two days left

two days left until I "leave on a jet plane" and "find my way home again"... ok sorry, I couldn't help it!
We survived the monastary just fine. I only have 5 minutes to share about it, but I'll tell you that the head monk was very kind to us. He let us wear socks (nothing else) and gave us hot tea after we meditated for over an hour... such a sweetie. "little monk", as we referred to the younger monk, did all of the housekeeping, chores, and cooking. We had 15 minutes for meals and everything was ritualized. It was very cold, but (suprisingly) I got better! I'm not sick anymore... well, not really. I think I may have sprained an ankle, but that's something I can deal with.
I think I am really going to miss Japan. I look forward to insulation and central heat, but I will miss the misty mountains, the ocean, and the tradition that seeps into everything. I will miss the friendly faces, but not dragging around luggage. I think there are aspects of what we have learned here that I will be excited to adopt in my USA life, but I don't know exactly how I will go about that goal. I know that the concept of "mindfulness" will become a stong part of my life
Time's out! Gotta run. I look forward to seeing you all soon, though! Hopefully I will write a little more about this experience once I have free internet for longer periods of time. Please feel free to give me a call/stop by/write/whatever after the 26th. I may have some jet lag, but I will also have a ton of stories and things to look at. All my love!