Postcard from Yakushima [Ichigo Ichie]
I just packed up my travel backpack and am getting ready to, once again, say farewell to the island. This time was mostly cloudy, with light drizzle here and there, and an incredibly stormy ocean due to a hurricane in the south. Yesterday, the sea finally started to settle down, and today is a full blue sky with summer clouds that look like cotton candy on the horizon. Every early evening, I could feel the wind shifting shortly after the sun set over the edge of the ocean. The warm, humid air that filled the atmosphere with the distinct heaviness of summer moisture lifted away as the cool mountain air rushed down from the island's peaks. One evening, my dad and I were sitting outside on the deck and experienced and acknowledged the shift simultaneously.
[Ichigo Ichie]
One chance. One encounter.
We live far apart, so those shared, authentic moments are rare and precious. We can’t force these experiences to happen… as those glimpses of a life are only felt in our hearts… at the serendipitous intersection of us being fully present and the magic of the natural world.
The more I witness our everyday experiences being punctured by the constant, often unconsented-to, massive flow of augmented information through various media, usually on some kind of screen, the stronger my urge to resist and question the status quo of those technologies. The moment I shared with my dad, when the trees around us whispered in the cool mountain breeze, is etched forever in my memory, but artificial intelligence will not be able to fully grasp what an experience like that means to our human souls.
This trip was short and sweet - taking care of some paperwork, checking on my dad, tending to BK remotely by taking advantage of the wild jet lag, and stepping into the forest for incredibly slow meanderings, having another deep conversation with a bamboo craft artist Taku-san, and spending a day with a textile artist Kyoko-san, and building a fire and dying silk with plants from the island.
I am so deeply grateful for all the wisdom of this very special island.
always + forever.
That first picture reminds me so much of the home I left behind in WA state. The forest with its steep trails, dense undergrowth and majestic evergreens, and wisps of fog among the treetops since you’re so high up. It’s the only place I’ve found where I can breathe freely and fully. Thank you for taking me back there with your words and photographs.