Serving the JET Set since 1995
Volume 10, Number 3
Newsletter The Japan Exchange and Teaching Alumni Association of British Columbia
Fall 2OO4
Welcome Back New JET Alumni! JETAABC’s Welcome Back Reception October 16, 2004 from 7:00 to 10:00pm Nikkei Place, 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby (just off Kingsway at Sperling) Tickets $10 in advance, $12 at the door All former JETs and their guests are invited to attend the Welcome Back Party and JET Eye Exhibition! Come and meet friends new and old, see what JET alumni in BC are up to, and find out what JETAABC has to offer. Refreshments will be served. Admission also includes a ticket for the draw for an original framed and matted print of your choice from the JET Eye photography exhibition, which is on display at the Nikkei Centre from September 12, in conjunction with Nikkei Heritage Week and the celebration of 75 years of diplomatic relations between Canada and Japan. Please RSVP to Matt Fedoruk at treasurer@bc.jetaa.ca. Online ticket payments can be made by PayPal (www.paypal.com) to payment@bc.jetaa.ca.
Meanwhile, in the rest of this issue.... 2
2004 Re-Entry and Career Seminar A Letter from Glen
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News from the Consulate Connect to JETAABC the Easy Way What’s Happening with JETAABC in Your Area?
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Wanna Hanafuda? Upcoming Anime Highlights Games & Puzzles
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On the Scene for Fall ALT Omiyage
6-7 The Road Less Gracefully Travelled 8 2004 Board of Directors Editor’s Note Got something to say? Say it in print! Email newsletter@bc.jetaa.ca. Next issue deadline: TBA
Getting on Board with the JETAABC Forums Page Andrew Eisenberg The momentum for the JETAABC Bulletin Board website is starting to build up. We now have over 50 registered members, and many more have visited just to browse. So far, we also have over 450 posts. The bulletin board has changed the way JETAABC communicates to its members. Now, we are using the Yahoo! group only for event announcements and other important messages. All other communication – such as job postings, discussions, and calls for volunteering – is taking place on the board. Definitely not just for techies All members of JETAABC are encouraged to join. It costs nothing, it’s simple to learn, and it’s easy to use. Just a few things you may not have known about bulletin board: Board Announcements (typically upcoming events) are directly at the top of the Forum Index page for easy reference. At the bottom of the Forum Index page is a list of links to pictures, past newsletters, and other JETAA chapter websites. If you are logged in, you can click on the “View posts since last visit” link (just under the quick search box) to view recent postings. The board keeps track of your read and unread posts (but only if you remain logged in when you read messages). After you post a message, you can always go back and edit it, or even delete it if you like. You can also choose to receive notifications via email when responses are posted. Not all content is visible if you are not logged in. The Board of Directors forum is accessible only to logged-in members of the bulletin board. Everyone is welcome to post and contribute to the Board of Director discussions. How to get in on the fun To register for the bulletin board, go to: http://bc.jetaa.ca/bb/index.php, and click on “Register” in the upper-right corner. To register for the Yahoo group, send an empty email message to jetaabclist-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Problems or questions? Send an email to webmaster@bc.jetaa.ca.
. n a p Ja m ro e. f k c a b om h e r t ’ e u e o y w , So ome s Its h
Or is it. ..?
An invitation to all recently and not-so-recently returned JETs… JETAABC invites you to attend the
2004 Re-Entry & Career Seminar
Looking for a job? Struggling with reverse culture shock? Want to reconnect with fellow JETs and share your Japan stories with people who actually understand? JETAABC will be hosting a ReEntry Seminar for JETAA and Returning JETs. Where: Vancouver English Centre, 250 Smithe St. (between Cambie and Mainland, one block south of the Vancouver public library). Parking available at the Rosedale Hotel (basically across the street, 888 Hamilton St.), and other lots around the area. When: Saturday, October 23rd, 2004. Registration/coffee starts at 8:45 AM, ends around 4:00 PM. Lunch is not included. Price: FREE for ex-JETs (unbelievable, but true!) The morning section will include a discussion about “Coming Home”, as well as practical ideas about ways to get started on your career exploration and job search. The afternoon will include a wide variety of career-related mini sessions. There will be something for everyone, whether you have recently returned to BC, want to explore new careers, or change your job completely. Don’t miss this great opportunity! To attend, please send an RSVP email to the organizers, Stephenie Gold and Zamiha Virjee, at careerseminar@bc.jetaa.ca by October 20, 2004. Space is limited!
