FUNCTIONING UNDERWATER

"Will I have to hold my breath a long time underwater, perhaps be willing to die to show my dedication to God?" a new convert and baptismal candidate once expressed. Some Christians who have grown up seeing baptisms forget how strange the concept of ceremonial immersion can be.

Baptisms are occasions believers can invite unsaved to come see them--Sunday was another such occasion. Here are a few photos I witnessed online. (That's Joyce on the piano to the left.) You can see Shoko was beaming. 

Altho' it was the pastor and his wife who were teaching her from the Bible when she found the Lord, it was Jaime who spent the most time with her, and he'll be stationed in mainland Japan at the end of the year, so we're really praying. Jaime helped adjust things on the platform for the baptism.

After her baptism, Shoko gave testimony of how she had found meaning and life in Christ. Then a family who recently visited Gushikawa Baptist Church requesting membership each came up and gave their testimonies too.

I almost forgot to mention this. More and more Okinawan families are becoming cross-cultural. Joyce interpreted the English for the father and son while the mother spoke in her native Japanese. People can usually understand a family member's language without being fluid enough to orate in it.

If human creatures can endure short lifetimes to somehow function in foreign languages and cultures, surely the Creator of humans (Jesus is Creator; without Him was not anything made that was made) is able to let go, during his short early lifetime, of His Divinity (language and culture?) and function according to human time and reason.

...to be continued...

MORE NOTES COMING HOME

On the way back from the doctor's, where we turn onto the road at the top of the hill, there's a bunch of banana trees. I'd asked Kinya if he wanted any banana, but he grinned and shook his head. I noticed the only one on the red-purple banana flower who was interested was a bee!

Along that river were a kawasemi (Japanese kingfisher), sandpiper, beetle, butterfly...but I knew most living things would disappear from Okinawa's heat and humidity until the fall. I took pictures of as much as I could--even if I wasn't getting good shots--just knowing I wouldn't be seeing my friends for very much longer this year.

I saw a family of turtles, remembering how, in mainland Japan, I wanted to spend as much time with them as possible before hibernation because I wouldn't see them during the winter months; would it be backwards now, did it never get that cold in Okinawa that they had to hibernate?

I mean, it never snows; the ponds never freeze over; and some people don't even own overcoats. I remember growing up as a little girl in Okinawa there used to be shops that rented overcoats--honest! I'd forgotten what the climates here were like and have to remember again.  

One thing I remembered fast I told Kinya about were the Okinawan outdoors afternoons, and how you had to keep moving if you sweat a lot, or the mosquitos ate you up.

TAKING A BREAK-Again

No, that last photo wasn't a composite of a river tern and a heron's head. I don't know enough about photography to do stuff like that. The only "trick" I pulled was when I came home yesterday and said to Kinya, "What does this look like?", showing him this:

He looked, squinted, then said: "A turtle!"

I grinned, showing him the REST OF THE photo: it was the poster of the turtle people were trying to catch. I'd only seen what looked like a turtle's head in the water, not the entire body of a turtle, I told him, but THAT wouldn't make a very good picture; besides, I haven't even seen the turtle, head or otherwise, since that day, so....

Junie's been working a little too hard, some butterflies nearby decided. Her brain's gotten a little fried. And they decided, with the wildflowers nearby, to give her a little break. Out came luscious, soothing blooms resting on foliage beds, where dainty butterflies skipped in glowing trances of aqua and green.

Sweet dreams, Junie

Oh--OK; I got wordy again. I get that way when I've worked too hard writing, I think.

Maybe I should just go nap.

FUDE ART WANNABES

When my children were little and had to study Japanese calligraphy in school, it was not one of their favorite subjects. I secretly envied them because I've felt an attraction to using the fude brush.  I'd heard about Sumie-E, an old art discipline of scribes of the Orient, and I found myself charmed by its emphasis on simple lines. I'd wondered often if I could dabble in it, since I lived in Japan now.

But writing with that brush and ink, well, that was something my children disliked, I could see it was not something they would have the slightest desire to teach me.

I gave up the idea--thought I'd go back to doing "normal" art--techniques of the proper use of the fude brush really requires the personal instruction--whereas I could get plenty of other art teaching online.

My artist crow friend at the park, Ble Currie de Sans suggested I try "Kanji Art"; maybe it would be simpler than "Sumi-E" since I already knew some kanji?

Last year, gave me a chance to try it. Friends from Africa had a baby and named it "Tendo". I'm sure they'd want their child to know the "Heavenly Way" as well as to make known it known all his life, so I chose those 2 kanji characters for his name. I haven't studied any proper "shuji" (Japanese calligraphy), here is my first attempt at "Kanji Art".

Unfortunately, neither picture for today's post are done with fude brush; I need a teacher to show me how to use it properly.

ROOM FOR ONE MORE?

2 years ago, I remember thinking, AHA! I'd found two mallards hidden in the grass, and began sketching them. But their half dozen ducklings saw and wanted to be drawn too so surprised me by coming out of hiding. Adult caretaker mallards also came, so before I knew it, I needed to draw 10 birds. Dragonflies flying by wanted to know what was going on and perched on the reeds--2 more critters needed to be drawn. 2 basking turtles seemed to comment I had a big job to do. I found myself saying, NO MORE VACANCY!

When I went to the same place today, at first, I saw two turtles, a carp, and a white butterfly. I decided to do the sketch, but as I was finishing, a tiny spider crawled up the boulder near me, so I drew him on the boulder near the carp...then I saw a tiny hatchling on a rock behind that boulder. so added him. After I drew the outlines of the background, another turtle climbed up on that center boulder. I managed to squeeze him in behind the first turtle.

Whew. As I was about to go home, 2 more dragonflies came! Maybe tomorrow, I told them. On the way home, I saw a mallard at Step Creek. (He was one of the first 2 in the grass.) He probably sat there and chuckled at what he saw, thinking, it's happening again.

Aren't you glad God always has room for one more?

BIRDS, A LOG, AND A BRANCH

While sketching the heron and Kawasemi (April 23 post), I met a person with photos of all sorts of birds on her cell. The next time I saw her, we got to talk of spiritual things. Could we talk again, she asked.

Takako told me then she was born into a militant Buddhist family and was versed in its doctrines, but got disillusioned with a questionable leader, left the group, and joined a different sect.

Takako believes man cannot find God any more than a turtle, blind in one eye, can find a floating log. The Bible also teaches no man can come to the Way, the Truth, and the Life, except the Father draw him.

Did that log not extend a BRANCH to that turtle and tap it on its shell? How it responds...is up to him.