Thursday

Mr. and Mrs. Bush, you should be very proud of your son.  Joe located a weedwhacker and volunteered to cut down the (very tall) grass in the UpTen yard Thursday morning. 

For lunch, we went to Dohton Bori.  We aren't really sure what kind of animal this mascot is supposed to be, but the imitation of its expression is priceless!

This restaurant has a soda fountain!  Coca-Cola, Fanta, Minute Maid orange juice, hot chocolate, hot milk tea, and Calpis (a popular drink here that's kindof like a milky flat Sprite).

We weren't quite sure what to do, so our waitress kindly showed us how to do it.  You get a bowl of raw food that you are supposed to mix up and cook on the hot griddle in the middle of the table.


My best description of the dish (called ookonomiyaki) is that it is a cheesy, potato-less hash brown filled with vegetables and seafood...

...which was topped with a teriyaki type sauce, kewpie mayonnaise, bonito (dried fish) flakes, and chopped seaweed.

After lunch, we went to Guys Club on campus.  They divided into seven groups, one for each of us, and the students interviewed us and then introduced each of us to the class.  They asked questions about favorite color, favorite food, movie and music preferences, and our families.  We used the opportunity to talk about our Christian faith also.  After group introductions, we had a huge Koom-Ja tournament!

One student challenged Mike to an arm wrestling match...

Then two guys at once...

Then three at once...

Everyone adjourned to Starbucks after Guys Club.

We all grabbed McD's on the way back to UpTen.  About 25 students joined us for UpTen Night.  We ate our dinner, then divided into four groups.  Each group was instructed by Ogawa-san to speak English.  Mr. Yeager and I were in the smallest group, with only three students.  We talked for a while about school, classes, their part-time jobs, and goals after graduation.  We shared with the students about the 10 Commandments and how we break them in our hearts even though we may seem pretty good on the outside (see Matthew 5).  These students attend a Christian university, they are required to take a Bible class, and they have opportunity to attend chapel every day.  This is good, because they all know about Jesus already, but it also makes things difficult because many of them just see the Bible as a textbook, Jesus as a historical figure, and Christianity as a club to join.  Pray that the students will take the instruction to heart and realize their need for Jesus in their hearts to forgive their sin.