About a year ago we opened Issoan, the tea room built for me by my husband. It took him two and a half years, but it was worth the wait. I have been teaching Chado for about 25 years and I was thrilled to have a tea room with a raised floor for …
Tag: appreciation
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After the gathering (revisited)
After the gathering, after guests have left, and the helpers have been served there is the clean-up. All of the dogu is cleaned, the fire has been picked and the kettle returned to dry. If the gathering has taken place at a rented venue, everything needs to be packed up and loaded in the car …
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The attitude of gratitude
When we receive a bowl of tea, the etiquette is that we say “osaki ni” to the next guest, thank the host for making the tea, and lift the bowl in “kansha” or gratitude before we turn the bowl and drink the tea.
This kansha is not just gratitude for host making tea. It is …
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Doing the work
When I do tea presentations at different venues, I need to set up the tatami, shoji and tea room as well as set up the mizuya. It takes about an hour to pack every thing up and load the car, an hour to heat water, clean and set up at the venue, an hour to …
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Supporting players
Not everyone gets to be the star every time. The lead singer or guitarist gets all the accolades and the bass player and drummers get little notice. Quite often it is these supporting players, who make the stars look their best. We tend to focus on the front men, and ignore the behind the scenes …
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