First, first, first

Lately, I have had SO many first! It's quiet exciting. Each time, I think, "there will never be another first of these again." Yeah, there will be different situations but never again, the FIRST first day of school, never again my FIRST Open House, never again will I be in this exact position in life that I am. So, I am taking it all in daily, living fully, working hard, and continually reminded that I am exactly where I am supposed to be in life, doing exactly what God has prepared me to do. It's so thrilling!

I can say that I successfully completed my first week of teaching!!! Woohoo!! Don't get me wrong, it was very challending. I made so many mistakes that I am already looking forward to next year where I can correct all the bugs. But, through it all, I have the cutest, sweetest, most active 19 first graders ever. We had a four day week. Friday we had off but in the evening was the open house where the parents came and I got to speak to them about myself and our class. I told the parents that I spoke Japanese, so many of the parents were grateful and came up to me later speaking Japanese. I told the parents this was my first year teaching and they all seemed ok with it. I'm out to prove them that I can do this successfully my first year!

Today, Saturday, a huge typhoon is almost upon us so we may be out of electricity in the next few days depending on how bad it is. So, Monday their may be no school. But for now, enjoy some pictures and celebrate with me :)

 Come on in kids! Ms. Turner is excited to meet you!

 Before

 After

 Before

After

Entry to the door

Okinawa~ 沖縄〜

Hi!

I would like to say that I have arrived safe and sound to the beautiful island of Okinawa. Ever since hitting the ground, I have hit the ground running with orientation and touring the island. Today, church was canceled due to a typhoon so we are lazying around the house while the wind violently churns.

Some highlights~

Beautiful view on the north side of island at Okinawa Expo Park. This place was huge and consisted of free dolphin shows, free viewing and of turtles and manatee's, a replicated old Okinawan village, a planetarium, and one of the largest tanked aquarium in the world.

We also went to Pineapple park where we rode a self driving golf cart decorated yellow for pineapple around a track to learn about how pineapples are gown and the different kinds. We then walked through and area where we could taste all different kinds of pineapple flavored products from wine to cookies.

This is the sky the night before the typhoon hit. It's so purple! This was taken from my balcony. The long building on the right is the school and the blue beyond the lights is the ocean.

Till next time!
-Sarah

Reflections from the summer: Suitcases and Silence

Traveling is such a good time for reflection. Sitting on 15 hour flights... sitting in terminals... lots of sitting and waiting. I'm sitting waiting to board my final leg of my journey to Okinawa. This step is uncharted territories. This new step brings new friends, new adventures, new challenges. I'm so excited and nervous all at the same time! But I also sit here and reflect on my last month in the states with 2 lessons.


Lesson 1: Suitcases


Prior to May, some would have called me a pack rat. I kept everything from empty yogurt containers to scraps of paper. Moving my life from Knoxville to Florida then to Japan was hard but a growing experience. After a grilling 3-4 days of packing and sorting I manages to cram my life into 2 suitcases weighing 50lbs each. Rest of the stuff was stored in my grandma's garage (thanks Nanny). It was a meticulous process to cram your life into a rectangular cloth-framed box, but it made me think of my material possessions allowing me to break free from the pack rat I was and lead me to need less in life. For the month in Florida, my family lived out of our suitcases. A suitcase becomes a closet, a dresser. A suitcase is the epitome of a traveler's life with thoughts of how much can you cram into the suitcase without going over the weight limit. It truly is a profession. Suitcases also make me think of a song I discovered by Dara Maclean called "Suitcases." The chorus goes, "You can't run when you're holding suitcases..." Oh how I have learned that both literally and metaphorically. Sweat poring down my back as I lunged my two suitcases across Narita airport going to the wrong floor and back to my original level before finding the right check in place... you sure can't run, barely can even walk! But it also mean baggage, our material possession, our junk in our lives. So as I start to unpack, I'll think of this lesson, and may I remember it for future travels.


Lesson 2: Silence


For the month of July I got to spend a lot of time with my brother Spencer. After graduating from HS 5 years ago, I felt like I had lost touch with my younger brothers. I didn't get to see them grow up in their HS years. Watching and learning from my brother was one of the neatest things I did all summer. He is very quiet. But when I say quiet it is not in a "I don't care what's going on around me" or "I don't know what to say so I won't say it". Instead is a calm quiet, a controlled, confident, quiet of one who's personality is just one to not say something even when it could be needed. For me, if I've got something to say, I'll say it. If I don't need to say it, I'll still say it. For me, it taught me the lesson of silence, of not having to be in control or a part of every situation around me. They say "silence speaks louder then words." In this case, his silence was loud, loud to show me, it's ok not to speak, calm down and let God talk to you instead of you ruining the silence or the chance for others to speak. Watch your tongue Sarah. Speak through your actions and your love.