JUST PARK ANIMALS

Call me crazy. But I tell you, SOMEONE who reads blogs is telling the critters at the park about the posts!

Because I wrote about the animals in Okinawa coming out where it was warmer, and not to be outdone, when I went back to the park up here in Iwatsuki, altho' it's still Feb., in one day I was met with spot-billed mallards, greenhead mallards, egrets, great blue herons, kawasemi, turtles, carp, pigeon, wagtail, thrush, and the usual crow and sparrow.

Then I wrote about the Cormorant, and from the neighboring river, not only did the cormorant come to the park, and not only did he bring a companion, but as I wrote in my post, he brought 2!

Yesterday, I posted a drawing made 2 years ago, made from imagination. I found another one made of the birds at the park, but it included the Starling. Altho' I thought about posting it, I said to myself I haven't seen Starlings here for months now (it is an autumn bird), so maybe I shouldn't post it...but when I walked into the park this afternoon, guess what bird first met my eye? The Starling!

"Starlings don't wink, do they?" I e-mailed my sister. It felt like this one did!

Today, for reasons I won't go into, I didn't take my memo or drawing pens with me. But it seems the birds were all smiling and trying to keep me guessing. Egrets, kawasemis, herons, crows, wagtails, thrushes were all out, joined by turtles and carp.

"What? You think we can understand human words or something?" they seemed to say; "We're just park animals!"

Huh? Baby in Basket?

I just remembered a picture drawn 2 years ago and felt a need to post it.

It was of an Egyptian steer finding a basket floating in the reeds of the Nile. A frog has leaped up on its forehead, surprised at the gurgling coming from inside. A locust looks on as the basket passes by, and a fly and flea peer down at the baby's face in the floating bassinet.

Moses. Drawn out of the waters. The offspring of these animals will hear of him...and 80 years later help lead his people into freedom. I imagine they never guessed, by looking at that little baby in that basket in the water, what God was planning.

We can't tell what God is going to do by what it looks like at first. Maybe we should just be faithful in whatever it is we're supposed to do, no matter how humble it looks.

SEIKO & SIX COUSINS

I remember crying when I sat in the worship service of Gushikawa Baptist Church many years ago. My Aunt Yoshi was sitting in the back with her unsaved husband Seiko sitting next to her. I was glad he'd agreed to come, but when the song chosen had to do about how we'd all be meeting One Day in Heaven...and I knew Uncle Seiko would not be there...well, I just could not go on singing. I found myself crying.

It was a few years later, my stepmother Kiyo led Seiko to Christ! When we sang of Heaven later, I knew my crying had changed to tears of joy.

101 years old. That's how old he is now. Oh--Seiko's the one who went swimming with Daddy in the river when Daddy came to Okinawa for 2 of his grade school years, the only blood relative who converted to Christianity as a result of Daddy's missionary work while he was alive.

During our time together in Okinawa last month, my sisters and I went to Uncle Seiko's house and had a meal with him and his 3 children--in other words, 6 cousins sat around plates of sushi, laughing about old photos. We'd gone to Sunday School and Summer Camps together.

Their mother, Yoshi, of this family, found freedom from the bondage to demon ancestors and was a vibrant believer. She is now with the Savior she fervently adored. The children: Masako, Morii, and Chieko, have yet to follow the faith they have seen in their parents. How we long to see the day we can say everyone in this picture will show up that Day in Glory too!

Not Too Cold for the Cormorant

Altho' it is the coldest time of the year up here in Saitama, down in Okinawa, it was warm, and the animals were out. Well, others I was with may not have seen them, but they weren't looking. I saw the egret, mallard, kawasemi, hakusekirei, pigeon, turtles, crabs, of course butterfly, crow, and sparrow. And at one pond, I saw milling around a lone egret were a group of cormorants!

I still remember the ones that came to the park at Iwatsuki from a river nearby.

