Blazing into 2024 Dondo-yaki style

Image by pngtree.com

In the first few days of January, as is our tradition, the Rising Family™ kicked off the new year by visiting a nearby Shinto shrine. Like many other folks, we went there to pray for good luck, health and happiness in the coming year. Then, on January 20, I doubled-down on Japanese new year traditions by going to the Dondo-yaki festival at Umi no Koen (Marine Park), one of my favorite seaside parks in Yokohama, just 25 kms south of where we live.

Kadomatsu

But what is Dondo-yaki? It's a traditional festival held throughout Japan in mid-January, marking the end of new year celebrations. Sometimes described as a “fire festival”, people burn decorations such as kadomatsu bamboo decorations they place near the entrance of their homes or businesses at the onset of the new year to bring good fortune. It's considered bad form to reuse these decorations, so they are dispatched in a huge, roaring bonfire to keep in good stead with the gods. You can also burn paper omikuji fortune scrolls or omamori amulets from last year, then buy new ones for good luck this year. After the fire’s intensity subsides, mochi rice cakes or sweet potatoes are roasted above it. As morethantokyo.com puts it to describe the festival’s spiritual complexity, Dondo-yaki are bonfires where communities burn their New Year's decorations while sending the god of the new year back to the realm of the spirits. My takeaway is I like the symbolic gesture of burning the markers of the immediate past and moving forward.

The pyres before the flames

The Dondo-yaki festival at Marine Park is an annual family event. After we moved to Yokohama with the Rising Daughters™, one year we bundled them up and attended our first Dondo-yaki at Marine Park. This year, I went solo on my scooter since our now-teenagers deemed it "too cold and boring." Nevertheless, I was glad I went. The salty sea air, the scent of burning cedar and bamboo, and the savory food aromas were memorable. The low buzz of group conversations and the shrieks of kids having fun created a pleasant atmosphere to truly welcome the new year. 

I strolled past stalls where you could buy street food, practice calligraphy, watch traditional dances, or purchase raffle tickets. Amid all this activity, three huge bonfires were set alight, surrounded by several hundred people, all kept safely away from the flames by local firefighting units.

Burn baby burn, Dondo Inferno

As I wandered around the sandy beach and under the cedar trees to observe everything and stay warm, I contemplated the year ahead. Tradition and natural settings sometimes provide the most refreshing perspective on what the new year may bring.

😁😁😁

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and Tremendous 2024

The Rising Family™ had a delightful hybrid holiday season, blending tradition with a touch of travel adventure.

Our home in Yokohama sparkled with outdoor festive lights, and this radiant Christmas tree flanked by Santa's two resident helpers set the stage for our traditional photo moment. However, this year, we craved more than just the familiar festivities. We longed for the twinkle of Yuletide lights and warmer outdoor temperatures. We snapped this photo early before we took our Christmas holiday on the road. Our greatest gift this year was the chance to explore southern Vietnam, bask in its warmth, and connect with its generous and welcoming people.

Although our location changed, the holiday spirit was paramount. We engaged in online calls with family in the Great White North and experienced the joy of Christmas Day at the beautiful and renowned Tan Dinh Church in Ho Chi Minh City.

Wishing everyone peace, joy, and a heartfelt Joyeux Noel. Here's to an amazing 2024 ahead!

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Seasonal Serenity: My pen pal Rob

In 2023, a year filled with an overdose of unfortunate events and bad news in the world, I'd like to share a partial antidote through a heartwarming personal story. Let me take you back two decades when I worked as a contract employee in a government office in Hiroshima, handling inbound phone calls from English-speaking foreigners. Despite the language and cultural barriers, these calls often led to fascinating and unexpected conversations.

One such encounter was with Rob A., a retired gentleman from California deeply passionate about Japanese culture and peace promotion. Although Rob is a pseudonym, the events recounted here are entirely true. Our first telephone conversation was spurred by his inquiry about his city's peace promotion delegation visit to Hiroshima which also revealed Rob's captivating storytelling and genuine interest in diverse subjects.

As a retired businessman with a rich background in multinational companies and stints in Latin America and Asia, as well as membership in the Adventurers’ Club, Rob had a remarkable ability to share his life experience. Our first call, lasting about two hours, ignited my interest in his fervent opinions on life, peace, and squeezing the most out of life.

