Omotesenke Ibaraki Youth 表千家茨城県青年部

It’s been a long time since my last entry. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been practicing. This year I’ve been able to attend most of the Okeiko lessons.

Last month on the 26^th of November there was a gathering of the Ibaraki prefecture Omotesenke youth section (表千家茨城県青年部). Of all the prefectures here in Japan, (there are 48) Ibaraki prefecture was one of the few which didn’t have youth section of the Omotesenke school of tea. On 11/26 we had the start-off gathering of the Omotesenke youth section. The total number of registered members is over 120 and around one hundred were able to attend the meeting (表千家茨城県青年部発会式).

Among the honorary guests was the Omotesenke Wakasoushou (表千家若宗匠), who is the eldest son of the current Soushou also referred to as the head master of the Omotesenke school of tea. He gave a nice speech on how glad he was that the youth section of Omotesenke in Ibaraki prefecture was finally established and that it weighs on us to continue the tradition of the Japanese tea ceremony which is passed on from generation to generation.

I felt really honored to be able to attend the meeting and think that it is important to carry on this important cultural pastime. Another plus of this youth section is that we can share our experiences with people who are roughly of our age, instead of always being surrounded by the elder teachers. It was a very bubbly, lively lunch where I felt much energy and momentum to continue the tradition of the Omotesenke school of tea.