The Missionaries

The Missionaries

In a word, AMAZING. 

 At least the ones in the office where we work.

There are two Assistants to the President, a Recorder and a Commissarian.

Left, of course, is President Baird.  Such a great man in so many ways.
He has his arm around Elder Ellsworth.  Smart, mannerly, kind, always willing to stop whatever he is doing to help someone else.  Elder Ellsworth is an Arizona man.
And next to him is Elder Ito.  Elder Ito has lived Spain, and speaks three languages.  Another very smart missionary, he is also kind, patient, and easy to have around.
Elder Koesashi is on the right.

 I don’t know if all missions have a commissarian. In this mission, he is absolutely required. He has to be native Japanese and he orders supplies, reads all the bills that come in Kanji, and does all the necessary translating. I rely on him a lot. I answer the phones, and about 90% of the time the caller speaks Japanese. I say “just a minute” in Japanese and go get either him, Lee, or one of the other missionaries, all of whom speak Japanese fluently.

Meet Elder Koesashi.  He is genuine, sensitive to others' feelings, and easy to get along with.
He likes to draw pictures of the missionaries and sometimes makes
very funny and creative videos with his camera.

The recorder keeps track of all baptisms, and sends on all the referrals that come in. (I learned about that in the MTC, and it would be my job if I could read kanji. It’s a big job!) Our current recorder is also very good with taking video and photos, and turning them into a touching and interesting DVD that is sent to all the parents of missionaries shortly after they arrive. We were surprised and deeply touched when we went into our first staff meeting with the President and started to watch this DVD. It began with scenes from beautiful places throughout the Nagoya Mission boundaries and scenes of various people and missionaries in the area, but then it suddenly became ours, as we watched ourselves at the Nagoya Airport greeting and hugging President and Sister Baird, the Oldroyds, and all four of the missionaries who were there to greet us. We were touched to learn that it was our very own DVD and that it would be sent out to each of our children. It’s was wonderful

This is Elder Berrett, our recorder, from Northern California.
He is the man behind the camera when it comes to transfers.
The man who stays up all night to get the videos ready for the new missionaries to see.
The man who loves to tease Sister Barney about the great benefits of video games.
(He hasn't convinced me yet.)

These young men who are working most days in the same office with me (Lee’s office is in an adjacent room where he works with the commisarian.) are friendly and kind. They work hard; I never feel that I need to remind them to quit goofing off or to get to work. But sometimes they do some fun and funny things that make me laugh, and make me glad to see they are enjoying their time here. They have asked me numerous times if they can help me in some way. They are mannerly and get very excited if any food comes into the office. They are so cute, so responsible, so impressive. Most aren’t even 21 years old yet, but act like the best of men.

It is an honor to be a part of their lives for a little while.  And it will be fun to follow them--to see them return from their missions and become great at whatever they do.

I love what I'm doing!

Embassy Adventure

About a year and a half ago, my mother passed away.  My father died earlier, so this made it necessary, sadly, to sell the family home of about 70 years.  Finally last week someone made an offer and it was accepted.  Because I am co-executor of the family trust, the home sale required my notarized signature.  Last week, Lee and I had a bit of an adventure because of that "little" need.

Both my brother and the lady at the title company suggested two things with regard to getting these papers signed:  First, that we have a Japanese notary public sign and stamp the documents.  Second, that we just mail them back to the US--no need to pay a lot of extra money to get it there in a few days.  My brother had even been assured by some attorney friends of his that there were notaries in Japan.

Lee and I still weren’t sure if there was such a thing as a Japanese notary.  The Japanese don’t work that way.  What they do, when documents need to show proof of authorization, is have the individual use their hanko, (pronounced hawn-ko), which is a little round stamp that each person or family has registered with the government.  It is used to certify that something is official.  Lee got one for fun, but it isn’t registered and of course, I don’t have one. 

