A Single Bud of Hope

Where do we start?

The first sakura blossom at the school makes its appearance February 20th (an early species).

This post comes after a long silence.

Somewhere between the morning of January 23rd in the eastern time zone and the morning of January 24th in Japan, Leandra’s sister Kelsey passed away unexpectedly. She had just given birth to a beautiful baby girl on the 20th, and things were normal for about 36 hours. Then, things suddenly got worse… and worse again… and then she was gone.

I returned to Yokohama to begin teaching after two weeks in the States, and I couldn’t be more grateful for the incredible help I received while away from all my coworkers. Upon my return I received so much love and so many kind words, meals, hugs. Leandra stayed a total of six weeks, helping with childcare while the family figured out how to take care of three children who now have one parent. Finding any semblance of a normal life for anyone has been a slow process. The goal has never been to return to “normal,” but anything to help ease the transition into a routine helps.

I couldn’t find the right way to write about any of this, so I didn’t.

And now it’s April.

With the cherry blossoms in full bloom here, it felt appropriate to think about new life again. It has reminded us that there is beauty in the world, beauty in people, and something outside of your control that you can enjoy, even if fleeting.

There is more that I was planning on writing, but things changed in January, and I decided to skip some of this. I have linked what I started in another post here. Although it is only pictures and captions, it’s a nice lens into our world over the months of November and December 2024. For instance, Leandra’s friend Heather visited us from Cambodia over Thanksgiving! We visited an art exhibition in Tokyo. We saw Mount Fuji clearly for the first time on the same day (me from the bluff near the school and Leandra and Heather from a bullet train). We went back to the States over Christmas and visited family and friends.

Although I could write a longer narrative, I’d like to let some pictures do more of the talking here. The one I would like to expound upon is #4: Things People Have Left Behind for People Who Have Left Behind Things.

Here in Japan, it seems that people don’t lose things; they are simply separated from them for a time. It can be a wallet, a phone, an umbrella, or even a laptop; you will find it again because people have left it alone for you.

You have left it, and they have left it in return.

I had a student lose a laptop on a train. She returned the following weekend to her train station to find it being watched over in the station office. I had another student lose her wallet only to search for it a week later and find it sitting on a public table exactly as she’d left it with all of its contents inside. I had ANOTHER student (these are 6th graders, mind you - they’re still learning to hold on to things) leave a book on a train. A week later it was waiting for her in the station office.

Below are pictures in four segments:

1. Life in Yokohama

2. Spring Break in Vietnam

3. Cherry Blossom Season

4. Things People Have Left Behind for People Who Have Left Behind Things

Life In Yokohama

Lanterns over the Ooka (“oh-oh-ka”) River to celebrate the Lunar New Year

Saint Patrick’s Day on Motomachi Dori. If you’re a marching band fan you can see they are clearly in step! Although these students were adorned with “Kiss Me, I’m Irish” sashes, we did not see anyone attempt it, nor did anyone confirm.

There was a pack of about 20 Irish Setters in this parade, too. Because why not?

Seeing Wicked for the second time in theaters here. The Japanese have figured out how to do snacks in movie theaters. The trays fit neatly into the cup holders so you can swivel it around and eat without holding on to anything. I didn’t know this the first time, and I just set it on the ground, only to see others using it as designed when the lights came up at the end. Oops. Also, it’s customary to stay through the entire end credits here.

Spring Break in Vietnam

Pine Coffee in Da Nang for about the billionth time

Leandra in her happy place. She deserved this.

This is maybe my favorite meal now from a place called Loving Vegan in Da Nang. This is our third visit to Da Nang, and for 4 weeks of that time I have only had this lunch every single day (I got an additional watermelon juice this time): avocado smoothie bowl and BBQ cauliflower.

Cherry Blossom Season

Sakura blossoms over the Ooka River in Yokohama

Me taking a picture of people taking a picture of people taking a picture in a boat.

Street food festival for the cherry blossoms

Many people brought their own tarps and food and such and just set up along the sidewalk. This is true in parks as well where people set up tents for the day.

Food stalls across the river

Leandra got buttered potatoes

I got okonomiyaki and corn on the cob. It tastes better than it looks here.

Things People Have Left Behind for People Who Have Left Behind Things

“Here is that polaroid camera your irresponsible kid was looking for. I left it in a place you could see it.”

“Here are your little gloves and ear muffs you dropped on the way to school.”

“Sumimasen. Excuse me. You dropped your Mario keychain.”

This keychain (sans key) was in our apartment elevator from September through February. It disappeared the day after I took this picture.

This was still here the next day.