M6 was awesome! just to see the positive spirit in the people just amazed me. things are moving forward. all 11 of us volunteered to work all day helping Kimura-san and his family harvest wakame or “seeweed.” all this time i was eating my miso soup, i had no idea how wakame was produced. now, i know how it grows, how it’s cleaned, how it’s boiled, how it’s packed, and how much hard work goes into each and every strand. i experienced deep japanese culture yesterday and i will never forget it for the rest of my life!
over 1 year ago, i met my true samurai. Kimura-san’s been a role model for me and i have so much respect for him. just everything he does and says touches me. but the most powerful thing he has is his smile. a smile that says a thousand words. we went to throw the parts of the wakame that couldn’t be eaten back into the ocean. then he showed us how wakame was grown, and how oysters were being raised. as we were coming in, he asked me if i wanted to drive his boat. when i took the wheel, i felt free, i felt happy, and i felt like the happiest guy in the world. for me to be in the ocean next to a true samurai was one of the best experiences of my life. thank you Kimura-san for your kindness, and thank you for sharing a deep part of culture with our M6 team.
even though it’s been over a year after the tsunami, hearing the stories feels like it was just yesterday. Kimura-san’s mother invited us in for lunch and shared her stories. it was chilling, it was sad, and it was emotional. to be sitting in a house that got hit by the tsunami eating lunch with survivors was surreal. but as i was eating the fresh wakame just harvested that morning, i was thinking to myself “things are back for kobochihama.” Kimura-san told me “we have to move forward, we can’t depend on anybody. we will move on and overcome this.” every time i come by an obstacle in my life, i will remember those words. i feel strong and got so much power yesterday!
want to thank each of our members. once matsu sends me the photos, i will introduce each and every one. we all worked hard together on this mission and i feel so happy to have such a great team with such great hearts. we had our emotional times, but the happy times overcame that and gave us the power to want to do more and more. and yes, i had a few down times on this trip but refused to let it bring me, or our team down.
as i take my flight back to hawaii tonight, i will reflect on this whole 2 week trip. i will laugh, i will cry, and i will have chicken skin. but once i get back to hawaii and ride my first wave, i will be the same person i left. just more wiser, more stronger, and more grateful for all the thing i have.
thank you everybody in japan for this wonderful time.
We Are One!
