February 2009
1:
The origin of Setsubun
2:
February Birthdays
The origin of Setsubun
February 3rd is
Setsubun day in Japan. Thus, in school we
"throw soy beans at Oni" too, when this day comes near. Children throw beans at Oni (goblins) as they run around. Children take turns in becoming Oni themselves by wearing Oni masks that they make. It is a lot of fun.
Setsubun is the time that the new season begins. As the season changes from winter to spring, we chase away Oni inside ourselves, such as
'Sick Oni',
'Messy Oni',
'Teasing Oni',
'Weeping Oni', etc. We throw soy beans at these Oni because Oni do not like them. As we pretend to chase away those Oni, we hope to chase away Oni in children's minds as well. It has also been said that we will be healthy for the rest of the year if we eat the exact number of soy beans as our ages. So the children at KNI also take part in the ritual of counting out and eating the soy beans. At KNI, we put
roasted soy beans in origami boxes,
make wishes and eat them. Please enjoy Setsubun at home, too. How about fathers becoming Oni for the kids?
February Birthdays
What do you want most?
Sakura
Ray Kono (6yr) - Goobie
Aiko Whalen (5yr) - Lots of sparkling jewelry
Yuzuno Fukuba (6yr) - Cinnamon doll
Kiku
Gene Naono (5yr) - Go-on ranger toys
Renge
Joshua Winn (4yr) - BuzzLightyear water gun
Kouichi Otamura (3yr) - Purple car
Momo
Allen Matsuzaki (4yr) - Old Locomotive
Kyoka Ryerson (4yr) - Stuffed Baby Doraemon
Hinata Hon (3yr) - Rocket
Marina Higa (3yr) - Lots of princesses
Ume
Samuel Brown (5yr) - A set of pens
Sumire
Julia Burgess (3yr) - Doll house
John Burgess (3yr) - Big wooden fire truck
Emi Machida (3yr) - Princess clothes
Thank you: Ms. Fujita