warm day, melting snow
it`s really warm and sunny here today, Kenji was following the neigbor`s lead and throwing piles of snow into the street to melt for his parents, to hurry up the process. The boys were out playing in Jiji and Baba`s sandbox this morning and Sage was sweating in his coat. We were hoping to receive our document in the mail today so we could return to Naganuma tomorrow, but it`s not to be it seems. So it will be a day trip on Thurs probably, hopefully it arrives by then, we need to be back here by Friday so Kenji can go and see the car we may be buying and if he likes it sign a contract so that we can get it for the great sales price. If we buy it we won`t get it for two more weeks though, something about registration in a different township, blah, blah, Kenji doesn`t know really either! So we may be using the farm truck and be stuck on the farm for a bit. At least Sage will ride the school bus. Hey, the mailman just brought our document! That`s a good thing. It is getting long to not be in our own place, I will say. We are very thankful for the hospitality, do not mistake what I`m saying however! It`s just been a long time since we`ve been HOME. Kai said yesterday I want to go back to Columbia to our old home tomorrow very matter-of-factly. When I said that was not possible, but that we hope to be moving to our new home next week, he said, okay, then I want to go there right now! The boys have been acting out lately, this is probably why. And then with less responsibilities for K and I we are micromanaging them and this probably doesn`t help either. I`m having trouble with not being angry at them for their many childish actions, imagine them having some of those! It`s pretty tough not to get stressed at what relatives think by their actions, get what I`m saying? Like they`ve spent very little time with our kids and then they are kind of acting bratty, makes me feel sad and probably it`s actually my pride that`s causing my anger, you think?
Anyhow, Sage and I had an interesting conversation yesterday, out of the blue like kids do, he says to Kai, "you know Kai if you died right now you would go to heaven and live forever and never die anymore. That`s so hard to think of isn`t it. "They then proceeded to have a conversation about not knowing where heaven is, and Kai said but Mommy knows where it is, so we talked about noone but people there and Jesus\God know where it is...."But bad people go somewhere else right mom, what`s it like there. " Then we talked about that we don`t know that either but that there is nothing good there because all good things come from God and it would be awful to be separated from goodness. Sage tried to bargain with me on that saying that he could be good even if there was nothing good, etc. etc. We also talked about that being good\bad isn`t what gets us either place exactly and about how noone is good from Adam and Eve`s choice and that`s why God sent Jesus to take care of our badness so we could once again be close to God and why it`s so sad when someone dies who doesn`t know God. The conversation was fairly lengthy, and then Sage says, "Mom, the devil tries to get me to think something every day, like I`m doing something and all of the sudden he makes me think of this, but I refuse" What does he make you think I ask, thinking that he`ll answer something about doing bad stuff, but instead he says"he makes me think that you and Dad are just making it up about there being a God." Wow, I thought, this is what you are thinking about when you are staring into space and ignoring me calling your name!! So I very calmly say, you know it`s not a sin to have doubts about God, in fact when you have questions is when God can teach you the most maybe. So we can ask him to help you know the truth for yourself not just because we say so, because he says he will give things to you if you ask him. He then proceeds to say," well I know one way I can know there`s a God, like the time he raised up those dry bones in that valley in the Bible, there has to be a God to do that!"He was very impressed and interested in this story when we read it months and months ago and has never forgot it as bones and skeletons are very interesting to kids, he`s a little obsessed with fear over them it seems to me like. Anyway, all of you wonderful, experienced, seasoned, veteran parents out there help me on this one!! Where do we go from here, what are some good ways to help Sage see the truth for himself, some good resources, Bible passages etc. I have to say that I was shocked to hear this stuff coming from him now, honestly it`s been awhile since we have spent much time talking or focusing on spiritual things other than praying, sad to say. It was a good push for me to get past our rushed life of the past few months and put my and our focus where it should be.
Sage just returned from a visit to a neighbor`s house with JiJi to see their baby discus fish, like 60 of them! He is telling me they drink milk from their mother`s skin, I did not know of other fish but big mammal fish that produced milk, interesting! He is showing me the loot they gave him too:) Special tops that having strings to spin them, a bottle of juice and dark choco/cookie sticks. Share with mommy?...please!
We have been having conversations about what would be better, cell phones, landline, both or one or the other, think we`ve settled on a landline. So nice to have cells for travel in the big city here, like directions, meeting etc, but reality says that`s a luxury and a landline is cheaper for sure, especially for intntl. calls. The cell plans are not as good as in the US even.
Also K`s been looking at car and life ins. prices online, the details are back:).
We have been starting to receive some secondhand things from K`s family and friends, just got a little TV and K`s dad is giving us a VCR. There is a table and chairs at the house we`ll be in and a dresser\wardrobe and a few other odds and ends. We need to get a washing machine. No dryer! They cost around $1000 here, not very common. They`ve come out with washer/dryers, no idea how they work, but they are around $800 with regular, small albeit, washers being around $300. I`m looking at the bright side of no dryer, clothes last longer, cheaper electric bills, less wrinkled clothes, no set-in stains...got anymore??? I`m definitely spoiled, but I`m already getting used to hanging clothes indoors, and we have a fairly nice place for that at the house. It will seem a luxury to have an automatic washer(normal, to us), after spending a whole morning doing laundry every 2-3 days here. K`s mom has a washer that you need to manually do all, meaning add the water from a pipe, change from washing tub to spinner tub and back and forth infinitely:) And it`s very small so like 6 loads sometimes. This is not an old washer either they sell them this way still. Kenji`s sister`s husband offered to buy them an automatic one, they are not much more money, but his mom refuses saying it won`t fit in her small space. I think it might be more that she thinks it wastes less water, she has a way worked out that she uses the water so it`s less wasteful and as a typical older Japanese is very conscious of wasting anything. It`s overwhelming to set up house, never been at square one before really, just got into it gradually. People are very generous and I know that we won`t need to buy everything so that`s wonderful.
