Welcome to Week 7
(Aiko Sensei, Okagesamade, I was able to create this post, thank you!)
When you want to grow a beautiful garden, you must first water the seedlings meticulously. If you tenderly care for the garden in its early stages, you will begin to see flower buds that foreshadow beauty. Inevitably, however, a plant that you were particularly excited about will wilt, leaving a bit of your enthusiastic soul wilted too. But then, nature takes its course, and the fires of motivation burn away the dead scraps, making way for new life and new growth…
Well, my friend, I have been growing a garden for the past many weeks. On Friday, those weeks of work amounted to a speech contest. I wrote and rewrote, drafted ideas and talked them over for hours. At last, I had this speech:
おかげさまで
チャズ ・オカダ
水の小さい水滴が集まって、川になります。小さい一つ一つの水滴の関係のおかげで、川は強くなるんです。小さい川の強さは大きい石の形をも変えます。そして、大きい川の強さは地球の形さえ変えます。こんな強さはどこから来ているのでしょうか。私は人も水滴のように他の人の関係で強くなるんじゃないかと思います。
人間関係のために、一番大切な考え、それは「おかげさまで」だと思います。聞いたことがありますか。多分、挨拶する時に聞きましたね。例えば、ある人が「お元気ですか」と言って、相手は「おかげさまで元気ですよ」と言います。では、「おかげさまで」という表現の意味は何でしょうか。このスピーチでそれについて説明しようと思います。
私の子供の時に、私は和太鼓を教えていただいた愛子先生に「おかげさまで」の意味を教えていただきました。その時、愛子先生は「誰が太鼓の道場に連れて来てくれましたか。太鼓をするために、誰がお金をくれましたか。太鼓をする時に、誰が見に来てくれますか。」とお聞きになったんです。私はその時、理由は分かりませんでしたが、迷わずに家族のことを考えました。そして、家族のことを考えている間に「おかげさまで」の意味が分かるようになりました。それはなぜでしょうか。
前に言ったように水滴の強さがその質問の答えなんじゃないかと思います。もし水の一滴を川から取ったとしたら、その水滴の強さが川からなくなります。つまり、強い川になれないわけです。その水滴と川の関係は「おかげさまで」の精神の中心です。
「おかげさまで」の精神のために、感謝を表すことはとても大切なんじゃないかと思います。川の場合では感謝を表すのは水の一滴を川に帰すことに当たるのです。水の一滴を帰すと、川がもう少しい強くなります。水滴のように人も他の人に感謝を表すと、人間みんなが強くなるんじゃないかと思います。
「おかげさまで」の精神を毎日の生活でいつも持っているべきです。水の波紋のように、自分の行動が他の人達にどんどん広まります。ですから「おかげさまで」のようないい考えを広めた方がいいんじゃないかと思います。水滴が地球を変えるという考えのように「おかげさまで」の精神で人間もこの世界を素晴らしくすることができます。聞いて（読んで）下さって、ありがとうございました。
And, of course, below is the English translation. While translating, I wanted to leave as much residue from the Japanese grammar as possible, so you can see my change of voice from my usual style and see differences in Japanese/English expressions (in other words, it’s not the most beautiful garden from the perspective of English).
Okagesamade (Because of You)
Chaz Okada
Small drops of water assemble and become a river. Thanks to the relationships between the water droplets, the river becomes strong. The strength of a small river can change the shape of a large stone. The strength of a large river, however, can change the shape of the earth. But where is this strength coming from? Just like drops of water, people become stronger through their relationships with others.
Okagesamade is the most important idea when it comes to human relationships. Have you heard this saying before? You’ve probably heard it during a greeting, right? For example, a person says, “How are you?” and the other says, “Okagesamade, I am fine.” Well then, what exactly is the meaning of Okagesamade? In this speech, I will explain just that.
When I was a child, Aiko Sensei, my Taiko (Japanese drum) sensei, taught me the meaning of Okagesamade. Aiko Sensei asked, “Who gave you the favor of taking you to Taiko practice? Who gave you the favor of giving you money to play Taiko? Who will give you the favor of coming to see you when you perform?” At that time, I didn’t know the reason why, but without hesitation, I thought about my family. During this time that I was thinking about my family, I became enlightened to the meaning of Okagesamade. But why is that exactly?
As I mentioned earlier, I believe that a water droplet’s strength is the key to that question. If you took a single drop of water from the river, then the strength of the water drop will also disappear from the river. In other words, it cannot become a strong river. That relationship between the droplet and the river is the center of the spirit of Okagesamade.
Expressing gratitude is very important to the spirit of Okagesamade. In the case of the river, expressing gratitude is the same as returning the single droplet (back home) to the river. When you give back the droplet, the river becomes just a little bit stronger. As people, like water droplets, express gratitude for others, I think that everyone becomes stronger.
We should always hold the spirit of Okagesamade with us in our daily lives. Like ripples through water, our own behavior quickly propagates through those around us. Because of this, would it not be best to disseminate meaningful intentions, such as that of Okagesamade? Therefore, like the idea that a water droplet changes the earth, people can also make this world wonderful, through the spirit of Okagesamade. Thank you very much for listening (thank you for reading!).
~~~
Now, that was not a very pleasant English reading at all, but my intention was to not tell the reader what Okagesamade means—I wanted to show them a way to understanding the meaning. So if that is my garden, what wilted?
Well, my speech performance, which you can see by clicking on the link at the end of the post, was much less than spectacular. I ended up getting a sort-of second-place, as I was chosen because my speech was “Special” (and I am NOT saying that in the snowflakey millennial usage…haha!). The judges noticed my originality in my essay/ideas, and I would call that the benefit of being open-minded to people who think differently, which allows you make original connections. I also MC’d the contest, which was a great and nerve-racking experience—Japanese formalities and polite speech are not easy!
And then the fire came to clear out the failures of this go-around. The almost 100°F weekend was nothing compared to whatever post-performance emotion was burning inside of me…I can only think of describing it as a fire, no matter how cliche, because it physically feels like one. It occurs every now and again, and it is always some mix of disappointment, vulnerability/self-criticism, motivation, and a dash of gratitude to top it off. By no means, though, is this emotion a violent outburst—this feeling is a good hurt, and I am not on this world to destroy others. I’m sure we all experience these emotions, but the gratitude is by far the most important part. Though painful, I am grateful for feeling this ache, as it serves as a reality-check, and I know that I become a better person after I mend the ill.
But everything comes full circle…in my speech, water held the key to gratitude, and gratitude also happens to be what quenches my fiery emotions. To be completely honest, I am always in a state where my water and fire dance around each other: if one becomes more powerful than the other, my peace of mind gets disrupted. Everything that I do—from going to college, flying, leathercraft, future projects (stay tuned) 😉 —is motivated by the balance of these two elements. If you find yourself lazy and unmotivated, you may be complacent, taking things for granted (instead of holding gratitude), and if you find yourself too angry or impulsive, then you don’t have gratitude for the world around you because gratitude leads to compassion, empathy, and understanding.
Of course, I had many other fun adventures this week, but I will save the pictures and stories for next week. For now, here is the video, and thank you for reading this wordy post 🙂