Greetings, Friends.

Here's hoping your weekend restored you and prepared you for the last stretch of March and the first full week of Spring, and all the weather that comes with it.

This Saturday, I accompanied the Rev. Kent Gilbert to a Thanksgiving Feast prepared on behalf of this Spring's cohort of Koryo High School students in our sister community of Hokuto City, Japan. First, the food was outstanding. To all the moms and dads who cooked up this potluck extraordinaire, complete with lots of roast turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole (thank you!), pumpkin pie and banana pudding, (and to whomever bought the General Tso's chicken with veg fried rice, which was quite tasty) I say, Well done!

Okay, yum, but what mattered most was the obvious love and friendship our young friends from Hokuto City felt for their American host families, and the love that was returned to them. Truly, these kids were so happy. It was palpable how excited our Japanese friends were to be here and to experience life in Central Kentucky.

I am sorry that I didn't catch many names, but I didn't, as each Japanese student was called to the podium in the library at Model Lab School at EKU. Each spoke in English to share what was their respective highlight of the week, and to suggest what we all should visit, should any of us find ourselves in Japan.

One student shared how, in her fascination with American, she has watched many American movies. These helped her develop a specific dream of what life as a teen in the US would be like, she said. Namely, wearing a fancy dress to a high school prom.

As it turned out, the innovative and kind students in the exchange program at Model had planned what they called "Japrom", which was, yes, a high school prom, complete with formal wear for the visiting guests. "It was my American dream come true," the student said.

I felt so proud being a part of our community, witnessing the generosity towards, and also the curiosity about, people who are different from us, while also being not so different. Kent, who is one of our most oft-traveled ambassadors to Hokuto City, had invited me along for the evening after I asked if he thought student participants in the exchange program would be interested in writing for The Edge about their experiences. And they are! Soon, we will publish what they contribute. I look forward to sharing their work with you.