We also felt quite sure that banks don’t provide that service.  And if they did, there would likely be translations services to pay for and then it wouldn't be readable and acceptable in the US.  Therefore, we felt strongly that we needed to go to the US Embassy and have an official US notary public sign the documents legally.

The trouble was that there are embassy buildings in Osaka and Tokyo, both of which are out of our mission. Permission to leave the mission boundaries was quickly granted by President Baird.  

Last Monday morning we left home at 7 a.m., got gas (Gas in Japan right now is about $6.90/gallon) and headed out to Osaka, Japan.  I was feeling positive and excited to go.  I wanted to see what Osaka was like (the third largest city in Japan at 2.7 million) and to see Kyoto, especially the Kinkakuji Koen, with its golden temple and pavilion.  Lee had been there several times when he was a missionary here in the 60’s and he was excited, too.  And it was September 10^th, his 65^th birthday. 

Now I need to talk about driving in Japan.  I know I’ve written about it and talked about it before.  But I have more to say:  First, the roads are insanely narrow and people drive insanely fast.  In addition to that, while it may seem difficult to believe, they don’t have addresses on homes or buildings, and they don’t have road signs on most roads. 

 So we really appreciate our navi, but it certainly isn’t perfect.  Sometimes, it’s just dead wrong and we end up quite a ways from where we asked it to take us.  Sometimes it tells us to turn too soon, or too late, and sometimes just right.  We usually never know for sure until about 20 seconds after our turn. Some roads are just 10-20 meters apart, so we have lots of choices and often guess wrong.  I could say more, but that’s the basics. 

So to give a general impression of how I feel after a long day of driving:  Think white knuckles, headache, upset stomach, clenched teeth, and exhaustion.  Oh, and extreme relief when we get home.  I am certain that whenever we get into the car for a long drive, Heavenly Father assigns us an angel.  And by now, the angels are saying, “Oh no, not them.  They are so hard to protect.”  But so far, they have done it wonderfully, in spite of close calls and mistakes, and I want to thank them with all my heart when (if) we get to heaven.  I tried driving last week.  I drove around our neighborhood a couple of times.  It is nerve wracking and there are so many different things to remember.  It scares me worse to drive than to have Lee drive, and I’m sure his driving is the best option.  Still, I worry.

So we drove off towards Osaka and Navi told us it would be about two and a half hours.  We did well and enjoyed the drive, going through (literally through—Japan is king of tunnels) the mountains around Ise Bay and on down to Osaka.  We followed Navi faithfully. We drove right to where she directed us, looked around, and we had a small park on one side of us, and some homes and small businesses on the other.  Not the US Embassy.  We walked a block or two, and finally Lee asked a man.  He said it was too far to walk, to take the train.  We walked back to the car and asked another guy nearby to help Lee put the address in again.  (You should try kanji.)  This time it took us to the Embassy, which was a few miles away. 

At the US Embassy there are stern looking guards all around the building.  We went to the entrance, had to leave our water bottles, turn off our cell phones, and show our passports.  We were admitted inside, where we turned over all electronic items and got a little plastic number in exchange, then put Lee’s backpack and my purse through the x-ray machine, and walked through one ourselves, like at the airport.  We had to show the paper we printed off that proved we had an appointment and what our business was.  We were told to go to the 4^th floor, where we gave a lady behind a glass window the papers needing notarized and my passport, paid $150 ($50 for each signature we needed) waited for about 15 minutes, and then were called up.  She passed the papers back to me under the glass (like getting tickets at a theatre) and I signed them. She stamped them with both an ink stamp and a press stamp  That was it.  We thanked her and left. 

Lee wanted to get copies of the actual notarized papers, just to be safe, before we left.  We asked if there was a place to get them copied, and they told us we could go to a convenience store just down the street a little.  There we copied each paper, but the impression stamp didn't show up, so we tried color copy on one sheet to see if it caught the shadow, but it didn’t work.   So we took our papers and left.  

