SPRING IS HERE

At last cherry blossoms start blooming! Last winter was so long and cold, that I have been waiting for spring eagerly. After the freezing season, all the sprouts are popping up at the same time, and my garden is now full of tulips and daffodils. Blossoms of all kinds of trees, like cherries, apricots, plums, and soon apples and pears, are in their season. I am so happy these days, walking around my garden.

I almost forgot what I complained about during the winter ; why did our forefathers start living in this place? There must be many other places to live, warmer, richer places. Why did they choose this place? I can't help complaining during the winter.

One of my acquaintances in Fukushima said in her e-mail they can't eat vegetables from their garden. Today I read a letter from a woman in Fukushima on a magazine. She says she had been enjoying the country life there, growing rice and vegetables and wood fire in the stove. But she had to abandon all of them because of the nuke station accident. She lost everything, and now lives in an apartment in a city. If I were she, how can I bear such a loss?

　The women from Fukushima who have worked anti nuke power station have been on hunger strike in front of the Ministry of Economy and Industry. They started it on the first of April. Before that, a priest of a temple in Fukui, where they are trying to restart Ooi nuke station, went on hunger strike in the building of the government of Fukushima.. They are planning to continue the strike until May 5th, when all of the nuke station in Japan will stop working. Mass media has not said anything about the strike that has been acted risking their lives.

But spring has come here anyway. The spring season here is short, and so we should enjoy it! I'd like to have a picnic in my garden. I should plan to go out to see cherry blossoms. Before cooking dinner, I usually walk around in my garden, and I can find many kinds of edible leaves. It’s fun in this season.







One of my acquaintances in Fukushima said in her e-mail they can't eat vegetables from their garden. Today I read a letter from a woman in Fukushima on a magazine. She says she had been enjoying the country life there, growing rice and vegetables and wood fire in the stove. But she had to abandon all of them because of the nuke station accident. She lost everything, and now lives in an apartment in a city. If I were she, how can I bear such a loss?







　The women from Fukushima who have worked anti nuke power station have been on hunger strike in front of the Ministry of Economy and Industry. They started it on the first of April. Before that, a priest of a temple in Fukui, where they are trying to restart Ooi nuke station, went on hunger strike in the building of the government of Fukushima.. They are planning to continue the strike until May 5th, when all of the nuke station in Japan will stop working. Mass media has not said anything about the strike that has been acted risking their lives.

Phone call from Okinawa

Humiko Shimabukuro, an 83 year-old Okinawa woman, gave me a phone call today. She got seriously hurt in the war at Okinawa, and has been acting against the wars and army bases. A few days ago, I sent her some pictures of 3/11 anti nuke demonstration walking , in which my grandsons held Okinawa drums given by her as presents. I also sent a book written by Ruiko Mutou, a woman from Fukushima who suffers the radiation and works against the TEPCO and nuke. Shimabukuro said, ”What can we do for Fukushima? We are talking about it.” She told me to send her ten books. “I’d like to give them to my friends.”

She is one of the people of Okinawa that has been suffering because of the U.S. army bases and the government of Japan. She is old but busy to take in the activity herself. SHE is worried about Fukushima! What compassion! Should we call it solidarity of suffering people? She says, ”The issue of Okinawa and that of nuke plants are the same.”