Hello! Or should I say yasas, which is how you say hello in Greek. I have two full days left in the States before I depart for Greece and I could not be more excited. Currently my closet and room are in disarray as I pack my life into one checked bag and head to the island of Lesvos for four months. However, to procrastinate finishing this endeavor, I am going to share with you guys a little bit about what I’ve been up to since graduation and my thoughts on the trip.

June: Italy 

View on Lake Como

With the bridal party in Bellagio (P.S. I sewed that dress hehe)

Giving Maddy snacks while she gets ready for her wedding

This summer I got to do a bit of traveling and spend some quality time with friends I won’t see for a few months. I went to Bellagio, Italy to see one of my closest friends, Maddy, get married. It was  incredible to not only share in this special life moment for her and her husband but also to experience Italy for the first time (all I can say is that it is definitely popular for a reason). Between wedding festivities we laughed over dinner, chatted on patios until midnight, and swam in the ice cold water of Lake Como.

July: Visa struggles 

Taken immediately after my visa application was finally accepted. I was more excited than I look in this photo, I promise. 

This was the least fun part of my summer. As amazing as Italy was, I returned home on Saturday, June 14th with the head cold from hell. And on Monday the 16th I had my visa appointment. I decided to power through it and, along with my parents, made the 2 hour trip to Atlanta, documents in one hand and tissues in the other. However, due to some issues with my documents, my application was rejected.

What followed was a mess of struggling to get a new appointment (appointment slots can get booked out months in advance), a delayed trip, and tedious hours spent working on my new application. As miserable as the experience was it did give me a better understanding of just how difficult the experience is for refugees. The Greek migration system is confusing, bureaucratic, and slow, and that is coming from a privileged white Westerner with immense support from a credible Greek NGO. I can’t imagine how difficult it is for the refugees waiting on Lesvos for months to hear back from the Greek government. Although I will never be able to empathize with them, I now understand a crumb of their experience, and have so much admiration for their ability to keep going along with more drive than ever to help where I can.

August: To Greece we go!

A clock in my parents house, telling what time it is where I am (my brother in Tashkent has one too)

Sisters and I matched for fourth of July

Against all odds I finally secured a visa (huzzah!!) and am ready to  leave. This Friday is a big day for my family. My older sister moves to Nashville, my brother moves back to Uzbekistan, where he works as an English teacher, and my little sister moves back to her university to work as an RA. Although my trip getting delayed was unfortunate, I am grateful to have spent one last summer living under the same roof as most of my siblings before we depart on our separate adventures.

And now it’s time to leave. I expected to feel more nervous for this trip, but in all honesty, I am experiencing a weird sense of calm (that is subject to change). Right now I feel that I am going where I am supposed to be at this point in my life. So thank you guys for reading this first post, and keep reading to follow along on my journey 🙂

P.S. My big sister told me I should include a mini-playlist with each blog post... so here are my current favorites if you want to listen along with me.

Songs: 

Heavy Foot by Mon Rovia

Rein Me In by Sam Fender ft Olivia Dean 

Universal Sound by Tyler Childers

Leaving on a Jet Plane by Peter, Paul, and Mary 

It’s officially my last week here in the U.S. before I move away to Argentina for the next 10 months! This summer has been filled with so many emotions: happy, sad, scared, excited, and doing everything I can to squeeze in some final moments of nostalgia and comfortability before my life completely changes! Here’s the recap:

Graduation & Moving out of Nashville!

The last 4 years of living in Nashville and being a Belmont student have flown by and graduation came quicker than I ever thought it could. Graduation week was so bittersweet: it felt like I was finally slowing down to realize all of the sweet things that I was surrounded by & it made me realize I wasn’t ready to leave it all behind me yet, but at the same time I was excited for what was yet to come and grateful that there were so many good things to be missed. This entire week was full of one “goodbye” party after another: my incredible Aloe Family work family (more on that later), the best group of kids I spent the last 4 years pouring into and growing with, my CREW, social entrepreneurship girls, my sweet roommate, and so many amazing friends that have become more like family these past few years. 

My time at Belmont held some of my favorite moments, and graduation day was the perfect bookend to that special chapter. My entire family flew down & we spent the weekend celebrating and enjoying time together. I ended my time in Nashville surrounded by my favorite people laughing & crying on the floor of my apartment while packing up the last 4 years of my life into my car to drive back to Minnesota <3

Saying “see you later” to San Luis, Mexico 

Probably the hardest “goodbye” I had all summer was to my favorite little corner of the world in Mexico. I spent my college career working for a nonprofit that serves communities locally in Nashville and internationally in Mexico, and a small part of almost every month has been spent in this little desert town of San Luis serving, smiling, laughing, crying, loving, growing, exploring, failing, learning, and trying with everything I have to make an impact in this world. I spent my last little bit of time here (at least for the next 10 months – not forever) reminiscing on memories, playing soccer, eating good food, laughing with friends that are really more like family, building community centers and painting churches, teaching English, and laughing through the tears. 

