I arrived in London in February tired, jet lagged disorientated, dragged my industrial suitcase to the information desk to ask where the national express coach left from. I asked, in what I hoped was a suitabley polite voice. The information service woman vaguely waved in a direction I couldn`t quite discern but I confidently headed off, only to find after 10 minutes that these were local buses.

 The service in Japan in impecible and even if the politeness is insincere does have a certain smoothness to it which oils the wheels of daily living.


  walked barefoot for two hours at e silver sand.







A few nights ago a friend of mine had formulated an outline of his experiences in Tokyo. It is safe, convenient and efficient but are these things always good? If you can get away with never having to interact beyond your comfort zones, where children go home and play on video games not socializing and when business men jump infront of trains up to 70 per day. I sometimes feel living here is like being in a relationship which could go either way, I`m over the honeymoon period and see it a bit more for what it is but I am still fascinated.

Yesterday I went to watch a hojo (Japanese swordmanship) demonstration. It was meant to be against a background of beautiful sakura (Japanese cherry blossoms) but the gale like rain forced us into the dojo. Here the two sensei`s demonstrated the art of control and expression as they went through routines for all the seasons. It was mesmerizing watching these two men circling moving slowly, breathing, bowing, locking swords. Later they seemed jovial and childlike as if embodying a kind of zen humour. While Japanese politeness can mean as a Westerner it can be hard to know where you stand there is a quietness of spirit and humilty which is inherent in everything. Perhaps it is the Bushido spirit, a gentle but firm dignity which is always somehow present.

Later, watching a documenatary about Cuba - Hasta Simpre i thought again about freedom and community. For many people The Revolution meant a society which has access to free education and healthcare where communties know each other. US sanctions are encouraging people to find alternative sources of income via tourism and offhsoots such as the black market and prostitution. There is a restriction of movement and speech. For some the alterbative to Castro is one of capitalism and a breakdown of community as the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. It begs the question what is freedom? If Capitalism is a form of oppression then what is the viable alternative? I found it yesterday in this quiet community. There was a mutual respect - for silence and the need for it, for peoples differences and abilities.

This presentness and willingness not to find easy quick answers but to be with things is something that I admire and want more of in my life. I found two things I would like to share with you...

Mamamia Love bear with it shes great :)

ON LETTING GO

I also read a quote by Henri Nouwen which I would like to quote at some length for times when things are painful....

The great challenge is living your wounds through instead of thinking them through. It is better to cry than to worry, better to feel your wounds deeply than to understand them, better to let them enter into your silence than to talk about them. The choice you face constantly is whether you are taking your hurts to your head or to your heart. In your head you can analyze them, find their causes and consequences, and coin words to speak and write about them. But no final healing is likely to come from that source. You need to let your wounds go down into your heart. Then you can live them through and discover that they will not destroy you. Your heart is greater than your wounds.

Understanding your wounds can only be healing when that understanding is put at the service of your heart. Going to your heart with your wounds is not easy; it demands letting go of many questions. You want to know "Why was I wounded? When? How? By whom?" You believe that the answers to these questions will bring relief. But at best they only offer you a little distance from your pain. You have to let go of the need to stay in control of your pain and trust in the healing power of your heart. There your hurts can find a safe place to be received, and once they have been received, they lose their power to inflict damage and become fruitful soil for new life.

Think of each wound as you would of a child who has been hurt by a friend. As long as that child is ranting and raving, trying to get back at the friend, one wound leads to another. But when the child can experience the consoling embrace of a parent, she or he can live through the pain, return to the friend, forgive, and build up a new relationship. Be gentle with yourself, and let your heart be your loving parent as you live your wounds through.

Yuki Matsuri was worth a visit but a tad disappointing as far as over corporate sponsorship and issues with the warmth (only -4).

so before my days of online quizzes are over to summarize;I am;

You Are Elmo

Sweet and innocent, you expect everyone to adore you. And they usually do! You are usually feeling: Talkative. You've got tons of stories to tell. And when you aren't talking, you're laughing. You are famous for: Being popular, though no one knows why. Middle aged women especially like you. How you life your life: With an open heart. "Elmo loves you!"