See you there!
A Letter from Glen Hello all Just a note to let my many JETAABC friends know that I have accepted a new position that will sadly require our family to depart BC for our neighbour to the east. That’s right, in the famous words of Gordon Lightfoot, I’m Alberta bound, Alberta bound... Effective August 23, I will take over as Manager of the University of Lethbridge’s International Centre for Students. Among other things, this position will include managing the U of L’s Office of International Affairs, and administering international marketing/recruitment activities, exchange agreements and English language programming across the university. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the various JETAABC Steering Committee members from days gone by for the wonderful opportunity to work with you in establishing the thriving alumni community that we have today. While school, work and family commit-
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ments have limited my participation in JETAABC events in recent years, my heart still lies firmly with the JET experience, and I continue to be a strong advocate both for the program and for the larger concept of internationalization to which so many of us have grown so intimately attached through our experiences abroad. It thrills me to now be returning to the field of international education and exchange on a more permanent basis. It is our family’s intention to return to Victoria at some point in the future, and I will certainly plan to reconnect with JETAAABC upon my return. In the meantime I also look forward to connecting with JET alumni (and future prospects!) in Southern Alberta in the coming years. All the best, and thanks for everything. Glen Allen ALT, Hokkaido 1991-92 JETAABC Vancouver Island Rep 1994-1999
News from the Consulate
Connect to JETAABC the Easy Way
Steve Chevalier
JETAABC is one of the largest and most active JETAA chapters out there, and one of the reasons for that is the multitude of ways members can stay connected. Besides the quarterly newsletter, we have a Yahoo! email list and the brandnew Forums page. Signing up for the Yahoo! email list brings the latest JETAABC news to your inbox, and allows you to broadcast your message to over 500 members throughout BC.To sign up, just go to: http:// groups.yahoo.com/group/jetaabclist/join. To access job postings, upcoming events, Board of Director happenings, discussions, and links to JETAA and Japan resources, register your genki self on the new Forums at http://bc.jetaa.ca/bb.The bulletin board is selfregulated and features new content every day.
JET Recruitment to Begin Again Soon After loading their bags with omiyage and enduring extra long lineups at the airport, this year’s JET participants are off to discover Japan! One-hundred and twenty-nine participants departed Vancouver at the end of Julycomprising the largest contingent of participants from Canada. For the 2004-2005 JET Programme, 386 Canadian participants will join another 508 Canadians already in Japan who have renewed their contracts for an additional year. As one JET cycle comes to an end, a new one begins. Recruitment of next year’s genki ALTs and CIRs will be underway soon. Application forms will be ready to download from the Consulate General of Japan’s website (www.vancouver.ca.emb-japan.go.jp) in late September. If your friends, family members or acquaintances have trouble with the downloadable version, they can contact the JET Desk at (604) 684-5686, ext. 415 or culturalcentre@consuljpnvan.com. As part of our recruitment campaign, we will be conducting information sessions at universities and other locations around BC. Dates, times and locations will be available on the Consulate’s website. Those of you wanting re-live your time on JET, remember, if you have not participated on JET since 1995 and you are under 40 years of age, you can re-apply! Consulate Sponsors Free Film Screenings The Consulate General of Japan in Vancouver is sponsoring two free Japanese film shows, one in Vancouver and the other in Victoria: Vancouver Tuesday, September 21, 2004 University of British Columbia, Auditorium, Student Union Building Onmyoji, Showtime: 6:00 pm Although the imperial order of the Onmyoji protects the kingdom, when the birth of the emperor’s heir approaches, political intrigue and jealousy lead to the most dangerous of betrayals – from within the Onmyoji and the Emperor’s family. Contains scenes of violence. Dolls (Directed by Kitano Takeshi), Showtime: 8:30 pm Using Chikamatsu Monzaemon’s play The Courier of Hell as its motif, the film depicts the sad journey of a man and a woman who, like socalled “connected beggars”, are linked by a red rope as they walk along. Their story is interposed with two other love stories. Contains scenes of violence. Victoria Tuesday, September 28, 2004 University of Victoria, CINECENTA, Student Union Building Nabbie’s Love (Nabbie no Koi), Show time: 7:15 pm Back at her native island in Okinawa, Nanako finds her grandmother Nabbie is seeing an old flame from 60 years ago in spite of being married. It is an island scandal, and although forbidden, Nabbie continues the relationship. A Last Note (Gogo no Yuigonjo), Show time: 9:15 pm Aging actress Yoko visits her mountain villa when her ex-husband and his wife commit suicide. In her pain, she confides in her long-time caretaker and then discovers more disturbing news from her past about her ex-husband. *Both shows are Free Admission. You must be 18 or older, unless accompanied by an adult. For info, contact Keith at (604) 684-5868.