Wedding Weekend!!

One of my final weekends here was spent in Highlands, North Carolina as the maid of honor in my sister’s wedding! It was such a special time of celebrating her & her new husband, and cherishing the last few moments of quality time with my family before I move.  

& So many in-between moments

I’ve been getting a lot of “Are you ready?”, “Are you nervous?”, “Are you excited?” lately. And, honestly, the answer is yes; I’m ready to do something new, I’m nervous about what I don’t know yet, but I’m excited to see where this next year takes me. The truth is, I have no idea what my life is going to look like a week from now, but I am so extremely grateful and overjoyed to be on this journey. 

See you soon, Mendoza!

With love, Sarah

This is my final blog post for my time here. It is so sad to be leaving. I will miss Japan so much!

At the nursery school, I had one more day with the babies and one more day with the five-year-olds. Before my last day, the vice principal requested that I prepare a song that the kids know from music therapy to perform while they eat shaved ice. I prepared the theme song from My Neighbor Totoro since all the kids know that song, and I used it in multiple sessions. On my last day, after tuning my guitar, I was about to walk to the gym, but the vice principal told me to wait. After she got a phone call, she walked me to the gym. Once inside, she had me set down my guitar and music and sit in a single chair on the stage with the curtains closed. I could hear the principal talking on the microphone from the other side of the curtain. I couldn’t understand much, but I did hear my name multiple times. Then the curtain opened, and I saw every class sitting on the floor, and they were all shouting at me, “I love you,” and doing the ASL sign for love. The three-to-five-year-old classes then all stood up and sang a song for me, then some of the five-year-oldscame up to give me presents; they were sweet and cute gifts. There was a box of coloring pages they made for me, a book full of portraits they drew of me, and a large board with a collage of drawings and pictures of my time with the nursery school. I am so honored and will treasure those gifts for my lifetime! Then they asked me to sing the song I had prepared, so I sang it on stage, and all the kids sang along. The gym was decorated with a huge mural that said “Janerusan, thank you” (in Japanese, of course) and a giant cutout of my face. That made me giggle! Later, at snack time, I ate two bowls of shaved ice with the children. Once everybody finished, I sat by the door and gave everybody high fives and hugs.

At the end of the day, when I FINALLY left (I stalled because I was so sad to go), the principal announced my departure and started playing “APT” over the PA system. After walking out the door, I turned around and every student and teacher was standing outside of their classrooms waving goodbye and shouting “I love you!” The sight of that broke me down into tears. Seeing so tangibly the impact I made and the relationships I built with every teacher and student touched me in such a powerful way. I walked away extremely slowly while waving goodbye, crying, and shouting back at the children, “I love you!” I stopped for one last crepe on my way back to my host family’s house. It was delicious.

I did one more music therapy session with the three-year-olds. I made it very fun with many games. They excelled at their listening skills, following directions, teamwork, and creativity. Their progress has been incredible! After the session ended, I gave all the kids goodbye hugs and high fives.

Before leaving, I took photos of all the kids’ artwork from Japan so that I can keep it forever. I intend to put it all in a book one day. Kyoko permed my hair shortly before my departure. She did incredibly, and it looks amazing! It was nice to have time with her where we could talk for an extended period before I left. My final little side adventure was rafting on Mount Fuji! It was epic! I met a very nice group of girls who ended up being in my raft! They and our tour guide all spoke a bit of English, so we were all able to get to know each other during the trip! I got to go through 8 rapids, slide down the raft, and jump off of little cliffs! I also had to hang out with Hiro one last time. We had fun at the arcade, shopping at Don Quijote, and trying a Mexican restaurant by the station. I was surprised at the quality and authenticity, although I had never seen someone use chopsticks to eat a taco until that day. Saying goodbye to my host family was sad. They left me a nice card in my room and hugged me tight. I am so grateful they were the ones to take care of me these last six months.

Now that I am home, I am much busier. Catching up on six months of friendship and family time, acclimating to a new schedule, having a lengthy and stressful to-do list, and struggling with the unknown of what is next in my life has been challenging as well as rewarding. I am definitely experiencing culture shock, and I miss Japan every day. I would not take back a single moment. I have grown so much and know that what comes next will continue to shape me. I will forever be grateful for my time in Japan.

