Old Farmer's House Gets New Life

 

This house was reconstructed in this park 15 years ago only for the purpose of reservation. My city renewed the house to let visitors rest inside last year. The straw-thatched roof was covered with metal plates at the same time. The left tree is an apricot.

Beside the house, the small cafe opened serving beverages and meals such as spaghetti, hamburger and curry with rice. Many people go into the renewed house taking foods and drinks.

This is a Japanese allspice tree having a wonderful fragrance. 蠟梅花

Its flower is called "wax apricot". The petals are not wettish but dry. They open bravely in the coldest time of the year. I think if the petals are wettish, they will be frozen up easily.

The house still keeps a fireplace. Farmer's family gathered around here to warm themselves. The hook usually has a wooden fish. Fish is associated with water. It is said a fish is set on the hook to avoid a fire. 

The roof was thatched every 30 years or so. Old but not damaged straws were reused and made layers in different colors. This is a beauty made by people's life.

In younger days, I love cherry blossoms more than apricot called "Ume". This Japanese pronunciation is based on a Chinese word "Mei". 

Now I am more attracted to Ume than ever. 

Poets in this country in the 7th century loved apricot because Chinese poets those days did. Cultural influences from China had decreased since the end of the 9th century. Japanese poets found beauty gradually with their own eyes and began making poems of cherry blossoms far more than apricot. I was surprised to know that our present views of beauty may have been influenced by those in older times.