The True Meaning of Hanami

Today was the most beautiful day at iinogashira Park yet. It was calm, quiet, I could hear the pigeons cooing, and the occasional interruption of a duck calling from across the pond... The cherry blossoms looked more beautiful than ever against a dreary backdrop... provoking feelings of melancholy. That is what the beauty of cherry blossoms is all about of course. The fact that it is so transitory leads us to lament the passing of life. Every year, be it cherry blossoms, Christmas, or just fall or winter in general, I find myself thinking "one more gone... only 30 more (give or take) left in my life."

I just wasted a winter. I didn't go skiing once, not downhill, not cross-country, not once. I remember my junior / senior year in high-school, in winter I worked Saturdays at Burger King just to make enough to go skiing all day Sunday. Whatever happened to those dreams of moving to Aspen, and with the superior skiing skills I was able to learn on the 500ft drops in Michigan, becoming one of the top ski-instructors, quickly excelling at my job and being elevated to a level of celebrity among the rich and famous. This good life would soon makes me restless and I would long to pursue my dreams of something more substantial.

Anyway, it rained today, and will rain until Sunday. So much for everyone's cherry blossom plans. Another chance gone... some people a little older than I will only get to see cherry blossoms 10 (give or take) more times in their life...