What Friends Are For

What do you do when a friend cuts a sushi morsel in two in order to share it with another friend? How do you manage to obtain a restaurant reservation for nineteen at the very last minute, rather than several hours ahead at the very least, when that many folk decide to help celebrate your wife’s birthday with you? What is one supposed to do when a member of your group of friends falls and badly slices open her leg below the knee? How do you get through a day of largely outdoor sightseeing in the pouring rain?

I’ll let you know the secret – it’s because they ARE your friends that survival is even remotely possible. Believe me!

MISTY MORNING RAIN IN OHARA ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF OHARA

The day began promisingly enough. The morning drizzle darkened Japan’s muted color palate and brought out an unsuspected richness in our natural surroundings. Spirits were high as we bordered our tour bus, umbrellas and rain gear at the ready.

We marked Marvin Nevan’s birthday along with Heidi’s as we got underway and were anxiously awaiting word on the fate of the Cleveland Indians baseball team in their fifth (and, many of us hoped, final) American League Championship game.

By mid-morning the Indians were hopelessly behind, losing by a substantial number of runs. Lynn Markus had fallen on a rain slicked path and opened a serious gash (eventually requiring multiple stitches in two layers to close). And we were soaking wet – the rain had become a serious downpour.

What a team of good sports, however. We soldiered on, dining at Daitokuji, a Zen temple, on our second vegetarian lunch in two days focused on multiple variations on tofu. We skipped only one garden on the original schedule and miraculously kept our collective spirits up throughout the entire day.

In the evening we rallied once again, many of us gathering in the lobby, planning to dine together to celebrate Heidi and Marvin’s “big day”. The hotel called ahead to see if we could be accommodated. It turned out we could be, but only if we were willing to sit on the floor.

The number of willing participants in the outing immediately dropped precipitously. We decided to abandon our plans and go our separate ways.

Then the restaurant called back: they found us a room of our own with foot wells to allow us to dangle our feet comfortably. The group reassembled, and off we went.

Lee watched with bemusement as the group poured over the extensive menu, made their choices and set about enjoying them. Fortunately our waitress had spent some considerable time in New Zealand and was able to roll with the punches as we (again, collectively) managed to break every imaginable rule in the etiquette guide to proper dining in Japan!

Well, maybe it wasn’t quite that bad; indeed, it proved yet another in a series of enjoyable evening meals. Lee relaxed a bit eventually, the conversation flowed under the influence of the sparkling wine provided by the Nevans. And on the way back to the hotel, we noticed the weather had broken.