Participating in Tea Ceremony = Kneeling in an Uncomfortable Position

What an honor! Yesterday, I was invited into the home of my co-worker's Japanese host family. At their home, they practice the traditional art of tea ceremony about once or twice a month. I got the opportunity to see the ceremony up close twice and participate as well. I was intrigued with the patience of all involved, and the absolute detailing that was required. The number of steps each person were counted, the bowls were turned by each person a certain number of times, a certain had to be used first....the details were absolutely endless. While I will admit it was hard to follow, I truly appreciated the care and effort made to connect to the past tradition. The beautiful women pictured above mentioned to me that the kimonos they were belonged to their mothers and grandmothers...how cool!

I would certainly encourage visitors to take part in this ritual, if given the opportunity. As a word of caution, the pose above is completely uncomfortable!! Even though the ceremony took an hour or less, it felt three times as long trying to remain in this position. Thankfully, the hosts permitted us to sit in a modified that wasn't quite as painful...interestingly enough, they were able to endure much better than us....and remained sitting this way the entire time...true discipline. More information about the ceremony can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_tea_ceremony