If I Were A Thousand Years Old, I Would Not Be Putting Out Like This

Posted byJonelle PatrickPosted inBeyond Tokyo, Just...Beautiful, Seasonal GoodnessTags:, , , , , ,
This tree is so famous, it has a name: Miharu The Waterfall Cherry

I mean, look at it. This tree is a THOUSAND years old. It has cranked out cascades of blossoms like this every spring, a thousand times. And if yesterday was any indication, the grand old lady is showing no signs of shirking anytime soon.

Even when it freakin’ snows in the middle of cherry blossom season, Miharu keeps on keepin’ on (photo thanks: Japan-guide.com)

Just imagine a fast forward of this tree’s life, with generations of cherry blossom viewers ebbing and flowing all around it, as it grows slowly more venerable.

The Crusaders were not big on viewing cherry blossoms, but history would have treated them a lot more kindly if they’d marched over to enjoy the pinkness of Our Lady Miharu instead of chasing that pesky grail
If Ghengis Khan’s plan to add Japan to his empire hadn’t been thwarted by a freak storm, he and his horde could have hoisted a cold one under Miharu’s blooms
Dame Miharu had already starred in over 400 cherry blossom seasons when Gutenberg got around to inventing the printing press

Well, you get the idea. Not only has this tree has been partying it up since my peasant-y forebears were being pillaged by the Vikings, it will undoubtedly keep on dishing out the goodness long after I’m gone.

In a world where so much is changing so fast, that’s kind of great, isn’t it?

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Would you like to be whisked away to Japan, wherever you are?

It’s the year 1784 and the shōgun rules with an iron fist . . . except within the walled pleasure quarter of Yoshiwara. Inside the Great Gate, samurai law does not apply, and it’s women who pull the strings

“The Samurai’s Octopus…is a truly remarkable book, one that surprised and charmed me at every turn of the page. You’re in for a treat.”
—James Ziskin, Anthony, Barry, and Macavity Award-winning author of the Ellie Stone mysteries

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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had

Published by Jonelle Patrick

Author of The Last Tea Bowl Thief

7 thoughts on “If I Were A Thousand Years Old, I Would Not Be Putting Out Like This”

  3. Really amazing and stunning. Thanks. Hope you are having a great time.

    D❣️🌷🍵

    Sent from my iPhone

    >

    Reply

  4. Nice one, Jonelle. Just think of how different the world would be if people spent as much time looking at flowers as they do shooting at each other.

    Reply

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