Page of Swords & The High Priestess, vol.13
Tuesday afternoon, September 6, 2005, we departed from "Honolulu International Airport" for Tokyo. Incidentally, "Honolulu International Airport" is now called "Daniel K. Inouye International Airport". It is named after the first Japanese American U. S. Senator from the state of Hawaii.
For example, Ukulele player Herbert Ichiro Ohta, known as "Ohta-San," revolutionized the history of the Ukulele in Hawaiian music with his unique style of playing called the "Ohta-San Style". The Ukulele was once an accompaniment instrument, but now it can play a solo melody.
The "Aloha shirt" also has its roots in Japanese Americans. Japanese immigrants engaged in sugar plant agriculture wore the "Paraca," an open-necked shirt worn by European sailors. The "Paraca" was similar to the pattern of the Japanese "Kasuri," a cotton Kimono. Eventually, they began to use the Kimonos they brought with them, tailoring them to resemble the "Paraca". This is said to be the origin of the "Aloha shirt". Japanese immigrants have greatly influenced the culture of Hawaii today.
Actually, I learned these things from my husband. On the plane to Tokyo, he told me about Hawaiian culture and its relationship with the Japanese.
I was very impressed with his knowledge. I never neglected to absorb knowledge of various aspects of Japanese culture in order to be successful in my business. Immediately after I entered "Yokohama-Suiran Senior High School", I was invited to join the track and field team, the tennis team, and the swimming team, but I joined the "Kado Club" to seek knowledge for my future success. There I learned not only Kado (flower arrangement), but also Sado (tea ceremony), Syodo (Japanese calligraphy), and Kodo (traditional incense-smelling ceremony). As I expected, such knowledge was useful in various aspects of my business, so I never neglected to update my skills. On the spiritual level, however, I accomplished nothing. However, unlike me, he studied various music and surrounding cultures for the pure joy of it, and as a result, he had a very deep level of respect for each country and people.
I wanted to get to know him better and better. he night before, he refused to do the romantic make love with me that is commonly imagined at "Bridal Night". One of the reasons was that we did not know each other well, which I agreed with, but was quite concerned about. In Japan, there is a dress-up doll similar to Barbie called Licca-chan. There is also a doll of a boy who is Licca-chan's boyfriend. Young girls in Japan sometimes use them to play with dolls to reenact conversations between husband and wife. Well, I have no experience... On that day, our second day of marriage, Masato and I had a sexually innocent, clean, and idealistic relationship, like a Licca-chan doll play, in other words, a mediocre one. Since the reason for our marriage was to stave off his suicide, I had not given much thought to whether or not I would continue to be married to him in the future. But I thought we should certainly get to know each other better. But I could not ask him any questions. I mean, I was very concerned about the fact that he said he once had feelings of "Resentment" toward his father. On the plane to Japan, I had expected that he would probably tell Hiroshi Ohuchi about the situation. And indeed, he would. I felt that I should not ask him about his background before he, of his own volition, told Mr. Ohuchi about his own background. I had become very cowardice. Maybe I had become one of those girls who fell in love with someone else, so the fierce Saber-toothed cat that I had been had retracted and I had become Bambi. LOL!
So instead I started talking about how I am a Madonna fan.
When I was in middle school, "Like a Virgin" had a big hit and I've been a Madonna fan ever since. But even though I live in the US, I had never been to a Madonna concert. Last year was the first time I went to one of her concerts.
Oh, it was great! The Re-Invention Tour, right? It's been pretty well-received.
I believed that he knew too much about music and that if I tried to tell him that I loved Madonna, a superstar with too many fans, he would laugh at me and make fun of me because it was too conventional. I didn't care if he laughed at me or made fun of me. I wanted to have a pleasant conversation with him.
Surprisingly, however, he had been listening to Madonna's music for a long time. He especially likes her first album “Madonna” from 1983. It was produced by Reggie Lucas.
In 1981, Luther Vandross teamed up with bassist Marcus Miller, who had worked with the Miles Davis Group, and had a hit with "Never Too Much".
From then until the mid-1980s, musicians from the Miles Davis Group in New York City were very active in the mainstream "Soul/R&B" genre of Black Music. One such example is James Mtume, who joined the Miles Davis Group on percussion from 1972 to 1975. And guitarist Reggie Lucas is one such musician. Masato is very fond of Marc Sadane's two soul albums, "One Way Love Affair" (1981) and "Exciting" (1982), produced by Reggie Lucas and James Mtume, and still listens to them often.
