Dec. 30 - This week I would like to introduce a very special guest blogger, my wife Ann Kambara. I have written about her in the past, and several readers have told me they would like to hear from her directly. Today she will tell us about her New Year's celebrations, growing up in Denver, Colorado.
Jim
An American O-Shogatsu
Ann's sister-in-law Toshi, her mother, and Ann admiring the New Year's holiday table
The holiday season was always lots of fun for me because my family celebrated Christmas for the children (even though we were Buddhists) with lots of presents, but the big holiday was New Year's. My Mom owned her own store, so she was always working long hours. However, New Year's was a time when she would make lots of special foods for several days, and then she would get a chance to enjoy the holiday with us and rest.
Several days before New Year's my Dad would go to Pacific Market, a Japanese food specialty store. There he would buy lots of my Japanese favorites such as omochi, koyadofu (which I called "sponge"), konnyaku ("jelly"), kombu maki ("bow-ties") and the ingredients for nori maki and inari ("footballs") sushi. On New Year's eve while other people would be out partying, my Mom would be busily cooking away to prepare for the real holiday the next morning.
Ann's elder bother Eugene grilling ribs for the holiday table
Ann's Mom's "futomaki" sushi is especially popular.
When we awoke on New Year's day, we would have a bowl of my Mom's ozoni. Since she was from Hiroshima prefecture (as were many of the Japanese-Americans in Denver), the mochi were round. When I first came to Japan, I remember being very confused by the square mochi that I found in Tokyo. After breakfast, my Dad's job was to take us to the Denver Buddhist Church for the New Year's service, while my Mom got a well deserved rest. When we returned from church with a special New Year's goodie bag filled with toys and candies, we would all sit down and enjoy our New Year's delicacies. This tradition of New Year's continued even later when my family would gather at my brother Gene's house in Los Angeles. These photos are of my Mom and my family in Los Angeles.
I hope your New Year is very happy and filled with wonderful memories of family and friends.
- Ann
Dear Ann,
I remember how special it was to share the food at "your" New Year's table when we all lived together in Beijing. I enjoyed your childhood story and isn't it true that these memories are more special as we get older. Our Best Wishes to you and Jim for a Healthy and Happy New Year.