Better quit, I`ve been on here awhile. Hello to all, love your comments!
Anyhow, Sage and I had an interesting conversation yesterday, out of the blue like kids do, he says to Kai, "you know Kai if you died right now you would go to heaven and live forever and never die anymore. That`s so hard to think of isn`t it. "They then proceeded to have a conversation about not knowing where heaven is, and Kai said but Mommy knows where it is, so we talked about noone but people there and Jesus\God know where it is...."But bad people go somewhere else right mom, what`s it like there. " Then we talked about that we don`t know that either but that there is nothing good there because all good things come from God and it would be awful to be separated from goodness. Sage tried to bargain with me on that saying that he could be good even if there was nothing good, etc. etc. We also talked about that being good\bad isn`t what gets us either place exactly and about how noone is good from Adam and Eve`s choice and that`s why God sent Jesus to take care of our badness so we could once again be close to God and why it`s so sad when someone dies who doesn`t know God. The conversation was fairly lengthy, and then Sage says, "Mom, the devil tries to get me to think something every day, like I`m doing something and all of the sudden he makes me think of this, but I refuse" What does he make you think I ask, thinking that he`ll answer something about doing bad stuff, but instead he says"he makes me think that you and Dad are just making it up about there being a God." Wow, I thought, this is what you are thinking about when you are staring into space and ignoring me calling your name!! So I very calmly say, you know it`s not a sin to have doubts about God, in fact when you have questions is when God can teach you the most maybe. So we can ask him to help you know the truth for yourself not just because we say so, because he says he will give things to you if you ask him. He then proceeds to say," well I know one way I can know there`s a God, like the time he raised up those dry bones in that valley in the Bible, there has to be a God to do that!"He was very impressed and interested in this story when we read it months and months ago and has never forgot it as bones and skeletons are very interesting to kids, he`s a little obsessed with fear over them it seems to me like. Anyway, all of you wonderful, experienced, seasoned, veteran parents out there help me on this one!! Where do we go from here, what are some good ways to help Sage see the truth for himself, some good resources, Bible passages etc. I have to say that I was shocked to hear this stuff coming from him now, honestly it`s been awhile since we have spent much time talking or focusing on spiritual things other than praying, sad to say. It was a good push for me to get past our rushed life of the past few months and put my and our focus where it should be.
Sage just returned from a visit to a neighbor`s house with JiJi to see their baby discus fish, like 60 of them! He is telling me they drink milk from their mother`s skin, I did not know of other fish but big mammal fish that produced milk, interesting! He is showing me the loot they gave him too:) Special tops that having strings to spin them, a bottle of juice and dark choco/cookie sticks. Share with mommy?...please!
We have been having conversations about what would be better, cell phones, landline, both or one or the other, think we`ve settled on a landline. So nice to have cells for travel in the big city here, like directions, meeting etc, but reality says that`s a luxury and a landline is cheaper for sure, especially for intntl. calls. The cell plans are not as good as in the US even.
Also K`s been looking at car and life ins. prices online, the details are back:).
We have been starting to receive some secondhand things from K`s family and friends, just got a little TV and K`s dad is giving us a VCR. There is a table and chairs at the house we`ll be in and a dresser\wardrobe and a few other odds and ends. We need to get a washing machine. No dryer! They cost around $1000 here, not very common. They`ve come out with washer/dryers, no idea how they work, but they are around $800 with regular, small albeit, washers being around $300. I`m looking at the bright side of no dryer, clothes last longer, cheaper electric bills, less wrinkled clothes, no set-in stains...got anymore??? I`m definitely spoiled, but I`m already getting used to hanging clothes indoors, and we have a fairly nice place for that at the house. It will seem a luxury to have an automatic washer(normal, to us), after spending a whole morning doing laundry every 2-3 days here. K`s mom has a washer that you need to manually do all, meaning add the water from a pipe, change from washing tub to spinner tub and back and forth infinitely:) And it`s very small so like 6 loads sometimes. This is not an old washer either they sell them this way still. Kenji`s sister`s husband offered to buy them an automatic one, they are not much more money, but his mom refuses saying it won`t fit in her small space. I think it might be more that she thinks it wastes less water, she has a way worked out that she uses the water so it`s less wasteful and as a typical older Japanese is very conscious of wasting anything. It`s overwhelming to set up house, never been at square one before really, just got into it gradually. People are very generous and I know that we won`t need to buy everything so that`s wonderful.
Better quit, I`ve been on here awhile. Hello to all, love your comments!
posted by Unknown at
9:47 AM
1 Comments:
I love that Sage can communicate so well. Sounds like you did the right thing for him. Keep up the dialogue.
By
Anonymous, at 1:37 AM
Post a Comment
<< Home