Week 5 Update

Written by: Laura R.

Week 5 was unexpectedly our last week in Japan.

Originally we had a few more weeks planned, working with the Sunrise Team and then going back to Osaka and Tokyo. Due to how the virus would affect flights back to America, we decided to fly home early.

Our goal is still to move to Japan next winter (hopefully early winter!), but we have yet to decide in what capacity. We’ll keep you all updated as we pray and move forward!

As far as this blog, we still plan on keeping it up. ☺️ Whether that’s with lessons the Lord is teaching us, or what’s been going on in our lives— we want to stay up-to-date with you all.

Speaking of which, here’s our last Japan week:

Tuesday, March 17th

At this time we still had no clue we were heading back to America. So we met with the Sunrise team to plan for our spring break camps and to catch up on how we were all doing.

Wednesday, March 18th

Online classes all morning. In the afternoon… I really can’t remember 😓 But I bet it consisted of working out, going for a walk, and hanging out with Andy!

Thursday, March 19th

I went for a long run/walk in the morning along the river.

In the afternoon while Mark taught online classes, I met with Wendi. We went for coffee and got to know each other more. It was super helpful asking her questions about their time in Japan and the work they do! Looking back, I’m so thankful we had this time before Mark and I had to leave. 🙏🏻

Friday, March 20th

Morning hike with Christopher and his son, Kenichiro! We met Christopher at Peter and Wendi’s house church. He’s lived in Japan for 15 years now and runs his own English school in Sanda.

The night before, Mark and I learned about how flights to America would most likely be affected by the virus. We spent an hour or so talking about what we should do. Afterwards we met with Peter and Wendi to talk it over with them. Ultimately we decided to come home.

The rest of the afternoon was a blur of packing and saying our goodbyes. It was a sad night, and honestly I felt shocked at the change. There are so many unknowns going on with this virus and how people and governments will react. We trust though that going home was the best decision.

Saturday, March 21st

A long day— travel day back to Florida, USA from Sanda, Japan.

Thank you for following our Japan Vision Trip journey! Though it was shorter than expected, we’re so thankful for the experience. We’re thankful for everyone we met with and got to know along the way.

With love,

Laura & Mark