I came back to the Moris house after I had checked out of the hotel. They were happy to see that I had managed to fit all of their many gifts in my bag. On Saturday, Mori-san had enthusiastically given me several works of paper cuttings he had made. It is one of the hobbies he has started since I had seen him last. He has had several exhibitions in the area. He does amazing precision work. He showed me his studio, full of binders and binders of his work. In these pieces he cut the outlines out of the black paper and then put coloured rice paper behind to colour it in.
Mrs. Mori gave me a couple of pieces of clothing that she had made – she is also very talented. I wish I could have taken them all. I will post a photo modelling the clothes later.
Before lunch, Mr Mori had a plan to take me on a tour of the schools that I had taught at, and then we took the requisite photo in front of each sign. Many of the schools changed, and one school he brought me to, I think was built after I left. He also took me to the To-neh River where they hoist up the largest Carp Streamer in the world. This festival was on May 3 this year during Golden Week. I remember being there for the festival, and playing taiko under the streamer. I also remember going to the river during cosmos season. Now there is an aerospace museum and planetarium by the river. One of the people who works there was in one of the local taiko drumming groups. I mentioned that this building must be new, and he replied: No, it has been here at least 20 years! Well, that is still new to me.
The museum from the front.
We were gone a long time – so long that Mrs. Mori and Mitsuka ate lunch without us. When we got home, Mori-san and I had another delicious meal that Mitsuka had prepared – a cold noodle salad with lots of vegetables. The perfect meal for a warm day.
Meeting up with the Moris again was truly a gift. I mentioned before that music is a universal language, but there is one language that is even more important – Love. From the first time I went to their house in 1995, I was welcomed with incredible warmth. I could barely speak Japanese then, and they couldn’t speak English, but it didn’t matter, we found a way though hand gestures, funny faces, my tiny pocket dictionary, a lot of laughter, and love. They said that I haven’t changed, and I would say that they haven’t changed, but maybe we just all went back to that same spot where we left off, and returned to the people that we were back then. We have all been through so many different experiences, and yet here we were 23 years later (since my last trip in 2001) sitting around the kitchen table, laughing constantly, struggling to communicate (my Japanese is a little bit better now), but the feelings were all the same. I am so lucky to have had them come into my life.
I am also so happy to hear that I was only the first of many other AETs (Assistant English Teachers) they opened their home to, some of them also joining the local taiko drumming group. I saw photos of some of them in the community centre. I felt a bit proud of the legacy that Mori-san and I started all those years ago. The JET in the JET Program stands for Japan Exchange and Teaching program. It is not only about the teaching, it is about the exchange of culture and ideas. I would say that my placement was a success on all accounts. This is my third trip to Japan and now Erez is doing a Coop placement here for university. I was the first foreigner the Moris ever met, and they hosted many other lucky young people since.
I am looking forward to seeing Norie, the Moris’ other daughter on Thursday. We will spend the day together in Kurashiki and then Norie’s daughter will met up with us and have dinner with Erez and I. Norie’s daughter Maria is the same age as Erez. She just graduated with a degree in fashion and is hoping to go to New York sometime soon. She is currently studying for an English Proficiency test.
This trip to Kazo has filled me with immense gratitude. Life is transient, yet some things stay the same. The whole time I was in Kazo, I had a huge smile on my face because I felt lucky to be there.
