Of Small Miracles & Spousal Visas in Japan

Greetings and salutations!

Wow! What a ride! First off, I’ve decided to start titling my posts, primarily because they are being imported into other social media portals. There; now your rampant curiosity is no doubt satisfied. Other than that, I just want to send out a huge congratulations to my cousin Jacquie on the birth of her second child, Jade Marguerite Haycroft! Beautiful :)

So, back in Japan! How crazy is that? I guess that depends who you talk to. All I can say is that it is good to be back and it’s about 20 degrees outside so no complaints. Reconsidering the idea of home as a I often do and am often asked, at present I would say that I see Canada as my family/friends home, Israel as my spiritual home, and Japan as my practical home. There! More questions answered. All answers are subject to change without notice.

As my Facebook status indicated, my first day in Japan was a big one – turned 29, got an iPhone (how did I ever live before?), and got (legally) married. The fun hasn’t let up one bit since as I’ve been insanely busy either visiting various government offices or making preparations for our wedding ceremony, which is now a  mere five days away….wow….weird to even think about it! As far as all the cold feet jokes and such, I’m actually hanging in there quite well I think, though I AM nervous about meeting Takako’s father (for the first time) the day before the wedding. If I survive to write another post, you’ll know how that went.

We were hoping to be able to stream the ceremony live over the Internet. Most unfortunately, that is not going to happen so please stay tuned for pics and vids to be posted here and elsewhere. I haven’t had regular Internet access since I arrived, which has hampered communications somewhat, but this should change in the days following the wedding. In the meantime, for those of you still making use of the postal service, you can find Takako and I living at:

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Finally, I want to share a short story that serves as the inspiration for this post. Since beginning the immigration process, we had been told repeatedly that a spousal visa would take at least one month to process, and more likely two. This is why we got legally married asap, to get that process going. We formally applied for the visa on Tue, Oct 13th. The next Monday, a mere six days after my application, I had my visa! Such a thing is unheard of, as several people here have mentioned, and the situation reminds me of similar extraordinary events surrounding the receipt of my Israel visa. Now, while I am indeed a man of faith, I am also something of a sceptic and don’t tend to use words like “miracle” very often but, considering the circumstances, I really see this as God’s hands at work, and this is only the beginning.

With Hope,
Joseph