Today is Feb.8th as Kotoyouka (事八日). If you are a long follower here, I hope you

Today is Feb.8th as Kotoyouka (事八日). If you are a long follower here, I hope you know what it means. It is a Day for HariKuyou – a memorial ritual of thanking the broken/bent needles that ended their hard work. It is a Day (Opportunity) to appreciate the hardworking partners we already depend on, and technically speaking, it is a Day for resting them, including our hands. Well… today is the Live Streaming Day. “Technically Speaking”, it is Feb 9th in Japan when I do so… & technically speaking, in our region, Harikuyou is on Dec.8th… so, I will stitch on the Live Streaming Today.
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Sashiko has become a trendy word with many misleading fantasies. “Zen”, “Visible Mending”, “Simplicity”… you may know the trend better than me. Unfortunately, some of them aren’t really accurate, even “opposite”. It happens because they try to sell their services & products without proper respect & commitment. Without acknowledging the story, an ordinary ritual like Harikuyou can sound shady. The culture is full of stories, and I hope you keep learning what Sashiko can be for the Japanese.
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I named my project “Upcycle” Stitches in 2016. I didn’t really intend to focus on “recycling” for environmental issues. For me, “Upcycle” is a process of adding stories to the story I have today – like layering the stories with those memorial days such as Harikuyou every year appreciating what we have today. (Detail can be found on Patreon & Today’s Youtube Live Streaming).
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「刺し子とは？」という議論は不毛だとすら思っているのですが、それでも真剣に論理的に「刺し子とは？」という議論をする為には、「日本人の当たり前」が一定水準で身についている状況が必要になると思っています。その当たり前がないと議論という土俵にすら上がれないレベルで。
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事八日。針供養。知らない日本人もいるでしょう。ただ、針供養の成り立ちや、その背景にある思いを知った時に「針を供養するなんて、ナンセンスな」と一足飛びでは行きません。神社では厳かな気持ちになるように、「そういうこともあるんだなぁ」という想像できるだけの下地が存在するからです。その下地がない人に暴力的に刺し子を定義されているのが本当に嫌で、今日もこうして英語で物語を書いています。そんなお話をまた配信で。明日、Youtubeでお待ちしております。
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2024-02-09 00:21:29

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