I have been working with a journalist from the local arts web magazine on my journey with tea. It is always difficult to gauge how deep to go with someone who has no notion of what Chado is about. We started in January and he told me that he would like to interview me for about half an hour about Japanese Tea Ceremony. He had seen a brief demonstration at the Portland Japanese Garden and thought that he could write a story from the interview.
Three hours later, he said that he would like to explore it further. Then he emailed me and wanted to know if there was anything else he could read that might help him understand what it was about and why I had been studying it for so long. I referred him to the SweetPersimmon blog.
I think he mined the blog almost from the beginning so many of the quotes in the article may be familiar to you. He also did extensive research on his own about Chado. And finally, I hosted him for a chakai in the Issoan Tea Room. One of the few guests who have come to have tea in the last two and half years.
Anyway, I am impressed that he captured the essence in such a short amount of time and extracted things from the blog relevant to anyone who doesn’t know about my journey. Here’s is the link to “The Art of Tea,” by Brett Campbell. I hope you enjoy.
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Dear Gregg,
You have contributed to my journey as well. Thank you for all your support and gifts over the years. And truly, sharing tea with you has been my privilege.
Take care,
Margie
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Jaclyn,
Thank you for reading the blog and following along with my journey in tea. I hope sometime we can share a bowl of tea. Hang in there with your tea studies. It has helped me tremendously to become more “grounded” though I still struggle sometimes as a flying girl.
Margie
My dear friend … I have insomnia and came across this article last Monday night around 2 am …It took me a couple of days to track it down.
Brett Campbell has penned an exceptional well-written in-depth telling of your journey with and in Tea. I was spellbound and could not put it down and go back to sleep until I finished it. Truth be told, I started to reread it before my eyes were too tired to continue/
Thank you so very much for sharing your story and Craig’s involvement. I regret that I did not take the opportunity to know Minako better, however, all is not lost, for I see Minako’s teachings reflected in you.
All of us chajin have our own stories, but yours is such an inspiration for us all.
Again thank you for sharing many bowls of tea over these many years and many years to come
Gregg Soro Tralle
Thank you for sharing. It was thoughtfully written and very captivating to read about the evolution of your studies and finding focus. I too am very flighty. I am still working on my struggles to follow through and finish everything. I hope to become more grounded and disciplined as I continue my practice. In the meantime, I hope someday soon you are able to welcome your students back in person. When that day comes I have a feeling your tearoom will be filled with flighty birds too excited to contain themselves. But what a joyous occasion it will be to have everything and everyone appreciated.