God Bless America and Japan

Last Friday, while returning from a trip north, we experienced a moment that I thought should be shared...

As my husband and I drove into the city of Nago and were slowing down to stop for a traffic light, the JAL tour bus pictured, pulled up beside us. The tour-guide in the photo began waving excitedly until she got our attention, at which point she raised the handmade sign you see in the photograph. We were both very happy and extremely touched by this unsolicited show of affection and gratitude towards America. To us, this is yet another reason that we love Japan and her people. It is also a testament to the level of support we all, as Americans, have provided. Our military has jumped in with both feet and we have all opened our hearts and sent or given whatever support we can. Given the political differences we have experienced in the past, it is nice to know that not everyone thinks our presence is a bad thing.

God Bless America and God Bless Japan!

In March of 2010 I visited the beautiful Shukkei-en gardens in Hiroshima. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom and it must have been an auspicious day for a wedding as the gardens were filled with happy couples posing in their wedding finery.

I can only imagine the very different scene that took place this year as the country recovers from the damage that has been caused by the terrible earthquake and tsunami.

Though I currently live in the southern island of Okinawa, my heart remains in the enchanting Honshu province of Japan. I would like to share with you some of my Mosaic Moments pages of my time in Japan in the hopes that if you have not yet helped out the tusnami victims, you might still find it in your heart to consider a donation to the Red Cross .

All these pages were made with Mosiac Moments papers. If you would like to purchase some Mosaic papers, click the SnapNCrop link to the right of this post. Thanks for stopping by!

I'm So Proud of my Students!

Kazumi, Waka, & Yuko

Though they are only into month 2 of their beginners' lessons, this week my scrapbook students really rocked the Casbah! I gave them each a page kit courtesy of Helen Croft from Scrap A Little which consisted of the same few elements - a background sheet; 2 paper flower shapes; four strips of various patterned papers; and a journaling block.

I lined the table with punches, ink, stickles, flowers, ribbon, twine and all the tools they could want and told them to be creative! At first I was greeted with a look of horror and shock. After all, though Waka and Yuko had been to 6 classes, Kazumi had only been to one of my classes so far.

I did provide my simple take on the use of the materials. But after settling in with a few sips of our Beauty & Vitamin Drinks, they took to the project with glee.

It is the beginner's inclination to want to use every pretty bit of glitterati and ribbon in sight, but with a few suggestions from me, they each used the kit in entirely different ways. At the end of the day they were all so pleased with themselves and with their creations that I think they have gained in confidence and are beginning to feel like imaginative, artistic scrappers.

Scrapbooking is still in it's infancy in Japan, but these three girls have taken to the art wholeheartedly and that makes me so proud!

And here's mine:

Bon Odori Festivals

It is a fabulous time of year in Japan with the summer festivals in full swing. Obon, a sort of festival of the dead, is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. It is meant to be a joyful celebration, bringing families together, and celebrating rather than mourning the lives of the dearly departed. These festivals are held every summer, in every district, in every city.

I'd like to share with you some of the festivities that my husband I have been taking part in. First, two videos and then two scrapbook pages I made of our experiences. There is just nothing like being in Japan during Obon!

In the first video, taken at NAF Atsugi, you can hear the addictive beat of the music that the people dance to in order to welcome their ancestor's souls. Many participants wear colorful, light cotton kimono called a Yukata. Men and children may also wear a shorts set called a Jinbei. With the taiko drummers pounding out the beat, one can't help moving in unison with the graceful dancers. Similar to a Country Line Dance, each tune has particular moves; the difference being that you move in a circle. Various dance teams are showcased on the tower to lead each dance. Anyone else who wishes to dance, whether you are in your yukata, jinbei or street clothes, follows along moving in a circular pattern around the tower. The Bon Dance is held at night because Japanese people believe that ancestors' souls come back in the night.

