Q) Do all Japanese own a Kama?
A) Yes, indeedillydo they do!
So after I posted the last entry I gave J's grandpa a call and asked if he happened to have one we could use. "Yep, I'll bring it right over." Later, when I took it to school, I methodically went from mother to mother and queried them as well. "So like, you didn't go out and buy a kama, you had one laying around the house?" Every single mom gave me a look as if I were loony and answered yes. Coool.
[5J proudly displaying his rusty, left-handed (he's a righty btw) kama.5 ]
[5Here's a picture of all the kids sitting and listening to the rules of the game. Those arrows are all pointing to visible kamas5]
The whole event was incredibly well organized. Each class had a job and they rotated. Jobs ranged from cutting the rice and piling it into neat stacks to tying the rice into bundles and hanging them on these bamboo poles to dry. Oh, and scarecrow removal, I can't forget scarecrow removal.
[5Here is part of J's class cutting down the rice5]
The whole job took about two hours and to my dismay there was not one cut or scratch or severed finger.
After the rice dries it will be prepared and then they'll pick all the sweet potatoes they planted and have a party of sweet potatoes and rice!
[6Did I mention scarecrow removal? Here was one of my favorites. Her name is Sadako (from the Japanese version of The Ring). I like the bloody lace shirt and while it doesn't show up on this pic she was wearing big blue rubber gloves6]
[6And you can't have any event without a bit of samurai fighting. Since the kids weren't allowed to use the kamas they made due with bundles of rice6]
Next weeks koan: Why is a mouse when it spins?