Birds are much smarter than people give them credit for. At least one cormorant is smarter than many people realize. Over time, I got to be friends with it, and when I wrote a story about a cormorant, he liked it so much, he first brought another friend to hear it, and I couldn't believe it when he actually came back another day with two friends too! The below is the story. And here is its Japanese explanation.

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KOREE THE CORMORANT

  A poor man finds a seriously injured cormorant, carries it home, and nurses its wounds; caring for it inside the home, treating it as a family member.

  “I will call you ‘Koree the Cormorant’;” says the man; “live, Koree.” And he does. The bird of course attaches itself to the family and wants to repay the kindness shown it.

When the father goes fishing, the bird dives for fish, refusing to swallow larger catch—he has seen his own parent doing this—eating only the smaller ones. At first, the father doesn’t know why the cormorant keeps coming up to the side of the boat and calling to him to pull fish out of his throat. Then he realizes the bird is bringing him the large ones!

At the end of the day, he goes home, showing the family the plentiful catch. “And you will have a good meal tonight,” he tells them, patting the bird on the head; “Our newest family member has made certain of that.” The son, altho’ weak-minded, looks at the catch and understands. He turns his eyes on Koree and hugs him simply, gratefully, warmly.

Everyone goes to sleep that night, comfortable and happy with stomachs full of the fish the bird brought. And…does it need to be said? The son always asks to sleep facing Koree. They are like brothers. Nothing could make his parents happier.

To help the family living, the boy cleans the rich tax collector’s lake. Altho’ at first he doesn’t want to go, the family is told they can pay less taxes if the son will work for him, so he does.

Even then, the family finds it difficult to make ends meet. One day when the family is in dire straits, the father goes out on the lake from early in the morning with the cormorant, asking for many large fish; “They are very necessary;” he almost begs, “can you work extra hard for this poor fisherman today?” Man and bird come home late that night with 10 times the usual amount.

With such a large catch, the man is able to get a good amount at the market and pay off his taxes. The family makes many such payments with “10 times catch” days. The tax collector can’t figure out how such a poor man can pay so much.

One day, the tax collector decides to talk to the son cleaning the lake—maybe he will tell him! It doesn’t take very long. The son, of pure thought as he is of large heart, has no idea what the tax collector might be thinking. It is the cormorant, he tells him, who catches the many fish sold at the market, and the money pays the taxes.

Well, the tax collector goes to the landlord right away, telling him to declare a “no pets allowed” regulation. Then, saying since he has a lake where a cormorant can swim, he can keep it himself, and takes the cormorant away. (Of course, he is thinking he can make the bird fish for himself; sell the fish at the market; and get even richer.

Well, when the cormorant is parted from his family, he decides to eat all the large fish in the tax collector’s lake! (He leaves the small fish, of no value) The tax collector, who sees what is happening, is beside himself, while the poor man’s son watches and laughes with glee.

He can’t do his work right, he is too busy watching Koree dive and eat the big fish. Even when the tax collector walks up next to him, the boy won’t stop cheering for Koree.

“Go! Koree! Get ‘Em! That’s it!” even when the rich man slaps him on top of the head, he can’t take his eyes off his brother bird. All the fish in the lake are panicking now, some leaping out of the water. The tax collector can’t hide the dismay from his eyes.

“T-Take your cormorant back!” the tax collector screams and storms off the bamboo landing.

“Really? Koree! Come!” And the cormorant obediently follows him home, to the poor man’s house, of course. And once at that lake, he doesn’t touch the larger fish, only the little ones.

With Koree back, the family is able to have full stomachs at mealtimes, can pay their taxes, and the boy has a brother to face when sleeping again. Nothing could make his parents happier.

END

The below translation-explanation is very summarized and a little different, but...

