I have some new products up at the SweetPersimmon.com website.
Heat wraps - These flannel wraps are filled with rice. Just put them in the microwave and wrap them around your body for soothing moist heat. They are 4 inches by 34 inches to wrap around your shoulders, neck, or back. Comes in it's own lined flannel carry bag. Great for Christmas gifts.
Also, just because I like making them -- Handbags and purses. I got a new sewing machine and I love to design and make handbags and purses. Choose from quilted shoulder bags, summer straw bags, purses or tea wallets. New bags going up all the time as I get inspired to design and sew them.
A Year of Haiku -- Haiku for everyday of the year. Spoken word CD now available.
Don't forget we have seiza zazen seats, matcha tea, tea ceremony utensils, oolong tea, tea travel mugs, kyusu teapots, incense, books and cards and gifts. Check it out SweetPersimmon.com.
Jul 12, 2008
What's new at SweetPersimmon.com
Jul 10, 2008
Ryokusuido Tea House Now Open in Portland
Ryokusuido Tea House
We’d like to invite you to the opening of Ryokusuido Tea House. Please join us for a Japanese sweet and bowl of powdered matcha tea. Thursdays July 17, 24, and 31 at 6:30 or 8:30 pm. Fee $5.00. Reservations required. Contact Margie 503.645.7058 for reservations and directions to the tea house.
Want to learn more? Being a Guest at a Tea Ceremony
For these interested in learning to be a guest at a Japanese tea ceremony, we offer two workshops. Thursday August 7 and 14 or August 21 and 28, 7:00-8:30 pm. Fee $10. This class will cover the basic etiquette of receiving a bowl of tea and sweet at a Japanese Tea Ceremony. It's for those who want to know what to do and what to bring when invited to a tea ceremony. Reservations required. Workshops will take place at Ryokusuido Tea House. Contact Margie 503.645.7058 for reservations and directions to the tea house.
New Introduction to Japanese Tea Ceremony
10 week class beginning in September. More details coming soon.
Ryokusuido Tea house is located at:
Jul 9, 2008
Wherever you are, you are here now
This is a scroll that is hung in the tea room:
歩々清風起す
Hobo seifu okosu
Step by step, the pure breeze comes
It is a timely scroll as the hot weather is upon us now. The pure breeze like a breath of fresh air, cools and cleanses us. Step by step, as if we are walking towards the breeze, it comes closer.
Fellow students and my own tea students often lament that they wish that they were further along with their tea studies. Other times students look at how far they have to go in their studies that they get discouraged.
What this scroll is telling us is that looking ahead and wishing for something that is not here yet can be frustrating. If I take one step at at time, the rewards will come. In our tea studies each temae builds upon the last one. Jumping ahead before learning the lessons of the previous temae will only confuse you. It is better to concentrate on where you are now, learn the lessons before moving on to the next one.
Like any endeavor or undertaking, step by step will get you towards your goal. There are no shortcuts. Like gardening, losing weight or getting in shape, you cannot wake up one day already at your goal. You must work at it every day -- and then the pure breeze comes.
Jun 29, 2008
Mizuya, the preparation room
When people see a tea room, they do not think of the mizuya, the preparation room. It is the training ground for the tea room and here that the some of my most profound lessons were learned. There are many rules to learn about preparing for tea class and tea gatherings and it all starts in the mizuya.
Some mizuya I have worked in were small rooms that barely fit two or three people side by side. I once prepared 300 bowls of tea with two other people in a mizuya that was six feet by six feet. It also contained an electric burner, a sink for washing bowls, cold water rinse buckets and room for about 30 bowls. There was no table in this mizuya, everything was done on the floor sitting seiza.
Because the mizuya is hidden from the guests, we must be extra diligent about doing things, cleaning up after ourselves and working together with a minimum of fuss. Sensei says that the mizuya must be cleaner than the tea room.
So every spare minute you spend in the mizuya you should be cleaning. Whether you are washing bowls, filling the tea container, arranging flowers or preparing for the next temae, clean up before you work and after you work. Do not leave your cleaning for others. If you are not working you can zokin (wipe the floor with floor towels). If you are not working, get out of the mizuya. It is no place for idle talk, gossip or just standing around.
When cleaning up after your temae, you should wash, rinse and dry your bowl, rinse your chasen and clean out your kensui. Rinse and remove all the green tea from your chakin, and fold neatly and return to the flat chakin darai. Wipe your chashaku with tissue so that all tea residue is removed and refill the natusme with tea. Replenish the sweets tray and arrange them for the next person. Return all utensils to their proper place when you have finished.
Because the mizuya is often a confined space, working together in harmony is essential. Usually there is a cho or head of the mizuya. It is the cho’s responsibility to make sure everything is done correctly in the mizuya. Therefore, there is no arguing with the cho. If he asks you to do something, you do it. But don’t wait around for the cho to tell you what to do. If you see something that needs to be done, just do it – and with a minimum of fuss. If you have a problem in the mizuya, call a meeting with the cho – later, outside of the mizuya.
When handing things to other people in the mizuya, you should put it down in front of them and let them pick it up. It is safer than passing utensils from hand to hand. A good foundation in the mizuya, allows you to concentrate on doing the right things in the tea room. I find that it helps me mentally to be present in the tea room if I have done my mizuya work well.
Jun 27, 2008
Leaving no trace
I was working out in the yard pulling weeds this week. When I was younger, my dad made me pull weeds for punishment, but after awhile, I really got into it and I asked to go out to the backyard to pull weeds. It became an experience for me. I was going to write a post about leaving no trace and in my yard, it looks like I have not left a trace since last month, the last time I weeded.
My husband is a woodworker who makes exquisitely beautiful and artistic furniture, boxes and shoji screens. He never signs his work. He thinks that the design and craftsmanship of the pieces should speak for themselves rather than him, the artist. He doesn't own the piece and doesn't feel right putting his name on it.
In tea, we must let go of owning the experience. It just is what it is. It is not a tea gathering by Margie as if it was a production or performance. It is a collaborative experience with host and guests each contributing.
In my chado training and teaching, it is not about letting everyone know about how hard or long I have been training, or how many students I have or imparting wisdom to students. I am a conduit to transmit what I learned from my sensei, try to preserve the tradition as best I can, learn about myself and continue my journey.
It is not about awards, or accolades or certification levels or reputation. I do it because I must. I cannot imagine a life without chado. Shunryu Suzuki said, "When you do something, you should burn yourself up completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself."
