Thanksgiving Japanese Style
The other month I was at a elementary school visit and they invited me to join the 1/2 and 5/6 graders (3/4 graders were on a field trip) at a yearly event roughly translated into "3 Generations Meeting". We all put on our outside shoes and made the 5 minute walk over to the local community center where many of their parents and grandparents already were. They were preparing mochi (a chewy rice bun thing often with red beans inside) and lunch. We joined in making the mochi which we shaped in our hands while still hot.
They weren't all for eating though. We took some on a woven grass holder and walked over to the corner of a rice field nearby. Here, there was a small statue that was a few hundred years old! It was so old, the features were faded into the stone. I must have driven by this very one so many times, but I never noticed it. And there are so many, all over the place. We placed out offering of mochi in front of it and said a little prayer. "Thanks for the rice this year, we wish for a good harvest next year too." Clap twice and then it's over.
We returned to the hall where lunch was set up (thanks to all the moms working hard in the kitchen!) and the 3 generations sat down together and ate the harvest meal. I sat there eating thinking, this is just like thanksgiving back home! There wasn't the going around the table telling everyone what we were individually thankful for, but we were there to appreciate the food and the company and celebrate the harvest. Afterwards, we all danced a little rice harvest dance which reminded me of a Sri Lankan dance that mimics using sickles to cut rice.
It was fabulous! Made up for missing thanksgiving back home. (Jaime I thought of you and your mom's yummy food this fall!!! I missed it!)
And even better! I got to eat chicken and mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce and pumpkin soup and pumpkin and apple pies at American thanksgiving last weekend. That was amazing. My mouth waters at the memory.
Two different kinds of thanksgivings in one year! Not bad!
They weren't all for eating though. We took some on a woven grass holder and walked over to the corner of a rice field nearby. Here, there was a small statue that was a few hundred years old! It was so old, the features were faded into the stone. I must have driven by this very one so many times, but I never noticed it. And there are so many, all over the place. We placed out offering of mochi in front of it and said a little prayer. "Thanks for the rice this year, we wish for a good harvest next year too." Clap twice and then it's over.
We returned to the hall where lunch was set up (thanks to all the moms working hard in the kitchen!) and the 3 generations sat down together and ate the harvest meal. I sat there eating thinking, this is just like thanksgiving back home! There wasn't the going around the table telling everyone what we were individually thankful for, but we were there to appreciate the food and the company and celebrate the harvest. Afterwards, we all danced a little rice harvest dance which reminded me of a Sri Lankan dance that mimics using sickles to cut rice.
It was fabulous! Made up for missing thanksgiving back home. (Jaime I thought of you and your mom's yummy food this fall!!! I missed it!)
And even better! I got to eat chicken and mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce and pumpkin soup and pumpkin and apple pies at American thanksgiving last weekend. That was amazing. My mouth waters at the memory.
Two different kinds of thanksgivings in one year! Not bad!
posted by lucky at
2:57 pm
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