What’s Happening with JETAABC in Your Area?
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Wouldn’t we love to know! Its been a long lazy summer here at JETAABC HQ in the Lower Mainland, but things are getting in gear for Fall. We want to hear from JETAABC members on the Island, in the Okanagan, the Kootenays, in the Cariboo, and heck, if you’re reading this from some other far-off exotic land, please drop us a line. Because of privacy concerns, we cannot release contact info of individual members, but if you would like to hear from other JETs in your area and organize get-togethers, we can publish your wish in this space. And of course, we want to hear news of what you’ve been up to in your corner of British Columbia and the Yukon. Please send all regional news to: newsletter@bc.jetaa.ca.
Consulate General of Japan in Vancouver 800-1177 West Hastings Street Vancouver, British Columbia V6K-2K9 Inquiries: (604) 684-5868 Fax: (604) 684-6939 www.vancouver.ca.emb-japan.go.jp Steve Chevalier and information on the JET Programme: culturalcentre@consuljpnvan.com
Wanna Hanafuda? Oana Capota Quick! Name a Japanese game that features cute pink cherry blossoms, sake bowls and wild boar, a game beloved by yakuza mobsters? That’s right, it’s the hanafuda card game called koi-koi. While this should be common knowledge, even few Japanese know about this game. Yet, while hanafuda imagery pops up occasionally in Japanese contemporary culture, appearing on television and, at the moment, available on a drawstring bag at Daiso’s Richmond branch, the game’s associations with yakuza, bosozoku(motorcycle gangs) and gambling have cornered it into obscurity. Rather a pity, as koi-koi offers more logical card combinations than boring old poker, a lesson on Japanese culture, and the chance to be bad-ass lite. With a history stretching back to the Heian Period and infected with fandangled ideas from the West in the sixteenth century, then banned during the Edo Period, the 48 cards in the Hanafuda deck are divided into sets corresponding to the twelve months, each with its signature plant: plum blossoms for the chills of February; sakura for the slightly blunted chills of March; wisteria for the April sighs of relief; and tumbling maple leaves for the bone-groaning chills of October. Two players vie for the choicest cards in order to make combinations that fit in with Japanese logic. The sake bowl from the September chrysanthemum group earns you 5 points if paired with the sakura. Get it? Cherry blossom viewing is not complete without libations. Or, coupled with the full moon over pampas grass, the sake bowl again earns you 5 points – the charms of moon viewing require alcohol too. All three cards together mean either 10 points or 15, depending on whose rules you go by. Then there is the frog, or “rain man” card (with Heian calligrapher Ono no Tofu), which drenches the whole affair down a measly point. Each game lasts 12 rounds, which, in the author’s experience, amounts to two hours of extreme fun. Plus, koi-koi has its own vocabulary: oya for the dealer; kasu for the garbage cards - you need 10 of them for one sole point; koi-koi itself at the climactic point; and, my favourite, ketsukanda! the cussing of choice (exclamation not optional). In Japan, for a game that no one claims to play, the cards are available at every 7-Eleven. Look for them near the loose sock glue. Outside of Japan, the cards usually show up on Ebay auctions and Japanese gift websites, priced from $6.50 to $25.99. A Nintendo side business is to make the cards; they are also available with cartoon characters like one-eyed demon boy Ge ge ge no Kitaro, and in upholstery fabrics, if you believe one textile company. The question on everybody’s mind now should be: where and with whom do I play this charming game? To make it easy for you, there is a website that handles hanafuda meetings around the world, including one in Vancouver. Sign up at www.hanafuda.meetup.com. More information on hanafuda and koi-koi is available at: http://hana.kirisame.org/ http://www.sloperama.com/hanafuda/ http://l-pollett.tripod.com/cards9.htm Oana Capota (Saitama JET 2000-2002) learned how to play koi-koi in Taiwan. She maintains a blog at http://maktaaq.blogspot.com.