The past two weeks, I have been with the babies and five-year-olds. The teachers in the baby class made it very apparent to me how much they appreciated having my help. They greeted me with smiles every morning and were so kind! The babies are also so cute! They’re so small and sweet! Seeing some of them clap their hands and bow before eating like the teachers do is lovely! At the end of my week with the babies, I made sure to give them all big hugs as I said goodbye, since the following week was my last full week at the nursery school. The five-year-olds were energetic, and I can tell they know I won’t be there much longer. They are extra eager to play with me, hug me, and talk to me. A funny moment was when the kids started talking in Italian brain-rot. I was so confused because understanding them was harder than usual, and then I realized it wasn’t Japanese! As I was leaving on Monday, some moms told me their kids always talked about me and asked me how soon I was leaving. On Friday, after the children did their usual routine of telling the teacher the date and weather, he had them try to guess how to say it in English (with my help). They then got to try and guess the English word for other vocabulary, and I told them what the correct answer and pronunciation were. They had a lot of trouble with words like “birthday” since it has the “th” and “r” sounds. It was cute helping them try!

Since it’s mid-July, the school did its monthly celebration for the kids who have birthdays this month. It was really cute this time because after celebrating each kid, they had a large blue plastic tablecloth hoisted upright on the stage. The teachers had stuffed animals and cutouts they would have “swim” through the “water,” and the kids had to guess who it was through the tablecloth. By the end of it a teacher would whip by pretending to swim, and the children guessed which teacher it was. After the celebration, on my way to lunch, I was stopped by two Mormon missionaries from Brazil. That was an experience I did not expect to happen to me here in Japan!

Music therapy with the babies was a success! We worked on concepts like fast, slow, up, down, and stop. We used finger play and dancing to work on motor skills to songs like “Wheels on the Bus” (using the Japanese lyrics, of course). The babies loved the egg shakers and did very well not throwing them, and instead, shook them the way the music instructed. They also enjoyed the scarves. One baby did not like the texture of the scarves, which is okay. Another baby loved exploring with her scarf and put it on her head to play peek-a-boo. 

I had off from the nursery school for one day to have my farewell lunch with my program director before she leaves for vacation. She took me to get wagyu since that is one of the Japanese foods I will miss that is hard to find (authentically and affordably) in America. It was so delicious, one of the best steaks I have had! I also got a sweet surprise at lunch. Naoko invited my host grandma! It made me so happy to be able to see her again before I have to go home! After lunch, I was able to get myself back to my host family’s house from Okazaki without the help of Google Maps! I was so proud of myself. Especially because it’s an hour-long trip!

Lately, I have had phone calls with my friends Allie, Emma, Luke, my cousin Isabel, and my mom. Just catching up and discussing all our work and progress in trying to get jobs yet again. I had two job interviews. One was late at night, and the other was early the next morning. I caught up on sleep after my early morning interview and relaxed the rest of that Saturday. 

Hiro picked me up after I got off on Tuesday so that I could help his sister with her baby. It was so much fun, and I got to meet his sister’s friends who also have a new baby. They ordered Domino’s, and I got to try all kinds of pizza and ate ice cream for dessert. I had a blast with the little baby!

My weekends were fun. I went to Don Quijote and tried KFC in Japan for the first time. My honest thoughts… not very good. I know many Japanese people love KFC, but the location I went to was not very tasty. Afterwards, I made my way down to Nagoya to see Megan one more time. Her roommate, Holly, made curry, and it was fantastic! I had a super fun time that night. When I got back, I saw Hiro at the station. The station was mobbed with people because Toyohashi had a fire festival that night.

These past two weeks, I was with the three-year-olds and the four-year-olds. The three-year-olds were so sweet to me! They started telling me that they loved me. It made me feel so happy! All the kids have had water activities to do now that it is so hot. One day, the three-year-olds got to play in the sandpit while the teachers sprayed them with hoses and had a sprinkler on. They were all so messy, but they had so much fun! Nap time starts when I go on my lunch break. Every time I came back, there was always one specific three-year-old who wouldn’t be sleeping. When he saw me, though, he would shut his eyes tight, and I would help him fall asleep. I think the teachers appreciated it. 

The next week with the four-year-olds was full of energy and activities. I got to see them use the pool! They played fun pool games, and the kids who did not have swimsuits got a bucket of water and water shooters to shoot water at the kids in the pool. It was cute and fun. After day one, the kids seemed like they had begun to mellow out. They were not as energetic and did not use me as a jungle gym like I am used to. However, after day two with them, I realized they were still as energetic as before! I had nice conversations with their teachers using Google Translate during the kids’ naptime. We talked about how sad it is that I have to go back to the States. Now that it’s July, it is officially my last month in Japan (insert crying). 

Music therapy with the four-year-olds was extremely fun! Since my time here is ending, I planned a session with lots of games and activities that the children enjoy. We did a freeze dance to APT again. They were singing APT all week leading up to music therapy, so I thought it would be nice to let them dance to it one more time. We also played some games, and the kids did great with following directions, taking turns, teamwork, and using listening skills! I am so proud of the growth they’ve achieved in music therapy. I can see how far they’ve come.

