Oral History Interviews
One of the major aspects of my project has been interviewing elderly residents of Hinohara, creating a "memory bank" of their recollections. Every interviewee remembers a time before the village had electricity or cars, making their experiences increasingly rare and valuable.
By recording, transcribing, and publishing these interviews on the NPO's website, these firsthand accounts can be preserved for future generations. The hope is that Satoyama School will continue expanding this archive long after my project has finished.
Thanks to the amazing help of the volunteers at the NPO who have helped to translate for me, the process has been truly rewarding. Each of the 5 interviewees recalled their childhood with such passion, and gave valuable advice for the future of Hinohara, including their hopes and messages to young people who would want to live there.
The story that stayed with me most came from my oldest interviewee, who became visibly emotional as he recalled watching his father leave to fight in the Second World War, and later described his return home as the happiest moment of his life. The vivid detail with which he remembered those events, now 80 years later, was remarkable, and reinforced just how important it is to preserve these memories while we still can.
One Last Tour
This being the final week, I was taken around Hinohara to several places I had not yet explored, revealing some of the village's hidden gems. One evening I stayed out past dark for a firefly show along a river. The stream hung like a veil between us and the stage beyond: the black wall of the forest, flickering with moving green lights.
I was also taken to an old museum-house devoted to the life of Ginza Akie, known for her shashiko, an art form worked through stitching and weaving. The building was a marvel in its own right: centuries old and, like so much of Hinohara, thoroughly traditional. The one noticeable difference, however, was that it is far larger than its neighbours. This is because it is not originally from here at all. It was first built in Niigata prefecture, famous for rice, where farmhouses need far more interior space. It was later dismantled and moved beam by beam to be rebuilt identically in Hinohara, which is better suited to house her work.
Hinohara's crown jewel is Hossawa Falls, a 62-metre giant tucked deep in the forest, a short walk off the path. You hear it long before you see it. At the tail end of the rainy season the flow is at its fiercest, and the force was staggering. The wind it threw off bent the plants in a wide circle around it. In winter it freezes into a wall of ice; in summer it becomes a cool gathering place for locals, though I doubt they can hear a word over the roar.
A Ceilidh Goodbye
And so, in the blink of an eye, the time has come for me to say goodbye. The end of my six weeks has come faster than I could have ever imagined, and yet I have learned and experienced so much, and created memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. Getting to know everyone at Satoyama School Tokyo, and over time understanding exactly what motivates them to do what they do every day, for some involving several-hour commutes each way, has truly been special.
To mark the end, we threw a farewell gathering with much of the NPO staff. We made okonomiyaki, a savoury pancake built on flour and cabbage and then loaded with whatever you fancy, usually seafood or meat. One of the locals in attendance brought some self-made candied yuzu for a tangy desert.
Following that, I organised a little cultural exchange: I taught everyone how to Ceilidh, a style of Scottish dancing. It was much to popular demand, having previously explained that we do them back home. The energy was great, and the relaxed joy that a ceilidh offers was no less present than normal. Certainly they were not expecting it to be so tiring, and after three dances, they were finished.
With all of the interviews completed and the videos beginning to appear online, I am incredibly proud of what the project has achieved. More importantly, Satoyama School intends to continue building on these long after my departure. That, to me, is the greatest measure of success. I have, with plenty of help, planted some of many seeds in Satoyama School's field. One day, I hope to come back and find it in full bloom.