It's March now. This year, the plum blossoms are blooming earlier than usual in Kamiyama Town, and the plum blossom festival has begun, creating a vibrant spring atmosphere.
Monosasu Juku is also reaching its climax as we approach spring.
After completing classes on responsive coding, which is the graduation assignment, students have begun group work in which multiple people create around 15 pages, just like in the real world.
They are tackling challenges, actively asking questions and sharing knowledge with instructors and fellow students, and rapidly improving their skills to become immediately effective employees.
During the lesson, you can move around freely and talk with others.
The heated coding talk continued even as we enjoyed barbecue with the instructor and the team leader who had rushed over from headquarters.
At the yakiniku restaurant "Umeri" near Kamiyama Onsen
Considering how great these people are in terms of their work ethic and teamwork, I'm really looking forward to spring.
I'm sure each of you will continue to be busy preparing and working on your life after April, but I hope you can all cherish each and every day.
Involvement in the local community
As I spent time feeling the significance of Monosasu Juku, there were also some experiences that made me feel warmly welcomed by the people of the town.
The other day, I went to a nearby closed elementary school to see a group of scarecrows being made. Here in Kamiyama, along with the beautiful scenery, you can encounter scarecrows all over the town. At first, I was surprised every time I saw them, but now they have become a part of my daily life.
I asked the scarecrow, who had such an air about him that he could be mistaken for a human.
These scarecrows were made by local mothers to revitalize the town. It all started when they planted flowers and crops to brighten up the town, and put up scarecrows to protect the crops from birds and animals. At first they were just ordinary scarecrows, but when they tried making one that looked like a doll, it became popular, and various kinds of scarecrows were made after that, and now you can see scarecrows all over town.
Recently, they have even received requests from outside the prefecture.
A scarecrow is made every Monday night.
The town's mothers were making scarecrows in a lively atmosphere in the classroom. This was my first time participating in scarecrow making, and all the mothers were kind enough to teach me. Although I sometimes couldn't understand their dialect, the three hours passed in the blink of an eye as I listened to their amusing stories.
A scarecrow is skillfully and joyfully made
Later, I went to the location where the scarecrow I had been making that day was to be set up.
Kindergarten walk scenery
There are fewer and fewer children in this area, and there are no kindergartens, so the members of the scarecrow-making group asked people with grandchildren about their lives and made the scarecrows. Each one has a story to tell, and you can tell they were made with love.
The scarecrows created in this way to revitalize local areas are a source of delight and soothing to the eyes and souls of both residents and visitors to areas facing depopulation.
A mother who has lived in Kamiyama since she was a child said that while it can be difficult for new people to settle in an area, she is happy and excited to see satellite offices opening, tourists coming to the area, and the flow of people.
As I was walking down the street today, a couple who were born and raised in Kamiyama and live in the neighborhood called out to me, saying, "Come visit us." We warmed ourselves by their wood stove and listened to many stories.
We heard about the company, resources, the old terraced fields, and Kamiyama with its colorful flowers in spring and beautiful fireflies in summer. I have heard rumors from many people, but I could picture in my mind the fun Kamiyama has all year round. His 3-year-old grandson also said he is looking forward to coming to Kamiyama to play.
Enjoy the seasonal views from your own Goemon bath
I learned that there are many ingredients hidden in the view from the window.
Apparently, the leftovers from the persimmon trees, pear trees, loquat trees, tana trees, and bamboo shoots are eaten by the wild boars.
At first glance, it looks like an ordinary woodland, but there are apparently plenty of food hiding there.
Relationship between the local community and the satellite office Relationship between the local community and me
I had always wondered in the back of my mind what people from outside the prefecture and elsewhere thought of the townspeople. But after interacting with people who have spent time in Kamiyama, I was able to get a much closer understanding of the regional revitalization projects I had understood, Monosas, which has a satellite office in Kamiyama, and the meaning of my coming to Kamiyama.
Of course, there are only a few people that I am able to interact with in the limited time I have, but everyone I meet is interested in why I came here, what Monosus is a company that does, and generously teaches me about the kind of land Kamiyama is and its history.
The term "satellite office" has also become widely used, and when people say to me that they don't know what the company does, but are happy to have people flowing around and meeting each other, and that they'd like to talk again, I can't help but be grateful for the achievements of those who built the foundations for satellite offices and Kamiyama Juku, and for the flexibility of the people in the town.
I intend to cherish the remaining month I have with the people I met in Kamiyama, experiencing the balance between company and community, work and life, and resident and immigrant.
モノサスアーカイブ