As I proceeded on a mountain path, I saw pale purple wisterias blooming like a mist against a backdrop of verdant, leafy trees.

Walking around town, my eyes caught the vivid blue of pansies and the bright yellow of dandelions.

The stark contrast they formed against the dull hues of the homes destroyed in the Noto Peninsula earthquake on New Year’s Day caused the colors of those flowers to leave an especially deep impression on me.

Flower Hanayoshi, a flower shop in the city of Wajima in Ishikawa Prefecture, was half destroyed in the quake. It finally reopened for business in March.

But the owner, Noriko Takebayashi, 60, lamented: “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I now understand what it’s like to be at a loss.”

On some days, she said, she gets no more than three customers.

And that’s no surprise. All around are ruined homes and rubble. Some homes are still without water. Many residents are not able to return yet.

“I sometimes feel as if Wajima has been forgotten,” Takebayashi said.

The prefectural government recently announced its draft plans for post-disaster reconstruction over the next nine years.

The plans reportedly call for an expansion of the “related population” of nonresidents committed to regional recovery, and for the establishment of self-sustaining, disaster-proof infrastructure. Tha plans are aiming for “creative reconstruction.”

But everyone already understands one thing perfectly: No matter how beautifully a community is rebuilt with concrete, there can be no real reconstruction if nobody wants to live there.

How can this community deal with population drain and the grave reality of a rapidly aging society? With macropolitics remaining unable to function, the survivors of the Noto Peninsula quake are faced with the scaled-down version of the problems that plague the nation today.

Will everyone come back to the community?

Takebayashi is not optimistic, but she told me all the same: “I want to remain a florist in Wajima.”

The sweet fragrance of varied fresh flowers filled the silent shop.

—The Asahi Shimbun, May 22

* * *

Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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VOX POPULI: A resilient Wajima florist tries to bloom amid the rubble

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22.05.2024

As I proceeded on a mountain path, I saw pale purple wisterias blooming like a mist against a backdrop of verdant, leafy trees.

Walking around town, my eyes caught the vivid blue of pansies and the bright yellow of dandelions.

The stark contrast they formed against the dull hues of the homes destroyed in the Noto Peninsula earthquake on New Year’s Day caused the colors of those flowers to leave an especially deep impression on me.

Flower Hanayoshi, a flower shop in the city of Wajima in Ishikawa Prefecture, was half destroyed in the quake. It finally reopened for business in March.

But the........

© The Asahi Shimbun


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