16 May 2016

Relief Volunteer Interview : Jen Sno

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Experiencing the relief effort in Tohoku from one of the volunteers on the ground…

Part of the recovery effort in Tohoku involved the services of NPOs operating through the generous actions of volunteers. Jen Sno worked with It’s Not Just Mud, a relief organisation based in the Ishinomaki area. In this interview, Jen compares her experiences in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina – as well her experience of working with children in Tohoku and how they are living post-tsunami.

Did you come specifically to volunteer?

Yes, basically. That was my main reason for going, though I did travel around Japan and Korea before and after.

Did you have any expectations about what you’d find?

I’d volunteered in New Orleans (that is, I volunteered there after hurricane Katrina) and other parts of the gulf coast, so I think I expected something similar but on a larger scale. I tried not to go in with two many expectations though because you never know what the situation is like vs what you see in the news.

I didn’t know you volunteered in Katrina, how do the two situations compare? Were they similar and when you arrived in Tohoku, how different was the situation on the ground?

Well my group to New Orleans went right when they just started letting volunteers go in (the first time I went), whereas I went to Ishinomaki a year and a half or so later, so by that time most of the rubble had been taken out of Ishinomaki, which wasn’t the case in New Orleans. But the scale was bigger. That is the damage was more far-reaching in Tohoku, and you could tell that when travelling around. I went to New Orleans and the gulf later too, but it’s hard to compare the two because the approaches taken were different… I think one thing that was different was that in New Orleans, people were given trailers to live in, rather than the kind of temporary housing neighbourhoods in Ishinomaki.

“I went to Ishinomaki a year and a half or so later, so by that time most of the rubble had been taken out of Ishinomaki”

So how did the actual work you did compare? Was there a big difference given that you arrived at different stages of the recovery, or was it similar because of the scale of the damage in Ishinomaki?

I think in both cases a similarity is that poorer people were effected the hardest.

So does that mean you were quite involved in the economic recovery too?

It was pretty different. In New Orleans I mostly did things like house gutting, clearing out old furniture and stuff like that. By the time I got to Ishinomaki, most of those things were done or were being done by professionals, so I mostly did community support things, like helping fishermen’s wives make jewellery or help with growing hoya.

Still really important work. What is hoya?

I think in both cases I just went where there was a need vocalised. Hoya is sea pineapple in English. I guess it’s a “sea squirt”. It is some kind of sea food that is considered a delicacy. It takes 4 years to grow, which is in part why it’s a delicacy. And they grow it in Tohoku, but it got all wiped out in the tsunami, so they had to start over.

I guess people had to start from scratch in a lot of ways after the tsunami. That said, what was it like working with the people of Ishinomaki?

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It was great! Everyone we worked with was really nice. A lot of them were really funny. I really enjoyed working with the fishermen in Funakoshi. I really got an appreciation from them for nature and also for their work. I also enjoyed working with some really sweet and earnest kids doing community activities in the temporary housing neighbourhoods. Sometimes other locals would see us working and come up and talk to us. I made friends with an elderly woman who I’d see around from time to time because of that, and we’d often talk about which stores had the best deals.

What kind of community activities would you and the children be involved in?

I remember doing a reverse trick-or-treat on Halloween where some of the kids in the neighbourhood went around and gave candy to everyone in the units. I also enjoyed helping with the Playground of Hope opening and seeing the kids enjoy their new playground. That was a program It’s Not Just Mud worked on that built playgrounds in the temporary housing neighbourhoods. And we also did sports day relay activities with kids and other festivals with the whole community.

Did you get a sense of how the kids were doing?

“I enjoyed working with some really sweet and earnest kids doing community activities in the temporary housing neighbourhood”

It seemed like there were all different kinds of feelings and situations. One memory that really stuck with my was working with an elementary school pupil when handing out candy, she was so earnest and clearly, very bright. Her friends put her in charge of talking with us foreigners, because they said her English was the best, though she mostly was an effective communicator because she knew how to speak simply and clearly in Japanese, which also shows important skills. And she kept on encouraging her friends to participate and have fun when they were getting tired. She also was very kind to one of her classmates who seemed shy and depressed when he answered his door. But when we walked her back to her house that night, she seemed a little sad and kept saying “I wonder if my sister will be home yet…” and told us that she was only living with her big sister now. So for me, that experience showed a range of how kids are dealing with difficult situations. I think overall, I saw a lot of energetic kids and young people, but they also often seemed tired. (That is to say, I’m sure her English was good, but she basically just spoke to us in Japanese).

What about people in general, physically the recovery is happening but do you think people themselves are?

I think it depends on each person, but when I was there, I think people were trying their best to. I think they tried to find normalcy where they could. For example, on weekends a lot of people would go to the mall, which felt more like a normal space because you couldn’t see any damage in there, and they would wear more fashionable clothes, rather than during the week where a lot of people had to wear clothes for clean-up or building. Of course recovering from something like that mentally and emotionally is a lifelong process and it would be impossible to truly recover completely I think.

What was the most memorable thing (or things) you took away from your time in Ishinomaki?

I think the most memorable thing was going to Funakoshi, which is a fishing village in Ishinomaki, but far outside the city. I think I’d go there once a week if not more. And as I mentioned, getting to know the fishermen and their families and observing how much they loved the ocean, even after everything that happened, was really inspiring. And also seeing how much they loved their village. The drive up was very beautiful too, through the hills and along the bay. I’m a city gal and kind of an indoors person, but it really helped me appreciate nature. Before I kind of felt like we were fighting against nature, since a natural disaster caused this, but because of them, I was able to understand that the ocean is also their livelihood and and the centre of their lives, not just something that destroys it.

