Japan is beautiful

I knew that rural Japan was going to be beautiful, but I didn’t really think about it too much before I left. Now that I am here, I’ve begun to notice things that I might not have noticed back home.

Firstly, behind my apartment is a rice paddy . Although this is a breeding ground for mosquitoes, it’s also quite lovely to look at every morning when I wake up. Today, we had a small rainstorm. While it was raining, the breeze began to blow. It’s not usually very breezy here – at least not since I arrived. But, I was sitting in my apartment, working out some difficult Sudoku puzzles, listening to the rain, when I looked up. What I saw were “waves” washing over the rice paddy. I imagine that anyone who has lived on or near a farm knows what I am talking about. But, since I am not a farm boy, this sight caught me. The wind was just blowing across the rice and making ripples, or undulations, in the stalks. Sometimes it looked like critters running through the field. Other times it looked like the wake of a boat in water. It took my breath away.

When the rain was over, the birds came out. The bugs start to fly around after the rain, and our local sparrow population came out in force. Perhaps 50 birds were zooming over the field, dive-bombing the insects. They fly at such astonishing speed that it’s a wonder they can even see the insects at all. They were such a flurry of activity.

Secondly, when I walk into town, no matter where I go, I can hear the rushing of water. Sometimes rivers sound like the din of a highway in the distance, but our river is different. It still makes a white noise, but less rushing and more trickling. It’s just a pleasant sound. The utter lack of truck noise, airplane noise, mechanical noise, is foreign to me. For the past 8 years, I’ve lived in the city. Now, I live in the most inaka (rural) place in Japan. It makes me wonder if I should move to South Dakota when I come back to the states!

Having driven across America in 2004 with Marty and Meredith, I realize that the United States is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. We have such amazing natural beauty, and most people don’t even know it. But, Japan is beautiful too. The mountains are dramatic and the weather can go from oppressive, to ominous, to refreshing in a very short period of time. Everything is so green and alive. Sometimes I just can’t believe how lucky I am to be here.

Oyasumi nasai,
Maikeru
:-)