One Tuesday, I got off from the nursery school because my program director, Naoko, wanted to take me to a traditional tea ceremony.  I got to wear a traditional summer kimono, and it was so beautiful and comfortable. Naoko also knew someone who did my hair as well. I felt so beautiful! We were served matcha and desserts, and were taught how to eat and drink it properly and why those traditions are in place. The reason you have to turn the bowl when you drink matcha is because of the design on it. It shows respect to the painters who made the bowl that you don’t place your mouth on the side with the design. The teacher who taught us the tea ceremony traditions also had an adorable small business that I did some shopping at. 

One of the things I have been focusing on outside of the nursery school has been doing these job applications for when I get home. They can be stressful, but after getting into the groove of them, it has gotten less scary. I have been continuing to make time to call my friends and family on the phone during free time. I had a really fun conversation with my friends back home. It is nice that we are all in the same boat in terms of trying to find jobs. Having someone who can relate is reassuring. 

My weekends were awesome and eventful! I went to Nagoya to stay over at my friend Megan’s apartment. It was her birthday that week, and she had a birthday party in a karaoke room with friends. It was a blast, and there were many familiar faces I had seen before. Everyone sang their hearts out, and nobody was too embarrassed to sing. It was a great environment and a wonderful time full of laughter. The next day, after I said goodbye to Megan, I went to the Osu Shopping District. It was super cool and fun. I bought lots of great souvenirs! The following weekend, I went to the zoo with Hiro. Afterwards, I got to meet his nephew! He’s only two months old and so cute! Then I went to Nagoya to see Megan for a little girls’ night! We watched Episode Three of Star Wars, and then I caught the last train home.

These past two weeks, I was with the one-year-olds, the babies, and the five-year-olds. It is very nice to be back volunteering at the nursery school. The babies are so cute! This is my first time being with the new group of babies. One little girl was particularly attached to me. She liked how I comforted her when she cried. The teachers in the baby class tried to converse with me, and they were very kind. It was difficult to talk, but it was much better than when I first came to Japan. It’s the small victories. 

The TV in the one-year-olds’ classroom was used for the first time since I arrived. The teachers put on an adorable show that had many music videos. They had it on to keep the children occupied while taking turns measuring and weighing them. Some children were excited about the show and danced to the songs; others couldn’t care less that the TV was on. 

One day, I went to the five-year-olds’ classroom during the babies’ naptime. It was great to see them again, and they were excited that I visited them. We played lots of card games and arm wrestled. I will miss the kids at the nursery school so much when I leave. 

The next day, the five-year-olds did a tea ceremony in the gym. After I finished music therapy with the babies, I went to the gym to join them. They sat in two columns facing each other and took turns being servers and being served. They would first bring over a tray with a bean paste dessert on it and bow, then, when the dessert was finished, they’d bring a bowl of hot matcha and bow again. The gym was decorated, and classical Japanese music was playing. It was very fun and sweet! It is cool to see the kids learn about the ancient traditions of Japan. The following week, the five-year-olds got another exciting opportunity. They got to play with the children who attend the school for disabled children next door. They all played together, included them very well, and were kind! Many of the parents of the disabled kids remembered me from when I did music therapy with them. I am happy I made a lasting impression. The kids also had the opportunity to learn how to make umeboshi. They pressed and juiced a plant I cannot remember the name of, and learned about how umeboshi is made. Afterwards, they all took turns practicing traffic light rules. One child would hold the sign for the traffic light, one would hold the walk signs, and the other would pretend to be drivers and pedestrians. It tested their knowledge of how the lights correspond with each other, and who has the right of way. 

The nursery school also held a large birthday celebration for the children who have June birthdays (they do an event like this every month). All the kids gathered in the gym to celebrate their friends’ birthdays, and multiple kids’ parents showed up. They sang songs for each other, and the birthday kids went up in state to be recognized and get asked a question like “what is your favorite dessert?” 

These five-year-olds are exceptionally smart. They got very excited over a bee that was outside the window. Each kid ran to look at it, and they were all debating whether or not it was a bee, wasp, yellowjacket, or hornet. Then they ran to grab a big book about bugs, and they analyzed the different kinds of bees and bee-like insects to determine what bug it was. I was impressed.

I got to have fun phone calls with my cousin Isabel and my best friend Emma while I walked to the nursery school and took my lunch break. It is always refreshing to catch up with my favorite people! I also called my mom during lunch one day to help me get started on job applications. Sadly, it’s getting to the time where I need to look for a job back home. 

