Osaka with the Osawas
Mood:  energetic
What fine memories were made today with my favorite family. Ro, Tamie, Taku, and Mei took me for a day in the big city. Ro and Tamie have driven me to some incredibly exciting junior high baseball games in the past. They have twin sons who were both in baseball last year. Their team made it to the "state" championships and we enjoyed cheering them on with scores of 0-0 in the 7th inning more than a couple of times. Taku was one of my most dedicated English speaking boys at my first school in Japan. He is a first year high school student now and has switched happily to basketball. His sister Mei is studying to pass the entrance exam so that she can attend her favorite college.

Today we saw some of the sights that i would have never found on my own. We ate kushikatsu (a delicious meal of skewered meats, fish and vegies dipped in a batter and deep fried). The sauce that we dip these in is delicious too. We walked along the road where the Hanshin Tigers fans marched when their team won the championship. We ate takoyaki overlooking the Doutonburi Bridge where crazy fans jumped into the river to celebrate this most momentous occasion. We also visited America Mura where i got a great photo of some of the typical "dress-up" costumes famous for this area. We watched men playing Mah Jong, and Igo and a form of Japanese Chess in parlors that i had heard about but never seen till today. Taku, Mei and I played Smart Ball which is a primitive version of our pinball machines. It was funny to note the signs saying that there was noone under 18 allowed but to see kids under 10 playing the machines! Ro says there just aren't any rules in Osaka. hah. I have some great photos of the Hitachi Tower. It seems that every big city in Japan has to build a tall tower. There's a really ugly one in Kyoto and the one in Tokyo is a version of the Eiffel Tower.

This part of Osaka is the older section and is Ro's favorite part of the city. He likes it because it looks so exotic and Asian. The food is cheap and the streets are filled with wonders like the game machine where you can try to pick up a lobster with a little crane (yes the lobster is alive and you get to keep it if you can catch it!) I agree with Ro. Sometimes it looked as if i could have been walking down the streets of Zanzibar or Dar es Salaam or maybe even Mexico. It looks and feels a bit third world but it still is definitely Japan. They say it can get a bit dangerous at night and that the Yakuza (the Japanese mafia) still have a presence here but in the daylight it felt perfectly safe to me. There were signs of homeless people and some questionable looking street people "hanging out" though so i was glad to be in the company of some native speakers who knew this place well.

We strolled the gardens on top of the Namba Parks building. They have a tile on the top floor representing where the pitcher's mound was when it was still a baseball stadium way back when.

What a great day.

Katsushika Hokusai
Mood:  lyrical
What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon with two great friends at an inspiring art exhibit. Hokusai, Japan?s best-known artist, is ironically Japan?s least ?Japanese? artist. He lived from 1760-1849. As one website put it: ?He was a thoroughly Bohemian artist: cocky, quarrelsome, restless, aggressive, and sensational?? Maybe that?s why I have had his most famous piece on my wall in one form or another since the 60?s. It is called the BIG WAVE

Hokusai began studying woodblock printing at the age of 15. I really liked the fact that he signed his pieces: ?The Old Man Mad About Drawing? at the end of his life. On the average Japanese only moved once in their lifetime, Hokusai moved 93 times in his long life. The series 36 VIEWS OF MT. FUJI are certainly the best-known Hokusai prints.

Hokusai was one of the most prolific of all ukiyo-e artists. At the end of his life he had produced more than 30,000 print designs. Shinobu, Yoshie, and i got to enjoy studying over 200 of his best works. I was most enthralled with his illustrated books. I am quite sure that they were the precursers of the ever popular Japanese manga. We three all wanted to break the glass and turn the pages of his books they were that enthralling.

