Author: ベルガーディア鯨山（英語版）

Bell Gardia KUJIRAYAMA has been popular as a healing space for 10 years as an open garden.

After the Great East Japan Earthquake, we have expanded the range of activities to mental care by “Wind Phone”, fostering children’s sensibilities by  “The Library of the Forest”, and supporting the independence of persons with disabilities.

These activities have been funded by open garden fundraising, sales of flowers and seedlings, handmade candlesticks of wrought iron, beeswax candles, etc.

However, now that we are in the third year since the earthquake, we need the understanding and support of all those who support us in order to continue and operate these activities over the long term. Thank you for your cooperation in the activity support fund.

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[Basic Activities in Bell Gardia KKUJIRAYAMA]

1. 1. Bell Gardia KKUJIRAYAMA Open Garden
   2. Mental care support by “Wind Phone”
   3. Fostering children’s sensibilities by “The Library of the Forest”
   4. Art and cultural activities by the gallery and support for the independence of persons with disabilities
   5. Support for release of playful mind and body by “Forest of Kikki”

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The Bank Account
Iwate bank, Ohtsuchi blanch
Blanch number: 039
Account number: 2050680
The type of account: ordinary saving account
Account holder: Bell Gardia KUJIRAYAMA, Itaru Sasaki

A telephone box in a corner of the garden in late autumn. One day, three elderly people visit “Wind Phone”. I didn’t notice. My wife told me that someone was coming and I thought they would come up later.

Nobody came after a while, so I went down. But no one was there. When I looked at the notebook in the box thinking that it was strange, there was a message…

“Let’s go home, Katsuya. from your parents and grandparents”

The moment I read it, the letters bleeded and disappeared. They lost their son in the earthquake and probably hadn’t found his body yet, so I wanted to hand over Jizo at least. The sadness of those who come quietly and return quietly like this is deep.

The second tear was a person who wrote on the note “This is my third time to visit here. I was finally able to call.” I usually talk while guiding the visitor, but on that day there was another visitor and I was alone.

A big man, squeezing a black phone in “Wind Phone” box and talking loudly. He stayed quiet for a while, but he never left the telephone booth, so I asked him “Are you OK?”, the man said, “I lost his wife.”

As I asked him “If necessary, I would hand over the Jizo that I had entrusted to me from the Jizo Project”, he nodded and had a tea at the cafe. He has written on the notebook “I was finally able to make a phone call, and I will continue to regenerate my hometown for the rest of my life. At that time, I will go to see you with my heart.”

Again, there are large individual differences in mental recovery, such as not being able to pick up the phone or feeling like entering, so it is better to quietly snuggle up and say “It’s okay”. There are a lot of people, and I have to keep in mind.

It was September 11th, 10:45 pm.

The “Wind Phone” projected on the screen emerged fantastically in the darkness, and the sound of insects deepened the tranquility.

On the day of the event, power trucks, production trucks, equipment trucks, taxis with staff, etc. arrived one after another around 2:00 pm, and 17 staff members installed cameras, lighting equipment, sound equipment, and so on.

Immediately after the installation was completed, the test was started and repeated over and over again. It was past 8 o’clock when the director’s OK finally came out and they ate the lunch box for dinner. Shortly after eating, the staff returned to their respective places and repeated individual tests. If the production fails, the next job will surely not come around, so the tension of the staff will be transmitted here as well.

The person in charge of sound effects was crouching in the dark behind the phone box, spraying mosquito repellent, but probably had some stings.

A world where conclusions are urgently valued only for what is visible and what is audible. It was a day that reminded me that what is really important and what is important is hidden in what is invisible and inaudible.

Even so, it was a story of Mr. Furudate the main caster of the show and a video of “Wind Phone” that left a lasting impression. “Wind Phone” that conveys feelings to those who can no longer meet in the wind It is not practical, but I think that it is necessary as a mental infrastructure for those who have lost their loved ones. Thank you to everyone involved in the studio and the field for their hard work.

September 11th, the monthly anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake, is the second year and six months. Many people have been sacrificed, and many have not returned to their families yet.

At News Station in TV Asahi, on the 11th of every month, which is monthly date as the date of death, Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima are reported about the present after the earthquake. The feelings of those who died while thinking about their families until the very end, the feelings of the bereaved families left behind, and the “Wind Phone” that connects them on the wind. It will be broadcast live fromBell Gardia KUJIRAYAMA around 22:00 on September 11th.

I myself would like to mourn the victims of the earthquake and mourn the following poems.

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“Let’s go back to that hometown”

Itaru Sasaki

That day I left home without telling anyone
Many times on the way, the smiles of my family tried to pull me back
A big invisible power wraps me
Far from home

It was a strange city and I was lost and confused
I don’t have a favorite shop, a face I knew, or a nostalgic scent of flowers here.
A city with endless darkness
Where is the outskirts of the city here
Where is my whereabouts

I want to go home
Hometown with original forest and stream is good
All you need is a small market, a beauty salon and a small florist
I want to go home
Hometown where I laugh and you and your family laugh
It ’s nice that everyone can get close to each other.

I’m not talking with a smile right now
But you can see me
That hometown where you and your family live is my place
I’m always there
So that loved ones can live happily
I’m always there
So that you can always be close to me
Let’s go back to that hometown

On June 8th, there was an interview about “Wind Phone” in the program called “Message to the reconstruction” of NHK Radio 1 broadcast Saturday Asaichiban. After the broadcast, the reaction of the viewers was good, and I received e-mails saying that they were impressed by hearing the broadcast, and I was informed that it will be rebroadcast on August 10. Immediately, I missed the last time and contacted the person who wanted to hear it and waited for August 10th.

On that day, broadcasting of giving baseball equipment was on radio. The people who were in contact called me, “I was waiting for the show, but what happened?” or “It was today, right?”. But I could only say “I’m inquiring now.”

Later, NHK contacted me that High School Baseball Championship was  on broadcast and there was a possibility of a schedule change, but if I contacted it in advance, it would not cause any inconvenience to everyone. It seems that it was not working inside NHK. I apologize for the rebroadcast on August 24th, but my trust has been seriously damaged. I replied to NHK that I wouldn’t contact him anymore and that he should feel free to do it, including whether or not it will be rebroadcast.

Due to these circumstances, I am very sorry that I lied to everyone who came to “Wind Phone” and “The Library of the Forest”. I apologize for the inconvenience.