Parking was $3.60 and we reprogrammed Navi for the FedEx office in Kyoto, and left.  Kyoto is about 30-40 minutes from Osaka, back toward Nagoya.  It was after lunch time and we were getting hungry, but decided getting the papers sent off to Utah was a greater priority.  We made a wrong turn because Navi didn’t tell us in time, so it took us a while to get to the FedEx building, but we finally made it.  We parked and started getting the papers organized to take in.  But, surprise, we were missing one.  I immediately realized we had left it on the print machine at the convenience store next to the embassy.  (I could have screamed, but I didn’t.)

So back to the US Embassy, and this time, Navi got us there right.  We knew right where to park (and this time it only cost us $2.) We went into the convenience store, looked on the printer and it wasn’t there.  So we went over to the clerks and asked.  They looked through their papers from behind their counter, and no luck.  Then the lady went over to the machine and looked all around it.  My heart was sinking, because the embassy was now closed.  We had already talked about the possibility of having to drive down again the next day, another day missing work, and having to pay for almost everything again.  And then, here she came back with our paper.  She had found it, probably under the printer. I almost cried, I was so relieved.  Oh how I thanked Heavenly Father!  We were so grateful. 

So back in the car, back to Kyoto (that only added an hour and a half to our trip) and back to the FedEx, taking another wrong turn and needing to go further than necessary because of Navi.  We took the "cheap" choice of getting the papers to Utah (other than regular mail which would have gotten the papers there in 8-10 days and after the closing deadline) so we paid $60.  They told us that to overnight it was “very expensive.”  I felt very relieved to have that done.  

We then drove to the other side of Kyoto to go to the beautiful park with the golden pavilion.  We had a nice relaxing walk there and Lee took pictures.  It was a walk down memory lane for Lee, since he visited this park several times on his first mission.

Later we learned a bit more about Japanese notaries:

This is a question by another American who needed real estate documents notarized.  He was asking for help.

QUESTION:  Does anyone know of how to have documents notarized in Japan.
I need to sign some documents that require a stamp from a Notary Public to be returned to the USA.
I have found out the translation for notary public is 公証役場
and that they may be able to provide the services I need.
The cost is quite steep though at 15,000 yen to 17,000 yen ($187.50 to $220) per document.
And I have 3 or more documents.
All they need to do is witness me and my wife sign the document (real estate contract).
They do not need to know the contents necessarily.
In the US its only $2!!! 
Thank you in advance.

The notary system in Japan is different, although all of the "koushou-nin" are recognized as notary publics. I use the US consulate whenever possible, but have visited Japanese notaries as well. Aside from the high cost (there are only 545 notaries public here, mostly an old-boys-club impossible to break into).

There is a procedure whereby you can avoid going to the U.S. embassy or consulate.

(1) Get your signature notarized by a local notary. Some notaries will notarize in English.  [We would have had to find an English speaking notary, since we needed the notary readable in the US.

(2) Then get the notary's stamp certified by the local Houmukyoku (Legal Affairs Bureau).  [It is another stop and paperwork]

(3) Then have the Houmukyoku certification again certified by means of an ''apostille'' from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. You have to apply by mail, which would take more time than we had.

Lee and I were accustomed to free or nearly free notary public services, so spending over $300 to get their signatures seemed steep--until we read what could have happened if we had gone "Japanese."  We are grateful for the services of the US Embassy.

Beauty shop names:  Prince Flap, Good Sense and Fine Technique, and Vanity Be Mine.

All the Latest

I have been remiss.  I have gotten behind.  I have been busy.  I have not kept up with my blog.  I AM sorry.

So here's a little attempt to share a few of the things that have been happening.

We made it through another set of transfers.  We are getting better and better at this.

