HANAMI
Each winter the Japanese suffer through bitter cold, kerosene heaters, un-insulated houses, unfashionable SARS masks, and slippery studless-tire driving. They survive the winter by drinking plenty of hot sake, wearing thermal underwear, eating Nabe, sweet potatoes and plenty of other warm foods, and feebly huddling together around their kotatsu tables. Winter in Miyagi starts in December and the snows regularly last through March and even sometimes into April. March 31st, the day before April Fool’s Day, we had snow… no joke. Yet at the end of these long, freezing cold months of cursing and suffering, when you think the battle is all but lost and you’re contemplating heading outside to one of the melting
snowdrifts to curl up and just fall asleep… there is hope. This brightest, and most uplifting hope is frozen and entombed in the most unlikely place: it is in the trees. Yet, not just any tree, no, this hope lies in Japan’s beloved Sakura Trees, or cherry tree. Like a kid in a candy store, my usually composed friend, Mark, excitedly forewarned me of the arrival of the fabled cherry blossom. In my mind, I was thinking, “What’s the big deal? We have Cherry trees back home.” Yet, heading down to Tokyo last weekend this passive resolve was humbly shattered at my first glimpse of these magical trees in full bloom. I don’t know what it was about them that seemed so incredible… was it the anxious build up on the Nihon news about the arrival of cherry blossom season? Was it possibly the plethora of pink products posted about the stores or potentially the pink plastic/paper petals pleasantly positioned about the pedestrian paths, poles and pavement? Could it be that at the end of the long, trying winter, that we deserved this reward of light, pink, gentle delicacy bursting forth from the dreary black bark?! That this now, is the time for the human spirit to once again awaken from its small dwindling winter spark to stir and rise into the summery fire of life inside of us?! Yes! YES!!
Traditionally this is a highly revered and celebrated time in Japan. People by the millions throng to the top Hanami, or, flower-viewing (Hana = flower, mi = to see) sites around Japan. IF the gods of luck are on their side, they will be able to secure a patch of earth under the trees
with their blue tarps. Young, tough family members and corporate errand-boys are told to go out, all night if need be!, not to return without a spot under the trees safely secured. Then, scouting mission completed, family members and co-workers clamber to their 10 foot patch to gluttonously imbibe, eat and sing to their hearts delight. Alas, this is expected! This is one of the many instances in Japan where it is ok to be drunk… no, not just ok, but once again expected! Not drinking? What’s wrong with you? It is a wondrous, jolly time, and the energy around the Sakura trees is thick, and almost tangible.
I had the fortune of being invited to Hanami in one of the top sites in Tokyo, if not all of Japan: Ueno Park. My buddy, Kevin, and his Access Technology co-workers had somehow, even to the surprise of the Japanese locals, secured a spot in one of the busiest, festive places in Japan. I was a Hanami virgin and had an absolute blast. It was a warm spring day and the Hanami
energy was in the air around the city. We met some of Kevin’s friends at the train station and enjoyed some frosty cold ones on the subway ride to the park. Public drinking- yet another wonderful feature of Japanese life. The light was just beginning to wane as we walked down the main path. It was filled with hundreds of happy drunken Japanese, each side of the path lined with cherry trees in full bloom. As the light was almost gone, a wonderful spring breeze began to pick up in waves, each carrying with it a thousand soft pink petals that were like kisses of joy in this oft emotionless society. At our feet, rivers of petals would go dancing by in the breeze and I found myself stressed trying not to step on a single one. It was a truly magical and surreal experience. People stay out late into the night- even into the wee hours of the morning enjoying themselves under the blossoms. Passersby stop to chat and many stopped to marvel at us, eyes wide with wonder as to how we, a group of gaijin, had landed such a prime spot. I felt honored to be with the group that I was with, not just because I had been invited to their Hanami party, but because these were sincerely good people who had worked hard to become very successful gaijin living in Japan, and 
that, my friends, is no easy feat. I made some good acquaintances that night and only now, looking back, do I finally understand why Mark was so excited about the coming of the Sakura blossoms. It is times like these that I really learn to appreciate Japanese culture, and their wonderful customs of honoring the changing of the seasons. I feel that we in the west could use a lot more of this in our society. It puts humans back in touch with nature, and brings us together to celebrate the glorious changes each year in the natural world.
