Let me start chronologically, since so much has happened. On Tuesday Cruz Shimai and I went to the A-bomb stuff in Hiroshima. Holy Cow. Seriously.
We got off the street car (it looks like the little trolley on Mr. Roger's Neighborhood) and saw this giant thing called the A-bomb Dome, or the genbaku domu if you're in Japan. It has been renovated a few times over the years to keep it looking scary.
In this area, less than a mile from the epicenter of the a-bomb, this was the only building that survived. The only reason it survived was it was basically made out of concrete and such. But the heat wave from the a-bomb just melted most of it. There are metal things sticking out at crazy angles that are melting, and concrete shapes missing.
Jay and John, do you remember the video game Psychonauts? Sorry, I can't spell anymore (not that I was that good to begin with). Well, do you remember that level with you swinging up scary stuff to get to the top... of what I think is a dome? I think it's at the end of the game. Anyway, that level was totally based on this crazy dome.
I'll be sure to send pictures.
We worked our way to the paper crane statue, where there were too many school kids on a field trip to see much, but people make art out of a thousand paper cranes. I have a good picture of one that I'll try to send. There was a girl that got sick from leukemia due to the radiation of a bomb. There is a folk story in Japan that if you make a thousand paper cranes then you're wish comes true. This little girl desired to become healthy again, but only made it to about 600 or something before she got too weak and passed away.
Then we went into the actual museum. There was a big replica of what this area looked like before the bomb and after the bomb. You can see the little dome on the replica. Then you go to another one to show you more than you ever want to see. My companion and I didn't really like it because you could feel the propaganda in the voice of the audio tour and the stuff around you. There was stuff like some guy had his hand out the window, and the heat wave melted the fingers on one of his hands. When the fingers healed, the fingernail still grew, but it was black and gross... and had a blood vessel in it, so it bled when he cut his fingernails.
They had the fingernails on display. Super gross. They even had some wax-like statues of flesh melting off the bodies of those who were coming away from the blast. That was too graphic for my companion who literally couldn't sleep that night. It was pretty gross, but I didn't lose sleep over it or anything.
Afterwards, we headed back to the genbaku domu and both agreed that it was the best part of everything. It is almost like art.
Wednesday we prepared for transfers and Thursday morning Cruz Shimai headed back to Tokyo. She was bummed because she is going to end her mission without being a trainer. She was also bummed because she went back to Tokyo-to, which is the down-down-down town part of Tokyo area. There are millions of people in her area. Tokyo is the biggest city in the world. Second is Mexico City.
Thursday I got my new companion, Sister Furusawa, which means old swamp. If you want to use other translations it could mean aged marshlands, but I like old swamp best. She is fresh from the MTC, and claims she doesn't know how to be a missionary, but then does great the moment she opens her mouth. She is from Miyagi ken, which is where the tsunami was just a few months ago. She has pictures of some of the destruction - pretty bad. Cars were on top of what used to be a house, and stuff like that. Her house was okay from the tsunami because it was high enough on a mountain, but there was still some shaking damage. She doesn't talk about it much, even though the first thing out of people's mouths when they hear her hometown is 'was it okay?!?! Is your family okay? Your house?!'
Friday and Saturday were simply prep for the baptism on Sunday. A baptism service is so stressful. This is someone's salvation!! Well, she had to get dunked twice to get all her hair under the water, but it happened! It was well attended - maybe partly due to the fact that this ward is about a hundred people. Yeah! Then we went to a eating appointment with her to the Tanaka Couple's house. That was fun, as we watched the Bishop and one of the Elders jam out on the guitar.
Maybe I should take up guitar... you know, when I have time. HA HA.
With the random organ in our apartment, I've been trying piano, but I think I've hit my piano wall. I can't get any better unless I invest a thousand hours, which I don't have. So I guess I'm stuck in the simplified hymn book that we also found in the apartment.
Liu Chang also came to church and saw the baptism. The plan was for her to come to the train station by the church, then call us, and we would walk together to church. Well, I forgot the phone. Yep, right on top of my desk. Well, we waited outside by the train station in a tsunami with our cute umbrellas until we had to head to the church. I felt bad. Well, she walked it later with her 1 year old son in her arms. She said that she came a little late because of the rain and took a taxi. Wow. She has a baptism date on the 19th but wants to study with her husband and get baptized with her husband, who we haven't met yet. Well, Liu spoke with our other Chinese member, Haku, so maybe it will work out with a really great eating appointment. Yeah for Chinese food! I've heard all about Haku Shimai's cooking from the Elders. Needless to say I am jealous.
Okay, now I will send some pictures.
レモン姉妹
Nishiyama Shimai's baptism. Kishimoto Kyodai, a convert of about a year, did the ordinance.
The dome. Zoom in for all the details on melted metal sticking out.
Me at the dome. Yes, I was really there. Zoom in on this picture too.
A picture of the dome made out of a thousand paper cranes
last Eikaiwa. It was fun. Liu Shimai is the second from the right, with her hand on her nose.
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