We had company from America.  Jesselah McGrath, not family but like family, and one of our dear young single adults from Lee's bishop days, was able to come to Japan.  We loved having her here and it helped us get out and do some really fun things.  We squeezed a lot of things in on Preparation Days and still were able to get our work done.  Our dear friend, Sister Kondo, even took Jesselah to Kiso Valley for one big day.

We had sushi, of course.

We took Jesselah to the monkey park, along with Hailey Mowen, who we home teach.  They loved it and we loved being there again.

We have learned that there is a hierarchy among monkeys.  May I introduce you to the boss.    He was fascinating to watch.  One time a monkey was in his pathway, and he picked him up by the ear with his teeth and flung him out of the way.  When other monkeys wanted to go past him, they waited until they felt it was safe, then ran a wide path around this guy as fast as they could go, to make sure they didn't bother him.  

Ahh, life is good when you are a kid.

These little guys were so fun to watch.  They played and fought and wrestled and just had a great time together.

Jesselah and some little friends.

We know (from experience) that if you establish eye contact with the mature monkeys, they don't like it.
They will snarl and sometimes even reach out with their arms as if to attack.  If you are very close when this
happens, it can be really scary.  But apparently the babies aren't quite so picky.  Hailey and this little
guy are getting to know each other.

Finally, he just reached out and took hold of her sleeve.  But a few minutes later,
one of the bigger monkeys did the same thing.  She wisely moved away and he let go.

We stopped to see Zengo-ji (ji is the word for temple) in Matsumoto.  It is on several acres.    It was just closing as we arrived, but there were still quite a few people.  We wanted to look more closely inside, so may go back again.  It was very interesting.  It looks like it is very old, and it is a massive building.

The trees are very old and held up in many places by poles.
But every tree has such character.  They are beautiful.

These statues represent  various attributes and virtues.  

This is just one of the shrines on the large site.

We couldn't resist getting a picture here, since I grew up on a dairy farm.
We think this may have been some kind of monument.
Maybe it is dedicated to all cows, or to milk.  We couldn't tell.

There were memorials and shrines dedicated to everything imaginable, and if you don't believe me,
check out this sign next to one of the monuments.

There were numerous shops around the temple area with everything you could
possibly want to buy.  Shopping displays in Japan are so colorful.
Look closely.  You'll find Jesselah, and see that they take Visa and Master Card.

We took Jesselah to Shirakawa, a beautiful "city from the past" filled with the most beautiful thatched roof homes and buildings.  More coming on that.

And we side-tripped to a 1-kilo fairly steep hike to see 13 waterfalls. More coming.

We also went to Toyota Museum.  More coming.

We had other plans, but there just wasn't enough time.

We attended a couples conference with President and Sister Baird.  Highly spiritual and motivating, wonderful conversation (I crave all of the above!), great people to rub shoulders with, and the thrill of watching "Wicked," all in Japanese.  Delightful and amazing.  I'd go again in a heartbeat.  Costuming was stunning, breathtaking, out of this world.

The Matsuhashi's.  They are the only other couple serving in the mission.
They have done wonders in the ward they were assigned to,
including holding a weekly dance class and starting a choir.
We love being with them.  Japanese people are so kind and gracious,
and the Matsuhashi's are no exception.

And this is President and Sister Baird.  How we love and appreciate them!
What an honor it is for us to know them.  They have been so very good to us,
a true blessing in our lives, a constant source of inspiration.

Stay tuned for more.

And here are a few more fun beauty shop names:  Psyche Beauty News, Pola the Beauty, and my favorite of these three:  Cat and Perma.  Do you think maybe they meant Cut and Perm?

Quiet Rescue

As I work on the mission blog, I get to share some stories written by missionaries.  Sister Baird asks missionaries as they are leaving to share stories that are special to them, about their missions or their lives.
Here is one story that touched me, and it was written anonymously.  I thought is would be OK to share.