Each winter the Japanese suffer through bitter cold, kerosene heaters, un-insulated houses, unfashionable SARS masks, and slippery studless-tire driving. They survive the winter by drinking plenty of hot sake, wearing thermal underwear, eating Nabe, sweet potatoes and plenty of other warm foods, and feebly huddling together around their kotatsu tables. Winter in Miyagi starts in December and the snows regularly last through March and even sometimes into April. March 31st, the day before April Fool’s Day, we had snow… no joke. Yet at the end of these long, freezing cold months of cursing and suffering, when you think the battle is all but lost and you’re contemplating heading outside to one of the melting
snowdrifts to curl up and just fall asleep… there is hope. This brightest, and most uplifting hope is frozen and entombed in the most unlikely place: it is in the trees. Yet, not just any tree, no, this hope lies in Japan’s beloved Sakura Trees, or cherry tree. Like a kid in a candy store, my usually composed friend, Mark, excitedly forewarned me of the arrival of the fabled cherry blossom. In my mind, I was thinking, “What’s the big deal? We have Cherry trees back home.” Yet, heading down to Tokyo last weekend this passive resolve was humbly shattered at my first glimpse of these magical trees in full bloom. I don’t know what it was about them that seemed so incredible… was it the anxious build up on the Nihon news about the arrival of cherry blossom season? Was it possibly the plethora of pink products posted about the stores or potentially the pink plastic/paper petals pleasantly positioned about the pedestrian paths, poles and pavement? Could it be that at the end of the long, trying winter, that we deserved this reward of light, pink, gentle delicacy bursting forth from the dreary black bark?! That this now, is the time for the human spirit to once again awaken from its small dwindling winter spark to stir and rise into the summery fire of life inside of us?! Yes! YES!!Traditionally this is a highly revered and celebrated time in Japan. People by the millions throng to the top Hanami, or, flower-viewing (Hana = flower, mi = to see) sites around Japan. IF the gods of luck are on their side, they will be able to secure a patch of earth under the trees
with their blue tarps. Young, tough family members and corporate errand-boys are told to go out, all night if need be!, not to return without a spot under the trees safely secured. Then, scouting mission completed, family members and co-workers clamber to their 10 foot patch to gluttonously imbibe, eat and sing to their hearts delight. Alas, this is expected! This is one of the many instances in Japan where it is ok to be drunk… no, not just ok, but once again expected! Not drinking? What’s wrong with you? It is a wondrous, jolly time, and the energy around the Sakura trees is thick, and almost tangible.I had the fortune of being invited to Hanami in one of the top sites in Tokyo, if not all of Japan: Ueno Park. My buddy, Kevin, and his Access Technology co-workers had somehow, even to the surprise of the Japanese locals, secured a spot in one of the busiest, festive places in Japan. I was a Hanami virgin and had an absolute blast. It was a warm spring day and the Hanami
energy was in the air around the city. We met some of Kevin’s friends at the train station and enjoyed some frosty cold ones on the subway ride to the park. Public drinking- yet another wonderful feature of Japanese life. The light was just beginning to wane as we walked down the main path. It was filled with hundreds of happy drunken Japanese, each side of the path lined with cherry trees in full bloom. As the light was almost gone, a wonderful spring breeze began to pick up in waves, each carrying with it a thousand soft pink petals that were like kisses of joy in this oft emotionless society. At our feet, rivers of petals would go dancing by in the breeze and I found myself stressed trying not to step on a single one. It was a truly magical and surreal experience. People stay out late into the night- even into the wee hours of the morning enjoying themselves under the blossoms. Passersby stop to chat and many stopped to marvel at us, eyes wide with wonder as to how we, a group of gaijin, had landed such a prime spot. I felt honored to be with the group that I was with, not just because I had been invited to their Hanami party, but because these were sincerely good people who had worked hard to become very successful gaijin living in Japan, and 
that, my friends, is no easy feat. I made some good acquaintances that night and only now, looking back, do I finally understand why Mark was so excited about the coming of the Sakura blossoms. It is times like these that I really learn to appreciate Japanese culture, and their wonderful customs of honoring the changing of the seasons. I feel that we in the west could use a lot more of this in our society. It puts humans back in touch with nature, and brings us together to celebrate the glorious changes each year in the natural world.
posted by Aaron @ 9:47 PM
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