Reunited by Tea: Former Doshisha Girls’ Classmates Reconnect at Komurasaki An
Noriko and Yoko, former classmates at Doshisha Girls’ Junior and Senior High School, learned about our tea ceremony workshop and Noriko invited Yoko to join her in signing up.
Upon opening the door, they greeted me with a “Konnichiwa. Ojama shimasu” in Japanese. I hesitated briefly on whether to speak in Japanese or English, but I decided to conduct the tea ceremony experience entirely in English to give them a better understanding of what our workshop was all about. Both Noriko and Yoko had experience in tea ceremony and could understand English well.
As I guided them to the tea grinding room, Naoko was there to welcome them. Naoko and Noriko had recently lunched together, but it was Yoko whom she hadn’t seen in over five decades.
Naoko excitedly exclaimed to me, ‘Yoko and I were homeroom classmates in middle school!’ This workshop had brought together old friends, and what could be more delightful than that?
My tea ceremony workshop has become a wonderful gathering for old friends. Even former students from my days teaching at Doshisha Girls’ Junior and Senior High School have come to visit. Naoko and I are both incredibly delighted by this. I hope that Komurasaki An can continue to be a place not only for spreading Japanese culture through tea ceremony to the world, but also for reunions with friends I’ve made along the way.
Noriko is deeply knowledgeable about Japanese history and culture, and often visits temples in Kyoto.
Yoko has formed a group with close friends and is diligently practicing English conversation by inviting a native speaker.
It was a bit awkward conducting the workshop in English for Japanese acquaintances, especially ones who are knowledgeable about the tea ceremony, but Naoko and I managed to get through it without any major mishaps.
After the tea ceremony workshop, I guided them to the living room and asked them to wait there while I prepared their certificates of completion for tea ceremony workshop. Naoko served them coffee and sweets. In response to my question, “Can I start speaking Japanese?”, everyone answered “Yes!”. From then on, the conversation continued in Japanese. This sense of accomplishment is irreplaceable.
They had all attended the same junior and senior high school as Naoko, and there was no end to the stories they shared about their memories from that time. The names of various teachers from back then came up, and flowers bloomed with stories related to those teachers. I had also taught at the same junior and senior high school as them, and in fact, I had once taught Noriko’s daughter. It had been nearly 30 years since then. How quickly time flies!
Noriko and Yoko had a lunch reservation at a restaurant somewhere, so they left Komurasaki An at around 12:00. Naoko and I waved goodbye to them many times as they walked away. We had a very fulfilling half-day.
