The Portland International Tea Gathering will take place October 15-20, 2025 in Portland, Oregon, USA.

For those making travel plans, we have reserved a discount block of  rooms at the Cedar Tree Hotel, the site of the Tea Gathering. The link can be found here.

We are working to finalize the program, booking speakers and events.  We have confirmed Thursday October 16 for the Welcome Chakai and Banquet. Friday October 17 is confirmed for our day at the Portland Japanese Garden.

There will be a tea bowl exchange, so please consider bringing a tea bowl to exchange with your fellow chajin.  More details will be coming.

When we have the program finalized, we will be sending out the registration information. Please register as soon as you can as we will limit the participation to 40 members.

For updates you can check the website:

SweetPersimmon.com

We are looking forward to hosting you.

In the winter the year I lived in Japan, people talked about plum blossoms. I was confused because I had heard that Japan was all about the sakura, cherry blossoms. But I remember walking to school in the cold, going to class in the cold, coming home in the cold and trying to stay warm through the night.   One day on my way to school an old gnarly tree began to sprout buds, and the next day the flowers had spilled across the branches.

The fragrance was heavenly and I nearly cried, because it was a sign that the cold winter was surely coming to an end and spring was coming. This made me finally understand why the Japanese people love the plum blossoms.  They normally bloom in February, the coldest month in Japan.  You often see images of plum blossoms in the snow. They are usually the first flowers to appear and symbolize perseverance in face of harsh conditions.  And the promise of spring — the end of winter and better days to come.

There are many, many references to ume or plum in the Japanese literature.  One of my favorites:

梅一輪 一輪ほどの暖かさ
Ume ichirin, ichirin hodo no atatakasa
A single plum blossom, warmth as warm as a single ume flower
~Hattori Ransetsu

Along with the ume, one of the first heralds of spring is the uguisu, Japanese bush warbler.  Often you will find images and poems of ume ni uguisu, plum and bush warblers together.  I love this story about the ume tree and uguisu:

In the tea room, we have the dairo, the large winter hearth with the large mouth kettle to add warmth to the room.  It comes with a price as the dairo is gyakugatte or from the opposite hand.  Guests are on the left rather than on the right.  Your footwork is opposite as you enter on the left, and exit with the right.

Not every move is the complete opposite so the temae can be confusing as to which hand puts things in what place. It is a temae that cannot be done on autopilot and even my body gets confused.  It makes me feel like a beginner again and I have to pay attention to what I am doing without overthinking it.

In February we also have the tsutsu (cylinder) winter chawan.  Those taller narrower bowls that hold the heat in when you serve your guests a bowl of tea.  It is wonderful to linger a little drinking your tea to savor the warmth, especially in a cold room.  One of my earliest memories of tea is sitting in the Portland Japanese Garden tea house, and it was snowing. It was just the host and me, and he had opened all the windows and doors so we had a panoramic view of the tea garden. We sat in the shelter of the tea room cold enough to see our breath, but holding on to hot tea in the shelter of the tea house and watched the garden filling with big fluffy flakes of snow.

Winter time is one of the BEST times for tea.

This year on New Year’s Day, 8 poets gathered to begin the New Year with a poetry gathering.  We composed a modified linked verse.  While we composed poems, people brought and brewed all kinds of tea from genmaicha to oolongs.  We also shared sake to help with creativity, and pot luck lunch. One of the highlights was sharing 6 different kinds of jinko brought back from Taiwan by one of my students.  Finally we shared sweets and a round robin chanoyu in the tea room, where I made the first bowl of tea for the shokyaku who made the next bowl of tea for the next guest in line until everyone had tea.  We completed the  32 links, the most we have ever done in a gathering. Below is the final poem.

