Riz Crescini » Seasons

Happy New Year: 2012

Riz Crescini — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 21:54:42 +0000

明けましておめでとうございます！今年も宜しくお願いします！

Spring Time in Kitakyushu

Riz Crescini — Wed, 11 May 2011 20:14:34 +0000

Signs of Life: Yard Photos

Riz Crescini — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 23:18:14 +0000

Just a little over a week ago, I was in Tohoku, Japan as part of a media team for a non-profit organization, Churches Helping Churches. A detailed post of my time up north is on its way. I’m still reflecting on the tragedy that has come upon northern Japan and the rebuilding that must take place in the cities and in people’s lives.

One of the things brought home to me as I was taking pictures of the destruction before me is that for all man’s creativity and ingenuity, we build things that won’t last. We might know this in our heads but on a daily basis, we lead lives that come perilously close to delusional. Why? Because we think our lives are somehow invincible. We take so much comfort from our possessions. We work hard on things that truly aren’t meaningful. The tragedy in northern Japan has taught me that life is beautiful but it is short and fragile. I should correct myself to say that life CAN be beautiful if we live it in a way that give value to others rather than hopelessly trying to attain meaning from possessions.

The blooming of flowers during springtime are a gentle reminder to me of this reflection: we have an incredibly short amount of time in which we can display the beauty that God has intended for our lives. We need to take a hard look at our lives. Are we living it for others or for things?

Summer Magic

Riz Crescini — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:30:46 +0000

I hope this set of images will motivate you to go out and create lasting summer memories with your family and friends. Enjoy!

Happy Valentine’s Day

Riz Crescini — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 23:12:35 +0000

This is a video of our awesome church in Japan! On this Valentine’s Day, we are thankful for God’s love displayed through the members of our church. You guys are awesome! Enjoy the video!

Fukuda Family Session Winter 2009 – Bridgewater, Virginia

Riz Crescini — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 05:09:59 +0000

One of the highlights of our U.S. trip was taking along our good friend, Mrs. Fukuda, and her son, Akira, to experience American Christmas. Mrs. Fukuda was there at the birth of all three of our girls. Her family and our family have spent countless meals together. She is without a doubt a very special part of our lives. And we continued to build great memories: caroling, Christmas Eve service, turkey and ham dinners, Christmas sweets, holiday shopping, opening Christmas presents in pajamas, etc. The images below display Mrs. Fukuda and Akira’s bright and fun personalities. You can also see the strong mother-son bond they have. Mrs. Fukuda and Akira, thank you for your friendship. I was honored and happy to capture the images below.

Their smiles are contagious!!

Anne’s younger brother, Dave, snuck in on some of the shots in his pajamas and had some fun with the Fukudas.

I got in some individual shots of Akira.

We also went to Virginia Beach and Akira was able to see the Atlantic Ocean for the first time.

2010 Happy New Year

Riz Crescini — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 18:00:13 +0000

We wish everyone a Happy New Year! May your year be filled with peace, love and joy.

The 7th Annual Hibikino Campus School Festival 2009

Riz Crescini — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:01:08 +0000

The annual school festival is one of the events I look forward to every year. Food stalls, games, events, concerts, people, etc. The students work hard planning for this event so when it’s finally here, there’s a lot of excitement and plenty of positive vibes. Below is a short video of the festival and the faces of the beautiful people you will encounter at this time of year. Even Santa and the Power Rangers came out for the event. Good times!!

Mikan (Mandarin Orange) Picking

Riz Crescini — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:57:13 +0000

Last Tuesday, Anne and I took the kids to a “mikan” grove. “Mikan” is the Japanese word for mandarin orange. It is also commonly called a “satsuma”. Trivia: Did you know that the towns of Satsuma, Texas, Satsuma, Alabama, Satsuma, Florida and Satsuma, Louisiana were named after this fruit? Mrs. Itoh came along with us and everybody just had a great time as you will soon see. The girls must have eaten at least 20 oranges. You can eat all the oranges you want for a measly 3 bucks! It was a beautiful day for such an outing. Okay, time for the pictures…

Japan Summer Festival Part 1

Riz Crescini — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 06:07:07 +0000

Ahhh…summer is here and what better way to spend it in Japan by going to festivals. We went to Kokura City to experience the Wasshoi Festival and see the fireworks at night. Mia was mesmerized by the fireworks, Abby cried, and Emmy slept the whole time. And my honey got claustrophobic because of the suffocating large number of people there. This is the biggest festival in our area and so I think Anne will enjoy attending the smaller festivals later this summer. Enjoy the pics and come visit us sometime to experience summer festivals in Japan!

Abby’s still trying to figure out the peace sign.

One of many food stalls offering tasty Japanese summer food.

I wish I had an aerial view because this pic doesn’t do justice to the large number of people who have gathered on this night.

Japanese couple taking in the festivities from a distance.