Blossoms
The day after the Tohoku earthquake, the plum trees started to blossom. I've even seen cherry trees in bloom. It's bittersweet.
In Japan, the cherry blossom is usually a joyful symbol, it represents spring and renewal. The hanami festivities, of sitting under the trees with friends and family, eating and drinking while admiring nature's beauty, are a time of happiness. It's almost as if the trees here are saying "Gabare! Life goes on."
But there's also a more fleeting and fragile side to the blossoms.
There's a popular expression that claims the reason why the cherry blossoms have pink petals instead of white is because there's a dead body under the tree. And as the confirmed death tolls in Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima rise, and more and more blossoms open, I can't help but think of that. That for each tree that blooms, a life has flickered out.
I plan on observing hanami this year, but I may be drinking tears with my sake.
In Japan, the cherry blossom is usually a joyful symbol, it represents spring and renewal. The hanami festivities, of sitting under the trees with friends and family, eating and drinking while admiring nature's beauty, are a time of happiness. It's almost as if the trees here are saying "Gabare! Life goes on."
But there's also a more fleeting and fragile side to the blossoms.
There's a popular expression that claims the reason why the cherry blossoms have pink petals instead of white is because there's a dead body under the tree. And as the confirmed death tolls in Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima rise, and more and more blossoms open, I can't help but think of that. That for each tree that blooms, a life has flickered out.
I plan on observing hanami this year, but I may be drinking tears with my sake.