カワウのコーリ

むかし、中国。貧しい漁師が浜辺でケガをしているカワウを見つけて家で息子と一緒に手当てしました。恩返しとして、鳥は鵜飼をすることにしたため、その日から貧しい親子は毎晩おなかいっぱいで寝ることができました。コーリと名付けられた鳥は息子と兄弟のように仲良くなりました。

   

ある日、近くに役人が引っ越して来て、自分も鵜飼をしようとカワウを取り上げてしまいます。鳥は鵜飼をせず、魚を食べてしまうので、役人はたまらず、コーリを前の家に帰します。

 

ということで、あの親子はまた、満腹で寝ることができて、コーリ兄弟もまた、一緒になりました。

おしまい

INSTEAD OF FROGS

I told you Nov. 30, 2022 how I viewed animals via a TV wildlife show. That time, I sketched a picture of a bat flying over the swamp. 

My sister hadn't forgotten my love for critters in the wild and recorded things for me to see on this visit too. Only this time, it wasn't bats. It was a documentary about hordes of little frogs' precarious pilgrimage to their final mountaintop home lake. Of course, many of them never make it. 

Is it really possible that the Potentate of the Universe plasters His Eye on every single one of His own little creatures and sees to it that they reach their eternal Havens of Rest? And as far as being as undeserving little frogs, well, we're so ugly and deceitful and selfish and...but our Everlasting Father stays with us anyway.

Instead of drawings of frogs, I thot readers might be more interested in animals featured on another week: a hawk-like bird of prey called the "Tombi" being squawked at by some mallards.

Altho' this is being blogged Feb. 19, 2023; and I got back to Iwatsuki yesterday, this drawing was made while viewing the screen down in Okinawa last week. I'll be seeing the mallards in real life in a few days!

SISTERS

As part of our time together in Okinawa, my sister Janice used some points to treat Joyce and me to an overnight stay at the ANA Intercontinental Hotel.

The actual treat began before even approaching the entrance lobby, as we picnicked on the grass near the front beach. A friendly little butterfly welcomed us, doing its best to keep its pretty wings open for us even when landing altho' they usually fold them, knowing humans usually enjoy seeing their pretty colors on the wings.

Our room was up on the 7th floor of the resort, where we were able to relax, reminisce, pray together, and enjoy the beautiful Okinawa scenery as evidence of how our loving Father would continue to bless us, His own.

Here is a drawing of the day God gave us. That's Janice reading from a book of memoirs; Joyce holding a laptop on her tummy while listening to her; and yours truly standing in front of the blinds--there's a story behind that.

WHOSE IS THIS?

That question was asked several times in the Old Testament.

When Boaz saw Ruth in his fields, his first reaction wasn't: "Get that gaudy-looking foreigner off my property--everyone knows Moabites are only trouble!"

No; he'd heard of all Ruth had done, the discrimination she'd risked for Naomi and was impressed with her unselfishness and industriousness. 

He asked the reapers, "Whose damsel is this?" (Ruth 2:5)

King Saul saw the shepherd David unable to bear a giant's taunts of his God...and then that boy gallantly did away with that pagan warrior!

He found himself wondering "whose son the stripling was" (Sam. 17:56) This was no average young man before his eyes.

Do we live in such a way people around us ask right away whose we are?

Unexpected Blessings Dotting the Islands

On Sunday, we sang "Little Village Church" (Little Brown Church in the Wildwood) in Japanese, remembering God's raising of the first few churches in Okinawa. Brian was then asked to share with the Gushikawa Baptist Church believers--many of them finding themselves teary-eyed listening to Sherri's glowing testimony of their son.

An unexpected visitor that week was Rumiko, a second cousin who came when she heard my sisters and the Waala siblings (she knew us from high school) were coming. During our fellowship session afterwards, she shared her testimony too.

