Tokyo Japan Week 64

Happy Halloween!

Hello Awesome Family! Wow... I can't believe it's been another month gone by, and now it's November! Elder Shumway and I bought some small Christmas decorations today for P-day, and it's really starting to feel like Fall here in Urawa! Speaking of Urawa, we received transfer calls today and I'm staying for another with Elder Shumway! He's now my longest companion, and we're so stoked for this coming transfer! This one will bring us right up until Christmas, so we're so pumped to work way hard this transfer to see the Christmas Miracle! The cranes and everything are looking so amazing, and it's gotten everyone so excited for Christmas, it's gonna be so awesome!

As well this week was the Halloween party! I'm way glad you guys got to see some of those photos on Facebook, it was really such an awesome party! There was about 40+ non members that attended, including a small family Elder Shumway and I had the opportunity to meet a couple of weeks back, they're so awesome! It was such an awesome time, and so many members brought their friends to introduce to us, and it was really so great. Elder Hansen and I decided to go as Nerds, which actually is a word in Japanese! Haha, it went pretty awesome, and overall such a memorable Halloween in Japan! Candy isn't super big in Japan actually besides gummy candies, so I didn't eat too much, haha, but it was such a blast handing out candy to all of the little kids! During the party I just felt way thankful to be serving in an area as awesome as Urawa, and overall it was such a great time!

Meiji Jingu shrine

This week was pretty awesome! We had the temple on Tuesday, and then on Thursday we had mission leadership council! Except this one was really so special, as we took a tour of Meiji Jingu, one of the most famous shrines in Japan right in the heart of Tokyo! We walked around the shrine, received a tour from a Shinto Priest who had lived in Provo for multiple years, and actually participated in a few traditional ordinances of Shinto! It was such an amazing experience, and it was so cool to see some of those core beliefs of Shinto-ism, and feel of how much it really is apart of the culture. As well we checked out Yoyogi Park, which is always so gorgeous, and overall it was just a way great day. Japanese culture is really so awesome, and I'm really so excited to learn more about it in the future! There really was such a awesome feeling around the shrine, and it made me feel so thankful to be teaching this great gospel message to the people here in Japan. It's such an amazing country, with really amazing people, and I'm so thankful to be serving here at this great time! With Christmas coming forward, I know there are so many amazing miracles ahead, and it's gonna be such an awesome holiday season here in Tokyo!

There really were so many amazing miracles this week, and it's really made me feel so thankful to be serving in Tokyo Japan, and to be a Zone Leader here in Urawa! This will be my 7th transfer in a row as a Zone Leader, and I feel so blessed to be serving with so many amazing missionaries, they've all blessed and changed my life so much, and I'm so thankful to be able to give it my best effort into this next transfer! Really sad but Elder Dunbar heads back home this coming week, and his family is heading down this week to pick him up, but it was such an awesome blessing serving with him in Tsukuba, and then here in Urawa for the last couple transfers, he's really taught me so much, and is such an awesome friend. The last week at the temple, I really felt so strongly again the amazing blessing of brotherhood that serving as a missionary gives you. I feel like Heavenly Father has been so kind to me with the missionaries he's allowed me to serve alongside. They've all shaped my life so much, and have taught me so much about what it really means to serve as a missionary. I received an email from Elder Howard this week, and it turns out he's going to be proposing soon to his girlfriend! This would mean that all three of my trainers will be married, or engaged to be married! That's so intense, haha. They all feel so much like older brothers, and I'm just way thankful for the chance to have served with such awesome examples. :)

It sounds like you guys all had an awesome Halloween! I definitely miss the American culture with Halloween, but Japan was pretty gnarly. :) I was on exchanges with Kasukabe area on Halloween, and we actually set a baptismal date on the exchange! Then the next morning, I went to a baptismal service in Yachiyo, which is right next to Narita, my first area, so overall it was a pretty awesome Halloween! Whit as well I'm so excited to share some of these pictures around and see how many photography students have seen your work before! Lexa, I'm always rocking the Giants jersey, haha, but I'll now be wearing it with more pride, way awesome! Also Mom! I'm so sorry I forgot to mention the two shirts... I'm so lame! I seriously seriously love them! Especially the thin sweatshirt, it's so cool! I feel bad cause you're sending me so many awesome clothes that I just wear in the apartment and zone sports activities, haha. But I always look way good ;) So thank you so much! I really love them, and I appreciate the packages so much. They really brighten my day so much, and it really means so much to me that you take all that time to send me those packages, love you! Dad, I just want to say thanks for always being so kind and loving in your emails, and always talking about the things you're studying most in the gospel recently. I'm so excited to sit down and talk more about the Book of Mormon and Bible with you, and all of the many things I've been learning about this incredible gospel here as a missionary. :) Tyler, I love you! Just want to say thanks so much for always being so kind, and being such an awesome example to me of the missionary I hope to be like. You're the man!

Well it's been such an amazing week, and I'm so excited to go forward into this next transfer! I love serving as a missionary with all of my heart, and I'm so excited and thankful to be serving in a country as awesome as Japan. This coming transfer is actually the last transfer for all of the sister missionaries in my group, which reminds me that time is going quick! I'm so excited to keep giving my best effort and whole heart to this great work, and I'm so excited for this coming Christmas season here in Japan. I love being a missionary, and I'm so thankful to be apart of such an amazing family! I love you guys so much, and although I miss you so much during this time of the year, I know this is where I'm supposed to be, and the next year will be all the better, and it's going to be such a great reunion! I love you guys so much, have an amazing week!

Love,
Elder Justesen