Interlude: Snow!!!

And so, comes winter in Japan.

Just yesterday it was a terribly rainy day in Gifu city. It was moist but not really that cold, yet that night the howls of the wind could be heard and then.... I woke up, to this:

WHOAS! Crazy.... so much snow!!! Then as the freak late person I am - trying to make it for the train to service - I decide to ride my bike in the snow!!! HAHAHAH...

My tips on riding the bike through the snow:
- like cars, please use previous tread marks, prevents getting too much snow stuck in your tires...
- don't break when going for turns - you'll wipeout
- actually don't break at all, you'll wobble your way to a stop
- most importantly, its actually not a good idea to ride your bike...

The high winds and heavy snowfall caused me to look like a frosty by the time I made it to the station... really only shaving 4 mins than 7 mins off my walk resulting in me missing my train anyways... boo hoo.

Least to say, it was quite the experience...

Speaking of experience... I've had some people mention that they really don't know what’s going on in my life, thus, when we try to talk they really have nothing to say to me... I don't know, is that true? Do you feel this way?

How can I tell you more about my experiences? Everyday in Japan is a new experience for me. The two things I find constant are that either I really have nothing happening that day, or I have too much!

There are days I'm completely saturated with new experiences that my body just kinda shutdown and goes on automatic mode... It’s a defense mechanism...

I find that the best way for me to bring up anything I really learned through this time... just talk to me... about anything... I'll drag my experience into the conversation. After all, I'm not good at talking about silly things for too long... well maybe that’s a lie... hahah I've been told I'm no good at flirting either (although that was in high school... but since I haven't 'practiced' this spoken form I doubt there's been any improvement...) I talk about facts, I talk seriously, I talk in incoherent broken-ness... I love talking about God. That is why, I love home - I love the people at home because I can just let my mouth move and talk about facts, seriously, broken and about God... and silly things too.. hahah....

It’s so difficult to speak here in Japan for me... It’s not just the language barrier it’s the people I'm among... However, God has blessed me with the chance to meet so many people to broaden my horizons about the types of people in this world. As a result I've become much more open minded, yet standing strong in my own faith. While I'm at a standstill now at serving God, I hope that all these experiences will lead me to serve him better.

My current spiritual struggle - Not being afraid to listen to what God has planned for me...
Maybe some of you know, I've developed a healthy, and perhaps unhealthy fear of God for the past year or so. It was a powerful moment when God allowed my cousin to pass away. Suddenly all the passages in the bible I've ever heard or read about fearing the Lord and his awesome power... I've reached a new level of understanding that. Part of the reason why I chose to come here was not only to see what God has planned for me but also to push myself into my fears - Living away from home for the first time, facing any failures and learning to except them without reassurance from others, knowing I can do absolutely nothing in my power but pray for the ones I love, going to a place I've never been, living on my own, loosing time with the ones I love, facing people from a totally different spectrum, safety fears like natural disasters and being female... - just some of the things that either have crossed my mind when deciding to be here in Japan, or have developed along the way... Bottom line... learning to trust in Him in all ways... I really believe when I can trust Him and fear Him properly I will be able to make a decision for when I return to Vancouver, I guess my next step in life.

Well, thanks for joining me in Crystal's stream of consciousness, till next time perhaps? :)

Man always able to rant, never able to write a decent paper.... darn.