The rainy season has officially started; it rained every day for a week! As much as I love the sunshine, the way the rain is on the windows in my room makes for a very cozy atmosphere. 

Music therapy with the babies went great! They loved all the instruments, but they did put all of them in their mouths, so everything has to be thoroughly disinfected. Their favorite was the egg shakers. They responded very well to the rattling of the egg shakers and had a blast shaking them around. We worked on following directions, fine motor skills, concepts such as high, low, fast, slow, and counting, as well as vocalizations. I tried to find a Japanese equivalent to the song “Tap Your Sticks” by Hap Palmer, but came up short. It is alright, though, the babies still loved using the rhythm sticks. 

I have been getting sad that I have to go back to America soon. Everything I was missing so much about America, I do not miss anymore. Being with my family reminded me of everything different about America, and I realized how many things I will leave behind in Japan. I’m going to miss how quiet and peaceful Toyohashi is. I’ll miss being a two-minute walk from the nearest grocery store. United Planet prepped me that I would experience culture shock going back home, but I was not sure if that would happen to me. Now I realize it’s real, and it will take me a while to readjust to America. 

On the weekend, I got to call my best friends Emma and Allie, and we all caught up! I also learned that my friend Megan and I were invited to our mutual friend’s wedding back in America. She is going to stay with me the weekend of the wedding! It is so nice to have a friend that I get to continue my friendship with back in America. Hiro took me to Cococurry since I had not tried it yet. I got a level 8, which was a bit too spicy. Afterwards, we went to the batting cages and did karaoke! The following weekend, I did not do much. I relaxed and had a nice, long phone call with my family and friends, and worked on job applications.

My family came to see me and we took a vacation! The day they flew in, I had the day off, so I spent it at Tokyo DisneySea. I was able to do all but one ride I was hoping to do, took tons of photos, and bought a lot of souvenirs. I remember Disney being magical as a kid, but it is still just as magical as an adult! At the end of the day, I reunited with my family at the hotel, and it was wonderful to see them, even with their jet lag. 

On the second day of vacation, we went to a temple and got fortunes. Mine was very good! Annalyse’s was not so great, so she tied it in a knot on the fence to make sure it wouldn’t come true. My family went to an otter cafe and then to the most beautiful local cafe run by the sweetest man. We ended the day with beautiful city views of Tokyo from the top of Sunshine City Mall and took a stop at the largest gacha store in the world. 

On the third day, we started at Hamarikyu Gardens. There, we had an informal tea ceremony with matcha and bean paste desserts. For lunch, we went to the Tsukiji fish market, where I got yakisoba. Afterwards, my dad and I went to Teamlab Planets, while my mom and sister went to Teamlab Borderless. We met back up at the 3D cat billboard and then saw Godzilla Head after we had a delicious gyoza dinner. We ended the day at the Tokyo Metropolitan Building to see their light show. 

The fourth day started at Takeshita Street, which was very fun. We got rainbow cheese corndogs and grilled cheese sandwiches. My corn dog was so delicious! Afterwards, we went to Cafe Reissue for 3D latte art. I got Totoro, my sister got our dog Snowball, my dad got Captain America’s shield, and my mom got Hello Kitty. We then went to Shibuya crossing and saw the Hachi dog statue, and walked through Shibuya crossing. We even got to watch it from the Starbucks located at the crossings. Then we hopped on the Shinkansen to go to our next city… Kyoto!

We started the fifth day in a bamboo forest! We stopped for ice cream, did local shopping, and then went on a hike up to a monkey park. The hike was longer than expected, but as we got close to the top, we started seeing so many monkeys. Tourists could feed the monkeys, and my sister chose to feed them apples. That was a good choice, too because the other option of peanuts was not well received by the monkeys. They threw down every peanut handed to them; it was hilarious! We ended the day making custom music boxes. 

On the sixth day, we went to Fushimi Inari Shrine. That’s the one with all the Tori gates. We thought we wanted to hike to the top, but by the time we got to the start of the official hike, we did not have time to do the whole thing. The local area around the shrine was adorable, and we had fun exploring. We went to an excellent burger place and I had a really good conversation with the staff in Japanese! Everyone (including me) was impressed. Then, we went to Nijo Castle and a fabulous tonkatsu restaurant for dinner. We ended the day with some thrifting. I got a cute purple skirt!

My dad had a surprise for me and my sister on the seventh day. He got a shirt that had Annalyse’s, our dog Snowball’s, and my face all over it. He saved it for the day he was going to meet my host family. We took the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Toyohashi and met my host family for lunch. We got udon! They loved my dad’s shirt and told him about basketball. After lunch, we went to Don Quijote for fun shopping! Then we ended the day with my host family by getting crepes! 