After that first chat, our sporadic correspondence through email led to exchanges of opinion, occasional disagreements, and an evolving pen pal friendship. Despite having no direct connection to my work or personal life, Rob offered insightful comments based on whatever I’d been writing about in the Rising Daughters blog or about international affairs in emails, and he expressed genuine interest in my family's endeavors.

A few years passed and our exchanges touched on various aspects of life — from his overseas work experiences to my adventures in new fatherhood. Rob, an unrepentant Baby Boomer, occasionally hinted at feeling too old to travel outside the U.S. At one point, he shared plans for what he considered his "last trip" to Japan. Seizing the opportunity, I offered to take him on a personalized tour of Hiroshima, an offer he accepted.

Our virtual friendship came to life during his visit. Meeting Rob face-to-face felt surprisingly familiar, like reuniting with an old friend. The photo above captures a moment at one of my favorite viewpoints of Miyajima, overlooking the Seto Inland Sea. It was a fine day, and I knew he genuinely appreciated the hospitality and the view.

I hope Rob reads this. (As far as I know, he is still alive.) He is a good human being with a thirst for life that is infectious. When I was considering how to bring a bit of holiday cheer to this blog, I thought that an account of this pen pal exchange across time zones and generations would be fun. I suppose the recipe of folksy advice and common interests were what left me smiling whenever I read one of his pointed questions or while crafting my responses to him. It was a kind of gift of knowledge and experience. It is a nice memory for me and reflects the spirit of Christmas in many ways.

Keep on keepin’ on, Rob!

Scenes of the season

Sometimes it's fun to capture the normal activity that happens during the seasons with simple, everyday pics. Here are two...

September

Last year, at Lady E's Culture Day at her high school, Naomi and I weren't given license to do very much (like meet her friends, or enter her classroom!) due to teenage angst about potentially embarrassing parental behaviors.

One year later, her attitude toward her parents magically changed, and I was even allowed to snap a photo with her!

October

I was able to see more pro baseball games this year than in recent years. The Summer Game extended well into the autumn months for me. This photo comes from a game between the Yokohama DENA BayStars and the Hanshin Tigers. The Tigers won that game and went on to win their first Japan Series championship in 38 years. It was still hot under the sun!

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Family Flicks: My Movie Musings

The Rising Daughters™ are growing up and becoming more independent, as it should be. I marvel at the unique individuals they're becoming. Naturally, as teenagers they are developing their own interests and personalities. As parents, Naomi and I've learned to respect their choices. (Or, in my case, not ladle out too much “old people” scorn.) I am glad they’ve discovered hobbies and tendencies that make their heart sing. But it's easy to miss those days when the kids would just go along with whatever activity we thought was the right thing for them and their social development. 

This is especially true when it comes to movies. Long gone are Disney flicks and Dr. Seuss videos. Our Netflix personalized recommendations are all very different and reflect our personality quirks. So how to choose a movie to see at the movie theater becomes an issue—and an opportunity for family time. Family movie nights are a tradition that keeps us close, a ritual that has become even more cherished as the kids grow up.

Choosing which movie can sometimes be a challenge, but it is also part of the fun. We attempt to take turns, and it's interesting to observe Lady E. or the M. debate the merits of a particular movie and try and persuade the rest of us to see it. Would they rather see these movies with their friends? Probably. But their friends won’t provide transport and buy the snacks.

Thus, we have developed a habit of family night at the movies where we choose the movie through compromise, common purpose and restraint. This preserves our mini-civil society.

Early last summer we saw “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning.” It was a no brainer because a blockbuster starring Tom Cruise rarely disappoints. There’s something for everyone there but nothing too naughty for teens. 

Later, during the relentless heat and humidity of July, I convinced Elena to come with me to see “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” by bribing her with window shopping time before the movie, paying for her ticket, and lunch of her choice with the option of popcorn. However, we’d neglected to carefully check the movie showing date and time and we were thwarted by not paying enough attention. Zoinks! Ultimately, Lady E. still got her lunch and shopping, but I went to see the movie by myself a week later. What will be, will be.

Here's the thing: “The family that goes to the cinema together stays together." There's truth in that statement. The laughter, shared snacks, and post-movie chats about the plots or startling scenes have entertained us and helped sustain us as a family. As my daughters continue to develop and explore their interests, I'll cherish these family movie outings. It's a reminder that even as the Rising Daughters™ become more independent, our family will always have a special place for stories, visual spectacle and togetherness.