She saved my life, not in an amazing moment of rescue, but by slow teaching and love.  I avoided a path that I believe would have resulted in death.  I met Jane when I was 16.  I couldn’t find a job so I told the women in Relief Society I would do odd jobs for them.  She heard that and hired me.  She had a house cleaning company and we went around together, just the two of us.

She had had a pretty hard life because of the decisions she had made as a teenager.  I saw in her one of my possible future selves.  I was 16 and I just wanted to be different from my three goody-two-shoes older siblings.  I was willing to do whatever that took.  But she showed me what was down that road.  I started to see the consequences of my actions before I made decisions.  I saw that this path would end with drugs, disease and even death.  Those who try to toe the line between good and evil don’t realize that the line is moving—you just don’t notice as darkness deepens and then you are entrapped and it’s too late.  Jane told me all about it, supported me, talked me through decisions and helped me see what would make me happy, the real kind of happy.

She asked me why I wanted to serve a mission.  I said, “Because my patriarchal blessing says so.”  She said, “That’s not a reason.”  So I thought about it and realized that a mission is not about me.  It’s about God and serving others.

Jane has since then returned to some of her old problems.  I once told God that at the judgment bar I would stand between Him and her.  That she was good.  He could punish me in her stead.  I would suffer for her.  That is when I understood a small fraction of the Atonement and Jesus Christ’s love for us.  She made me who I am in many ways and it is definitely thanks to her that I am here on a mission today.

Goin' Fishin'

Have any of you read the story book, Ping, to your children or grandchildren?  Check it out of the library and read it to them.  It's a fun book about cormorant fishing.

Last Friday night, I was very excited to go see, in real life, what I had read to my children and grandchildren dozens of times.

Here's our group, right after viewing the fishing.  Sister Baird is in the center of the front three.
You can easily pick out the missionaries, Elder Ito and Elder Ellsworth.
In front of Elder Ellsworth is Megumi; her daughter is left of Sister Baird.  They are dear friends.
There are a couple of oldies with white hair and the rest of the group
is pretty well Baird Family, visiting from Utah.

Cormorant fishing is a traditional fishing method in which fishermen use trained cormorants to fish in rivers. Historically, cormorant fishing has taken place in Japan and China from around 960 AD. and recorded from other places throughout the world.

 Though cormorant fishing once was a successful industry, its primary use today is to serve the tourism industry.

The man with the bird has just had him empty his gullet and is putting him in a basket.
Fishing has ended for the night.

I think this little tourism thing is pretty lucrative.  Sister Baird insisted on paying for us to go, so we aren't sure how much it cost. (Thank you, Sister Baird!) But we are guessing it wasn't cheap because very little in Japan is.  There were 8 boats lined up at the shoreline of the river.  We walked on to the boat and, of course, removed our shoes.  Then we walked along a small aisle between the outer edge of the long, thin boat and a low table in the middle.  We kneeled, then sat with our legs under the table, facing the people across from us.  Each boat could handle 40 people, so in that one trip, there were about 320 people who went to watch the cormorants.  The boat had a roof above us, from which they hung lanterns (and from which we noticed several fairly healthy-looking black spiders playing like they were lanterns.


Our boat pushed off and was taken down the river about 400 yards to get into position to view the fishing.  A man standing on each end of the boat had a long pole, and they pushed us along in the shallow river.  

Soon, along came the fishing boats, also long and narrow.  There were four men in each boat, and there was a fire burning in a basket on a long pole in the front of each boat.  They use a fire to attract the fish and hit the sides of the boat to keep the birds active. The man in the front is fairly close to the fire basket, so he wears a fireproof hat and bamboo skirt.

Because cormorant fishing is a daily activity for nearly five months of the year, the fishing masters begin each day by selecting ten to twelve healthy cormorants for the evening’s activities. When the birds are selected and the boats are prepared, the six fishing masters draw ropes to determine the order in which they will fish.