Upcoming Anime Highlights
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Greg Joughin The first is Ghost in the Shell: Innocence, which is a sequel to the first GITS, which was a large inspiration for The Matrix. It comes out on September 17. (Unless you’re in Toronto for the film festival, in which case sooner.) Steamboy is set in 19th-century London, and is by the same director as Akira. It’s out in Japan now, and should be released here before the end of the year. (Again, unless you’re at the TFF, in which case sooner.) Hayao Miyazaki’s highly anticipated film Howl’s Moving Castle just premiered at the Venice Film Festival September 5 to rave reviews. It goes into wide release in Japan on November 20. It should be released in North America (by Disney) by the end of the year, or in early 2005. Doesn’t look like the TFF gets the jump on this one... Three of Miyazaki’s films – Porco Rosso (Kurenai no Buta), My Neighbor Totoro (Tonari no Totoro), and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (Kaze no Tani no Naushika) – will soon be released on Region 1 DVD (i.e. US and Canada). They were originally scheduled to be out at the end of August, but that has now been pushed back to early 2005.
Games & Puzzles Andrew Eisenberg This is a riddle from an application to a Japanese kindergarten: Complete the series and find the criteria: 1+1=0; 2+2=0; 3+3=0; 4+4=2; 5+5=0; 6+6=2;
7+7=0; 8+8=4; 9+9=2; 10+10= ??? Post your answer in the Discussions area of the Bulletin Board (bc.jetaa.ca/bb). You can expect a new puzzle every issue.
What would you like to see more of in the newsletter? News from Japan, news from alumni around BC, food and recipes, interviews, careers? Write about it! Eternal gratitude and your name in print awaits at newsletter@bc.jetaa.ca.
September
Powell Street Festival Community Meeting September 21, 7:00 to 10:00 pm Tonari Gumi, 511 E. Broadway Contact: Nina Inaoka, cultural@bc.jetaa.ca JET Eye and Nikkei Week 2004 September 16 to October 2, 2004 Come celebrate heritage, culture and history at Nikkei Place, and check out the JET Eye exhibition! This JETAABC-produced photographic exhibition will be on display starting September 12. 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby (corner of Kingsway and Sperling) For details visit www.nikkeiplace.org or call (604)777-7000
October
Food Night October 1, 6:30 pm onwards Yoshoku-ya, 774 Denman St (at Robson), (604) 687-4970 Contact: Greg Joughin social@bc.jetaa.ca Welcome Back Reception October 16, 7:00 to 10:00 pm Meet old and new friends and enter to win a framed print from the JET Eye exhibition. Refreshments will be served. $10 in advance, $12 at the door. 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby (at Kingsway and Sperling) RSVP to Matt Fedoruk treasurer@bc.jetaa.ca. Food Night October 22, 6:30 pm onwards Hachibei Restaurant, 778 West 16th Ave., (604) 879-3357 Contact: Greg Joughin social@bc.jetaa.ca 2004 Re-Entry & Career Seminar Saturday, October 23rd, 8:45 am to 4:00 pm Looking for a job? Struggling with reverse culture shock? Want to reconnect with fellow JETs and alumni? Then come to this FREE seminar. Vancouver English Centre, 250 Smithe St. (between Cambie and Mainland) Contact: Stephenie Gold and Zamiha Virjee careerseminar@bc.jetaa.ca
November
TEAze Your Senses” @ INFUZE Thursday, November 4, 7:00 to 8:30 pm Rediscover the world of tea with Brian Takeda, co-owner of the awardwinning INFUZE Tea House (www.infuzeteahouse.com). While sampling the various flavours, Brian (who was raised by a family of Japanese tea masters) will guide us on a journey of tea from its history to its health benefits. JETAA members $5, guests $7. Space is limited to 20, so register early! 870 West Cordova Street Vancouver RSVP to Nina Inaoka cultural@bc.jetaa.ca Food Night November 12, 6:30 pm onwards Akiyoshi, 120 West Esplanade, North Vancouver, (604) 985-8828 Contact: Greg Joughin social@bc.jetaa.ca
December
On the Scene for Fall
Food Night December 3, 6:30 pm onwards Van Ya Japanese Restaurant, 5615 Harold St. (off Kingsway, one block east of Joyce), (604) 433-1303 Contact: Greg Joughin social@bc.jetaa.ca Vancouver Opera matinee of Madama Butterfly MokuJET Event: Saturday, December 11, time tba A chance to see this classic opera at a discount price. For a sypnosis, visit www.vanopera.bc.ca/operas04/butterfly/. A special group rate is available for all members and guests, for Madama Butterfly only. Check out the Queen Elizabeth Theatre map for seating. Tickets are more than 25% off the original price and include taxes: A $97.25; B $85.25; C $76.25; D $63.25; E $34.25; and F $17.25. RSVP early for the best seats! Please send payment to JETAABC by mail, or by PayPal: payment@bc.jetaa.ca.
