Day 8

Today was my last day to play with the kids at the kindergarten.  It was basically the same routine as yesterday, Legos, water games, and a movie today we watched My Neighbor Totoro, which is a Hayao Miyazaki film.  He is basically the Walt Disney of Japan and has done many famous films (many are well-known in America too).  Some include Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke and Howl's Moving Castle.  After the movie the kids ate their lunch, which is quite interesting.  They start off by chanting a Christian prayer thanking God for their delicious bento boxes (lunch boxes).  This is especially good because only 3 out of the 13 teachers that work at the kindergarten are Christian.  This prayer is good for both the kids and the teachers to hear every day.  Christian teachers are pretty hard to find, o they have to hire non-Christians as well.  Christian educations are valued because we teach many good values and morals that the Japanese can appreciate.  However, most parents do not want their kids to become Christian.  Because Buddhism/Shintoism (Japanese religion kind of combines the 2) in Japan is a religion shared deeply by the family, it is extremely difficult for a member of the family to become a Christian because this means breaking some of those family ties.  Because of this, many Japanese people are unwilling to hear the gospel.  After leaving the kindergarten, Pastor Tanno took me to the Japanese version of McDonald's, called Mos Burger.  He then showed me around Iwaki to some of the shops near the train station.  Tomorrow is a free day for me, so I will mostly be shopping and napping.  (Also I forgot to take pictures today)

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