I woke up this morning and the sun looked amazing. There was dew on the goldenrod outside my window, and it made it sparkle - dazzling! I got up and washed my face but Muto-san was nowhere to be found. I made breakfast, toast and salad. (I'm very...clumsy. I can't slice very thin or straight and when I push sliced vegetables into a dish from the cutting board using a knife...always, something falls! Try harder I guess...I think Muto-san is used to it by now...) He still wasn't back so I went to collect the eggs. So many today! Yesterday, I got 50 in the morning, I think 13 in the evening. The chickens are crazy. They crowd around the door so much that it is hard to open and I have to push them away with the buckets, but they start to eat out of it! It's fun though, they are my friends:) Every morning, "Ohaiogozaimasu!" and in the evening, "konbanwa!"
When I get back he was back and we ate breakfast before heading out. But when I got into the suit and boots, outside there was a van with people. Muto-san introduced me to Maiyu, she was really pretty and very hippie with a nice braid and many smaller braids and even a piece of hair wrapped in thread. I liked her shoes a lot and wonder where I could find ones like that. Then we went to the tree house deck and sat down to chat. There were three others, Mugi, Nabi and Shiori. They were all hippies I think to some extent and all musicians. They were in awe because of the walnuts that had fallen from the tree onto the deck, kurumi, and wondered what they were. When they found out what they were, they were quite excited and later Muto-san brought a hammer to crack them open, walnut! We chatted for a while, they knew a little English. Shiori said he was also half Japanese, "what a miracle it is that we happened to be here at the same time!" He said. Nabi, the other man, looked like a very "classic"Japanese. He had longer hair, the little mustache and light beard, like from Japanese art! Soon Muto-san had to go feed the Mama Pig so I was with them alone, but they brought a guitar from the van and first Nabi played the Beatles, Blackbird. It was very relaxing... it's a wonderful tune...I remember when Dad used to play the guitar a lot when we were younger, he used to play Blackbird. It was when we lived down the street on Elm street and Elijah and I were little...he had a great song book. He used to play all kinds of things! Funny that Nabi happened to play that song...many memories.
Then he played a song in Japanese, but it was a very great tune and Maiyu and Mugi harmonized and Shiori used the kurimi shells as percussion. Next Shiori made up a tune and Maiyu made up words to a song about what was happening at the moment. She started out in English, "Here we are at the peaceful farm, Yamaaimura...sitting in a room with no walls and no roof..." (something like that!). Soon her English ran out and she switched to Japanese, but I appreciated the effort! Muto-san came back, then, with the hammer and Nabi cracked them open while we enjoyed the nut inside. They gathered them together and had to leave because Shiori had to go to work. They were very happy and kind people, and Nabi gave Muto-san a CD that he made, all original songs. They said they would come again and I really hope they do!
I cleaned the eggs and then, already, it was lunch time. Muto-san made somen (cold...noodles, I think rice noodles, but i'm not sure) and I peeled nashi (pear) and kaki (persimmon) - my two favorites! And after that he said, we can go to the rice fields so that I can film Katsu and Hiro (the sons) harvesting since I didn't have my camera the time before. So we hopped into the van and rode the rice field. No one was there! But he knew where they were so we drove to Hitomi's parents' house. There is where the drying machine is kept and we found them, Hiro dumping the bags of rice into the machine, Hitomi and two grandchildren (two very playful boys, about 7) on the bed of the truck. After they had emptied all the bags, Muto-san said I should go with them to the rice field so I can film, so I joined them in the back of the truck while Hiro drove back to rice field. It was kind of nice just in the open air...in America, you hardly ever do that, and especially not with little kids! People here hardly wear seat belts...in the city the driver and passenger do but you don't have to if you are in the back seat.
We got to rice field and Hiro put the empty bags back onto the combine before hopping onto it and continuing on his way back across the field (small field). I filmed... and soon I was done. Luckily, Katsu came soon with his wife and baby girl (she is beautiful, so cute, curious and happy! Her name is Hana, which means flower). He showed me something to do so I wasn't standing awkwardly anymore... we moved bundles of cut rice stalks from the shade into the sun. Then we were done with that too and Hitomi and Muto-san's sister offered my a donut and a drink and to sit in the shade behind the truck. The women wear all kinds of clothing and hats to keep the sun away. They were pants, boots, a long sleeved shirt with arm covers, a scarf (sometimes) and a hat that has cloth around it to cover the sides of face and neck. I'm basically naked just wearing my jumpsuit and hairband to keep my bangs out of my eyes. After a moments rest I felt bad because I said no to working the combine again and so I was just chilling and Katsu had taken over for Hiro so I offered to finish (since there wasn't much left). However, I only know how to go straight, so every time I had to turn he had to come back and do it for me, so i don't know which was easier but he seemed to appreciate it, maybe next time I can learn to turn and straighten up... Soon it was done! Everywhere where the rice is cut when you walk crickets, grasshoppers, little frogs and lizards jump and zip out of the way. The frogs are still in the cute stage, so I didn't mind too much:)
After that, there were the stalks of rice that they had cut by hand lying in heaps around the edge of the field. We had to take those and insert them in to the combine by hand, so the rice went into the bag and someone collected the stalks. Hitomi collected the stalks from the back of the machine and then Muto-san's sister came and bundled and tied them together and set them up straight. She was collecting the rice stalks because somehow you use them to make nato, fermented soy beans (or as some people know it, the incredible stinky thing that looks like beans and...well...snot), and she makes it herself! Oishiii (so delicious)!
The two little boys were crazy! They had a 15 ft rope and the ran around together, tied together at the ankle, basically trying to make the other fall. It looked fun to me:) And Hana the baby girl was fascinated by the truck's licence plate.
When we were done and the combine was loaded into the "big" truck we were just relaxing a little. The little boys asked Hiro to use the rope and tie them up so they could break loose, a game. So I watched a little nervously as Hiro tied them up. So when he let go they stood there, unable to move really, and then they toppled over towards the edge of the hill. I jumped heroically to save them but they were fine (of course) and one of them had gotten their arm loose and was trying to untie the knot. (When Hiro was tying the knot one of the boys said, "make it really tight, because if the knot is loose, it is no fun!"). Then I got a lift from Katsu in the big truck back to the farm. His wife sent with him a can of Sparkling Cider for me, I drank it after I cleaned up, very refreshing:)
I collected the eggs and fed the chickens for the evening and showered. I learned to shower as soon as I could, because it gets chilly at night and in Japan to save water you are supposed to turn on and off the shower between rinsing and soap and shampoo etc...So when it is later in the night it's a little too cold for comfort.
It was fun being around the family. I got to talk to Hitomi a little which was nice, because I hadn't yet.
Overall A+ day, definitely. I think harvesting rice is also a social thing, but I don't know for sure... definitely great, though.
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