The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

I am also an E(Extrovert) N (intuitive) F(Feeling) P(Perception) person, I am most like Vince Noir from The Mighty Boosh, I have an IQ (apparently) of 127, My life prorities are in this order my pride(?) family love career and money (aka the Dalai Lama) and I am 70% Supergirl.

Ah the joys of the internet! Some recommended more mind feeding reads are William Boyd`s Any human heart, Alex Garland`s Coma and a lovely little book by fellisio - sun and shade, part of their zen meditation selections. Also a lovely new sight showcasing and selling work of new Japan based designers www.tokyomade.com.

Yesterday Yokohama`s China town was bustling with street stalls and human dragons. I was quite amused to find the top Chinese Nikuman makers based in numerous locations throughout the streets. I also really recommend the magical mask changing show at the Chinatown Museum, I figured out he might have a fake arm but he still managed to change his masks at an amazing speed.
more pics of China (real) and other fun coming up...

free hugs

yesterday I saw a woman in purple leopard skin prints over pink hot pants, I saw little miss sunshine (great film) I saw the light reflecting golden in the side of skyscrapers at 4pm. Today , so far I have had a banana ,milkshake and watched youtube - there is a video titled free hugs which features a man who held up a sign Dylan style saying `free hugs` in Pitt Street Mall for 2 years. The police stopped him and the council wrote a law to stop him saying he was a liability (potential risk of accident and subsequent suing)...

I also read about the Psalters a Christian nomadic band who play all kinds of interesting instruments and live on a bus, they identify with the dienfranchised and are livinga lifestyle of community and simplicity. http://www.psalters.com/Home.html

What is community now? people who share our interests?　In little Miss Sunshine the family are not exactly harmogenous - a heroin snorting porn obsessed old man who is a wonderful grandpa, a failed and disgraced academic whose gay love for his student has given him nothing but pain, a fragile motivational speaker whose belief in winning through sheer determination is shattered, a working mother trying her best for her family, an angst ridden teenager who doesn`t speak because of Nietzche and the 7 year old Olive who is longing to win the beauty contest but whose naturalness and curiosity don`t fit with that particular world. These are not a cozy family but one whose differences bring them together.

Japan- sexist?

yesterday it was reported that one of the Japanese cabinet (Yanagisawa) said - and I quote -

Women are child bearing machines

He was not asked to leave despite many politicians outrage, what message is this sending out to the young women of Japan , if their Prime Minister doesn`t address such obvious sexism? There are also some other worrying developments since Abe`s arrival. The sacking of teachers who teach some facts about the second world war, the new rule that to graduate students must be deemed patriotic...http://www.tokyoprogressive.org/index/weblog/comments/becoming-an-ugly-and-dangerous-nation/

I will go to a talk about education on the weekend, keep you posted...

About being happy
I watched Will Smith`s The Pursuit of Happyness last night http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0454921/plotsummary Yes it was cheesy in a Forrest Gump kind of way but the fact that it was based on the life of a real person made it more substantial - Chris Gardner http://www.chrisgardnermedia.com/index.htm
The film showed his commitment to something more than yourself, to keep going even when it gets really really tough. In his case it was his love for his son and desire to provide that motivated him even when he was homeless living in a shelter and toilet. What are our motivations? Its good to learn how to care for yourself in a healthy way, how can this be translated into a giving? IS being happy the ultimate goal. I read the Dalai Lamas book the art of happiness a while ago and from what I remember it talked about happiness being in letting go and surrendering. When I try to be happy I am often not happy, when I catch happiness it is ephemeral and wonderfully different each time.

About me and others My friend recently said by helping other people I help myself too. They give back to me too I have so much respect for that.