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ALT Omiyage
This hilarious comic strip was made by a student of Stephenie Gold’s. I think many of us still have stuff like this in boxes that we can’t quite bring ourselves to throw away. Relics of ALT life, oddball souvenirs, regional “specialities” still living in the nether regions of your closet or garage? Share it with us! Please describe at newsletter@bc.jetaa.ca.
The Road Less Gracefully Travelled completely undertaken by Japanese retirees – by tour bus. Special “pilgrim buses” would pull up to the entrance of the temples from a modern paved side road, and a flock of lively senior citizens decked in their crisp white pilgrim gear would buzz up to the temple altar, hurriedly completing their ritual prayers and candle lighting before hopping back onto the bus for the long drive to the next temple. By bus, the “pilgrimage” took about two weeks – quite a difference compared to the 70 days Hannah had calculated it was going to take her to complete the temple circuit. It had been a Zen-like practice for Hannah to avoid feelings of contempt towards the bus pilgrims. She tried to accept that each pilgrim derived personal significance from the journey in their own way. But as she staggered up the last of a hundred stone steps and was overtaken by a throng of pilgrims fresh off the bus, she couldn’t help wanting to stick out her tripping foot. She pictured a stream of pilgrims tumbling like white dominoes, their scramble on the ground an initiation into the dishevelment that defined Hannah’s days. With thoughts like these, Hannah suspected that she still had a fair distance to go before her eyes met the blinding rays of enlightenment.
Jennfier Farquhar, ALT 1998-2000
How many pilgrims in the whole history of pilgrimages have been spotted squatting on the roadside, wolfing down 2,000 yen worth of cream-filled cakes while sporting robes of religious significance? Hannah pondered guiltily, feeling a bit like a hustler for blowing the money that had been sincerely handed to her in the means of alms, surely intended for something less sensual than sugar and heavy cream. Dressed head to foot in the white cotton pilgrim outfit recognizable instantly in Japan, hands full of sponge cake, Hannah felt like the world’s worst pilgrim. With a head full of ideals about what the sacred Buddhist pilgrimage would mean to her, nine weeks ago Hannah had begun walking the 1,500 kilometres encircling the small Japanese island. Basically, she was looking to substantiate her faith in cosmic goodwill. She wanted to know that if she relinquished control over her surroundings, she would still find herself safely bobbing downstream with the universal flow. What better way to experience harmony than to step outside the daily grind and into the circuit of a sacred tradition? She had to admit she was also allured by the promise of enlightenment that completion of the pilgrimage offered, here was freedom in being an outsider; and as a foreigner, according to certain guidebooks. “Cast away one worldly desire for each of the 88 temples you visit” a pilgrim, and a soloist by foot, she was triply excluded from – who couldn’t use 88 fewer nagging material needs? Yet lately she felt mired up to her holy beads in the generally accepted rules. material discomfort, inspiration running as dry as dayEven as she was left behind in bus dust, Hannah had to admit that old sushi. As if relentless walking and homelessness were not chalthere was an undeniable freedom in being an outsider; and as a forlenging enough for a novice on a spiritual journey, she had also ateigner, a pilgrim, and a soloist by foot, she was triply excluded from tempted to adhere to an ascetic diet of wholesome vegetarian foods. the generally accepted rules. She thought of the construction workers Around the 50-day mark, the caloric deficit had turned her into a she used to watch on the subway during the evening rush hour back in crazed sugar-seeking machine. At first opportunity, she had broken Toronto. The men laughing boisterously in their splattered overalls, loose on a convenience store, stocking up on enough sweets to make exuberantly eating sandwiches with big filthy hands while around them Buddha himself ashamed of his own suspiciously round belly. a sea of people in suits and ties sat gazing at their briefcases appropriShe had wanted more than anything to prove that her faith could ately. Hannah could revel in this same social slack. If she wanted, she move mountains (or at least move her non-heroic butt up them). And could sit in the dirt and eat a juicy peach, the seat of her pants absorbyet here she was, 80 percent towards her goal of completing the piling the brown earth beneath like a badge of freedom from the tyranny grimage, immobile and smacking wildly on cakes as means of cheap of colourlessness. No picnic blanket required, no apologies for letting escapism. Hadn’t she earned an ounce of true spiritual transcendence sticky fruit juices publicly slide down her chin. yet, damn it? When Hannah had first decided to do the pilgrimage, she beHannah thought back to yesterday’s trek, and how excruciating came single-mindedly focused on successfully completing it, despite that particular day of walking