When the cormorants catch the fish, they are brought back to the boat using ropes attached to their bodies. When they are back in the boat, the fishing masters slightly squeeze the birds' throat, and they open their mouth to let the fish, still alive, fall into a basket.  Each bird can hold up to six fish in its throat. The birds are prevented from swallowing the fish because of a ring tied around their necks. The cormorants, however, are still able to swallow smaller fish. Though the ropes are strong, the fishing masters are able to quickly break them if a bird’s rope gets caught beneath rocks, ensuring the bird will not drown.

This can sound like cruelty to animals, this tying a rope around the birds and putting a ring around their necks.  Someone told me that once the birds are caught to train and use for fishing, they are treated like household pets.  They are well-fed and live for about 15-20 years as they work for the boatmen.  That same cormorant would live about 5 years in the wild.

PS:  I keep forgetting to add beauty shop names.  Here are three more:  Brunt Cut, Love Buzz, and Jank Hair.

Kyoko

I have been waiting for President Baird to finish writing this story and for permission to share it.  It is in the mission blog now, and I am sharing it here.  It is such a sweet story, and gives a feel for how missionary work goes.  I love this story!

Kyoko Yaguchi Conversion Story

Written by President Scott O. Baird

The conversion story of Kyoko Yaguchi is inspiring and instructive. Kyoko’s story helps missionaries to develop the faith to find by:

1. Illustrating the power of multiple finding methods

2. Demonstrating ways the Lord leads people to the missionaries and

3. Proving that no effort is wasted.

By considering sweet Kyoko and her experience, missionaries can learn from and duplicate a marvelous experience that will help to bring about the prophetic promises regarding missionary work in Japan.

Kyoko in Kimono

In early 2012, Kyoko Yaguchi was 14 years old. She was schooled in the art of traditional Japanese dance. Traditional dance requires discipline and grace and Kyoko developed both. At a first introduction Kyoko appears to be much older than her 14 years. Her grace and composure project the image of an older and more mature young woman.

Sister Baird and I joined the missionaries in a lesson with Kyoko when a concern arose which threatened her baptismal date. Members wondered if our missionaries might be pressuring Kyoko to receive baptism and suspected that her parents might also feel the same way. A member called me to express the concern. I asked a few questions and learned that Kyoko had attended church 7 or 8 times. Her mother regularly attended with her and her father acted as chaperone to each lesson.

I asked the parents and the member to join us in the lesson. We started the lesson by explaining that baptism was the mechanism by which we enter God’s Kingdom. Because it is God’s Kingdom the standards for entry are high. We taught that liking the missionaries and wanting to please them was not sufficient reason to be baptized. We explained that God had outlined the standards for receiving baptism in the Doctrine and Covenants section 20 verse 37. We opened our scriptures together and read, stopping at the end of each phrase and asking someone to share their understanding of the phrase. We first read “all those who humble themselves before God”. I asked Kyoko’s mom what she thought that standard meant. She gave a thoughtful and insightful answer.

We moved to the next phrase, “…and desire to be baptized.” This time I asked Kyoko directly. “Do you desire to be baptized?”

She gave a direct answer, “Yes.”

“Will you please explain to me why you desire to be baptized?” Her answer was simple but clear. Both her mother and the member were satisfied from her answer that Kyoko was not being pressured but that she was making a well considered choice based on her budding faith. We continued by reading and discussing each phrase. Many of our questions were directed to Kyoko’s mother; occasionally we sought a response from either Kyoko or the member. In conclusion we spoke about the gift of the Holy Ghost and read together John 14:26 and talked about the spirit being able to teach us all things and being able to recall all things to our memory. We then asked Kyoko, “You are scheduled to receive baptism on March 3. Do you still want to be baptized on that day or would you prefer to wait?”

“I would like to be baptized on March 3.”

“Mother, how do you feel about that?” I asked.

“I don’t want to postpone my daughter’s baptism. Her father and I support her in this choice and will do all we can to help her to honor the choice she makes today.”