The second video is an Awa Adori parade. Much like an American parade, there is a point in the parade where the dancers can stop and perform a stationary dance. (just so you know, that is not me screaming in the background)

This year, my husband learned the dances for the first time. Now he can Tanko Bushi, Soran Bushi, Don Pan Bushi, Sakura Ondo, Sagami Ondo and Tokyo Ondo along with everyone else. I made this page of him dancing for Heidi's Techniques Challenge over at MAF .

This second page was one I made last year of myself and my girlfriends dancing around the Bon Tower at Camp Zama. I wrote a haiku for this page. It says:

Dancers loop the tower

Graceful in summer kimono

-- like thunder, drums pound!

These festivities have probably changed little in hundreds of years as Japanese people continue their wonderful Obon traditions to welcome and respect their ancestor's souls every summer. My husband and I love to dance in our base festivals, but when we hear the sound of the drums being carried on the evening breeze, we jump in our car and let the drums lead us to the local festivals where we join the circle once again. We sure love our time in Japan, especially during Obon!

Money Laundering

I commemorated this fun visit to an Enoshima shrine with a layout from a sketch over at Scrap In Japan. It's not my usual style to leave so much blank space, but I really wanted to give it a try. I also used a non-stamped title for the challenge at the new site Pile it On. (http://pileitonchallenge.blogspot.com/) The word Money is cut with my Wishblade and the word Laundering is printed with Microsoft Word then outlined with a Micron pen.
At this shrine, the water from the spring is said to purify and multiply your money. So who can resist giving coin washing (or zeniarai) a try? And to make sure your treasures are safe while they are out of your pocket, a huge serpent stands solemn guard.
I carry two wallets at all times: one for yen and one for dollars, which I have nicknamed yennies and pennies. Emptying both wallets into the baskets supplied, I washed them carefully, dried them and put them all back in their little pink pouches. The idea is to spend the coins within a week and wha-lah! -they come back to you double or triple. Soon my wallets will be overflowing with more yennies, and more pennies!
I'll be sure to let you know how this works out for me. (wink)

Supplies:
DCWV Far East Stack
DCWV Cardstock Stack, Neutrals
Bazzill black
Laundry Line journaling tag
Ranger Distress Ink - straw
Style-a-bility - trim
Color Box Chalk, Charcoal
Black Micron pen
White Jelly Roll pen
Chow Fun font from dafont.com

It's time for a Sketch Challenge!

It's time to win another RAK from Japan! Everyone is elligible - simply make a LO from my sketch above. Then:
1) make a comment to anything on my blog and
2) email me your LO, or a link to your LO by June 12.

I promise to have the RAK out to the winner within the week. (You have my Dad to thank for that as he truly taught me to be prompt.) I can't wait to see what you come up with!

So what will you win? It will be something special from Japan, of course!
Happy Scrappin'!

Kawaii

Living in Japan, I just can't help myself when I visit the local craft store and stand in front of all that beautiful washi paper. It comes in so many colors and patterns and is in huge sheets on bolts like rows of colorful fabric.

You may recognise this flowered washi from my Abe Lincoln birthday card. It is such a beautiful pattern enfused with pink, purple, turquoise and yellow flowers on a black background further enhanced by gold threading.

To make this layout, I simply cut the washi papers into 1/2 inch strips and wove them together. Once I matted the photo of Miwa, the rest of the page just came together.

The vines are made with Fancy Pants clear stamps. I cut them out once they were stamped and traced the lines with Black Diamond Stickles.

The row of gems along the bottom are from the 100 yen shop and are meant to decorate a cell phone. Oh, the fun things I find in Japan! Miwa's name in kanji on the bottom is also a sticker I took off of some packaging.

Journaling: Miwa, who can resist your big brown eyes? Everywhere we go, it's "Kawaii!" One look at the picture of Miwa, and I'm sure you can tell that kawaii means "Cute!"

Morning Calisthenics

In Japan, whether you work in a department store or on a construction site, the day opens with five minutes of mandatory calisthenics supervised by section chiefs. There must be something to it as I've heard the Japanese are the longest living people on the planet. I was in a hotel in downtown Tokyo on the 7th floor overlooking this construction site when I caught this group doing their morning thing.