On the eighth day, we went to the nursery school I volunteer at! My family got to meet the staff and the children. They were all very excited to meet my family! My parents were amazed by the independence of the children and how much they accomplished. Afterwards, I showed them my favorite park and got us lunch. Then, we took the bullet train to Osaka!

We started our time in Osaka at Universal Studios Japan. My mom had gotten many fast passes for our family, but we did not need most of them because it rained the entire day we were there. Initially the rain had us bummed out, but after a while we realized it was a blessing. My dad and sister got to ride every single roller coaster(some more than once). Annalyse and I had a blast at Nintendo World since we got the Power Bands. It elevated the experience! USJ was a 10/10!

On day ten, we slept in. We were exhausted from our long day at USJ. After slowly waking up and getting ready, we transferred to a hotel closer to Dotonbori. After checking in, we explored Dotonbori and then got conveyor belt sushi for dinner. Coincidentally, we went to dinner at the perfect time because shortly after we sat down, the restaurant became swamped with tourists waiting for a table. The sushi was a very fun experience, and considering most of it was $1, it was very tasty. Then we did the Osaka Don Quijote Ferris wheel. It was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. It may sound dramatic, but I was very scared. It is not your typical Ferris wheel. My family ended the night with some karaoke. After my dad said he wasn’t going to sing, he sang six songs. 

The eleventh day had the family splitting up. My dad and sister went to Round 1 while my mom and I went to a cooking class. It was run by locals and was very cute and informative. We learned how to make two types of ramen and two types of gyoza from scratch! Afterwards, we reconvened at the large Lion’s Head shrine and walked to the cinnamoroll cafe. Then we went to Shinsekai for arcades and fun architecture. Afterwards, we got dinner at a local restaurant that got great reviews. The place was run by an older couple. The woman was our hostess, and her husband was the chef. They had all kinds of currency taped to the wall from tourists, and the couple was ecstatic that I was able to talk to them in Japanese! The woman even gave us all free sake! The food was delicious, and we wished we could’ve stayed and gotten to know them better, but we had to head to Teamlab Gardens. On our way out, the couple gave us snacks for the road (also on the house), and we made it to our last stop of vacation. TeamLab Gardens was short and sweet, and the interactive art was very fun!

The next day my family had a slow morning as we made our way to the shinkansen station. That’s where we parted ways and I returned to Toyohashi while they went back to America. It was really great to see my family and experience many cultural activities outside of my little town of Toyohashi!

I have officially finished my placement at Fighting Words NI. My colleagues made my last day so special! In the morning, I had my last workshop ever and I was storymaker. The class was a group of P5s, and they were enthusiastic and imaginative. We ended up writing a fantastical story about a blue monster and a motorbike with pink flames. I won’t give too much more away, but you can see how it ends on the Fighting Words website. I got teary at the end when one student eagerly asked if he could publish his own story in a real book and another wrote on her feedback card that she was proud of herself. It was the perfect workshop to end on, equal parts fun and meaningful, and it embodied everything that I love about working in this format.

We were originally planning to have my goodbye lunch in the cafe in our building, but my coworkers surprised me by taking me to my favorite sushi restaurant, Kamakura. I got my usual, the smoked salmon and rocket roll, and we chatted and chowed. When we got back to the Crescent, Aoife presented me with a homemade chocolate raspberry cake and my family joined us for coffee. It was fun to watch members of my old and new home mix and mingle, laughing together and asking thoughtful questions. I left with an armful of beautifully sentimental gifts: a card and a book with lovely inscriptions from all my colleagues, a claddagh ring from St George’s Market, and a mini booklet with stories and teacher feedback from some workshops I’ve led and photos of our adventures together.

On the back of the booklet was a line from a story written in one of my recent workshops: “She had no map, so she decided to go by heart.” I think that about sums up the last 9 months. I had no guide for how to build a new life in a foreign country. I arrived last September alone and hopeful. I am leaving with a heart full of love and a mind full of new learnings. I had the privilege of working with people who welcomed me not just as a colleague, but as a friend. I learned from them, and from the joyous children who repeatedly bolstered my faith in creativity and goodness. I led workshops, went on field trips, attended networking events, moved countless bean cubes, and got published in the Irish Times. I hiked with friends, tried boxing, joined a choir, took spontaneous EasyJet weekend trips, and learned to love being alone. I discovered more about who I am and what I want in life and vocation. I am a changed woman!

Thank you to all of you who have followed along this journey! It means so much to me that you have taken the time to read my words. Thank you to the Lumos Foundation for making this incredibly formative experience possible. Goodbye for now, and see you soon, USA!