Sunrise
Coming from the cold and dark
Looking to the east
The dawn breaks over the horizon
Returning light Awakens the day
As the sun rises 

A New Day
As the sun rises
Waves crash, tides wash anew
A huron silently watches the sand
Wind Rearranges the grasses
A new day is upon us 

Hearty Breakfast
A new day is upon us
Watery okayu, thickened oats
Nuts interfering in my navigation
Of bright morsels of yuzu
Dreaming of umami 

Drinking Tea
Dreaming of umami
The brisk morning chill
Melted away by liquid green
As steam swirls into the air
I look to the past 

Last Years’ Recollection
I look to the past
Tears roll unbidded
Joys, sorrow
Hopes, fears
And those I love 

Writing Letters
And those I love
Held in my heart
I sit at my desk
The birds calling
As I write New Year’s greetings 

Good News
As I write New Year’s Greetings
Sharing all the joys of the last year
Imagining all the possibilities of the next
Sharing with everyone dear to me
The warm blanket of well wishes 

 Cold Weather
A warm blanket of well wishes
Insulates me against the chill
The air snaps with cold
Frost on the windowsill
The world wrapped in snow 

Bundling Up
The world wrapped in snow
Looking out the window today
Layer upon layer
Wrapping up against the cold
Venturing Outside 

Going for a Walk
Venturing Outside
The ancient pines reaching for the stars
Tickle my inner child and eternal wisdom simultaneously
Another step forward reveals a new world
As snowflakes fall from nowhere 

Sparkling Snow
As snowflakes fall from nowhere
Shadows lengthen
Twilight spills through the outstretched limbs
A curtain of flakes
A blanket of luminescence 

 Quiet Contemplation
A blanket of luminescence
Silence, a gentle embrace
My thoughts turn inward
As I stroll through trees
Soft song begins to echo 

Stopping to Hear Birds
Soft song begins to echo
Pausing I listen
Close my eyes, inhale
Symphony envelops
Base, tenor, alto, soprano 

The Sound of Water
Base, tenor, alto, soprano
The river sings 
With many voices
Running from the mountains
Through the forest laughing 

Bare Trees
Through the forest laughing
The surrounding plants have shed their attire
The trees reaching grasping at the glassy firmament 
The forest so very much alive
Stirring around me 

Snowshoe Hare
Stirring around me
White firm invisible against the snow
Eyes and ears alert
A pink nose twitches
Scenting the way home 

Returning Home
Scenting the way home
Tramping through the fields
We hurry along familiar paths
And arrive back where we started
Anticipating warmth at last 

Before the Fire
Anticipating warmth at last
Embers crackle
Light and heat come forth
The scent of oak permeates the air
Inviting people near and far 

 Friends Visit
Inviting people near and far
Words shared
Sightline hangs upon the lips
The sounds and utterances
Describes the language of the heart 

Evening Meal
Describes the language of the heart
Friends around a table
Sharing food before the fire
Evening settles over us 
As the sun goes down 

Twilight
As the sun goes down
The wind quiets
The creatures still
The light fades to soft peach
I prepare the charcoal 

Sweets and Tea
I prepare the charcoal
The guests settle
The sounds of tea ceremony
Familiar and always new
Call from laughter the soul 

Laughter
Call from laughter the soul
Warm, friendly, welcoming
A new symphony arises
Playing in harmony into the rhythms of the forest
And lasts long into the night 

Late Night Talk
And lasts long into the night
Friends of the heart
Sharing our thoughts
Closure comes too soon
I stand at the open door

Farewell
I stand at the open door
Having completed our visit
I see the guests off 
Until they disappear
I return to sit by the fire 

Quiet Contemplation
I return to sit by the fire
From the bench in the park
My body relaxes into the woods’ grain
A bluejay catches my eye
The joy of the season settles into my bones 

Recalling the day
The joy of the season settles into my bones
Smiles and laughter accumulate into the earth
Layer upon layer 
A rich deep compost
Of heartfelt companionship 

Hot toddy
Of heartfelt companionship
My soul fulfilled
My body warmed
A hot drink in hand
I unwind  

Relaxing
I unwind
Backwards through this day
This week, this month 
This year spirals
Back then forward 

Next Year’s Plans
Back then forward
The past influencing 
The futures dreams
Spinning up to the clouds
Fading to sleepiness 

A Good Night’s Sleep
Fading to sleepiness
The day draws to a close
Making way for a new day to begin
I start to slow
Drifting away to ephemeral lands 

Dreams
Drifting away to ephemeral lands
Smiling I open my eyes
Cocooned in comfort and warmth
Memory of my dreams
In the moments before the new dawn