Haiku & Reflections from Japan: Home

Longtime UNS Member, Sharon Meyers, is currently living in Japan for several months. This is a glimpse into her world and journey.

Where we love is home
Our feet wander, not our hearts
Light when all grows dark

Returning to Kyoto after more than a year of dreaming and planning, I step back into local history through the place where I now live: a machiya.

Kyo machiya – Kyoto's traditional townhouses – speak volumes about the wisdom of their dwellers through the generations. Constructed of wood and often without nails, they are respected for their design of dark mahogany latticework, petite courtyard gardens, plastered mashiko-mado / insect cage windows that enable air flow and privacy within a long narrow floorplan, affectionately called unagi-no-nedoko / eel bed design.

Machiya have not survived history well, as the structures were prone to fire through the centuries and to decay and disuse decades ago. Yet in recent years, efforts to preserve and restore machiya as shop houses and residences are gaining interest once more. I am fortunate to experience this elegant tradition and with only a 360 square foot space, am comfortable with a “less is more” approach to living in such intentional design. My machiya was once home to generations of families and as a kimono shop over one hundred years ago. I awaken each day to respect its history. It is home.

What does home mean to you?

Arigato,
Sharon

P.S. See the attachment below to download Sharon's recipe from Garden Chat this week: Japanese Potato Salad. All are welcome to join Sharon's weekly Garden Chat on Zoom (see the Events page for details).