When it was discovered I'd never been to the outer islands, Brian and Sherri invited me to come along; I jumped at the chance. Here are a few drawings from those few days. When we got off a ferry at a small island called Taketomi, we had to request a shuttle bus. The elderly driver responding to the call had known Missionary Russel Waala, and his heart leaped when he heard the name; he took us to his family lodging and his friend's eatery; drove us to a believer's grave; took care of all transportation while we were on the island. Ohama-san's two sisters are believers, but he still hasn't found Christ. Please pray He find Jesus to be His Big Brother soon.

Brian and Sherri let me stay with them for 2 more days on the island of Ishigaki. We went to a fish shop and immediately recognized family members of people Brian had grown up with. The person shown speaking to Brian on cellphone in yesterday's post took us out to eat then treated us to a glass-bottom boat on which we were flabbergasted to see a deep-sea turtle on the reef altho' it was low tide. Thank You, Father! 

Would a vestige of the old house still be there, we wondered, and went to the place where Brian's first home used to be. The person who seemed to be a gardener outside turned out to be a person who loved and had bought the property from his dad when asked to keep it going. That night, we had dinner with a friend of mine, not realizing God's number one reason for having us meet was the absolute encouragement her husband would be. In some ways, he and Brian acted as bright and free as young boys.

That night, we talked of how sometimes God blesses us but treats us like trained dogs who have potato chips placed on their noses. The master no doubt gives treats, but the dogs don't dare gobble them up until given the ok. All these ways God worked the past few days, we mused, are like yummy potato chips which we are to ponder in our hearts as Mary did until He gives the ok to fully enjoy them. I wonder when and how that will come.

MORE WITH BRIAN

Wow. Brian's older sister Sharon came to Okinawa too, and his younger sister Brenda joined in one night for an online pow wow--nothing like reminiscing like this. One night that week, Sharon decided to treat all of us to a meal out, where we cooked our own thin slivers of meat on a small grill on the table. It's called "Yakiniku", and I noticed a good deal of the customers of that Japanese-style meal restaurant were foreigners!

It wasn't just food and laughs; as MK's, we prayed together for another MK mother (whose parents are missionaries in Japan), one has been afflicted with cancer. We sang and videotaped "Jesus Loves Me" in both English and Japanese in harmony and sent it to her, hoping she would be encouraged to know our Loving Big Brother is with us in every single moment of our suffering.

Brian and his wife Sherri had borne testimony to the comfort of that Big Brother. They took the ashes of their deceased son Aaron to the church tomb the next day. Aaron never used the word "die" when referring to his own demise but said he would "fly to heaven." So the telecommunications tower that stood in the background, Brian and Sherri must've mused, only pointed to Aaron's new abode.

Oh--the pillar-like thing in the drawing? That evening, to celebrate Sherri's birthday, Brian took everyone to a nearby restaurant, and now the waiter bringing out dishes is a robot. At least it never spills the food or gets the orders mixed up.

Special Time with "my brother"

I always wanted a brother, and Brian Waala, child of missionaries Russel and Lois, my parents' co-workers, was the closest I ever had to a brother growing up. Last week, he and his wife Sherri, who are visiting Okinawa after over 30 years, invited me along on their overnight trip to the northernmost tip of the island. 

After getting back, I made a sketch of them posing at Hedo Point (where they took the ashes of their oldest deceased son). A black monarch butterfly graced the special time too, so that was included in the drawing, along with the Yambaru Kuina bird we saw often as well as the crab Sherri found on our walk on the beach.

We did notice the large sign above the receptionist counter read "Haisai," the familiar Okinawan greeting, so that too was drawn into the memorial sketch as well as the billiard table on which the receptionist and Sherri played a game of 8-ball and the ping pong table on which Brian played some table tennis with another young man from Germany.

There just wasn't room to draw the cafeterias showing the Okinawan food we enjoyed or professional baseball team we got to see in training.... It was just one day, but what a full, rich time it was.

Brian and Sherri have already invited me to come along to visit the outer islands where he grew up. We take off tomorrow, and I plan to stay with them about 3 days. What a promising start we've already seen. Thank you so much, Lord!