had felt. Six months ago, when she the barrage of well-meaning opposition she encountered from those had made up her mind to attempt this long journey via the island’s all around her. The only close friend who hadn’t tried to dissuade her highest and least accessible routes, she hadn’t really known what to from attempting the pilgrimage had been her sensei. He had become expect. Faith as her motivating factor, self-defence studies and thorHannah’s close friend during the two years she taught in his rural ough preparations her more grounded consolations, she believed that village. One day she had admired this stranger’s flower garden while she could draw upon adequate powers. What others might have passing by his house, and the next morning he and his wife had shown deemed naïveté, Hannah took pride in as determination. “What if up on her doorstep with an offering of a freshly cut bouquet. That you come across a poisonous snake?” her concerned Japanese friends had been the beginning of a very simple and special friendship. Over had inquired. the two years, she had spent increasingly more time visiting her sensei “I suppose I’ll have to step over it.” and his wife in their simple wooden home. Her sensei seemed a Japa“What if you come across a bad man?” nese Merlin. A mentor of martial arts and traditional Asian medicine, “That’s why I’ll be carrying a big stick.” he patiently guided Hannah through his mystical world. Some nights Her martial arts teacher, or sensei, had actually incorporated her she would go over to his house in the evening, and they would simply walking stick, part of the traditional pilgrim ensemble, into her selfsit around the low living room table, their legs tucked under their bedefense training. They called their lessons together the “Crazy Woman hinds, sipping tea. After long silent pauses, one of them would break Pilgrim Kendo.” For her teacher, along with most of the other local the personal reverie with a comment such as, “The weather is getting adults with whom Hannah had become close, thought that she was warm, isn’t it?” Silence. mildly insane for wanting to undertake such a rare and arduous chal“Hmmm. Yes. It makes me happy.” More silence. Sip. Sip. At first lenge. Alone, as a woman, and a foreigner! this reticence was very foreign to Hannah, who had always felt the The renowned pilgrimage, which originated more than 1,200 need to fill any wide-open conversational spaces with a steady stream years ago, used to see its share of pilgrims struggling along its idyllic of pertinent words. Freed from this obligation, it seemed that one could mountain paths each autumn. But nowadays, the journey was almost more readily greet the wisdom that enters only through silent gates.
T
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Her sensei had employed this same sparseness in his response to Hannah when she announced she had made up her mind to walk the pilgrimage. Although he felt more concern than anyone for the safety of she who had become like a daughter, “I see,” was all he had eventually responded. “I guess we had better find you a good, strong stick.” And now here she was, 61 days into sweaty retreat with her sturdy stick, her will to forge ahead wearing as thin as the cartilage in her knees. Her body had become overexerted from the daily walking from sun-up to sundown, from toting a heavy backpack, and from miserable nights outside on her flimsy foam roll-up. Lately, every morning she woke up shivering, so stiff that it took a good half-hour of yoga just to convince her joints they weren’t made of rust. She had started this journey as a nimble 26-year-old, yet had metamorphosed into a creature with the gait of an arthritic in monsoon season. Despite the breathtaking beauty of the mountain streams and bamboo forests through which the trail wove, Hannah felt so uninspired. Sore from morning to night, new foot blisters sprouting upon old ones, she was finding it increasingly difficult to muster the will to continue. Self-imposed insanity, she thought. And that damn “closing the circuit” ordeal ... Because the pilgrimage circumscribed the entire island, the visit to the final temple was usually followed by a return trip to the first temple where the journey had begun. Although Hannah hadn’t originally known about this modern-day addendum to the pilgrimage, many of the “bus pilgrims” had informed her that it was a necessary component of the authentic pilgrimage. Easy for the bus pilgrims to say, she thought. What’s an extra 60 kilometres when you’re twiddling your walking stick on an air-conditioned bus? But for Hannah, this additional distance had become her nemesis. And it looked as though it could be the glass bead that broke the pilgrim’s back. As it was, nine more days of walking to reach Temple No. 88 seemed almost unimaginable at this point. But it was those extra 60 kilometres back to Temple No. 1 that suggested the downfall of her pilgrimage dreams. She just didn’t believe she had the inner strength anymore. At various times, she had started conversations at one of the temples with a bus pilgrim, and then quickly directed the subject to that last insidious leg of the pilgrimage. “ ... Are you sure that bit is REALLY necessary for a TRUE pilgrimage?”
