Niagara Gazette Special Feature - My Japanese Life

The Niagara Gazette featured Josh recently in their newspaper as well as promoted the upcoming Japan Day ~Disaster Relief~ concert and event.

April 5, 2011
My Japanese Life

By Michele Deluca
The Niagara Gazette Tue Apr 05, 2011, 03:25 PM EDT

NIAGARA FALLS — Japan has always been a land of great contrasts.

Cherry blossoms bloom in crowded cities. Serenity floats amidst chaotic streets. Americans who live there often report an undeniable connection to the people of the recently devastated Asian island where citizens are stoically responding to the recent triple tragedy of earthquake, tsunami and nuclear breakdown.

Two with connections to the Niagara region, including Emily Connor who lived in Lewiston and Josh Smith, now living in Grand Island, have recently returned from Japan and shared stories about their lives in what is often called “the land of the rising sun.”

Josh's Story

It’s rather odd to see a young man with an anglo name like Josh Smith pick up an ancient Japanese flute and play it like a master.

Smith, a Grand Island resident, spent the last ten years in Japan teaching English and eventually getting a masters and a doctorate degree in Japanese culture.

While he moved back to the states in October with his Japanese wife and their small daughter --before the earthquake struck -- he and his family are deeply saddened by the disasters that have struck their friends and family.

Smith first visited as a Buffalo State exchange student after being drawn to the country with an interest stirred by a high school art teacher’s Japanese painting, created in a Zen-like style.

He found the artist’s style fascinating, because, he said, “the part you didn’t paint was just as important as the part you painted.”

He stayed for a year with an elderly couple in Kobay on the outskirts of the Seaport town.

Oddly enough, he didn’t meet his Japanese wife until he returned home to finish his senior year at Buffalo State. He was working in the bookstore when he met Satomi, a Japanese exchange student, when she was shopping at the bookstore where he worked. After he graduated, he returned to Japan to teach English while she finished her studies in Seattle. They were married in twice, with a ceremony in each country, in 2003.

While Satomi went to work for a trade company in Japan, Josh worked as an English teacher and went to Japanese schools for his masters and doctorate in traditional Japanese culture. While in school he became fluent in the Shakuhachi, a Japanese bamboo flute, and started performing and teaching that instrument.

The couple lived in Nara, a old, conservative rural area where Josh worried he might not fit in. To his surprise, he and Satomi found the community to be quite welcoming.

“I was accepted because I was so interested in traditional music,” he said, smiling. By the time they had their daughter, Miana, now 2, they had already begun to grow roots in the close-knit community.

So, returning to the states was hard. They did so because Josh hoped to do better for his family.

He believed his years of studying the Japanese language and the country’s history, would serve him better in the United States than in Japan.

Their plans call for building a Japanese themed garden and cultural center on Grand Island, with the help of Josh’s brother, who is currently finishing his horticultural degree. Josh has begun teaching research classes at Buffalo State college and plans to also teach the Shakuhatchi .

As they were settling in to their new lives, they were horrified at the news of the crisis in Japan. This, despite the fact that there had been lots of talk, Josh said, about a possible major earthquake.

Their hometown, Nara, in Northern Japan, is landlocked. Because it is rural, there was less devastation.

There’s a lot of orderliness in Japan,” he explained. Sometimes it can seem redundant and boring ... but at times like this, where there really is chaos there’s a feeling that, ‘well this is the situation, we just have to deal with it.’”

Satomi, whose parents and sister survived the quake without too much hardship, have expressed their country’s gratitude at the aid being sent from the United States.

“Everyone we talked to in Japan said they were so overwhelmed at how quickly America moved to help them,” she said.

The couple also admits they can’t help feeling relieved that they are safe in America, particularly because Satomi is pregnant and radiation levels near their home have been determined to be risky for small children and unborn children.

While the pair believe the triple tragedies will test the endurance of the Japanese people they believe the ancient culture will eventually restore itself.

For Smith, the Japanese cultural endurance can be understood by examining the country’s attachment to nature.

He talked of how the Japanese annually celebrate the blossoming of the cherry trees. The celebrations last about a week, the same amount of time that the blooms decorate the trees.

The fleeting blooms are a symbol of the Japanese understanding of the impermanence of all things, Josh explained.

“You look forward to it. You enjoy it, and then it’s gone. It’s all part of the cycle,” he said. “It will come around again, next year.”

If you would like to view the full article on the Niagara Gazette website (I'm not sure how long it will stay up for though) please click on the photo they took.