Hello!
It has been too long since I wrote anything new on this blog. Four months!
What have I been doing for 4 months?
If you read this blog, you know that my garden is a jungle. A messy (めちゃめちゃ), overgrown (生い茂てる？）jungle!
Please don't judge me! (私を批判しないでください！責めないでください！）I have lots of good reasons why I couldn't take care of my garden for a few years. These past few years have been a bit intense (きつい、強烈).
So、my excuses (言い訳）--"Why my garden became a jungle."
During the past few years:
My youngest child went through her last year of high school and started university in another prefecture. It was quite nerve-wracking (非常に神経触る?). First homework, tests at school, entrance exams at universities, tears (涙), and finally success. Then so much paperwork (書類の準備）, paying SO MUCH money
, moving (引っ越し) my daughter to a different prefecture, more tears...
I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.
My husband had to close his business because of financial reasons and health problems. He had to stay in the hospital many times for several different emergencies, and had several surgeries.
Then my retina detached 3 times (網膜剥離), and I needed to stay in the hospital for two surgeries (that were NOT successful).
My son got married, which was a wonderful and happy distraction! (気移り)
My neglected （ほったらかしてる）garden became a jungle during all of this.
So this year, when the weather started to warm a little in March I thought, This is my chance! I decided to clear my garden before rainy season and summer. It was such a BIG JOB! I didn't want to use any poison. (毒を撒くのは避けたかったです。） And I didn't want to use any big machines that might kill frogs（かえる) or lizards (ヤモリ）or other small creatures (生き物) hiding (隠れてる) in the jungle. I used only garden scissors (ハサミ）and a shovel (スコップ). The weeds （雑草) and the plants that I love were all mixed together, so I couldn't just cut everything without thinking.
I worked little by little, every chance that I could find. I removed weeds very carefully so I wouldn't damage the plants I wanted to keep. It took months! But unexpectedly (予想外) I enjoyed it SO MUCH! I would tell my husband, "I'm going outside to play!" (By the way, my husband isn't interested in gardening at all.)
Weeding （雑草取り) became one of my favorite times of the day. I would listen to a podcast on my earphones while I worked. I met many small living creatures. Little frogs, lizards, beetles, birds, butterflies and bees were my companions as I worked. I LOVED it! I am slowly, slowly gaining control of my garden again.
Sometimes my neighbor passes by and jokes with me, ”ミッシェルさん、ナチュラルねすね！”
Today it's raining heavily outside, so I can't work in my jungle-garden. And I decided to write a blog post explaining why I haven't written in such a long time. Of course my jungle-garden isn't the only reason I haven't written. Like all of you, life happens! (Life happens = 人生で色々ありますね！)
My second list of excuses (言い訳）--"Why I didn't write a blog post for a long time, besides being busy clearing my jungle-garden."
During the past 4 months:
My husband needed another surgery, so he had to stay in the hospital again.
My eldest daughter brought home her special young man for the first time for us to meet. We had to clean the house and plan meals and prepare a guest room--in a panic! 
Holy Week took place in April. Holy Week is a very important week in the Catholic Church, so I was happily busy with Mass (ミサ) during that week. It's a very solemn (重厚) week, but the last day, Easter, is a wonderful and joyful day. Holy Week and Easter aren't so well-known in Japan, but they are as important (maybe more important?) than Christmas.
I prepared for a total of 48 Compal Hall classes, which began in May (3 courses with 73 students). I'm always excited preparing for new classes. I love going into the first class of each Compal Hall course and seeing who is attending. There are always the familiar faces of repeaters, and new faces too. The best part of my Compal Hall classes is meeting so many wonderful people who I wouldn't know otherwise (コンパルのクラスがなければ）.
And my last excuse: my husband and I are sharing 1 car now. Before, we each had our own car, but it's very expensive to have a car! So now that all of our children have grown up and moved out, we decided to try to live with 1 car.
Before when I had my own car, I would zip (go quickly and directly-ビュン！）to Compal Hall for classes, and zip home just after. But now, if my husband needs to use the car, I take the bus downtown.
At first I wasn't happy to take the bus. It seemed like an inconvenience (不便), but now I actually enjoy it. The bus that I take arrives downtown very early, so I walk from the bus stop to the Catholic Church until it's time to go to Compal Hall. During the day the church is usually empty, unless a funeral （お葬式) is being held. On my walk to the church, the street is busy. Many people are rushing to work and school. There is a lot of noise and busy activity everywhere. But I enter the dark church and I'm surrounded by silence and stillness. I sit and visit with God. (visit with someone = 友達として訪問する） It's so lovely and peaceful. It has become my new favorite part of the day.
I also walk a lot more since I don't always have a car. I'm sure I'm healthier and my legs are stronger now. So actually, sharing a car with my husband has become an unexpected blessing (以外な恩恵?). But it also means that I have less free time at home to write on this blog.
I enjoy writing this blog. I hope it's useful for your English study. Everyone is too shy to comment, so I don't know if anyone actually reads this. I suppose if I knew that people found it useful, I would have more motivation to write more often.
By the way, here is my garden now. It still needs a lot of work, but I think it's better than before.
Not too bad for a lady in her late-50's working alone with scissors and a shovel?
What were you doing for the last 4 months