Above: Jennifer/”Hannah” on the pilgrimage. Always the same smiling reply, “Yes, I’m quite sure, dear.” It seemed just too much for her. Not only was Hannah’s body making poor pilgrim’s progress, but her mood was also getting more surly by the day. Last week a monk had denied her request to sleep on the floor inside his temple for the night. His denial was customary, as residing monks couldn’t go about inviting in for the night every stray wanderer who approached. But that particular night it had been pouring rain. And no matter how she positioned herself under the eaves of a neighbouring building, the rain celebrated its union with pilgrim skin. She had lain there soaked, curs-
ing the monk all night, and in the morning as she walked out of the temple grounds and back onto her path, it was all she could do to restrain herself from giving the monk a big screaming middle finger. How’s that for an offering? So obviously, something had to give. Maybe it was time to reassess her beliefs. If her purpose had been to relinquish the illusion of control, wouldn’t abandoning her pilgrimage be an achievement in letting go? But deep down this didn’t settle well with Hannah. For if she wanted to participate in the material world as well as the spiritual one, she would have to honour her material world values by giving them structure, despite their “inconsequential nature” in Buddhist terms. But she had ALREADY achieved so much on her journey, Hannah thought, still trying to justify overwriting a non-traditional ending into her pilgrimage. Throughout her days of solitude she had witnessed countless examples of the precepts of Buddhism unfolding in practical terms before her. “The present moment is the only thing of consequence ... the material world and its goals are an illusion.” Struggling for an entire day up a mountainous path towards the temple perched upon its peak, only to turn around the next morning and commence to make her way back down the mountain once again; that had certainly been a lesson in illusive goals. Hannah was still grappling with her decision to carry on as she approached Temple No. 79. Had she not accomplished most of what she had set out to do? What were her reasons for insisting that she carry on? Maybe it really was okay to stop anytime. Her sensei had counselled her about this before she set out. “You are a very strong, but also very stubborn girl. I want you to know that even strong people admit defeat sometimes.” She knew that all it would take was one phone call, and her sensei would come to pick her up. A warm bath, idle time, freedom from her treacherous, ever-present backpack. It all sounded so sweet to her. Could she just simply give up? Confused, Hannah completed her temple ritual, explored the grounds, and was just getting settled in to meditate in front of what would be perhaps her final altar when an older monk approached her. If he asks me to go pray someplace away from the altar I am going to scream. And then I am going to quit, she thought. One could never be sure about the varying rules or the varying personalities of monks from temple to temple. Instead of admonishing her, the monk eyed up Hannah’s knee supports, her worn clothing, the defensive expression on her face, and said gently, “It is a long and difficult journey, isn’t it?” Tears of both shame and relief came to Hannah’s eyes at the peacefulness of the man’s words, in sharp contrast to her own stormy disposition. “Yes. Very difficult,” she replied humbly, trying to hold back the tears as so many days’ worth of pent-up hostility began to dissolve. After a moment, Hannah gathered up the composure to ask him a question. “I was wondering ... it’s about the return trip from Temple No. 88 back to the first temple ... I didn’t learn about that leg of the journey when I first planned this trip ...” She could feel tears of defeat interfering with her voice at the mere thought of this insurmountable distance, “and I was wondering if it is TRULY part of the GENUINE pilgrimage, or whether…” With a look of understanding and the faintest hint of a collusive smile, the monk patted her on the shoulder gently. His eyes twinkled as he responded, “Eighty-eight temple pilgrimage is 88 temple pilgrimage. Anything else is completely unnecessary. Good luck.” He smiled a full smile, gave a slight bow, and walked away. Hannah finished her meditation, and then stood up to persevere in what she had begun her first steps towards more than two months ago. Just as the season had waxed and then waned while she remained present in its path, so would she remain in the flow of this humanmade cycle until it reached its own natural completion.
