When our youngest daughter was 6 or 7 years old, she made a bouquet of paper flowers from scratch. I was very excited because...
A Flower-Makers’ Great Granddaughter
A Tribute to a Piano Technician
A few weeks ago, my husband showed me an obituary of Mr. Melvin Frye. Melvin first came to tune our piano when our older children were still taking piano lessons. We owned—and still own—a red Yamaha upright piano similar to the one I grew up playing in Japan. Though Melvin was a Steinway specialist, he … Continue reading A Tribute to a Piano Technician
On Being Mother or Ultimate Loneliness
Long, long time ago one afternoon, I was looking at my first baby sleeping in her crib. She was so little and looked helpless in her crib-cage. She looked alone. But I, her mother, was standing outside and just watching her. Ordinarily I would have seen peacefulness or bliss in a sleeping baby. But on … Continue reading On Being Mother or Ultimate Loneliness
Unraveling Tangled Yarns: Unraveling Tangles in My Brain
Last Friday started out to be a very unproductive day. After a couple of hours of struggling to find something meaningful to do, a large tangle of yarns on the floor of a closet drew my attention. The yarns used to be in a large plastic trash bag with the top tied in a knot … Continue reading Unraveling Tangled Yarns: Unraveling Tangles in My Brain
always a friend: a Magnetic Poetry Kit
Some years ago my friend gave me something called a Magnetic Poetry Kit. It is a small plastic case filled with tiny magnetic strips, and a word is printed on each strip. I think it was a Christmas present but I’m not sure. I confess that I wasn’t too keen on it at that time. … Continue reading always a friend: a Magnetic Poetry Kit
Dancing My Own Story
When I grew up in Japan I really loved to dance. Every summer during the Bon festival to honor our ancestors, I joined the circle of Bon odori dance in a park across the street from my home. Everyone danced around the stage in a big circle, copying the good dancers on a small stage … Continue reading Dancing My Own Story
The Pine Prince and The Silver Birch: A Favorite Book from Childhood
“If you like a carousel come over here and if you like an automobile go over there!” said the facilitator. I was attending a retreat, and our activity was to choose between two random things and explain our decisions. Few of the choices seemed relevant to my personal history. But the word "carousel" stirred up … Continue reading The Pine Prince and The Silver Birch: A Favorite Book from Childhood
My Father’s Unfinished Business
My father died in August of 2012 from myelodysplastic syndromes that developed into leukemia. After the diagnosis in 2011, he kept telling my stepmother and me that he had an important unfinished business. It was an interview he had conducted decades ago. He wanted the world to know some important news revealed in the interview. … Continue reading My Father’s Unfinished Business
Fall Colors: Remembering My Father
Leaves are red Leaves are orange Shining vividly in the cold autumn rain Leaves are red Leaves are orange Shining brightly in the cold autumn sun Leaves are red Leaves are orange Shining faintly in the cold autumn wind These words were written as refrains for a song after my father died on … Continue reading Fall Colors: Remembering My Father
My Mother’s Household Accounting Books
While cleaning out some old stuff, I came across three household accounting books used by my mother in the early ‘80s while I was attending Kyoto University. I never lived at home after I left for college in 1979, and she passed away in December of 1994. When I was about to put the books … Continue reading My Mother’s Household Accounting Books
Accompanist for the Soul 