Over the years, all of us have built up a wide variety of habits, some of which have been forced upon us by necessity and some of which have arisen entirely of our own accord. Over time, the actual reason for this may no longer be so important, but in the end they all have their justifications. Our lives may become more pleasant and function better as a result, and eventually we are simply dependent on many of the automatisms that get us through the day, the week and the year.
But it's not just the many small daily routines and work processes that we often do automatically; many appointments in our calendar are repeated every year and we do them again and again. There's no need to question everything, many things are justified, especially the many small and large events that are scattered in our calendar throughout the year. Well, most of them don't even need to be entered into a calendar anymore, as they are already firmly stored in our minds and we look forward to them long in advance.
Sometimes it is simply another, maybe not even significant occasion that reminds you like an internal alarm clock, and prepares you for the coming event. The change of seasons can be a trigger, or for example the start of the rice harvest here in Japan, which in our region coincides with the change from summer to fall. As soon as the small harvesting machines start their work in our area and we feel the first signs of fall, we immediately remember last year and where we were then. That's right, it's time again for wara art γγγ’γΌγ, for the artistic figures and statues made from rice straw, of which herei in Japan there is actually quite a lot. Hard-working hands have already been busy in summer thinking up new shapes and then bringing them to life in a park near us.
And as in previous years, we didn't want to miss out on a little distraction, as the weather was simply too inviting and appealing for us to want to stay indoors. A bit of fresh air and a longer walk seemed just the right thing, so we were only too happy to set off to satisfy our curiosity about what we get to see this time.
We were greeted not only by blue skies and warm sunshine, but also by this pretty snake made of rice straw (wara), which had made itself at home here. It consisted of various parts, which were arranged in such a way that it looked as if its body was partially stuck in the ground.
If you looked closely when standing right in front of it, you might get the impression that you were standing in front of a hippopotamus or perhaps a dragon. But as we only got to see two long teeth, it was clear that we were looking at a snake.
And the view from the side just of the head clearly confirmed this impression. The shapes of the snake's head were pretty well molded, someone did a really good job here.
At another place you could see a miniature model of the snake's inner workings. This is what the wooden construction, around which the rice straw was eventually arranged, looked like, only much larger. It was really interesting to see what it looks like inside the objects.
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And there was even more to discover, such as this oversized duck. The outstretched wings presumably served as a support to give the whole thing a little stability.
Due to the lighting conditions, it was not so easy to take a really good photo from the front, but from the photos we brought along it should still be clear that our duck was probably the funniest object of all.
Right next to it sat this cheeky fellow, who immediately made it clear not to get too close. Most likely this was Fujin, the god of the wind. In order that he wasn't sitting here in the park quite as naked, he was at least given a short loincloth, which seemed to have slipped a bit already.
There was also a miniature model of the duck and the demon, and you can quickly see that due to their height, there is considerably more wood used in them than in our snake. After all, you don't want it to fall over at the first breeze.
Next we have a rather wild-looking cat, which doesn't look quite as cozy as the other models. The claws are stretched out and the other thing you notice immediately is that it has several tails and must therefore be a very unusual member of the cat family.
There were three tails in total, and I assume that the cat is a character from a manga or an anime movie. But unfortunately I can't provide any further background knowledge here, I'm not at all familiar with manga and anime, even though I would be in prime position for that here in Japan.
Lastly, there was this statue, which probably represents Raijin, the god of thunder and lightning. He comes across as a little more menacing than the first god we saw. Even though I've done a bit of research, I'm still not entirely sure whether I haven't confused the two gods and which of the two is actually Fujin or Raijin. But I hope they will forgive me, I will do more research when I get the chance and address them by their real names next time.
There are also a few more models of the last two objects to see. First of all, our wild cat, which also uses quite a lot of wood. I assume that the prominent tails in particular represent a higher level of difficulty, which was mastered perfectly.
Looking at the mini models immediately gave me a much better impression of the work that was done here. First of all, you have to choose and think of a motif and then design and build it from the inside out. But as in previous years, a few talented artists have once again managed to amaze us and make us smile.
Even if the whole event was limited to a handful of objects, we still had our fun and enjoyed coming here again. As already mentioned, the great weather also played its part and we combined the whole thing with a walk and a visit to the nearby playground. In the end, everyone had a good time, so at the end of the day there was almost no reason to complain. Only almost, because as usual, the day passed far too quickly and could have gone on for a few more hours.
But well, we often have this problem and unfortunately it can't be fixed. Too many wonderful events are over far too quickly, but luckily we still have our experiences and memories. And as described at the beginning, the years repeat themselves with their events and habits, there is always the consolation of being able to come back. Sometimes it takes a little longer, but at other times it happens very quickly. In return, you are welcome to break out of your own cherished routines when the time is right. If it's good for you, you shouldn't force yourself and do what you feel like doing. And it's best to start doing so today...
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