*Disclaimer* Sorry this got kind of long. So if you want to skip all the details and go straight to the important, exciting news, go to the last paragraph!
As many of you know, I came to Japan with a risk. I came to Japan under a tourist visa (which allows you to stay for a maximum of 3 months), hoping to change it to a "Child of a Japanese National" visa once I got to Japan, since my parents are citizens. After a little over a month, I gathered all the necessary documents including my application and went to the local immigration office, praying along the way that everything gets processed within time (usually takes a month to a possible 3 months). As I handed my application to the preliminary lady, she told me I had the wrong application form and that I needed to fill out this other one and for my guarantor or sponsor to fill out a different letter of guarantee. (Ahh man, are you serious!?). Since my guarantor lives in Tokyo, it would take at least a couple of days for me to get the updated letter filled out, prolonging the time for me to turn in my application and limiting the time needed for the visa to get processed.
Praying that everything would be okay and for me to trust in God more, I left the office. I went home, filled out the new application, and asked my guarantor to fill out a different letter. After receiving the letter, I went back to the immigration office about a week later. Handing my application over to the preliminary lady to check everything, I felt pretty confident that I had the right application/letter this time and she confirmed that everything was okay. She gave me a number ticket and then okayed me to place my application in the tray for the immigration inspector to check. As I waited, I noticed the immigration inspector take my application and go through it. I prayed that everything would go well this time and that there would be no problems.
After a few minutes, my number was called. I went up to the inspector and she informed me that she couldn't process my visa application. (uhhh...what? how come??) She pointed to my name under my dad's family registry and asked if this was me. I told her yes. She then told me she couldn't change my visa because I already have Japanese citizenship. (HUH??? What the!?) I reiterated back to her, "so you're telling me I've had Japanese citizenship this whole time?" and she replied yes. (What!?) She then told me that if I wanted to change my visa, I have to renounce either my Japanese or US citizenship (because according to Japanese law, I found out later, that if you were born after 1985, you can only hold one citizenship and you're supposed to choose one or the other once you're 20 years old, even though America allows you to hold dual citizenship). But to renounce my citizenship and to get a new family registry and come back to turn in my change of visa application would take more than a month! (And I had a little over a month until my tourist visa ends) Panic started to kick in and I didn't know if everything would process in time. I left the office unsure of what to do, whether to renounce my newly found citizenship or to keep it. I know if I try to create a passport here, I would be in the same situation and they would tell me to renounce either citizenship.
It finally hit me, what if I apply for a Japanese passport in America, since they allow dual citizenship. I called the Japan Embassy in Los Angeles, explained my situation and they said they can issue me a passport! And even better news, they can even do it within one day! (What!? That's crazy!!) So all this to say, I'll be coming back to America to get my, strange as it sounds, Japanese passport! As of now, I am planning to leave on the day my tourist visa expires, which is the day after Christmas, and to get back to Japan before Sunday, January 8th, 2017 because that day will be our first official weekly service as Mustard Seed Christian Church Kobe! Thank you so much for praying over this whole situation and please continue to pray that everything will go well, once I come back to the states. I thank God that I am ultimately a citizen of His Kingdom, that by His grace my identity is in Jesus because this whole citizenship thing here on earth can be pretty confusing and complicated!