A beautiful evening

Last Thursday, we held an "Otsukimi Chakai" (Moon-Viewing Tea Gathering) at our home.  It is a tradition in Japan to honor and appreciate the full moon in the fall.  Sometimes this is celebrated in September, sometimes in October.  People set up a tray with dango (dumplings) and susuki (Japanese silver pampas grass)  as an offering to the moon.

It was a really wonderful and amazing night.  There were 19 guests seated on our deck facing the Misonodana -- a special lacquer table for Chado (the Way of Tea, or "tea ceremony").   Sweetie sat in the garden so that he could keep an eye on the gate in case of interlopers.

We set up a table in the garden with a small Otsukimi display -- of dango and a local grass that is remeniscent of susuki.  There was a pitcher of cold water and also one of cold dokudami-cha (a traditional herbal Okinawan tea).  When the guests arrived, we invited them to help themselves to a cold beverage, which they did.  They really enjoyed the Okinawan tea!

Then, as the time approached to begin, we invited all the guests to sit and I provided a brief intro.  I explained the tradition of Otsukimi and what we would be doing that evening -- serving sweets, watching the tea being prepared, drinking tea, and then a Q&A opportunity.

A Japanese  friend of mine N-san, who has been training under me on the Misonodana for about one month, performed the "ceremony," while I provided commentary and explanation.  Meanwhile, another friend who has been training under me, C-san, took care of everything else -- ensuring the guests were served cool drinks, serving sweets, and whipping and serving the tea.  Likewise, Y-san, who was a guest, pitched in and whipped many bowls of tea for us so that we could serve the guests quickly.

The lighting was perfect, the weather was just cool enough to be comfortable, and the moon was definitely visible from the garden.  Everyone was riveted on the ceremony.  It was completely new to many of them and everyone was fascinated.  Some guests told me they were "in heaven."  It was a really special time.  We were all able to enjoy the time together, appreciating eachothers' company and the beauty of nature.  

It was a tremendous amount of work, but I hope to do it again in the spring, for another occasion.  There were many interested people that we were not able to invite due to lack of space, and lack of sufficient help to whip the many bowls of tea.