By Maria Garcia

Hello. If you’re reading this, thank you for your time! Many thanks to Ms. Sally, Eshita Sensei, and our volunteers who have all helped inspire and push us (youth) to a new level. Since we began our mission back in late September I’ve learned so much! My favorite topics have most definitely been honne and tatamae, Valentine’s Day, Japan’s geography, family members, Katakana, and learning to introduce myself in Japanese! How cool is that!

Last class we learned a new concept of everyday objects; Wabi sabi. Wabi sabi is a concept of valuing the imperfections in an object. It was a new concept for me and a little confusing. I couldn’t understand the part where imperfection was desired. But then I realized something. In a society of uniformity. small imperfections exist. They exist because we are human and have emotions which enable us to be different from one another. Wabi sabi opened my eyes to not only look at an object as an object, but to look at an object and think about the maker’s mindset, whether or not the maker made other objects, such as a mug which is not necessarily circular because it has a dent. The mug would be considered aesthetically appealing, because it’s not like the others and stands out.

Wabi sabi is not a concept that Japanese people have to think twice about because it is second nature to them. I would like to continue implementing wabi sabi in my life since it helps to think of life through a new lens.