Fini

Blue Jay Way

Screen grab credit: TSN

The MLB postseason is one of my favorite times of the year. This time around, I was glued to the showdown between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Minnesota Twins in the American League East Wild Card Series. This is the third time in four years that the Jays have made the WCS. Each time the Jays were swept by the opposing team. In Game 2 of this WCS, the Blue Birds pitcher, José Berrios, was tossing a great game with no runs given up against his former team, the Twins. Then he was yanked for no apparent reason and departed the mound with little visible emotion. Why take him out? The Jays ended up losing the game, 0-2, and the series. Déjà vu.

Screen grab credit: TSN

They say numbers don’t lie but what about the intangible qualities of players? Moneyball-type performance analytics deep dive into statistics for players’ strengths and weaknesses. But can you rely solely on mathematical models designed for a 162-game season when the pressure is on, and it is do-or-die? Computer models can’t measure courage, emotion, gut checks, or a person’s character. A manager’s instinct, intuition and experience still matter when it’s crunch time.

Credit: Blue Jays Today

The postgame controversy got me thinking. Sure, José Berrios should have stayed in. He was pitching very well, and no runs scored against him. Why pull a pitcher who is clearly dealing bullets against his former team and who knows their strengths and weaknesses? What was the psychological impact on the Blue Jays players...likely bewilderment and surprise which no doubt impacted their focus. Pulling Berrios also might have emboldened the Twins because they know how skilled and competitive he is. How do you measure that?

Out of the blue, I had a random thought: what would Bob Ross think of this situation? The frustration from fans and commentators is understandable. Blue Jays management and supporters want to see the team advance and win, right? But then it hit me: some perspective. Do I see this WCS as a glass half-full or half-empty? Am I an optimist or a pessimist? In this case, I was neither. I channeled my inner Bob Ross and thought of his “happy little accidents” that happen while painting. For him, the process of creating art was just as important as the outcome. He encouraged his viewers to find joy in the creative process and derive happiness from the entire experience rather than only the outcome.

I’m not a philosopher, and baseball is just a game. I decided to filter my reaction not by the Blue Jays’ loss in the WCS, but by how much I have enjoyed the baseball season so far in 2023. I saw four very good Japanese pro baseball games this year at ballparks with friends, family and co-workers in Saitama, Hiroshima, and Yokohama. I viewed a few Jays games on MLB.TV. I am happy.

Photo credit: The Japan Times

What’s more, the Hiroshima Carp are still in the playoffs.
For the Jays, there’s always a new season to look forward to.
In this moment in time that’s enough for me.

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SuikaMan's Summer Lament

Summer is officially done. Over with. Kaput! Autumnal Equinox Day in Japan was on September 23, 2023. Locally known as "Shubun no Hi," this day signifies the sun's southern crossing of the celestial equator, signaling the transition from summer to autumn. So be it. Still, in spite of this astronomical milestone, often the thermometer in Yokohama stubbornly reads 30 degrees at midday, though the air feels less humid. Howzat?!

Even as the warmth lingers, I can't deny that the hardcore, intense summer heat is finally behind us for the year. As the autumn leaves start to dabble the Yokohama cityscape with vibrant color, I find myself bidding it farewell. And so goes my honorary title--SuikaMan. My daughters semi-sarcastically dubbed me SuikaMan because of my watermelon obsession. "Suika" means watermelon in Japanese. It isn't uncommon for me to devour watermelon for breakfast or indulge in multiple suika popsicle treats. 

Credit: Starbucks Corporation

I even succumbed to the temptation of Starbuck's overpriced watermelon-flavored Frappuccino--which, I must admit, was quite tasty.

There were the annual unmistakable signs that summer was fading.
First, the symphony of cicadas serenading me to sleep in August faded into the distance, marking the end of the Sound of Summer.

Then, weeks ago, convenience stores stopped sales of Suica Bars, those sugar-fruity ice bar delights shaped like a slice of watermelon. I have earned a reputation among local convenience store owners as the crazy foreigner who would buy their remaining stock of Suica Bars at the first hint of the seasonal end of sales of these magnificent creations.

Thus, it is that time of the year when I take off my watermelon crown and contemplate wearing pants again on weekends.

I had one last hurrah during a recent trip that enabled me to savor the steamy heat and the luscious tastes of summer. One more fruity feast before the chill of fall clutches me in her chilly embrace.

Lucky me!

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