These past two weeks, I was with the five-year-olds and three-year-olds. The five-year-olds were way more relaxed than the four-year-olds, which was refreshing. It was crazy to think that just a few weeks prior, they were the four-year-olds who would tire me out. I had a lot of fun with them. I have a strong connection with a student with Down Syndrome. It was great to see her again. There was a moment this week when I was communicating with the vice principal, and Google Translate did not work, but I could understand her well enough to respond in Japanese. The staff was so excited, and honestly, I was too. My communication is improving! 

There is a new student in the five-year-old class. She recently transitioned from their academy for disabled children, so she is having some difficulty adjusting to the school’s routines and expectations. She does not get overstimulated easily, but she has difficulty processing verbal instructions. She is very tactile, sensory seeking, so patting her arm repeatedly or swaying while she sits on my lap helps keep her calm. She has the sweetest laugh when something excites her. I could tell she was most likely autistic, and that was confirmed by the teachers. The attitudes about autism here are different from what I am used to. The teachers treat it as a very sad burden, which it can be, but Americans usually have a more nuanced and well-rounded view of autism, from my personal experience. For example, many teachers were shocked that my sister has a job and a driver’s license despite being autistic, whereas in the United States, that is not usually as surprising. Since the teachers have seen how well I work with the kids with disabilities, they have put me with them more frequently. I don’t mind, I have been working with people with disabilities almost my whole life, so I am comfortable with that responsibility. I have also been given the responsibility of helping the kids who have trouble falling asleep at naptime fall asleep. I am usually able to get them sleeping, and it makes me feel very accomplished.

The school hired a magician to come and entertain the children one day. It was a very cute performance that the kids were extremely excited to see. All morning, the kids kept reminding me about the magic show. The show was great, I could tell how he did many of the tricks, but there were a few at the end that I have no clue how he did them. 

I did music therapy with the two-year-olds. They are so adorable! Many of them were curious about my guitar, so I gave them all turns to strum at the end of my session. I was impressed with how well they followed my instructions. Typically, children of this age group need extra assistance, so I was prepared for that, but they understood everything very well. They followed all my movements during the instrument play without needing verbal instruction to do so. They loved using the egg shakers. They loved my modified freeze dance and thought it was so funny when we were all frozen. They even did great listening to my lyrical cues in a movement song to catch what movement they needed to do. When I did music therapy with the three-year-olds they sang very loudly and were great at identifying their colors!

After I finished music therapy with the three-year-olds the five-year-olds came into the gym and the teachers told me not to go anywhere. One of the teachers went to the piano and began to play “Happy Birthday!” All the children and staff sang to me and gave me a little crown. It was so incredibly sweet that I started tearing up! Over the weekend I had a great birthday! My host family took me to a wonderful local Italian restaurant. My friend Emma told me that when I get back she is going to pay for us to go skydiving as my birthday present! That was the most exciting gift I could ever ask for! It gives me a really big bucket list task to look forward to when I am back in America!

I got a day off from volunteering because Naoko (my program director) wanted to take me out to do a cultural experience in Japan. She took me to an old onsen in an old castle that is owned by her friend. It had the most stunning mountain views! It was relaxing and full of history. It is hard to describe how it felt, but being immersed in another culture like this is an incredible feeling. Naoko told me all the nice things the nursery school staff had told her. According to Naoko, they told her that they love having me and appreciate the initiative I take in the classrooms to help the teachers. They also told her that they are incredibly impressed with my music therapy sessions and how professional I am. They were even worried I was overworking myself on the music therapy plans because of how well they have been going! It was incredibly flattering to hear that and reassured me of the difference and impact I am making. The staff even told Naoko they are considering hiring a music therapist to come to the school after I am gone! Which is exactly the goal of my work here! After the onsen, Naoko took me to meet a music therapist her husband met at a conference. She did not know much about him or his work, so she was a bit nervous. I got to observe two of his sessions, and they were incredible!! He is amazingly talented and everything I was taught in college. I got to ask him questions in between the sessions and learned that he is one of the pioneers of music therapy in Japan! He is one of the founders of Japan’s music therapy association! I was stunned and amazed. Naoko had no idea either! What an incredible opportunity that came about as the result of many coincidences lining up in perfect timing. It shows God’s faithfulness and was, yet again, more reassurance that this is where God wants me to be. The next day after volunteering I went to my friend Megan’s apartment since she was hosting an event. We all ate taco rice and played a new board game. I had a great time!

My friend Hiro took me to a Toyohashi baseball game. It was super fun! The crowd was very excited throughout the entire game. I liked watching them play. They were not MLB-level players, but it turned out to be an exciting game. Toyohashi won as well!! Hiro and I got to know each other a lot better, and despite being so different, we relate on a lot as well. It is nice to have a friend. Over the weekend, my sister and I played video games like we used to when I was at my internship. I also hopped on a call with Emma and Allie for crochet club, but I forgot to buy yarn. It was still fun, though! It was nice and relaxing. I have been taking my weekends slowly and trying to be present.

