In keeping with yesterday’s photo and blog entry from the platform in Yotsuya, today’s photo is again of something I’ve walked past countless times without ever taking a moment to notice. This massive piece of stonework is in the middle of a grassy quad in the center of the place in Chiba where I teach a couple of days a week.

I came upon it today after having just come out of an heavy and demoralizing meeting with my supervisor. The content of the meeting doesn’t merit explanation other then to set the context that I was in a heavy funk. As I looked up from replaying the bizarre conversation from moments before in my head, I was confronted by this heavily etched boulder.

The sun shining over my shoulder struck the stone squarely and caused it to glimmer at me. My immediate response was to smile back at the majestic rock. I wondered how many other frustrated individuals had walked past it unaware.

I had a peculiar feeling that the stone would allow me to unload my burden upon it. Somehow through the process of looking at it a stillness came over my agitated state.

Without thinking. I pulled out the iPhone and snapped this shot. As I look at it now, I feel totally free of the worries I had been grappling with before looking up.

Thinking about all of this tortured writing I’ve devoted to such a fleeting of moment, I kind of wish I were able to compose a haiku worthy of the several awesome ones such as this, and this that have recently been posted by some of the students here in Tokyo.

Maybe I’ve got a new project for the weekend.