Thank you for always helping and praying
for us with a generous heart.
Here is a
summary of bulletin No.23 of “Walking Together”.
Photos on page
1 are grouped with the copy “Sr. Shirahata celebrates 50 years in vows of
religious order”. Many kindergarten children are happily singing together with
Sr. Shirahata. The photos below the copy are from the mass of Sr. Shirahata’s
50 year celebration. On the left is a group photo with Mr. St. Clare's
president Martha Hernandez and Councilor Sr. Susanna. The middle photo is Sr. Shiharata giving a prayer
and the right photo shows the filled church.
A letter from
Sr. Shirahata is on page 2. This was written on Feb 15th, and so she
does not talk about the 50 year celebration mass. We will share Sr. Shirahata’s
thoughts on the mass in the next edition. This edition of the letter starts
with a new year’s greeting, followed by 2 episodes.
In the first
episode, Sr. Shirahata talks about a man, a father of student, who fell from
the 2nd floor of a construction site and hit his head. He was
carried to a hospital, but did not have conscience and the following morning
was vomiting and not making the situation any better. The children all prayed
for his recovery. The man finally came back healthy after 10 days, and Sr.
Shirahata thanked the Lord for listening to the prayers of the children.
The second
episode is about a woman who looks after 10 children on her own – not all who
are her own – and since her husband cannot work due to illness. So that she can
earn some money, Sr. Shirahata has given her work at the kindergarten which has
helped her life a little.
Sr. Shirahata
comments “No one can live alone. People live by helping one another. Recently,
I feel it is important to be able to see the invisible world that is hidden in
what can be seen.”
Sr. Shirahata
hands presents to the children in the photo on page 2.
The first half
of page 3 is a letter from Mr. St. Clare's president Martha Hernandez. The
president starts by a statement of thanks for the “Walking Together” bulletin
and also talks about former president Mother Julia Meijueiro Morosini who
passed away last November 16th. She reflects by remembering former
president Morosini looking forward to receiving the bulletin every month.
From the middle of page 3, Sr. Kamoi (Clara
Monastery Japan Director) talks on “Celebrating Sr. Shirahata’s 50 years”. She
starts with explaining the meaning of 50 years and deeply shows respect for Sr.
Shirahata’s 50 years. She also states “The long journey to celebrating 50 years
is a result of her own efforts, but moreover a blessing of God. She also thanks
Sr. Shirahata’s parents for bringing such a wonderful daughter into this world,
other family, friends, and especially members of “Walking Together”. Thank you
God.”
The photo on
page 3 are from the meeting in Costa Rica. In the center is Mr. St. Clare's
president Martha Hernandez and on the left is Sr. Kamoi.
The bottom of page 3 is a letter from Ms.
Masumi Tamai, a member of the Catholic Azabu Church – where Sr. Shirahata is
from. Ms. Tamai has formed a group within the church called “Polvoron”, which
has been supporting Sr. Shirahata’s activities. Ms. Tamai’s group has been
doing charity by making “Polvoron”, a
famous Spanish snack, and they have been regularly giving to “Walking
Together”. Sr. Shirahata’s 50 year celebration was great news for the group,
and they promise to give more in their future activities.
The photo on page 4, is Sr. Shirahata with
the Polvoron members, Ms. Masumi Tamai is on the left in the first row.
The second half of page is “My Sierra Leone
Diary” by Ms. Saori Hitomi, a 2nd year student at Kochi University.
Last summer, Ms. Hitomi visited Sierra Leone and volunteered for 3 weeks
staying at Lunsar Monastery. School was off for the summer, but she helped
prepare for the new school year and also taught origami. She actively visited
the city and sometimes enjoyed dancing with people.
To further her research, Ms. Hitomi is
planning to visit Sierra Leone again this year.
The photo on page 5 is Ms. Hitomi teaching
origami to a junior high school student.
Page 5 is a
column on voices from supporters. There is one letter that came from a Sunday
School teacher who states “Children in class are gathering money to exchange
Christmas presents, which we all agreed to give to support Sierra Leone. Please
use this charity to cover for lunch.”
The second
half of page 6, is “Connection with “Walking Together”” by Ms. Midori Hamamoto,
a member of “Walking Together”. Ms. Hamamoto has long been the Japanese
representative for the famous world group “Faith and Light” (https://www.faithandlight.org), a group that gathers every month to
support the physically disabled. In the international conference held in Warsaw
in 1994, she met one student who had come from Sierra Leone. He had badly hurt
his leg during civil war. After returning home, Ms. Hamamoto wanted to send
support so that the student could get treatment on his leg. She was having
issues getting in touch with the student, but when she got the opportunity to
talk with Sr. Negishi on the phone, we was fortunate to get in contact with the
student.
After the
conference, Ms. Hamamoto visited Auschwitz with an Irish Priest and learned 2
things. The first is that the sad history the city faced in the past is not the
fault of a special group of Germans, but that it could have been anyone’s fault
had someone thought the same. And, those who gave up their lives to save others
– it is all action by people.
Ms. Hamamoto
says “It has been 25 years since this experience, but the world today is full
of greed and control. As long as one’s own country prospers, as long as one’s
own family is happy seems to be the thinking these days. I feel happiness that
there are people who are willing to support people in countries far away.”
Photo on page
6 is Ms. Hamamoto.
Photo on page
8
Top left:
Agnes, a scholarship student. She graduated nursing school and got her nurse
license. The photo is from training at a national hospital. She wants to aim
for a higher license and is studying har for it.
2 photos on
the bottom left: Children eating a traditional beef lunch on “Mother Guadalupe
Holiday” (December 12th)
Top right:
Girls happy having received clothing support
Middle right:
Excited to eat pancakes for the first time.
Bottom right:
A picture drawn with crayon by an elementary school student
(Copy:Katsujiro Kanno,
Translation:Ayako Nokuo)