間半をかけてＴＥＳＯＬ（他言語話者｛たげんご わしゃ｝に対する英語教授法）の資格を得ることになります。皆さん、祈りのほう、よろしくお願いします！

Gotta love Okisho...

Though this is a school day, our school has canceled classes for 3rd and 4th periods so that everyone can watch the World Baseball Classic Finals together. We're all about building national pride... GO JAPAN!

Anticipate This!

The other night, I was at the Koinonia Cafe and some guy stopped by with a thick envelope. It included samples of the upcoming Hakugaijin CD - Welcome to the Ai-land, among other things. I have to admit, I was tempted to open it up and give it a spin, or maybe even keep one for myself! Of course, I would never do that, though. Anyways, all that to say, my good friend Tim and his band will be releasing their debut CD on April 15 (I think), so check it out! Here's a little video of them performing back in January. Enjoy!

A Malaysian Weekend

Okisho is a school that just never stops moving forward, never stops building relationships, never stops offering extras to its students. This past weekend, we had a bunch of students visit the school from Malaysia. As we did last year, the students broke up into groups of 6 - 3 Okishoans, 3 Malaysians. They prepared PowerPoint presentations on set themes - this year they researched culture, education, sports/entertainment, and environment. I was responsible for a group, and semi-responsible for another. Both groups did projects on education, though they were slightly different in content. Anyways, I had fully capable students in my group: Asako is probably the top student in her class, as far as English, Koji is one of the most analytical minds I know, and Ran had amazing pronunciation. On the Malaysian side, Marha was the most enthusiastic student I have met in awhile, Izzati was highly intelligent, and Wawi was just a lot of fun.

So Friday, the students got to see Okisho, and did little tea ceremony and calligraphy workshops. Saturday we played sports together and worked on the presentations. Sunday they got to spend quality time with their host families, and then on Monday morning, they did more fun stuff at school. Monday afternoon was a time to put the finishing touches on the projects, and then in the evening we presented them, and ended things with a rousing reception. At the reception, Okisho students did eisa and other presentations, while the Malay students did ethnic dances. And there were lots of speeches. And the food was incredible!

It was interesting, the Malaysian students were all (except one, so I heard) Muslim. So they had special time to pray. The girls wore head coverings, too. But otherwise it was quite normal. When I talked to Marha, she very matter-of-factly said that the first man was Muslim. I thought that was interesting, since Islam didn't start until around 600AD, much later than the first man was created. But I suppose they have their own interpretation of things.

I got some of their e-mail addresses, and hopefully I will be able to share the love of Christ with them. I am under strict orders to not talk about religion at school, so I didn't feel that this weekend was the time to say anything too bold. But I hope to share more with them as time goes on. Pray that seeds would be planted and that I would share with love and boldness. God loves those kids so much...

最近、仕事が忙しくて大変です！しかし、沖尚はさすがに生徒に豊かな経験を提供しています。今回は、マレーシアから２３名生徒が来沖しました。去年と同じように、３人の沖尚生と３人のマレーシア人生徒がグループを組んであるテーマについてプレゼンテーションを取り組みます。今回は４つの主なテーマに分かれていました：教育、娯楽、文化、環境問題。僕が担当したグループは教育について研究してプレゼンをしました。短い間だったのに非常に良いプレゼンテーションを作り、発表することができました。

短期間だったけれども、マレーシアの生徒の暖かみを感じました。こういうことを経験する度に、海外に行って英語を教えてみたいなぁと思います。もちろん沖縄が好きなんだけど、（悪いけど）海外の生徒が積極的に英語を話していると、心が浮き浮きする。本当に口で「英語が好き」と言いながらしゃべらないのではなく、実際に英語を積極的に話している！すごい！マルハ、イザティ、ワウィ、本当に出会って嬉しかったよ！

最後に、このマレーシア人の生徒は一人を除いて全員イスラム教徒だった。イエス様を知らないのは悲しく思っています。これからメール交換の中で、彼らにイエス様の愛を述べ伝えたいと思います。神様、どうか彼らの心に語り掛けてください。私を用いて彼らを引き寄せてください。イエス様の御名によって祈ります。アーメン。

Two months, two times!

Karaoke is back, folks! Last month, Josh and his dearly beloved wanted to sing love songs to each other so I joined them. A little third-wheel action never hurt anyone! I'm just kidding, actually. Most of the evening consisted of Josh and I trying hard to relive our glory by singing U2 and Bon Jovi medleys and even throw in a little Simon & Garfunkel. Anyways, Kristi enjoyed herself, and doesn't Josh look relaxed in this pic? Good times! I'm sure I'll be doing some karaoke again soon... I think this is the year of singing!

No Life?

Not so, just no time to write. Even now I'm in the middle of a hectic work day. I just wanted to take a few minutes to say God is good and that I will update with a few things on the weekend if I get time. With moving and packing and work and extras and no Internet, it's been hard to keep this thing going. But hopefully things will slow down (at least a little!) in a few days here. If not then by the end of the month. Thanks for your prayers, guys!

Trevor

My Japanese Family

My buddy Andrew was “adopted” by Reiko-san (one of the ladies at church) and one day when I was around them I was not-so-subtly saying I wish I had a ‘mom’ in Okinawa. Well, Reiko’s sister happened to be in hearing distance and she said, “I’ll be your mom!” So ever since then (about a month ago) we’ve been joking around about it. She’s a really sweet lady with a great sense of humor. She’s got 4 daughters, the youngest of whom is in this picture. She’s a high schooler (not at my school, unfortunately) and will be 17 very soon. The older daughters come on occasion but not frequently. Pray for their salvation – their names are Mai, Mana and Naomi. Mai is married and has 4 kids. Last Sunday they came to church and I had an absolute blast with her daughter Kanan. What a cutie! Well, I’m just blessed to have “family” here!

神様に素敵な家族が与えられました！アンドリューの“お母さん”の礼子さんの姉は最近、カルバリー宜野湾に来れるようになった。ある日、アンドリューと礼子さんを見て、「いいなぁ、僕もお母さんほしい！」って軽く言った。礼子の姉が、「じゃ～、私はトレバーのお母さんになってあげるよ！」と答えてくれた。そのときから超仲良くなっった。加藤さんに４人の娘がいて、末っ子の藍ちゃんは毎週来てます。上の３人はたまに来てますので、いつか救われると信じています。祈ってくださいね！彼女たちの名前は、真衣ちゃん、マナちゃん、ナオミちゃんです。真衣ちゃんは結婚していて４人の子供がいる。先週の日曜日に来てくれて、僕は娘のカナンちゃんと仲良くなった。神様が私にこんな素敵な家族を与えてくださって感謝ばかりです！