(The following is translation of the e-mail which was sent to Japanese customers.)
This is Kanako Yoshida from YOUYOUANG.
How are you doing?
I have just realized that we are already in the second month of the second half of the year. While I'm busy making and shipping gifts for Obon (Obon is a traditional Japanese event to welcome the spirits of ancestors.) every day, the Gift Show is coming up.
As you become an adult, don't you feel like the days are getting shorter and shorter?
When I was a child, I used to carefreely wonder how many more days there were until the New Year, just like the song "How many more sleeps until New Year's Day?" and wonder if that day would come soon. I thought that I had infinite time, and didn't understand why adults were so busy. I wish I could have that time frame again! I wish these days.
Well, in July I went to see a Noh performance, a cultural activity that I attend several times a year. As many of you may know, the opening and ending of a Noh performance are truly unique. The performers of chorus, Japanese flute, hand drum, large hand drum, and taiko drum sit quietly at the back of the stage, and when everyone is ready, the performance begins with a sudden high-pitched Japanese flute sound. Then, in an instant, we travel through time and space to the Muromachi period (14~16 century).
[Mask description] From the left, a young and seductive beauty, the middle one is a divine and elegant beauty, and the right one is a middle-aged woman. When you compare them, you can see that they are certainly different.
The content of the story depends on the performance, but it is often a mysterious world where the afterlife and this world intersect. The same was true of performance this time, "Tomoe," in which the spirit of Tomoe Gozen regrets and says “Though I wanted to die in the last battle with my lord, Kiso Yoshinaka, to follow him forever, I was not allowed to stay with him until the moment of his death because I am a woman.” and appeals to a traveling monk. Tomoe Gozen was strong minded and invincible warrior on the battlefield, but when I thought that this was also a reflection of her honest heart and her single-minded love for Yoshinaka, tears came to my eyes.
Back to reality (laughs). The September Gift Show will be held on the 4th, 5th, and 6th. If you need an invitation, please let me know; we still have about 20 copies in stock.
We will be exhibiting new products, so please come and take a look. I look forward to seeing you there.
The heat will continue for a while yet, so please take care of yourself, everyone.