Salutations,
The cherry blossoms have bloomed, and combined with the green
of the weeping willows, the world has turned into the spring
scene of "hana wa kurenai, yanagi wa midori" - literally,
"the flowers are pink and the willows are green."
The recent, unprecedented huge earthquake, and the triple blow
from also being struck by the tsunami and nuclear plant disaster,
have caused Japan to once again be in distress in all sorts of
ways. It is a mournful situation, and I sincerely pray for the
repose of the souls of the victims whose lives were lost. I am
determined to do what meager bit I carry to be of some slight
help in the surviving people's quick recovery.
Amid such a situation my thoughts about my own petty Beiju (88th)
birthday vanished somewhere, and I feel so anguished about the
disaster that celebrating my birthday is unthinkable. This notwithstanding,
however, I thank you for your message of congratulations straightaway,
for my Beiju. I wish to express my appreciation and gratitude
for your kind thoughts and gesture.
Once things settle down and the world at large becomes more peaceful,
I would like to directly express my gratitude to you. For the
time being, this is a quick, brief message of thanks. Though the
season now is pleasant I hope you will still be careful of your
health.
Sincerely,
Genshitsu Sen
Former Urasenke Iemoto
April 2011
Message from Gary Cadwallader
To all those who sent messages
to Daisosho on the occasion of his eighty-eighth birthday,
The Midorikai Alumni Association expresses sincere appreciation
to each and every one who took the time to send Hounsai Daisosho
a birthday greeting on this auspicious occasion. The day of April
19th, 2011, Daisosho enjoyed a happy eighty-eighth birthday, highlighted
by the many flowers, cards and good wishes sent from students
from all over the world.
All the cards and electronic messages were put into a file book
and a list of all the contributors with their original countries
and Midorikai attendance dates preceded the cards. There were
messages from over 130 alumni in 25 countries. Daisosho was very
happy to have been remembered and felt gratified that his support
of the Midorikai program had such a large impact on so many alumni.
We hope that the continuing activities of the Alumni Association
will help to reassure Daisosho of the members' sincerity and devotion.
Again, thank you for your cooperation.
Yours very truly,
Gary C. Cadwallader, Midorikai 1979 - 1982