I was trained by him a lot, so I've become very knowledgeable about music! LOL.
However, Reggie Lucas had a disagreement with Madonna, and he left the producer of the album "Madonna" halfway through the project without completing it. John "Jellybean" Benitez, who was Madonna's boyfriend at the time, remixed the album and completed "Madonna". Even so, Masato likes the album "Madonna" because he can see traces of Reggie Lucas' production in various places, and he especially loves "Borderline" composed by Reggie Lucas since its release.
He went on to explain the importance of Madonna since the 90s. He said that Madonna was a producer extraordinaire who always paid attention to the UK CLUB Music scene and played a role in bringing the latest sounds that were hitting the scene to the U. S. six months late by incorporating them into her music. I know Madonna's talent as a producer. So, I was glad that he was already well aware of that.
Talking about music seemed to relax him, as expected. Then he slept well. I can't prepare the meal you deserve. I have very little money. It has only been a short time since he told me that in a frightened, downcast, sneering manner. He is staying in a hotel suite he has never stayed in before and flying first class, but I am relieved to see that he is not cowering, belittling himself, or, on the contrary, being extremely over-excited and flippant. Since we would arrive in Tokyo the following evening, we would need to spend the night in Tokyo. I had reserved a suite at the Imperial Hotel, and I was relieved to find that he would be comfortable in the most prestigious hotel in Japan.
On Thursday the 8th, after a delicious breakfast and checking out, we took the "Shinkansen/bullet train" from "Tokyo Station" to "Shin-Fuji" station. It takes about an hour to get there. After a quick meal in the station, we took a cab to Lake Yamanakako. The cab driver asked the Ohuchi family's address and said Uh, it's quite a distance, and it's in the mountains, are you sure you want to go there?
Yes, of course we are going there!
Masato was concerned that I had not called Hiroshi Ohuchi and Janet to let them know that we wanted to visit them. I just couldn't bring myself to contact them. I still don't know why. As such, we suddenly rang the doorbell at the Ohuchi family's house. Mr. Ohuchi greeted us and, as expected, welcomed us with open arms. He said the following:
Hi, Mr. Shiraishi. It was just as you wrote in "A Course In Miracles," wasn't it? You really wanted to meet me, and you trusted that we would definitely meet!
Then his wife, Janet, arrived. When her husband explained that we had come from New York, Janet exclaimed in admiration and said Well, the angels are here!
Masato was on the verge of tears. I don't know why. He still doesn't know why. Masato almost cried when he saw their faces and heard their voices. But I know why I was on the verge of tear. Yes, I was. I almost was on the verge of tear too. At that time, I sometimes deliberately used "Tsuji-Giri OYUKI", one of my own nicknames or notoriety acquired in the business world, meaning hitman. I am the woman called "Tsuji-Giri OYUKI," Yukiko, the successful one! There was no "Angel" in my nickname. I regretted that I had beaten off so many rivals in business. To be clear, some people lost my attacks and went bankrupt and bankrupted their companies. On another occasion, I will tell you how it came to be called "Tsuji-Giri OYUKI". I was feeling guilty about that. When Janet called me and him "Angels," I was grieved that I was not a wonderful person to be called "Angels." I had a feeling that the meeting between Hiroshi Ohuchi and Janet would be extremely important not only for Masato but also for myself.
Hiroshi Ohuchi suddenly closed his eyes and growled, "Hmm." Uh, Higher-Self-San (Mr. Higher-Self)? He mumbled that and then asked us if we were going to stay at Lake Yamanakako for a while. I answered that we would look for a hotel nearby and stay for a few days. Hiroshi Ohuchi said as follows:
We want you to stay at our house, but we can't because we are preparing for the "Peace of Mind Workshop" on Saturday and Sunday and our helpers are here.
And then he went on to say that he wanted to invite us as special guests to the "Peace of Mind Workshop".
Mr. Shiraishi. Would you share your experience of "pretend to forgive" with us at the "Peace of Mind Workshop"? The workshop will be held at " Hotel Mt. Fuji", so you should stay at " Hotel Mt. Fuji".