Love your neighbour as you love yourself. But I think this is often misunderstood as don`t think about yourself...You need to do both, you need self respect and to give yourself what you need before you can help others but its a symbiotic relationship. For me giving to others is good if I am doing it not out of guilt but out of joy and respect. I am so lucky to have what I do and I am grateful for that, but when I see homeless people in the park in Ueno or Yoyogi or anywhere I think that could be me so easily given certain circumstances, In October I came back from Australia and had no-where to live, my friends helped me, what if you don`t have that? I don`t think its wrong to be comfortable and have a home and things but the trick is to share with people maybe...

I will volunteer for a Japanese NGO this weekend called Second Harvest. They give out food to people in the Park. I am happy to be able to have the time to help, I can`t do a huge amount but I can start where I am.http://www.secondharvestjapan.org/

whats new pussy cat - green things

get up early attempting to see the sunrise (again) but too late. zah nen as they say in the land of the rising sun.




Monday was largely taken up with attending an environmental symposium at Musashino University just outside of Kichijoji.
Subject - sustainablility.


 Our lifestyles are to a certain extend already in place , so, what can we do an a practical and national level to save energy?. This Swedish/Japanese meeting addressed the subject through a variety of ways. First looking at concrete examples in Sweden and its nearby island of Gotland. Sustainable heating systems, wind power, recycling, alternative sources of energy for cars, reclamation of pastures, water re-use.

But the larger question is one of human organisation, co-operation and identity. Who are we? Are we part of a democracy who can work towards change? or are we merely cogs in a bigger industrial money making machine? How can we, practically change things? Torbjorn Lahti from the organisation Roberfors spoke about facilitation of social processes involving community, Networks and Ideas. Using the model of Manfred Max Neef he asked what are fundamental human NEEDS as opposed to human wants. In no particular order

subsistence
protection
affection
understanding
participation
Leisure
Creation
Identity
They are not needs for objects but for relationships and a sense of belonging within a community.

the 5th generation concept of an eco municipality is this
1) Systemview undertanding - understading the inter-relatedness of the sytems
2) Particpatory process - democracy. this could be local people or individuals speaking up for what they believe in.
3) Integration
4) Networks on all levels - local to global
5)Professional Leadership - sucessful management of exchange programmes and platforms for these issues to be raised
6) Concrete examples of sucessful models for these ideas.

How can this idea be adapted for different countries and applied within different contexts?
In Japan Peo Eckberg has set up the One World network to foster intercultural exchange.
http://www.oneworld-network.com


I find myself asking amid all this what are we as human beings? We are fundamentally relational, we communicate and invent new technologies to communicate over great distances. we organise ourselves into smaller community units of personal relationships (2)moving out into a circlular movement like a manadala into larger communitities. We now how virtual communities which help us specialize our interests. Is this good? we are becoming increasingly selective about our relationships. Is there space for a more general sense of community including communities that nourish each other emotionally and spiritually too where you don`t just pick people who you like but learn to co-exist with all kinds of people?

YESTERDAY...

Over lovely hot chocolate and tea in Shimokitazawa I was talking to Nori-san from the Setagaya playparks project -----search for Hanegi Park on this site http://www.japantimes.co.jp/

She told me about her experiences in Bangladesh . An NPO project selecetd her to take 5 Japanese children to Bangladesh to meet children there. She said the children there seemed freer and happier than the Japanese kids, but on talking to them they said they envied Amercan and Japanese children because they knew they had a future. The Japanese children were always pressured and only thought about the future (Juku, syudying for some distant achievement). Perhaps true happiness is found in being able to balance these two.

Victor E Frankl in his book - Mans Search for meaning explores these questions. The book is partly an account of his experiences as a holocaust survivor. A question and an answer. When in the most horrifying and soul destroying situations how did people survive?. As a psychiatrist he used the experience as grounds for study and developed Logotherapy. The conclusions in a nutshell are you need to be able to appreciate present beauty but also have a sense of hope about the future whatever that may be. If man has a sense of purpose he can endure the most terrible suffering.
www.logotherapyinstitute.org/index.html