I just love this quote of his: "From the age of five I have had a mania for sketching the forms of things. From about the age of fifty I produced a number of designs, yet of all I drew prior to the age of seventy there is truly nothing of great note. At the age of seventy-two I finally apprehended something of the true quality of birds, animals, insects, fish and of the vital nature of grasses and trees. Therefore, at eighty I shall have made some progress, at ninety I shall have penetrated even further the deeper meaning of things, at one hundred I shall have become truly marvelous, and at one hundred and ten, each dot, each line shall surely possess a life of its own. I only beg that gentlemen of sufficiently long life take care to note the truth of my words."

May we all continue to grow and develop as well and enthusiastically as Hokusai did.


Love, love, love - love is all there is.

I have to let go of the need to know so much. What we can know is so small—the holiness around is so large. Now I trust in simplicity, simplicity and love.

HINDU SAGE

Meditation Workshop
Mood:  happy
Left for Tokyo on Thursday evening, April 28th.
Stayed at Kimi Ryokan and got myself to the workshop with no problems! Yahoo. Now i can say that i've been in Tokyo and strolled the streets of the Roponggi District. Woo hoo.

The workshop was wonderful.
More later.

Traveled to Kyoto with Michael and Scott to Kitanoya Ryokan on Sat. April 30th and attended another great workshop in Kyoto on Sunday, May 1st.

Back to work on Monday, May 2nd.
Sketch Day, hah.

Tuesday, May 3rd my day of rest and cleaning the house getting ready for Michael and Scott this evening.

Tomorrow, we will be Hiroshima bound.
More later.

Shoulder saga cont.
Mood:  lyrical
Celebration time:
The doctor has given me “permission” to ride my bike again. yahoo, yippee, hooray. I wore out a pair of tennis shoes walking all over this town.
Progress:
* I can now get my ponytail in the center of my head.
* I braided my hair and put it up for the first time since my accident this morning although it was painful to do so.
* I can shave under my left armpit.
* I can wash my hair with both hands now.
* I can sleep laying on my side now.
* I can wash my right foot with my left hand.

Yet to come:
* Scratching and scrubbing my right shoulder would be so nice.
* Reaching above my head to get something heavy out of the closet.
* Hooking my bra behind my back.
* No more pain.

I’m still going to physical therapy twice a week and doing my strength training and stretching everyday. Boy, this gets mighty depressing but my hope is that i will get full motion back and that keeps me going. Small gains are still measurable and also keep me motivated. The thought of never being able to scratch my right shoulder also keeps me working hard.

Wise or Foolish, that is the question.
Mood:  cheeky
The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Nagano Marathon
Mood:  energetic
Sunday, April 17th

Rats, i wrote a whole essay on this marathon, posted it and then it disappeared into the ozone. I don't have time or energy to write it again. phooey. So you will be spared all the details.

It was a tough decision to travel to this marathon. I went as a spectator instead of a runner. The course is wonderful. The city was beautiful with cherry blossoms almost in full bloom. The course is almost flat and the snow covered mountains surrounding the river valley are quite scenic and inspiring. The run into the Olympic Stadium was just as i had imagined. I cried when the starting gun went off, but the enthusiasm of the crowd pulled me out of the blues. I was so lucky to meet Jesseca who is from Atlanta. i got to run the race vicariously through her. I think i may have to figure out how to get back here to do this once i retire. I can't imagine a better marathon to run.

Nagano Marathon

Peace, brothers and sisters
Mood:  amorous
Oh, my gosh. I can?t believe my good luck! Finally a teacher?s room with NO CIGARETTE SMOKE! yahoo. There is a partitioned off place in the copy room reserved for smokers with plenty of ventilation. No one smokes in the teacher?s room and the air is fresh and clean. What a relief.