Perhaps Mr. Ohuchi received a guide from his own Soul or even a Higher-Self when he snarled "Hmm." He decided to follow his Inner guidance and move us away from their home once and spend time with us at a later "Peace of Mind Workshop". When Masato met the Ohuchi family for the first time that day, he obviously wanted to talk to them, but at the same time, it took courage to talk about his own past events, so I think he needed some time alone to prepare his heart. Mr. Ohuchi sensed this through guidance from Higher-Self.
Let me briefly explain about the Higher-Self. According to the explanations of many spiritual teachers, we are not merely physical beings walking on Earth, but multidimensional beings. Therefore, it follows that the Self exists in higher dimensions as well. The lowest level of consciousness is “Ego-consciousness,” and there are higher levels of consciousness. What we call the "Soul" is the Self at a higher level of consciousness than the Ego-mind. And as we climb higher and higher and higher levels of consciousness, we reach the level of God, the Creator of the Universe. Our consciousness is connected to God as one, and in “God” we are one with everything in the Universe. This is what I was first taught when I started learning the "Law of Attraction". Of course, I didn't realize it at all, but I learned it anyway from Melissa “Missy” Blanchard. And when we began reading “A Course In Miracles,” we were taught that more thoroughly.
Now, as the name “Higher-Self” implies, we have a “Self” in a higher dimension, the ultimate of which is "God". Therefore, “God” is our "Higher-Self". However, when spiritual teachers generally use the term “Higher-Self,” they are mostly referring to the part of us that has the function of a Guide in our multidimensional "Self". It is important to note that each contemporary spiritual teacher uses the term “Higher-Self” in a different sense, but generally they are talking about a Guide in a higher dimension. Guide, after all, are not separate from you. Hence I explain that it is a function of the “Guide”.
The “Soul,” on the other hand, is the part that holds the plan for that life. It is the “Higher-Self” that brings guidance and guides us in various ways as we walk the Earth, following or not following the plan of that “Soul” because it holds the very limited world perception of the "Ego-consciousness".
In “A Course In Miracles,” it is explained that an intermediary called the “Holy Spirit” was placed by “God” between “God” and us, His Child. Since one of the functions of the “Holy Spirit” is to guide, it could be said to mean the same thing as the “Higher-Self.” However, to be more precise, since it is the “Holy Spirit” that understands the Will of “God” and guides us who believe in separation from “God” to bring us back to Oneness, it is more than the term “Higher-Self” used by many modern spiritual teachers, self-help seminar coaches, and others, the term “Holy Spirit” in “A Course In Miracles” is a more respectful function of Will of “God”. Incidentally, there are also terms such as “My I Am Presence” or “Over-Soul” that describe a vast “Self” that is more like “God” that remains pure and holy. Those who use these terms are using these terms with respect to a higher “Self” than the “Higher-Self”. Conversely, the “Soul” can be described as a “Self” of a lower level than the “Higher-Self” and is therefore described as being unique in its own right.
In any case, we are not thrown out into the stormy seas of life with nothing, but can receive guidance from Guides who are faithful to the Will of “God”. Sometimes the guidance of the Higher-Self comes through an Inner Voice, and sometimes it comes in the form of interesting and metaphorical signs that we can see, so we need to be willing to receive them, and we need to be more intuitive in our daily lives.
Now, let's get back to the topic.
We stayed at "Hotel Mt. Fuji". He had a quiet night. The next day, we went out by cab to eat a noodle called "Pumpkin Hōtō," a local specialty of Yamanashi Prefecture, for lunch.
After we finished eating, we walked along the shore of Lake Yamanakako. I walked with a white parasol like Mariko Okada always does when she is in Yoshishige(Kijū) Yoshida's movie. Mariko Okada is one of the great Japanese actresses, and filmmaker Kijū Yoshida is her husband. Masato said to me, "That suits you really well. Wonderful." as I was walking with a white parasol. He complimented me for the first time in a way that the gentlemen of the world complimented the ladies. It's windy on the lakeshore. I was pretty, really hard at the handle of a white parasol, not to be like Sarah Miles from "Ryan's Daughter" who blew it.
Continued story :Confession - My husband's Life of Love and Forgiveness.-
©Mitsuhiro Toda@Screenwriter Group Aquariusera