I may have the faith to make mountains fall,
but lacking love, I'm nothing at all.
- Lauren Hill
Monday, November 17, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
Remembering Japan
Tokyo is usually pretty hot, but today was cooler and a little gloomy. It has not started raining yet but I could tell by the clouds that it wouldn't be long. It's finally a day off and we're free to roam around and do as we wish. Some of my team members went shopping, some went off to find small eateries, while some just lingered around here and there. I've always liked taking walks, ever since Hawai'i Summer Project '05. Walking always gave me time to think, to ponder, to slow down. And by today I definitely need to slow down. So i grab my ipod and my bag with a few papers that I needed to mail out. I get down stairs to find that the sprinkling of rain really has not affected the typical hustle and bustle of life in Koenji, Tokyo. I put my head phones on and scroll around my playlist trying to find the appropriate genre for my walk. After a few minutes I stop on Switchfoot. Switchfoot has always been one of my favorite bands and I always enjoy reflecting on the lyrics. So I start my treck around Koenji with my music. I see the usual shops around when I normally head off to campus with a few familiar faces as I pass them by. There were a few corners and blocks that I haven't really explored since I've been here so adventure had soon become my partner in crime. I paroose around some clothing stores and convini stores for maybe something I'd like or little nick nacks to take home with me. I didn't really find anything. Everythings really expensive. I'm not suprised.
It's been about an hour or so and dinner with the team will be starting in a bit so I start making my way back to my apartment. Although I love taking walks I never enjoy it as much when there's a time constraint. I feel limited and rushed. But regardless it's been a nice walk. Then my ipod starts playing the song Stars. "When I look at the stars, I feel like my self...." Although I'm still walking, my mind pauses. I look around. All I see are buildings. Buildings and people walking in and out of them like that game SIMS. Then I look up toward the sky. The sky is turning a grayish blue with a hint of some clouds and I realize something. The sky here in Tokyo is just as beautiful as the sky in Irvine. It's just that it's harder to see here with all of the buildings. I went to Japan astonished by the statistics of suicide rates and % Christian and wondering...Why? But now I get it. How can the people here take time to slow down and smell the roses or look up at the stars when the buildings are in the way. I can see how people get caught up in work, money and sex here when all you see are buildings. It almost forces you to B-line to where ever you are going.
I've held on to this moment. Whenever I feel rushed, overwhelmed, or hopeless, I just look to the stars. Something about looking up and seeing the stars so far away in the dark emptyness of space makes me feel so insignificant. Feeling insignificant usually isn't the best feeling in the world but in this situation it's just such a relief. When I'm insignificant, then that means my worrys are insignificant. Whether I pay the bills on time, or if get that grade, or why relationships with girls suck, all of a sudden take a back seat to the feeling of awe and timelessness of God. Things will always come up, shit happens, but life is too short to be on a stuck in a hamster wheel.
"When I look at the stars, I feel like myself...."
-Switchfoot
It's been about an hour or so and dinner with the team will be starting in a bit so I start making my way back to my apartment. Although I love taking walks I never enjoy it as much when there's a time constraint. I feel limited and rushed. But regardless it's been a nice walk. Then my ipod starts playing the song Stars. "When I look at the stars, I feel like my self...." Although I'm still walking, my mind pauses. I look around. All I see are buildings. Buildings and people walking in and out of them like that game SIMS. Then I look up toward the sky. The sky is turning a grayish blue with a hint of some clouds and I realize something. The sky here in Tokyo is just as beautiful as the sky in Irvine. It's just that it's harder to see here with all of the buildings. I went to Japan astonished by the statistics of suicide rates and % Christian and wondering...Why? But now I get it. How can the people here take time to slow down and smell the roses or look up at the stars when the buildings are in the way. I can see how people get caught up in work, money and sex here when all you see are buildings. It almost forces you to B-line to where ever you are going.
I've held on to this moment. Whenever I feel rushed, overwhelmed, or hopeless, I just look to the stars. Something about looking up and seeing the stars so far away in the dark emptyness of space makes me feel so insignificant. Feeling insignificant usually isn't the best feeling in the world but in this situation it's just such a relief. When I'm insignificant, then that means my worrys are insignificant. Whether I pay the bills on time, or if get that grade, or why relationships with girls suck, all of a sudden take a back seat to the feeling of awe and timelessness of God. Things will always come up, shit happens, but life is too short to be on a stuck in a hamster wheel.
"When I look at the stars, I feel like myself...."
-Switchfoot
Monday, October 27, 2008
Friday, October 17, 2008
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