Interview by Yussif Osman.
http://itsnotjustmud.com
25 Apr 2016

Hanami in Japan

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Akemi reports on her recent trip to Japan…

At the beginning of April, I and some of our volunteers travelled to Japan to visit some of our Tsunami orphans.

We went with the children and their carers to see the cherry blossoms in Hanamiyama, Fukushima. Cherry Blossom viewing is a Japanese tradition at this time of year and is a great family day out. Sadly, of course, our orphans have no family but we made it a lovely fun day and they really enjoyed it.

Because of our connection with the NPO Hanamiyama o Mamoruka, this is our second visit there and we thank all our hosts who helped us.

It is now a year since we last met these children but, even so, I was so surprised how much taller they had grown and how much more more mature they had become. It was most satisfying to see the results of our efforts and that they are growing up into good people.

All the children are now very interested in the English language with one even taking extra English lessons at the local cramming school. Most impressive!

I was so happy to see the children’s smiling faces when they found they were able to actually speak real English to real English people.

I also realised that without the help of their carers, none of the children would be able to join us. So we really appreciate the efforts of the carers and I hope they will continue to help the children to come and join our activities and build such wonderful relationships.

I am so glad that we are all connected together.

Our next plan is to invite some of the children to England this summer.

My wish is that many more orphans of the Tsunami will get our invitation to experience England. They are great kids and will not only love coming here but will really appreciate it.

So, here’s to everyone who works so hard to make their dreams come true.

Akemi

22 Apr 2016

Hanami with Aid For Japan

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Aid For Japan staged a hanami event recently in Regent’s Park to enjoy the beauty of the cherry blossoms.

Hanami is a traditional Japanese custom of viewing the cherry blossoms – and Aid For Japan (in association with its social group Bunkasai Club) recently staged its own hanami and picnic in London’s Regent’s Park.

Hanami is not just looking at the beautiful cherry blossoms. There is a Japanese saying: “Hana yori dango” – which suggests that rather than just viewing the cherry blossoms, it’s eating, drinking and chatting with friends that has more importance.

Although there was a slight chill in the air, the sunny weather made for a perfect afternoon of picnicking and enjoying the slow fall of the cherry blossom. The tasty treats that our various attendees had brought included sushi, onigiri rice snacks and a selection of hand baked cookies. The result was a perfect afternoon of good food and good company.

28 Mar 2016

Aid For Japan – 5th Anniversary Event Review

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This year saw the 5th Anniversary of the 2011 Japan Earthquake/Tsunami. It provided an opportunity to pause and reflect on the losses that the country had faced, but also the optimism of building for the future.

To commemorate the anniversary, Aid For Japan staged a special event that weaved in an exploration of Japanese culture alongside an exploration of Aid For Japan’s activities and goals. Aid For Japan has enjoyed a high profile recently, notably for its coverage in both The Telegraph and The Guardian newspapers. But this event gave the charity an opportunity to engage with people directly.

The event welcomed guest speakers, such as Zen Buddhist monk Julian Daizan Skinner Roshi. Daizan had compiled In Heaven’s River – an anthology of poems and carvings from the 17th Century Zen monk Enku. The life of Enku had some resonance with the events of 2011 as the monk had been orphaned when his mother was swept away in a flood.

Copies of Daizan’s book were available to buy at the event alongside copies of Hisashi Inoue’s Tales from a Mountain Cave (translation by Angus Turvill). Again, Inoue’s book was relevant as the book’s setting of Kamaishi was one of the areas struck by the 2011 tragedy.

Traditional Japanese culture was also explored through a demonstration of martial art sword techniques. The performance, conducted by John Evans and the students of the Battodo Fudokan dojo, provided a captivating window into the skill and discipline required to work with these classic Japanese weapons. Batto means to draw and strike with the sword. Do refers to a path of training aimed at the complete development of the practitioner.

As John Evans explained, the methods used in the Battodo technique are an inherent part of Japanese culture – much like the coping mechanisms that survivors of the 2011 tragedy employed for dealing with the stress that the event brought into their lives.

Akemi Solloway spoke about the orphans that Aid For Japan was formed to help and dealt with the many activities that the charity was pursuing to give these children a brighter future. This included the introduction of two young volunteers who will be traveling to Japan later this year to gain firsthand experience of the impact the tragedy has had on the country.

Meanwhile, Justin Senryu provided a reflective moment with a performance of his talents on the shakuhachi – the traditional Japanese flute.

Refreshments were also on hand for attendees, including tasty sushi kindly provided by local sushi outlet Maki, while a generous selection of onigiri and dorayaki was donated by The Japan Centre and Wagashi shop.

Attendees walked away from the event with perhaps a stronger impression of the impact that the events of 2011 tragedy had resulted in. Even 5 years on, the effect of the earthquake/tsunami still has a profound impact on those that survived the devastation, particularly the orphans who had lost everything – the same orphans that Aid For Japan is doing its best to lend assistance to.

Aid For Japan lends its warmest thanks to all those that helped make this event possible: WeWork, Japan Centre, Maki, Zen Ways, Battodo Fudokan, Justin Senryu and Angus Turvill.

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