Joel Bhana

Organic farming with a few of a dudes from Ine to Agave brewery where we carved a ridge and furrow before planting 2 types of turnip and spinach.

Hoshi Mukai event at Mt Kampu san! What a fantastic day for it.

Kam = cold. Pu = wind. San = mountain.

Comin from Tokyo with its 38 degree heat waves to this 20 degree comfort is surreal.

The depths of the cold made the sweet fruits of the kitchen and larder all the more precious.

Visiting Tamagawa onsen was an experience in itself as the “bite your butt”(Thanks for that one mum) twisties were closed to public cars and the only access was by escorted bus.

There’s one particular house I pass that has the most amazing gardens- I’d call it a mini farm bursting with green goodness- even in winter.

I’d gaze at eggplants, ripe and glistening, admiring heads of cabbage and rank and file of green shades in season.

Eventually the conductor of this growing symphony noticed my attention (luckily he didn’t think I was a stalker…) and his leathery face wrinkled further into beautiful smiles as I complimented his skills with thumbs up and a cheeky grin.

This time i was on my way back from the convenience store, feelin stink because I couldn’t go to a party (plans to visit the grandparents and such...self imposed exile has a peculiar pain) when I saw the old fella having a smoke on his porch. A short greeting later and an admitted admiration of his gardening skills and he’s up and pulling green things from the earth to give to me, wreathed in smiles, tobacco smoke and good humor.

Turns out he was curious about me and asked all the usual questions which I was happy to answer and I think I’ve made a new friend. So far that’s pretty damn cool news for 2022.

I make it a point to be open and friendly especially in my hood- as a kiwi it comes naturally and smiles are medicine in this climate, we never know what someone else is going through eh. Amazing how much good mojo can be exchanged with smiled eye contact.

I wish all of you good luck and green growth this year, with good mojo and love being even more important than ever.

A month ago I had a fall down some stairs on the way to work- only stairs, not some high impact sport or piston fueled horsepower gone wrong, just the act of stepping down stairs at a train station during rush hour- and missing BIG time.

I was neither drunk, on the phone nor unfortunately looking where I was going, projecting my ‘to do list’ in the middle distance as I descended I saw the train doors paused and hanging open.

Making the rash, stupid, foolish and regrettable decision to speed up- …..can I make it?! Yeah sure I caaaa-BANG, lurch, totter grab and down.

Bloody ridiculous. STAIRS 1 me 0.

Reminds me of the Radiohead song lyric “…and you do it to yourself you do and that’s what really hurts…”

And it all happens in your head first- I wasn’t thinking about gravity or the miracle of self propulsion and muscular memory, nope. I was thinking of appointments, dates and deadlines- Tokyo life is pretty crazy, but that’s when I need to breath a bit deeper and defrag a little more- or even simpler; don’t rush down stairs.

After a month of recovery, missed work and reevaluated goal posts I have a new understanding and respect for the infirm and disabled. If a busted ankle reframes life to this degree how much more hard core are the lives of the seriously disabled?.

I can see how the extra life planning, the support, the mental and emotional strength they need to deal with their world experience might create a new and tested version of themselves, truly unsung heroes who do what needs to be done as best they can- respect.

The ankle injury highlighted so many things I take for granted- If I were a fish I wouldn’t notice the water till it was gone, in my case it was standing and moving on two legs.

Anyone recovering from a concussion, or any injury has a clear time stamp of before and after, and it’s not as if we get through life alive eh, but wow does it put things in perspective.

Crutches suck, despite people saying you get used to them you still have to handle the work load of moving through space with your hands, armpits and shoulders powering you.

Sure, they are good coordination challenges that really work out the upper body and I think the hands get stronger but yeah respect to all folk who use them on the regular, the distance to the corner never looked further than when I had to use them. I tried to race old people in walkers and totally lost lol- but they were japanese old people and they seem more sprightly than they should be….must be all the natto?.

Back on the good foot, quite literally now but I see stairs in a very different way- and view navigation in this world as a privilege best enjoyed with both eyes, and mind open and aware.

Taking some time to add to the pelvic curl on the reformer with some single leg kicks.