Monday, April 11th
First Grade Welcoming Ceremony

This day has no equivalent in America to my knowledge. The 2nd and 3rd graders came to school on Thursday and Friday to get started with the whole planning of it. As i walked to school this morning fresh, new - much smaller students - were filing in to school. You could see the nervousness in their faces and eyes. There are 194 new 7th graders this year. There were about 300 parents and relatives seated in the back of the gym to witness the beginning of their junior high adventure. The band played and speeches were made. Former principals and teachers from their elementary schools were also there. Each one was introduced and stood and wished the students well. As the new homeroom teachers called each student?s name each stood with a loud ?hai? for all to hear. At the end of this ceremony the kids all marched out proudly to applause and music..
Since the gym can?t hold everyone the 2nd and 3rd graders were in classes during this ceremony. After about an hour?s break (I?m sure to rearrange the gym seating) we filed back into the gym again. This time the 2nd & 3rd grade boys and girls were seated on the floor on one end of the gym. Seating for all the first graders faced the elder kids. As the lights were dimmed the band played and in marched the 5 new classes of 1st graders. Each class marched in like an Olympic team with a numbered placard carried proudly in front of them. Spotlights blazed down on them and applause was enthusiastic and continued till the last student entered. Now it was the 2nd and 3rd graders chance to welcome the new kids. The student council members planned this whole affair and it included a fun group quiz to help introduce the teachers. The quiz was an A, B, or C type (which teacher do you think is the oldest? Which teacher do you think taught a famous movie star when she was in junior high?) There was singing and a band performance and cheers led by the student cheerleaders. A slide show of the different club activities and highlights of the school was shown. Again at the end of this ceremony the kids all marched out proudly to applause and music.

Wow, I wonder what happens to our new junior high kids when they enter on their first day. I don?t think that they walk away with such a strong feeling of acceptance as they do here. We could learn something from these very ?traditional? Japanese ceremonies.

"The root of all violence is in the world of thoughts."
Sri Eknath Easwaran

Happy Birthday, Buddha
On this day numerous Buddhist temples throughout Japan celebrate the birthday of Shakyamuni Buddha with a ?baptism ceremony? called kambutsue. A statue of the infant Buddha, traditionally depicted with one hand raised towards heaven and the other pointing to earth, is doused with sweet tea poured from tiny ladles. The tea is made from hydrangea leaves, which are steamed and dried before being made into the brew. As it is considered good for both spiritual and mental health, the tea is given to worshippers to take home. During the kambutsue ceremony, a miniature, unwalled temple usually covers the infant statue. Decorated with flowers, it is called the hanamidera, or flower temple. I love this service and miss participating in it back in my temple in Spokane. Happy birthday, Buddha. Omedeto gozaimasu.


?The cause of death is birth.?
Zen Shin Talks, Sensei Ogui

PT charges
Mood:  quizzical
Today i went to my regular physical therapy session. It's about 1 to 1.5 hours long. I'm doing exercises on my own and getting some massage and manipulation of my arm and shoulder. The charge is usually 1,010 yen. Today the charge was 1,240 yen - not a lot more but... When i asked why the increase in the charge i was told that it's the beginning of the month and they need more money! Good grief. Can this be? Maybe i didn't understand, but that 's what the lady said.

Vaya con Dios
Mood:  sad
Sunday morning "sayonara" to Sylvia. She's off to Tokyo.

Saturday, April 2nd
Bunraku Theater

Thank goodness for the English audio guide at this theater. We wouldn?t have been able to appreciate this work of art without the English narrative.
Bunraku is traditional Japanese puppet theater that has its origin in the Edo period (1603-1867). Bunraku and Kabuki are closely related with respect to the content of the plays. Bunraku plays are also accompanied by the music of traditional Japanese musical instruments. We heard shamisen, a 3-stringed instrument, and flute at our performance
The puppets are about one meter tall and are manipulated by up to three persons. Every person is responsible for a different part of the puppet. Through many years of experience they are able to make the puppets appear alive despite the fact that the puppeteers are visible on the stage. Puppeteers are dressed in black and wear black hoods.
Sylvia and I were most enthralled with the Tayu or chanter. This man is seated at a Kendai, stand or lectern off stage left. He not only narrates the story but also does all the voices of all the characters. His range of emotions involves chants, shouts, whispers and unearthly sobs. Way cool.

More about BUNRAKU