11/23/2025
Today we celebrated Robiraki by having Kylie’s certificate presentation ceremony. It is finally cool enough to enjoy the sunken hearth.
The students prepared the food last night with Keiko leading the kitchen. Miyuki and Jessica helped out. John and I prepared the tea room. This morning all the students helped with thr final food prep. Helpers and guests also included Seiko, Azuma, Paul, Derrick, and John.
We had a konbu kosen (seaweed flavored water) Then I presented Kylie with her Nyon, Konarai,and chabako certificates.
The scroll read Ichigo Ichie and was written by Zuiryu sanun from Takusenji temple. The scroll also says Rinsai sect Daitokuji It means we should make the most of this moment becaue we will never have this moment in time again. The flowers were purple daisies. The flower vase was an e-shino tsurihanaire made by Richard Milgrim. He used his wife Mari Sensei’a obijime to hang it on.
Miyuki prepared the charcoql(sumi). The incense container (kogo) was an usu made by the 15th generation Miraku Kamei.
Jessica brought the homemade sweets to first guest in a Richard Milgrim Oribe bowl. The sweets were named Miyage no yama ( Mountain treasures). A kasane chawan tea ceremony was presented since their were 9 guests. The tea that was served was Ikuyo no Mukashi from Ippodo. The sweets were made by the students and named Miyage no yama (treasures from th mountains)
The first tea bowl was a red raku bowl made by Seinyu (13th generation Kichizaemon). The 2nd bowl was Aizu honga yaki made by the Munagata kiln in Fukushima. The tana was Koundana, the mizusashi was made by Kogon and was Rakuzan yaki from Shimane prefecture. The lid was made by Shikkosai and the box was signed by Hounsai. The tea container was kokuhaku-yu mimitsuki chaire made by Richard Milgrim. The glaze was black with white spits that looked like snow. The chashaku is as made by Kyobi Sotsuroku and was named Furosato (country villlage). The shifuku was ichimatsu kumo donsu. The kensui was Akahda yaki made by Rakusai Onishi. The furaoki was Greenglazed and a gift from Kumiko Nakata. I do not know the kiln.
Lunch was served after thick tea. The meal was a clear broth dashi with cod, shimeji mushrooms, kabu (turnup). We also made chestnut rice, baked salmon with a ponzu sauce , gingered pork with sh*take muahrooms, daikon(radish) and kaki (persimmon) with namasu sauce, nori wrapped spinach with goma(roasted sesame seeds), oolong tea, and yuzu sake.
After lunch thin tea was made by Aki. The sweets were jellies with beautiful seasonal designs in a dust basket made to pick up leaves. The first bowl was a Tantansai konomi 4 season ninsei bowl made by Toho Tezuka. The natsume was large lack lacquered tea container with a chrysanthemum design made the the 13th generation Sotetsu. Other chawans used were a chabaiyu (tea ash) glazed bowl by Richard Milgrim. The other bowls were Bizen, Tamba(made by Tohoku), green Ohiyaki(made by Buzan). The chashaku was a wajima nuri with ginko leaves. It was named Shigure(sudden brief showers in this season). The kensui and futaoki were made by the 16th generation Takatori potter Hisako Miraku.
