what a wonderful day it was yesterday. the drive up here was amazing! cherry blossoms all the way to fukushima. then driving around tohoku seeing the improvements was cool. our group of 11 is amazing. all wonderful people from all walks of life all here for the same reason. took us 6 hours driving up but it was really pleasant because as soon as we left tokyo, i put in my neil diamond cd and neil sang our way up here.
right before dark, we arrived at the We Are One Market in Kitakami. pulling up, i had goose bumps. my feelings are still mixed. super happy one minute, and super sad another minute. it’s like a roller coaster and sometimes hard to control. during M5, naomi-san had a vision. a vision that finally came true. kitakami was one of the hardest hit areas from the tsunami and we saw first hand the devastation. the whole coastline along the ocean, and everything up the river was completely wiped out. everybody had to evacuate and are now living in temporary housing. it’s dark and there is nothing around. the nearest store to buy food is 30 minutes away, and because most people lost everything, including their cars, it’s hard to go out and buy the daily necessities. well, thanks to naomi-san and all the people who believed in her, a market is born. the opening is a few hours away and we’re so excited. i’m so excited i couldn’t even sleep.
we’re standing along the river in this photo. there use to be houses all along here but not anymore. this whole place was flattened by the tsunami but that statue was the only thing left standing. it’s a reminder to everyone that passes by that the people of kitakami will stand strong! it’s a power spot and when i stood in front of it while looking around at nothing left standing, i was amazed. look behind the statue. that is where they built the We Are One Market. a lot of love went into that place and i want to congratulate naomi-san and all the people who worked hard to making this dream come true. ahhhh.. goose bumps….
this store is going to bring back life to the area. the people won’t have to take a long drive into the city to buy food anymore, they just have to take a walk down the street. the grand opening event starts at 11:30 am and if you live near here, you should come down. we’ll be serving up shirasu/rice bowls, cooking malasadas, there will be a yoga workshop, and we’re setting up a photo studio where we will take a photo, print it, and put it into a hand made frame made by our friends who care in hawaii. i can’t wait!
*yesterday as i walked outside the market, i saw concrete foundations where houses once stood, i saw the water line on how far up the mountain the tsunami went, i saw the trucks going in and out taking out the debris, i saw grandma’s taking a walk along the forest, i seen kids riding their bicycles, and as i looked into the market from the outside, i saw the people working so hard putting in the final touches. i almost burst into tears. i almost lost my mind. i almost broke down. my life hasn’t been the same since 3/11 and it’s days like today that help make my heart heal. yeah, it still hurts inside, but it’s also making me stronger and making me appreciate everything i have. and when it comes down to it, it’s the people around me that means everything in my life. without them, i’d be lost and lonely. ahhh…. i better go because this is starting to get to heavy for me. have a wonderful day.
