Recent Events (continued)[June 2015]

KOBORI Sojitsu (the 13th Grand Master of the Enshu Sado School )

The weather in April was very erratic which, for someone who travels frequently like myself, raises concern as to whether public transport services are operating as usual. Furthermore, as is very typical of Japan, since all forms of transportation are convenient and highly efficient, a minor change to the time schedule, even just a minute, can affect the entire timetable. My schedule for April is as follows:

1st: Tea lessons followed by a visit by Mr. Aubert from the Enshu school in the Germany city of Trier
2nd: Trained inner muscles in the morning. Hanami session at the Australian Embassy at noon. Tea lessons in the afternoon.
3rd: Attended a Rotary club meeting. Tea lessons in the afternoon. Served tea to guests at a hanami reception organized by the Maeda Kensetsu.
4th: Invited a tea ceremony at noon
5th: Attended a tea ceremony organized by Taishikai association
6th: Attended the admissions ceremony for the Gakushin girl's middle school and high school.
7th: Tea lessons.
8th: Tea lessons. Attended the admissions ceremony for Gakushuin University. Attended an fashion collection by Jun Ashida.
9th: Tea lessons.
10th: Attended the admissions ceremony for Gakushuin primary school. In the afternoon, attended an exhibition of the 'Culture and History of Mitsui: Curious and Famous articles of Chanoyu' at the Mitsui Memorial Museum. I admired the magnificent collection and travelled to Nara for a tea ceremony the next day.
11th: Served tea in a tea ceremony at the Yamabuki Chakai in Chugu-ji temple. The broadcast by MX TV was also on this day.
12th: Oversaw a tea ceremony at an event for former and current students of Gakushuin.
13th: Advised on the shooting of a tea session on behalf of the monthly magazine 'Enshu'.
14th: Tea lessons. Trip to Kanazawa. Kanazawa station was as busy as always.
15th: Returned to Tokyo from Kanazawa. Tea lessons.
16th: Trained inner muscles in the morning. Tea lessons in the afternoon.
17th: Traveled to Kobe to give a tea lesson.
18th: Returned to Tokyo and attended a rehearsal of the Spring Tea certificate awards ceremony. Attended the plenary meeting of the confederation of the Enshu School in the evening.
19th: Spring Tea Certificate awards ceremony.
20th: Invited to a tea ceremony at noon. Went to dinner with friends in the evening and drank into the late night for the first time in years.
21st: Traveled to Fukuoka.
22nd: Second day of tea lessons at the Konshukai Association in Fukuoka. Traveled to Kyoto in the evening.
23rd: Tea lessons at Yakushiji temple in Nara. Departed for Tokyo.
24th: The anniversary of my father's death. Training as always. Visited the Ministry of Defence at noon to have lunch with Admiral Takei, Chief of Staff of the navy.
25th: Had the honor of being invited to give a lecture at the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Rotary Club in Kanazawa. Interview with Mr Maeda, the 18th head of the Maeda family. Departed in the evening for Nagoya.
26th: Chaired a tea ceremony at the Federation of Enshu Sado in Nagoya.
27th: Talks and lunch with the directors of the Gakushuin school.
28th: Received two guests in the morning. Traveled to Fukuoka in the afternoon to prepare next year's second national meeting.
29th: Conducted a seminar on thick tea, light tea and tea to be served at the national meeting.
30th: Training in the morning. Afterwards, went to see the exhibition on 'Sayoko Yamaguchi: She who wears the Future' at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo. I was impressed and moved by just how globally active she was.