Japan

Dear fiber friends,
 I received this email from the Majacraft team. It is from a personal contact of theirs in Japan. Please pray and think of any ways you can help!


***** Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Donation *****


Please Help Our Fellow Spinners In Japan



Dear Readers,

I was recently contacted by my friend Yuka Aoshima, of Kakara Woolworks with a request to help alert the international spinning community to the dire situation in Japan in the aftermath of the earthquake. She is a trusted friend, the organizer of my workshops there last year, the proprietor of a respected spinning shop and is slated to be the organizer of the 'Tokyo Spinning Party' in three years (Tokyo's largest fiber festival).



Our media seems to be incredibly focused on the nuclear plant and it's potential trouble but the actual human situation is dire. Yuka has organized a fund that will go directly towards relief in the Tohoku area, probably the most famous area for hand-spinning in the country. She was hoping to reach the international craft community knowing that in normal times, we are all interested in each other and united in our common endeavors. And so it makes sense to reach out in this extreme time of need and try and connect with each other, through our common threads so to speak, and make an effort to give what we can, do what we can, spread the word, send some money, or at the very least think hard about what we would want people to do for us, were we in that situation. (Which is never far from my thoughts being a Californian sleeping on four fault lines!). Yuka needed help communicating with you all, but I am not there, I have not witnessed the situation first hand so I asked her to explain a little and I would translate. However, she puts it pretty well and I will excerpt from her email here:



'As you know We are in tragic time in Japan.

I would like you to help us for Japanese spinners and Japanese peoples.

There are many spinners and weavers around Tohoku area in Japan.

I want to start Spinner Fund for Japan through Paypal.



Could you tell any Spinners friends about my fund if possible?



I have much responsibility this fund, I was working some NGO for refugees before,

I am sure I will find best way to give fund for refugee.

Japanese Red Cross Society is very good to give fund, but their fund money will takes long time to move for refugees and Victims.



The bad news upset us, But many peoples can not escape,

Because of huge damage from earthquake , no petrol, no electricity, too much refugees..

We can not eat food and water from around Fukushima area because of radioactivity...



I can not imagine what happened now and in the future ...



i want to tell peoples ( oversea spinners ) about Tohoku area what going at the moment, there are many spinners, dyers, weavers as well as Iwate Prefecture is most famous place for handspun in Japan. also many sheep farms there.

untill today,

12,787 people died , a missing person were 14,991 people in 12 capital way prefectures, and 4,661 injured people.

The person forced to life as refugees amounts to approximately 154,000 in approximately 2,330 places of 18 capital way prefectures.

my place Saitama prefectures has many refugees from Fukushima.

around Kanto area ( tokyo-saitama-chiba-kanagawa) we just need to save on electricity all the time.

we still have many aftershock everyday.

even saitama tokyo area peoples feel so scary too.

most danger is fukushima nuclear accident.

we really really hope it will be better very very soon.

we really need help from oversea.

we want to recover our country.'

-Yuka





I have noticed that the Japanese write emails like it's poetry. Every line is separated. But like good poetry, only the few most important words are used. I hope you can all hear the honest intention in Yuka's words. I am writing this to both assure you that her fund raising effort is legitimate, and to rile up the protective lion within you. To remind you all that though we may not have met in person, we are connected through our shared calling. I received another email recently from a well respected spinner in Kyoto who said that even in this time of difficulty, in fact especially in this time of difficulty, one of the only moments of balance and hope that people have found is in busying themselves in spinning. In using their hands and letting the peace that comes in that kinetic experience ground them in uncertain times. This, we can all relate to.

I ask you all to consider what you can spare and do so.

You can make a donation by clicking here.