“Member, how do you feel about Kyoko’s desire to be baptized on her appointed day?”

With tears of emotion, having been moved by the spirit, the member agreed that postponing her baptism would serve no useful purpose.

With everyone united in opinion we shifted our attention. I spoke to Kyoko’s mother. “Sister Yaguchi, you say that you and your husband support Kyoko in her choice. I have two requests for you and the family, is that okay?”

“Of course.”

“It would be a great support to Kyoko if all the family could be present for her baptism and later, her confirmation. Will you all join us on those days?”

“Of course!”

“Second, after her baptism, the missionaries will teach Kyoko all the lessons over again from the beginning. It would be of great help to Kyoko if her family participated in those lessons and had a clear understanding of the things being taught. Will you do that?”

“Of course.”

These invitations are simply following the suggestions in Preach My Gospel p. 167. Bullet point number three suggests teaching recent converts and asking them to introduce other people you can teach. The final bullet point recommends inviting people to baptismal services. Both of these suggestions were useful with Kyoko’s family. When Sister Baird and I went to Kyoko’s baptism there were her parents seated near the front of the chapel. We had a wonderful visit with them and invited them to our home for a family home evening. They gratefully accepted. Again, when she was confirmed, her parents and her older sister were in attendance and were warmly welcomed by the members.

Kyoko’s baptism

Elder Andersen and Elder Koesashi

Kyoko and her family participating in Family Home Evening.

Standing: Sister and President Baird, Sister and Brother Allen

Seated: Elder Rust, Elder Koesashi, Michiko, Shoko, Kyoko, and Ritsuo Yaguchi.

If the story of Kyoko’s conversion ended there it would be a wonderful story, but that is not the end. Our very wise missionaries continued to follow the guidance on pages 167 and 172 of Preach My Gospel. Page 167 suggests asking for referrals. Page 172 recommends an activity to help members to make a list of names. The missionaries pressed forward. They are trustworthy missionaries who know their purpose and who “act in the office in which they are appointed.” They helped Kyoko make a list of names.

One name on Kyoko’s list was one of her friends, a young man in her school class, Shotaro Furukawa. Kyoko invited Shotaro to a lesson with the missionaries; he accepted. When the missionaries got to the end of the first lesson, they did exactly as they are taught and they invited Shotaro to be baptized. He accepted. 

The missionaries knew there was still a permission barrier looming so they studied a handout they had received in specialized training on how to get permission. They scheduled an appointment with Shotaro’s mother, a single parent raising two children, Shotaro, age 15, and his younger sister age 9. When they met her, they praised Shotaro’s mother for being such a great parent, pointing to Shotaro and his desire for good things as evidence. They shared some of the teachings of the church, focusing on For the Strength of Youth as an example of things they had been teaching her son. They explained to her that her son believed the things the missionaries taught and that he wanted join the church. They explained that joining the church meant being baptized. They then asked Shotaro to share with his mother his own feelings about the things he had been taught and his desire to be baptized.  At the conclusion, Shotaro’s mother said she simply could not refuse her son permission to be part of so great an organization and she signed the baptismal record that the Elders had prepared. Shotaro Furukawa was baptized 22 April.

 Shotaro’s baptism

Shotaro with Elder Koesashi and Elder Rust

Again, a great end to the Kyoko story??? Not yet.

The missionaries, sensing an opportunity asked Shotaro’s mother, Sister Furukawa, if she would like to see for herself some of the things the church taught. They explained that the following Sunday would be the church’s General Conference, that prophets of God would speak there. They invited her to attend. She came, along with Shotaro’s younger sister.

Sister  Misako Furukawa and Shotaro’s younger sister, Aoi.

After the conference the missionaries asked Sister Furukawa how she felt. She confessed that she had been touched by the talks and the focus on families. She concluded, “I may want to join this church myself!” Sister Furukawa not only attended Shotaro’s baptism but she spoke from the pulpit—providing the introduction of her son to the congregation. She and her daughter became investigators and are preparing to be baptized on 2 June.

