Category: Lives

Many times along life’s journey, I thought it would be cool to YouTube. I’m trained in engineering but studied music, so I can nerd with the best of them. Or if you prefer the Japanese word, otaku. I also did web design years ago and learned photography out of necessity. But soon it became a passion, and along with it, the beautiful digital video that DSLRs can create.

Even before there was YouTube, my siblings and friends would make short videos with a VHS video camera (I’m showing my age here). We did all kinds of videos with terrible acting, but hey — it was fun! So when YouTube came along, a number of times I thought it would be fun to give it a shot, but always stopped short, not really sure what the direction of the channel should be.

When we moved to Japan, I started making short videos for our friends and family back in America. I made some simple vlogs and emailed the links to them. The response was great, but I never did it with a bigger audience in mind. It was just a tool to help them feel connected to us in a bigger way. Then as life got busy, the videos stopped.

Years later, my brother-in-law Bruno said “Nate, I think you should start your own YouTube channel.” At that point I thought That’s too much work. But we had an extended time of prayer at church, and to my absolute astonishment I sensed God telling me to start a YouTube channel. Once I realized that God really wanted me to do it (which is a strong thing for anyone to sense or even verbalize), I thought what would the channel be about? Immediately the thought came back from God “About your family and life in Japan.” So the channel was born.

After a slow first year, the channel started to get traction outside of our friends and family. Our first video to really take off was about Tokyo Skytree Tower. I remember as the numbers just kept going up and up, in disbelief. It was a thrill.

After that we had a number of big videos. Comments, likes and subscriptions came pouring in. Monetization came — a crazy thought to me that I might actually get a little bit of money out of all of the blood, sweat and tears already invested. I thought God, I had no idea this was going to happen! Thank you!

People on the street began to recognize us and stop us and say “Are you the Reutters from YouTube?” It was strange getting used to the fact that wherever we went in Japan, people probably knew us (and earlier this year, in America as well). With the spotlight, I really began to pray for God’s protection over our family.

Since then, we’ve had a video get over a million views and another video about to hit a million. Many other videos have hundreds of thousands of views. The exposure for our church and work in Japan has been fantastic, and our subscriber base has become rock solid.

But I’ve also felt all the stress and pressure that comes with producing YouTube videos and working full-time as well. Many times I’ve thought of throwing in the towel and having a simpler, easier life in Japan. So why do we keep on producing videos week in, week out? What continues to motivate us past all of the YouTube creator blues?

In short, the answer is you. Yes, you are the reason that I can’t imagine stopping this. When I think of what God has done through this channel, and all the people it has helped feel encouraged, hopeful and cognizant of the church in Japan and the hope that there is in Jesus for happy families full of life, I get happy and excited. I love reading the comments, interacting with everyone and inviting them to meet us at Paz Coffee Shop.

There may come a day that God says to stop, or for our own sanity and health we need to stop, but until then, this is the ride of a lifetime — the ride of Life in Japan.

In the last couple of months, several words have taken on a new meaning. Corona used to mean a certain type of Mexican beer. Now it means a terrible virus that has shut down the world. Social distance used to refer to the space that an unfriendly or awkward person created between themselves and others. Now it means physically spacing yourself from others. And another word that has changed meaning is quarantine.

Quarantine by definition is a state, period, or place of isolation in which people or animals that may have been exposed to infectious disease are placed. However, just like the words above, definitions have morphed and changed. It is still a period of isolation, but it now applies to those who are suspicious of being exposed to a disease. It is not just a reactive state of quarantine, but a preventative state of quarantine. (People now quarantine themselves to prevent exposure.)

And if you’re returning to Japan in 2021, then prepare yourself: you will be quarantined. But it doesn’t have to be a bad time — in fact, it can be a positive experience if you look at it that way. And that’s just how we approached it. 

Before 2020, it was relatively easy for any American to visit Japan. You just had to show up at the border with a valid passport and receive your tourist visa. Now, times have changed and if you’re not a returning resident, it’s nearly impossible to get into the country. We’ve wished it were a bit easier, because we would love having our parents visit us here and other loved ones, but at the moment that is not possible. What is possible is for us to visit them (which is why we went to America over Summer vacation).

But now that it’s time to come back, we’ve studied up on the entry process and prepared as much as possible. We want it to go smoothly and quickly, but is our preparation enough for the what we will face?

Our trips to America are always about one main thing: people. Whether it’s overdue time with family or visiting friends and churches, whatever we do revolves around other people. It’s the connecting thread through it all.

So it’s no surprise that our last 2 weeks in the States was filled with people — family and friends, trips and experiences. All of these things help keep our connections strong with our loved ones in America. The worst part of these trips isn’t leaving America, because we really love living in Japan. It’s saying goodbye to the ones we love! But it’s fun to have this video memory of a very special summer in America, and we’re already looking forward to the next time we will be together, wherever in the world it may happen!