RFLCT

This is my friend, Tiffany. 

On January 31st, 2011 Tiffany set out for Sendai, Japan to teach English to kindergarteners at the MeySen Academy.  

Her class

Some of her cutie pies :)

Tiffany intended to spend 14 months living and teaching in Sendai, but on March 11th at14:47 JST the most powerful earthquake to ever hit Japan shattered her plans. 

Sendai, Japan - post earthquake, only six miles from the tsunami

"I didn't know what was going on at first. The shaking was very intense and lasted for several minutes. Many of the teachers ran outside. They were all holding each other on the ground, crying and praying. Everything around us was moving; the buildings, the lightposts, the trees... everything. As soon as it stopped it started to snow, heavily. I ran to the campus daycare where I spent the next three hours comforting Japanese children, some just 2 years old, that were all scared to death. They were crying and shaking uncontrollably. The Japanese are very stoic by nature so when I saw parents picking up their children, running and sobbing, it was shocking to see such emotion. I lived in the school for three days with very limited food and water. There was no heat, no electricity, no phones." - Tiffany

After seven short weeks in Japan, Tiffany headed home. The journey took 10 days all together and was physically/mentally/emotionally EXHAUSTING.

(3 days living at the school, 1 day traveling to the Air Force base, 3 days living at the base, 3 days traveling form Misawa, Japan to Aomori, Japan to Tokyo, 13 hour, to Honolulu, to Seattle, to Minneapolis, to Chicago).

A week after her return to the States, Tiffany and I went to Egglectic Cafe in Wheaton to reunite over Nutella crepes

(they may be bad for your body but they are good for your soul)

"I want everyone to be grateful. Grateful for the water you have to drink. Grateful for the food you have to eat, grateful that you have a house to live in. Be grateful for the day you have today, because you never know what will happen tomorrow. Let go of grudges and just love. Be Grateful for the ones you love and for the people that love you." - Tiffany

Donate to the Japan relief efforts here.

Glad to have you home safe, Tiffany. 

xoxo, 

Sarah