Sayonara

Make a Smilebox postcard

It is so sad to be thinking of leaving this wonderful country and all of our friends here. We’ve been fortunate to have met so many people while we have been here and it is very sad to be leaving. On the plus side, we’re getting to do a lot of special things with friends to enjoy good memories.

This last weekend Tomi-san, our ikebana sensei, treated Beth, Wendy and me to a wonderful tour of the Ceramic Museum here in Nagoya as well as a personally catered lunch. While she modestly claimed that she did not cook a lot, Tomi-san set a beautiful table and served absolutely wonderful food.

Besides being a fabulous ikebana instructor, she is also well versed in the tea ceremony. She even has a small tea room in her house where she treated us to a personal tea ceremony. It is just such a calming, quiet experience – one that truly makes you appreciate life. There’s so much attention paid to the decoration in the room and the calm, quiet, precise way to move everything. It’s quite an experience. I must admit it is a regret I have – that I didn’t study tea ceremony too. Ah well….

Thank you sensei for everything. I will remember these years with fondness.