Rachael actually gets a little freaked out (Tuesday)

I woke up this morning to my alarm clock radio which was playing a plinky piano Waltz. Now, I don’t know any Japanese so I cannot say for sure, but given the voice over and the pacing, I think I was listening to a dance class on the radio…what a great way to wake up.

Also, I learned how to get internet in my room! Find me online at skype.com!

Chaplain Crenshaw from Desron 15 (which commands a fleet) picked me up at 0730. We walked over to his office which is called the cave because it is in one.

An actual cave carved out of the mountain side by hand over the course of 15 years by the Japanses in order to have a secret command here.

I spent the morning hanging out with the chaplain and RP1 Eddy. The war room was the coolest-it has a huge two story tall map on the wall which shows the whole 7^th fleet coverage area and then some. Since most the ships are at sea, it was a slow day in the office so I got to see more of office life and I got to hang out and play more. It was not only pleasant, but real seeing life in action.

The chaplain and RP then took me to the USS John McCain where I was met by one of the members from the Jewish community and Ensign Gus Bennett to give me a tour. If you ever have the opportunity to get a tour of a Naval war ship, I highly recommend it. I saw where the anchor is and where all the ammunition is launched as well as stored. The opening blog picture is me with my arm on the 5 inch gun. It is called the 5 inch gun because the artillery in it is 5 inches. That’s a big thing to shoot! I am, by the way, a non-combatant. I am not allowed to fire the gun or anything like that, but I can pose next to it.

My tour guides-the launch pad-the pyrotechnic box

We went below, I saw life on the ship, the berths where people live, the mess where they eat and several of the places where they work. I could not take pictures of everything because of top secret something something. That makes me laugh that I might have seen something top secret—I mean, I would never know…

Then the freak out part of the day…Chaps and RP1 took me INTO the caves. Their office is built into it, but the caves remain. 27 km known under Yokosuka. It is pitch black. We were carrying really heavy flashlights (REALLY heavy), the sound is all deadened, there is no light beyond the globe of the flashlight, it is cold and the air is thick with the dampness of a cave. If the light went out, there was nothing to see. Nothing to hear. No way to know where to go or who/what else was just around the corner (not that you would even know if there WAS a corner…) We toured for about a half an hour and I was not unhappy when we were done.

It was super cool. The geology was everywhere and just fabulous. The layering of rocks, the forming stalagmites…the 300 bed hospital, command quarters, a shrine…all inside of A CAVE built by hand. People lived there it seemed.

It was until the 70s by the US for secret decoding Russian messages (or something like that).

When we were done, we went back to the chapel of hope where I was greeted by a message saying a Jewish enlisted woman was in the hospital and wanted a visit. I went immediately to go see her but she was heavily sedated. The people I met who know her are upset to see her suffering and in a lot of pain. I do not have a sense of what exactly is happening but she is hurting and wants comfort and company. I am hoping provide both.

This is another moment when I am finding myself here-present here. I have thought about wanting to be in this position for so long and here I am. I do not know how to explain how it feels. I do not think I will know until months from now. Can I do it? Can I actually bring comfort to a hurting woman in the hospital? Can I provide spiritual guidance for an entire Jewish community? Can I be a resource for future questions, doubts, crises, and celebrations?

It is overwhelming and humbling and overwhelming and exhilarating all at the same time.

Thanks everyone out there who is reading and an extra thanks to those emailing and saying hi. Knowing that people are listening as I go through this makes it easier to navigate. I feel connected to my “normal” life and I feel linked to a support network which is so valuable right now.

Happy New Year to everyone. I hope (pray) that we all find what we need, what we seek at this time.