Welcome to 2006

Since having children, our New Year’s Eves have become much more mundane. This one proved to be the same, despite living in a foreign country. I am not complaining in the least, however. Sometimes it is important to just sit quietly with your spouse, with no small bodies wedged in between you, and watch very silly Japanese television. Before telling you more about Japanese New Year’s traditions, though, allow me to indulge myself by describing to you the show which we found ourselves so fascinated by.

I cannot begin to explain Japanese comedians at all, nor do I ever expect I will be able to. Perhaps only a thorough understanding of Japanese culture would make this possible. Comedy here comes in many, many forms, some of which defy even the smallest attempt at description. However, some forms of humor, I think, are more universal, and laughing at a strangely dressed man attempting a ridiculous feat of courage falls into that category. Not understanding much Japanese, we, of course, we left to our own explanations for why this man was dressed the way he was and why he was determined to stop a rolling ball of fire at the stroke of midnight. I suppose it was all in the name of entertainment.

The actor, dressed in a loincloth and samurai hair, was emphatically explaining his plan to the onlookers and television personalities gathered around. A huge, perhaps 200ft dragon, had been constructed. At the top of the tower around which the dragon was wound, there was a ramp, with a gold ball of indeterminate material poised at the brink. The plan, apparently, involved the actor shooting the ball with a flaming arrow and them using his body to stop the flaming “dragon ball”. I was under the impression this would begin at midnight. As the 20-minute count down commenced, hula dancers for some reason entertained us. The actor then disrobed (revealing the loin cloth) and proudly displayed the hair on his chest. Japanese men are not really known for their chest hair. Turns out that the actor had plucked some hairs from Kotoshu, a prominent non-Japanese sumo wrestler, and glued them to his chest. He then pranced around a bit, preparing and spouting Japanese that we couldn’t understand. Finally, shivering and nearly blue, he shot the arrow at the ball. The arrow flew about 10ft and then disappeared. Oops. So, not to be thwarted, the dragon itself was set aflame. By this time, it was about 5 after midnight. For a while, Aaron and I thought the dragon would not burn all the way up, but it did. When the ‘dragon ball’ finally burst into flame, our luckless hero, now garbed in a fireproof suit, stood bravely in its path as it rolled down the ramp; then he promptly jumped out of the way and ran screaming like a banshee. The show wasn’t over at this point, but we finally went to bed. Nice way to spend New Year’s Eve, eh?

Traditionally, Japanese people gather to make soba, drink, and many visit the local shrine at midnight. Before and after January 1, for about a week in either direction, most houses arrange Shinto shrines with offerings of fruit and food. The day of January 1 is a day of eating pre-prepared food, so as to give the women a break from cooking. They still have to do the dishes, though. I asked.

We had been invited to Mr. Kamaya’s house for lunch on New Year’s Day. The table, as usual, was laid out beautifully, with a large amount of unusual-looking food. Aaron sat at the men’s end and the boys and I sat next to Mrs. Kamaya and their daughter. They explained the meaning of some of the foods to me. Much like we eat black-eyed peas for good luck, they eat certain dishes that are symbolic: small fish for fertility, black beans for luck, and a bit of seaweed wrapped fish, whose meaning I am not sure of. I have included some pictures of some of the food. I’m afraid I can’t explain what everything is. As my contribution, though, I made this apple pie. Ridge, feeling shy and overwhelmed with the strange food, refused to eat anything but a bit of bread. Without me noticing, Mrs. Kamaya cut him a huge piece of pie, which he happily devoured. Later, when we all had pie after the meal, he ate another huge piece. It’s hard to keep the sugar out of him when we are visiting other people.

Various goodies
A huge shrimp, complete with eggs within its legs
Another view of the shrimp, for perspective, that's a AA battery below it.
More goodies
Another shot of some of the goodies. The colorful items are sweet and made of mochi, maybe.
My apple pie - my fourth to cook in less than four weeks

We played some games with the Kamaya’s son. He is studying Japanese history at a university some distance away. Then Mr. Kamaya got out the materials for calligraphy and we all tried our hand at writing some things. Finally, though, my nap-less children could behave no longer and I had to take them home.

On a last note, just a quick word on the photo up on top of the post. During various times throught the year, several of the middle school boys play the part of Shishima, a lion who dances and brings good luck. He was making the rounds shortly after January first. They came into the genkan, did a short little dance (while Ridge and Holt hid, terrified), and we gave them a small donation in a special envelope just for the occasion.