7
2004 Board of Directors
Editor’s Note
President : Angie Freedman president@bc.jetaa.ca Secretary: Joseph Luk secretary@bc.jetaa.ca
8
Treasurer: Matt Fedoruk treasurer@bc.jetaa.ca Volunteer Coordinator: Jane Leung volunteer@bc.jetaa.ca Preparation Seminar and Social Coordinator: Greg Joughin prepseminar@bc.jetaa.ca Newsletter Editor: Christine Rowlands newsletter@bc.jetaa.ca Membership Director: Bobby Taylor membership@bc.jetaa.ca Career and Personal Development Coordinators Stephenie Gold & Zamiha Virjee careerseminar@bc.jetaa.ca Programs and Services Coordinator: Dianne Cook services@bc.jetaa.ca Cultural Programs Coordinator: Nina Inaoka cultural@bc.jetaa.ca Technical Coordinator: Andrew Eisenberg webmaster@bc.jetaa.ca Senior Advisor: Kristin Olson advisor@bc.jetaa.ca Director-at-Large: Damien Vilaysane director@bc.jetaa.ca Vancouver Island Representative: Shaun Sephton islandrep@bc.jetaa.ca Consulate Contact: Steve Chevalier, Assistant to the Consul culturalcentre@consuljpnvan.com
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I never was one of those genki JETs. Unlike the ones in the recruitment literature, I never organized an exchange, joined the school soccer team or bonded with my teachers at an onsen. I wasn’t into AJET but was never a mad ranter on Big Daikon either. Sure, I logged my fair share of time with scissors and glue stick making goofy props for English class, tried to show interest in school activities by going to tea ceremony club, and filled the long hours at work by studying kanji. In the stinky glow of the kerosene heater that February, I knew I could not go to three more schools and make something like 27 more selfintroductions. I hated Japanese TV and missed my dog. Since coming home, my career hasn’t exactly been high-powered or Japan-related, although it is a good conversation starter. The “Chiba tribe” has kept in touch by email and visits and we whisper of reunion one day, a natsukashii nomihodai at the Toyoko Inn. I didn’t even get involved with JETAA until the past year – I had written exactly one article for the newsletter and attended one pub night in the four years I’ve been back. Being on the newly expanded Board of Directors has been a great experience so far. I doubt anyone in this very diverse group of people, each with their own talents and expertise, would argue that we had done someElvis at YVR, July 25, 2000 thing “spectacular”, but I think we would agree the experience of Japan on JET remains an important touchstone in our lives. Lately, we’ve talked about ways to improve the newsletter and make it more relevant to JETAABC members. The discussion led to the recent Newsletter and Communications Survey that emailed out to the entire membership. The response has been great so far, with healthy doses of both criticism and praise. It is extremely valuable to have the input what works and what doesn’t. It is a difficult task to serve such a wide audience. While we all have that shared experience and interest in Japan, it is not necessarily central in our lives today. And of course, every situation is different. This project is always volunteer and reader-driven, and more help is always welcome. We also plan to start a subcommittee to find ways to improve the newsletter and clarify its direction. If you are interested in getting involved, please do contact me. Maybe you were a genki JET – well come on down. And if you weren’t ( and aren’t), you may find yourself in good company.
Christine P.S. By the way, if you haven’t sent your survey yet, please do so. I’ll be strong.
There would be eight pages of just blank spaces if it weren’t for:
Steve Chevalier, Oana Capota, Andrew Eisenberg, Stephenie Gold, Jennifer Farquhar, Glen A. Allen, Nina Inaoka, and Greg Joughin.
The JETAABC newsletter is now available online in the links section of the JETAABC Forums (http://bc.jetaa.ca/bb). If you would prefer not to receive future issues in genuine folded paper editions, please notify the membership coordinator at membership@bc.jetaa.ca.