[Spots] Hokokuji Temple, Wakamiya-oji Street, Yukinoshita Church, Komachi-dori Street
[Visitors] 3 Philippine family members (A woman, her son and daughter)
[Attendant] 1 KSGG member
[Language] English
The son and daughter who became adults wanted to show their mother who loved flowers Japanese cherry blossoms to express their gratitude. So the dutiful siblings
checked flowering forecast, planning their four-day visit during the period when they expected the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. The buds of cherry blossoms, however, were still very young and it was too early for cherry blossom viewing unfortunately.
I felt sorry about it and was going to take them through Kamakura sincerely to please them instead. What I was surprised when I first met was that they were all very large-built and much bigger than I expected. They changed their plan a lot: “1.To enjoy the bamboo garden at Hokokuji Temple”,“2. To say their prayers at a church” and “3. To enjoy eating street food at Komachi-dori Street to their satisfaction.
I fully agreed to their new plan though it was totally different from the original one.
They were so much impressed about the bamboo garden, saying that they really felt like the strong power of bamboo coming into their bodies while sitting in.
When I explained a little about tea ceremony and Zen while drinking Matcha or powdered green tea, the son responded and said “Yeah, Mr. Suzuki said such a thing.” I wondered which Suzuki he was talking about. I realized that it was D.T. Suzuki, who was a prominent Buddhist philosopher, played an important role in spreading Zen culture to foreign countries. He then referred to Koan or conundrum for Zen meditation.
They are super elite family: Both father and son are lawyers. The mother and daughter are anesthesiologists. The three well-built family members looked truly satisfied with a variety of street food.
It really was a pleasant but surprising day!