MERRY CHRISTMAS (in a very Japanese way).

Today I saw a Buddhist monk begging on the street. Often monks beg for food and money, it is suppose to decrease their desire for material things if they live off the mercy of others. So I put a few coins into his bowl and then I realized something funny. I was putting the money in for the same reason I put money into the Salvation Army Santa's buckets-- The Christmas Spirit. There is no way that the Buddhist monk could have known my reasons for giving him money centered in an entirely different religion, but I foind it amusing none the less.

Cindy sent me a phone card and I was able to call and talk to some family. Yesterday, Christmas Eve, I felt sad about not being home. It felt so much like an ordinary day, which it has never felt like in the US. It still doesn't feel as much like Christmas, but after talking to family and spending time with friends it's better. It's the same as it was for Thanksgiving-- I'm walking around thinking "It's a holiday, today is special" and the rest of Japan is walking around not thinking anything similar.