this is the pitcher and catcher for the Kitakami high school baseball team. 2 great young men with 2 great smiles. things are getting much better in Kitakami and with smiles like this, i know why. these kids are our future and these kids inspire me. i wish someday they can come to hawaii and play baseball with the kids here and teach them a few things about japanese culture. a culture respected by people from all around the world.
i learned a lot from this great fisherman and great man. as i was working next to Kimura-san washing the wakame after it got out of the boiler, we were talking and everything he said sunk into my head. but the most inspirational thing he said was “we couldn’t wait, we couldn’t sit around waiting for help. we had to get up, move on, and do it ourselves.” it’s been only a year after Kimura-san’s fishing village got devastated by the tsunami and thing are going well. yeah, they have to work 5x harder as before, but they are doing it with smiles. and after spending the whole day there, i haven’t heard one complaint. opps, i take that back. i was the only one complaining of it being so cold. but now, i feel like an idiot. i learned how to take things into your own hands, i learned how to overcome bad things, and i learned how to move forward with a smile. Kimura-san and his family are thinking of coming to hawaii later this summer. if they come, i will be here! if they come, i will be their guide. if they come, i will show them the beauty and aloha of our people. then maybe i’ll take him out and teach him how to surf. it would be my dream to share a wave with this man i truly respect.
*awesome photos by Shinsuke Matsukawa.
