Another full weekend. As I begin to truly settle into the rhythm of the Kansai area, my days here become more and more extraordinary.
Friday
While riding the Hankyuu to Osaka, a woman sat beside me. She was exceptionally thin, and carrying a straight black cane. She wore a beige kangol style cap, and matching dress jacket and pants. Her hair was short, jet black, and contoured to her skull. From her left ear dangled two turquoise earrings, and behind them were two silver studs. A pair of black, thick-framed sunglasses with bottle green lenses completed her ensemble. Her energy was quiet and elegant.
About three stops after she sat down, she asked me, doko ni ikimasu ka ("Where are you going?"). I responded, Umeda ni ikimasu ("I am going to Umeda."). She made a "hmm" sound, and grew quiet. I turned back to continue studying my class script, but felt an internal nudge to continue the conversation. I asked her where she was going. She answered, "Juso", which is the stop right before mine. She then asked where I was going again, but I inferred that this time she meant what particular place. So I told her Studio Yoggy. She exclaimed, "Yoyogi?!" It is only now that I realize she probably thought I had said Yoyogi Park, which is in Tokyo and would have meant I was going the wrong way. I then said it was a yoga studio, but she still seemed not to understand, so I said, watashi wa yoga no sensei desu ("I am a yoga teacher."). She made an "ahh" sound, then grew quiet again. I returned to my script. She then rummaged through her oversized handbag, and pulled out a large snack pack of potato sticks. She tapped me on the shoulder, and when I turned to face her she indicated that I should take the snack pack.
Now, as strange as this exchange may seem, just moments before she sat down I had been contemplating what else I could purchase for lunch. I had brought a few things with me, and at the forefront of my contemplation was that I didn't want to spend much money.
I thanked her for her gracious offer. She replied very quickly, so I didn't quite catch all of what she said. However, she made a gesture with her right hand like she was clearing tears from her eye, then laughed, and I could have sworn I heard her say naku, which is the word for "to cry".
Right then we arrived at Juso. I thanked her again, and she said, in English, "See you later," as she departed the train.
I paused, to really take in what had transpired, and I felt a wave of spirit arise in my heart, and felt as if I wanted to cry! It was a deep gratitude for the amazing connectivity of the universe. One could say that potato sticks seem rather trite, but it was a gift given, and to not fully appreciate it would be to ignore the magic inherent in that moment.
I arrived at Uehonmachi, practiced a bit with an emphasis on my right psoas, which had been particularly vocal the past few days - not painful, just very communicative in its need to be stretched well. I began class with my theme, then we chanted. As we did the third round of the Anusara invocation I felt that wave again, cascading powerfully up and out of my heart. I was overcome by bliss. Laughter bubbled up inside of me so much so I could barely chant the last time through.
Then, at the end of class, when the students were in shavasana, I felt my right psoas relax and expand a bit, and there was a very subtle release deep within the musculature. It felt wonderful.
After my class at Uehonmachi, Akiho, one of the staff, had a message for me from Tomoko: LOHAS had stepped in as the guarantor for my apartment, thus sealing the deal. I now have a place to live, and will move in on the 6th of November.
The rest of the day was business as usual.
And the potato sticks were yummy.
Saturday
I woke up an hour and a half late for what was to be my last Saturday morning class at Uehonmachi. However, I still arrived 20 minutes early, thanks to a limited express train. In between my classes I went to a little takoyaki (spheres of batter, filled with diced or whole baby octopus, then topped with a sauce and mayo) place in Shinsaibashi. On Friday, Miho had directed me to a river that runs through Shinsaibashi as a quiet place to sit. The sitting area was closed, but not a half a block away was the takoyaki stand. Friday evening, Eri also contributed to my Saturday lunch by giving me a map she had printed out of the area around Yoggy. On it she circled three parks, and then marked where Yoggy and Namba-jinja were in relation to them. Another great gift.
So, I had a lovely little lunch in the park closest to the takoyaki stand. It has a huge playground on one side, around which were clustered Moms and Dads, with their children clambering about on slides, jungle gyms, swings, and other playground apparatuses. On the opposite side of the park are two large, flat, sandy spaces. I sat in the hub, just between these two sides, where I could view the park in its entirety. I was treated to several delightful and interesting spectacles. The first was a group of six children, about 8-10 years old, playing a game of tag where one child kept yelling out ohayou gozaimasu ("good morning!"). One of the sandy areas was completely devoid of vegetation. In this one stood four elders - three women and one man -playing a Japanese game that resembled croquet. There was an easel set up with a large scoreboard, and they all played with an intense focus. In the second square were about 15-20 teens, all Japanese, except for one African guy. They had used white tape to outline a "runway" and "stage". At the stage end sat seven or eight of the women, and at the opposite end of the runway, under a very modest tree, stood all six guys and about five girls. They had a small boom box churning out techno beats, and the guys and girls on the runway end were taking turns strutting down their makeshift catwalk.
After lunch, I taught my class, then headed home.
Maya was up for a visit, and I was delightfully surprised to find she and Tim had prepared a wonderful dinner. Maya's auntie had mailed a large box of organic veggies from Daisen to Tim's home. It was a delicious dinner of kamaboko (a roll of tasty white fish compressed into a cylinder around a scrumptious potato), mushrooms sauteed in a garlic paste Tim's friend Rebecca had made, a delightful little salad of carrots and shungiku (chrysanthemum leaves), green peppers, some tiny little potatoes that looked like black olives, and a lovely little onion soup.
A perfect ending to a great day.
Sunday
After teaching my morning class in Kyoto, I went to the onigiri stand for lunch. After making my purchase, I walked into the small temple area behind the stand, and sat on the wide stone wall of the chouzuya. I had the whole space to myself for a leisurely lunch. After eating, I just sat in the quietude of the enclosed area. A gentle breeze came up, ruffling the large purple banner hanging over the entrance of the temple. The leaves on the trees rustled, and in that moment I was filled with the simple joy of being. No thoughts of classes or studies, of places to go or places I have been. Just being.
At Shinsaibashi, I made my first purchase for my apartment from the local hyakkin, or 100 yen store. I bought a pair of beautiful matcha bowls for only 210 yen each! They are green, with white striping, and had caught my eye the day before.
Back at the studio, Miyuco had stopped by, and I had an impromptu Japanese lesson with her. Miyuco is one of the teachers at Yoggy. Her training primarily consists of Baptiste yoga. She teaches both "relaxation" and "energy" classes. I asked her about the very un-Japanese "co" in her name, and she said she had it changed because the 'c' is softer looking than the 'k'. She taught me several valuable Japanese phrases, including dekitara ("If you can") and douji ni ("At the same time"). She was very helpful, and I hope we do it again soon.
After my evening class, I arrived home to yet another fantastic Tim and Maya meal. They had eaten earlier, but had saved a generous serving for me. As soon as I came in the door, they began putting it together. By the time I had unpacked my backpack, there was a delicious meal awaiting me at the kitchen table. The main course was a pastry stuffed with veggies in a sauce,complemented by penne pasta, peas, some more of those unique little olive-potatoes, and a wonderful pickle salad of persimmon, wakame, and cucumber from Maya.
I absolutely LOVE Tim and Maya. Maya is reading the Oscar Wilde play, The Importance of Being Earnest. Later that evening, she was asking Tim to clarify a part of the dialogue for her. Watching the two of them converse and laugh together filled my heart with such love and joy. They are one of the most harmonious couples I have ever known, and it is a gift to be around them.
Another blessed weekend of magic and delight.
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