Cheesy musical accompaniment aside, yes it's true! Misako and I finally have a date and location for our upcoming wedding! As stated in the title above, it'll be on June 22nd in Okinawa! The officiator of the wedding lives there, and he was one of the teachers during DTS, which is why we decided to have it there! There is much to plan and much to do, but we are both very excited to share our happiness with you all!
As much as we wanted to have the wedding in America, it wasn't practical for either of our parents, due to health and finances, so we decided on a closer location. It's unfortunate, however: we are also planning and praying about visiting America in September as a married couple! Misako has never been to the USA before, and I desire to introduce her to all of you, so please pray for the funding and timing to make this trip a possibility!
Some of you have been asking the story behind the crystal I gave Misako instead of a traditional engagement ring. It's a bit of a long story, but to put it simply: In 2017, I visited Japan for the first time as a tourist, and I visited the Studio Ghibli museum in Tokyo. I wasn't allowed to take photos inside the building, but here are some of the outside shots:
If you don't know what Studio Ghibli is, it's an animation studio, which have created some ground-breaking animated movies like Spirted Away, Howl's Moving Castle, My Neighbor Totoro, and many others. I grew up with these movies since I was in middle school, and actually started my interest in Japanese media, culture, and people. Here is a trailer of some of the studio's classic films:
Anyway, I was pursing their gift shop, wanting to use the last of my spending budget on something special. I couldn't decide until I spotted this beauty:
This lovely pendent is a recreation of the magical crystal from one of their classics: Castle in the Sky, which served as an important plot piece that the main heroine, Sheeta, used to save the world from certain doom After I bought it, I vowed to give it to the woman who would become my wife someday. I kept it and cared for it for over seven years, including bring it here to Sendai. Once I knew that Misako was the woman I wanted to marry, I did ask her upfront if she wouldn't mind getting something different besides a ring for our engagement, which she was okay with. We both are fans of Castle in the Sky, so that helped! She loved it and is planning on wearing it for our wedding ceremony! With the risk of sounding egotistical, "atta boy, Soren!"
I can never thank the Lord or you all for your continued support and prayers throughout the years. It's an honor to share this joy and happiness with everyone, knowing that the season ahead will be challenging, but also bright and wonderful! Later this month, I will be making a video about us for our church, so stay tuned! Love you all and have a wonderful spring!
Proverbs 31:10
"An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels."
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