Furukawa family at Shotaro’s baptism with

Elders Koesashi and Rust

Because of her peaceful and composed nature, a shy 14 year old Kyoko was able to win permission to be baptized for herself. She influenced her father, mother and older sister to become investigators. One of her friends became and investigator and has already received baptism. That friend’s mother and younger sister also became investigators and will soon receive baptism.

No one connected with this story thinks it is over. The progress of Kyoko’s parents is slow but it is steady. There are yet other friends to reach out to and an ever widening circle of influence and people to contact.

So if we don’t know the end of the story yet, at least we know how it started. A young girl interested in English class connects with the missionaries and finds something far more than she ever dreamed. In a great story about faithful missionaries and the hand of the Lord, even the beginning of the story has a surprising twist. That first young girl interested in English class was Kyoko’s grandmother. Thirty years ago Kyoko’s grandmother wanted to study English and met the missionaries. She didn’t join the church but thirty years later when her granddaughter was interested in English, the Grandmother shared her own experience and told Kyoko to find the missionaries and they would teach her English.

The first section of chapter 9 of Preach My Gospel is entitled Developing the Faith to Find. The first paragraph promises missionaries that God will lead them to people who are preparing to receive the Gospel or he will lead such people to the missionaries. Kyoko’s story demonstrates how the Lord will lead people to the missionaries including using English class and relationships with existing and new members. As missionaries follow and become more skilled in multiple patterns of finding outlined in Preach My Gospel, they will be able to exercise a greater measure of faith in the Lord’s promise.

The final section of Chapter 9 is No Effort is Wasted. One sentence stands out, “Even when people do not accept the opportunity to learn the gospel, your service and words are evidence of God’s love for them and may plant seeds that future missionaries and members of the Church will harvest.”

I think of those two missionaries of 30 years ago whose names I do not know. 

They must have worked hard.

They must have had faith.

They must have been tried. They may have questioned the value of their effort. There may have been days that they felt like they were wasting their time here. There were probably days they thought no one would hear or accept them. Perhaps one or more missionaries wrote in their journal about a middle-aged woman they hoped would become an investigator who told them she had no interest in religion, she only had interest in English class. On that day, perhaps, they thought they had failed. Little did they know that they were planting a seed that would grow into a great miracle 30 years later.

Elder Ringwood promised our missionaries, “Two missionaries who follow the spirit and give everything they have all day every day will be blessed with a miracle every day of their missions even if they don’t see it personally.” The story of Kyoko and her conversion helps missionaries in the Japan Nagoya Mission to understand and believe in those words. It helps them to develop the faith to find. It gives them peace that their efforts will bear fruit—even when they do not see it.

I Love Flowers

On our Kiso River Valley tour, there were a few other things I don't want to forget.

First, the flora and fauna.  I love flowers.

Lee enjoyed seeing the first ever electric generation plant in Japan, still up and running. 

And this shows the pin stocks (pipes that deliver high pressure water to the turbines, to help generate electricity).  We are sharing this in honor of EPIS.  We love all things power generation.

And I must comment on the brooms.  Here they are hanging from entrances of 400-year old homes, but these brooms are everywhere else in modern-day Japan.  I see them on trucks of people who do yard work.    I see people using then in their yards and on their walks.  I see them in stores, for sale.  They must be effective, but it's hard for me to imagine they can be as good as the brooms we have in the US.  Aren't they cute?

Lee also was looking for, and found, the oldest all wooden bridge in Japan, spanning over the Kiso River.

And we enjoyed not only the beauty, but the coolness of several waterfalls.

And I almost forgot a few names of beauty shops:  Hair Make Equipe, Samsom & Delilah Hair (Now that gives one food for thought!), and Pigtail.  Love these names!