It has been two months since I moved out of my island bedroom. Since then, I signed a lease for a duplex in a new part of Nashville, got a full-time and a seasonal job, completed my Lumos presentation requirement at Belmont, and more. On my one-month marker of returning home, I was overlooking the Smoky Mountains with a friend I made in 2023 in Seattle, Washington, while on a mission trip with Belmont. We were at a work conference—almost two years later, and we ran into each other as new co-workers, spending our final moments of the conference having a great conversation about the similar bends and turns our lives had taken. Despite our two-year gap in conversations, we were able to bond over experiences that were significant to us.

These moments that stitch together the years, like a rope bridge between two seemingly isolated experiences, offer me an abundance of hope. There’s a lot that happens in the in-between, but all I feel is relief when a great memory from the past is refreshed into something new.

This phenomenon is what I am seeking with the DR. I remind myself that I have yet to inherit the full-impact of how my time in the DR will affect my work and personal life in the States. Because now, in the months since I returned home, there’s been a gap—how can I bring some of the DR with me? I ask myself. My time there was distinctly personal, an experience that only my mind’s eye can conjure images from. Now, my environments, work, and life rhythms have completely shifted. I’ve been affected by it—by the girls, work, experiences, sorrows, laughs, and growth that has resulted from my nine months. A distinctly significant “bridge” moment with another person has yet to come, but I am reminded of the DR often: when I brew coffee in my red greca, listen to merengue, pass a motorcycle on the street, or smell the rich scent of plumeria. 

On my final day in the DR, bags stacked by the door, I received an email from a publishing house concerning a job I thought I wasn’t going to get. To my surprise, the company offered me a full-time position as a managing editor, complete with a salary, insurance, PTO, and an office to commute to daily. I couldn’t believe how this was all coming together. Going back home brought concerns of dreading the empty space in my professional life. Now, in a matter of days, it was completely filled. As I shared the news with the Reyes’, I spoke with an uncertainty in my voice that it couldn’t all be real. I hadn’t prepared for both leaving the DR and New Hope Girls, and beginning a new job to happen at once. As I spent my last day eating a good meal and spending time with their family, it hit me that I was really going home, really saying bye. I had things waiting for me back home, even. It didn’t seem real.

Two months later, and I’m still trying to bring things together. My arms feel full with all the memories I’m trying not to forget, and the future plans I’m trying to make. I’m collecting many things, and the display is a bit eclectic at the moment. Now that I am post-grad, I am learning how to furnish my adult life—mentally and physically. Time is now my most finite resource, and I’m currently ambling through a delayed realization that life no longer orbits around hanging out, going to class, and picking up a shift at my old low–stakes, part-time retail job. Now, I have five hours of free time after my 9-to-5, excluding the hours dedicated to simple human maintenance. My friends experienced this last year, and they offer pro-tips when asked—and I have certainly been asking. Like the DR, it’s a new challenge I’m grateful for.

Time moved slowly in the DR, as if I were wading through a swallow ocean. Nashville moves at the pace of morning traffic; at once stalled, then all at once rushed down I-65 S with a Buick on your tail. When I’m not experiencing one, I oddly miss the other. I’ve been missing the DR; but if I went back, I’d miss Nashville again. Reality is somewhere sitting still inside the paradox, and I am spinning a bit. However, I know I am currently in the right place for this time of life. Although, as content as I am, I still fantasize about my future.

I have aspirations of working abroad again as an ESL teacher in a Spanish-speaking country, or maybe working in international publishing in Europe; I’ll always have an interest in furthering my education and my experiences in non-profit work, and my interest in having my own classroom has not left me either—but that is for another time. I rest knowing that, so far, I was in the right places at the right times, even if I didn’t realize it. And, even better, I’ll always be unafraid to travel now. There’s places I haven’t seen yet, and there’s friends to visit in the DR.

I’m so thankful for this experience. From a young age, my curiosity toward the rest of the world became the definitive motive for a lot of what I chose to do. Reading was my first vehicle for world exploration, and that desire to see something new—once explored exclusively through libraries and bookshelves—has now become a tangible reality, and books have become the accessory to that. Ironically, it has all come full circle. The thing that equipped me with a desire to see the world (reading) has become the thing I help create for people all over the world (books). I was lucky to get to go to the DR, and I’m proud that while there I helped create a book that can bring the DR to people all over the world so they can witness the profound work that New Hope Girls is doing, and the joy resulting from rescue.

Until next time,

Hasta luego,

Lauren

last night – we painted mugs, and I was gifted one.

A group trip to Samana island

my Lumos presentation

Papa John’s – final dinner with my roommates

My last conference with New Hope Girls!

noche de moda!!