American Road Trip
Moore Cove Falls in the Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina
America seemed to go on forever. For someone who grew up in Japan, a country that in its entirety barely matches the state of California, this road trip was more enormous, more vast, more overwhelming than I could have ever imagined. From New Orleans, Louisiana to Tennessee, through North Carolina all the way up into New York -- the country roads stretched endlessly through great swathes of green and towering cumulonimbus clouds.
And I often noticed myself wishing that this beautiful green was something I could find in Pasadena, too. Many people have asked me, what was your favorite place, your favorite town? It was a question I asked myself too as we traveled. But now, I think that perhaps such a question isn’t really important at all. There is a phrase in Japan that literally says, “to live there is to live in the capital.” A better translation might be something along the lines of “home is where you hang your hat.”
Of course, having an accessible grocery store and hospital, being able to go out to eat, feeling like you make the most of your life in the place you live, these are all important. But to really live and grow somewhere means you also form a bond with those who live around you -- that you help each other out, that you find security not only in infrastructure but in people, and that your sense of family and belonging expands beyond the bounds of your property and blood. I trust that this kind of home is something I cannot always see but that exists in almost every place we passed through on our drive. My daughter speaks of this sense of home when she talks about her time in Tennessee, and it’s a sense of home I know well in my own small town in Japan. That feeling is what makes a town important and beautiful.
Fireflies are everywhere!
Just recently, I was asked by one of my customer’s friends, Wes, to help him design a brunch menu for his restaurant in Culver City; it’s a fantastic restaurant and a really exciting project for me. Thus, my bread sales will regrettably be postponed one more month. When I have the time, although it might not be Saturday anymore, I will still be baking bread, bagels and English muffins, so if you’re interested, please email me and I will save you some! I miss you all, and I’ll work hard on this project so I can get back to my favorite bread-making soon!
アメリカはどこまでも続いていました。カリフォルニア州の大きさほどしかない日本で生まれ育った私にとって今回のロードトリップは想像以上のものでした。ルイジアナ州からテネシー、ノースキャロライナを通りニューヨークまで北上する道中はどこまでも続く緑と次から次へと現れる入道雲を追いかけているような旅でした。そしてこの鮮やかな緑がパサディナにもあったら、などと羨ましくも思いました。どこの街が気に入ったか？そんなことも色々と旅の途中考えました。でもそんなことはどうでもいいのかもしれません。「住めば都」という言葉があります。車で少し走れば買い物から病院、レストランまで全てのことがそろう暮らしはもちろん便利で効率的です。なるべく多くのことをこなし、それが達成感として感じるる生き方はいっぱいあるけれど、身近な人との信頼関係や助け合いで成り立つ生活には他の人にも優しくなれる気持ちが生まれるのでしょうか？テネシーで桜もそんな優しさにどれだけ助けられたか話してくれました。そんな経験や気持ちが生まれて、初めてその土地や街のことが話せるのかもしれません。
つい先日、以前カスタマーとして知り合ったシェフにレストランのブランチメニューを一緒に考えることを依頼されました。カルバーシティーにある素敵なレストランです。というわけでもうしばらくパンのセールは延期になります。時間のある時に（土曜日ではないかもしれませんが）パンやベーグルなどは焼く予定なので、もしその時声をかけてもらいたい方はぜひメールで教えてください。皆さんに早く会えるようにこのコミッション頑張ります。