I appreciate kind comments on the previous Reel – and most importantly, thank you for your acknowledgement. When I share Stories, Videos, Tutorials, and “Non-Edit” stitching scenery, like the previous Reel, I receive comments thanking me for my kindness and generosity. Well, I really thank-back you for that, but the reality is a bit tricky. I had(have) no choice but to share them as “accessible” as possible. Am I naturally that kind & generous person? I am probably not, especially when I compare myself to an extreme idealist who is unbelievably kind to others, who I am fortunately married to (without her, I won’t be sharing any stories).
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Anyone can say (teach) anything about any topic on the Internet with a little learning. Here, in some cases, “Stories” or even “Truth” do not get attention unless they are comfortable & convenient. There are “(Western) Sashiko Teachers” who offer comfortable phrases, positively interpreted, and romanticized Sashiko. If my goal is to get attention, I “can” say what the Western want to hear. However, the comfortable words will change not only who I am but also the life of those who passed Sashiko down to me. So, I offer “convenience” so that my voice will be listened to a bit more. Did I plan to be kind? Well, I didn’t have a choice to preserve what Sashiko can be. We have choices on what to stitch. We also have a choice to whom we listen to & support & preserve. Therefore, I am asking to acknowledge “it”.
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I am not so desperate, though. I meet so many people who wish to learn, care & go through the uncomfortableness (if they have to). They just didn’t know about Sashiko – and I am here to share the gateway of the wisdom of our Sashiko. I knew I needed to go through the pain because Sashiko got its own definition already made by/with convenience, comfort and indifference. Therefore, I sincerely appreciate those who follow this account to learn more & acknowledge Sashiko in their practice.
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先日の配信でお話しした「英語で刺し子を語る集まり」について、企画運営のMaiko（@55kabamai）さんから丁寧なご説明がありました。私からもブログ等でご紹介する予定です。試験的な開始ではあるのですが、英語と刺し子で楽しい時間を作れたらと思っています。ご参加には登録が必要です。Maikoさんのウェブサイトよりご登録下さい！
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2022-08-30 00:07:21
Thank you for your generosity and inspiration 🙌❤️
❤️
🪷
🙌
Gorgeous!
Gorgeous
Stunning
😮❤️👏
Inspiration begins with a spark, it evokes curiosity.
For some that curiosity will just be knowing that sashiko exists where before they didn’t.
For others they will not understand how long it takes to learn so will try and not be able to do it well – but still they now know it exists and may come back to it.
Yet others may start the long road to artmanship.
And all because you share.
Thank you 🙏
Wow😍👏
@nouella_elbouchari
I follow you from Switzerland with great admiration … if I could I would also come to Japan at least to learn the basics.
IG brings knowledge and discovery 🤎 Sashiko and your story is both 🤎
I relate a lot to what you are saying about having no choice but to put so much into teaching sashiko in a way that keeps the meaning of the practice alive (because of the lack of resources for non- Japanese speakers that convey more than a shallow understanding of the most marketable surface details, and the way the growing common understanding of the term is missing so much of history and nuance and spirit because of this).
My situation is very different — i only speak English, and as a white person in the U.S.A. who is not in touch with any of my specific cultural roots, i don’t really have cultural knowledge to share (since my cultural knowledge is only that which is already common to most English speakers, and i can’t translate it into another language)
But there are some things (because of my experience as a transgender person and someone with disabilities) that i do have a more complete understanding of than many of my peers do, and can describe in ways that i haven’t seen before, and that i think could help people understand who otherwise would not. And with these things, often i feel compelled to share that knowledge — like you said, not so much out of kindness or generosity (as others who thank me might assume) — but because the misunderstandings i see hurt or distress me. Sometimes it feels strange to accept these thanks because it feels like i am being thanked for the wrong thing, and like these people don’t understand the pain that drives me to put so much time and effort into explaining.
I am sorry that Western arrogance, marketing, and appropriation has spread this distorted/incomplete idea of something so important to you. I can’t fully feel this same particular pain you do because i don’t share your experience, but i think i can understand some of the grief and frustration involved.
What a beautiful jacket!