Tobetsu bound

We arrived in Sopporo after flying on a 747 comuter plane up to the North Island of Hokkaido. We boarded a bus and drove out to the small town ( 19,000 people) of Tobetsu, an agricultural community. We began our Tobetsu experience at the community center where we were briefed about our upcoming schedule by Mikkohikko Yamamoto, Tobetsu’s Green Hero. Mikkohikko has trained in the US in EE programs like Project Learning Tree, Project Wet and is a member of the NAAEE ( North American Association for Environmental Education). He had several of the American curricula for Environmental Education translated into Japanese. Mikkohikko was to guide our entire visit of ESD in Tobetsu. After our welcome, our homestay began, our host families came to greet us and take us to their homes. My host mother, Yumiko greeted me warmly and was rather concerned to what kinds of food I liked to eat. As language was a considerable barrier to our communication she told me through the interpreter that we would go shopping for the evening meal. At the store, she purchased some bacon, sausages, squid, and various items that I had no idea what they were. She then drove me to her home which was out in the countryside. Her large home was surrounded by her parent’s wheat fields, vegetable and flower gardens. Both her parents are farmers – in their late 60’s and as spry as the day is long. The sun rises before 4:00 am in Tobetsu and these farmers work from 5:00 in the morning until 8:00 at night. The grandparents greeted me with a depth of warmth that brought tears to my eyes. Grandmother Kiyoko took me to her greenhouse and picked some of her beans for our dinner. Soon, Yumiko’s daughter, Yuka, arrived home from school at 6:00 pm (it was a Saturday!) Yuka is 18 and in her final year of high school. Yuka’s English is quite good and had the opportunity to practice when she visited Vancouver this past year. Father Koichi arrived home from work after 8:00 – a lock smith who owns his own business, and according to Yuka works every day – no days off! Our dinner together was a family affair and we shared our feelings about the importance of family. Koichi expressed his love and gratitude for his children and wife. At the end or our dinner, Koichi turned off the light and we all went to the window to observe the lunar eclipse.