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WHF2002
Recollections - Deborah
Russell |
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Remembering
Kamakura
Deborah Russell
Baltimore, MD |
I will always remember the beauty
of Kamakura, it's raw beach and familiar/unfamiliar sights. I took many walks by
myself just to explore this wonderful atmosphere. I woke early each day to greet
this 'new place'. Each day, the first thing I would do was to look out my
window. Always, two ravens soared in the morning sky, or remained perched on the
rooftop of an orange stuccoed building across the parking lot.
After a few days, I realized they
would be there like friends, so I would look for them. I was infatuated with
Kamakura from the beginning. I felt transported in the peaceful gardens of the
temples. I enjoyed the small streets for shopping, for aromas, colours and
especially for the greetings of strangers, who were very warm and friendly. I
was also grateful to find Starbucks, which made me feel quite at home.
I met many wonderful people in
Kamakura, not only the people I met with in our haiku group, but people I met on
my own. In particular, two artists/shopkeepers who were very nice, took the time
to explain to me how to find places that they thought I should see and that I
wanted to see. The man worked with leather and natural stones, shells and beads.
His wife, who spoke English, was a designer of clothes. I also met two women who
ran a candy shop with candied citrus rind, almond cookies and bean cakes. They
were very helpful with directions to the ATM, a good cafe for lunch and a
pottery shop. We enjoyed talking about the confections, the weather and even our
children and grandmothers.
I also met a beautiful woman in a
Christian retreat. She is a nun. I felt very honoured to meet her. She was very
pleased with the weather and the gardens. While my friends were still praying, I
went out to the patio to get some sun. On my return, I saw the nun carefully
polishing our shoes, and placing them gently in a row. To me, this moment
signified a great cultural difference between the Japanese people and Americans
in general. I would never expect to see such a thing here, in the USA. How
wonderful it is to see people with this spirit, this kindness -- and I found
this spirit in nearly every person I met. I wrote many haiku in Kamakura, had
many wonderful experiences and met many beautiful people, as I did through out
the entire trip. It was a very good experience, one I will never forget.
autumn sakura
too early for blooms
Hokoku-ji
Hokoku-ji
the only sound
peaceful Moso
bamboo
the garden blooms
Hokoku-ji jizu
climbing steps
Moso bamboo --
it's shadows
Photograph by Deborah Russell
