Remarks by Consul General Yoichiro Yamada at Ribbon-cutting Ceremony of Ikebana International 60th Anniversary (June 1, 2019)

Congratulations, Ikebana International Chapter 19 for marking the 60th anniversary of your establishment. 
 

Ikebana International was founded by the late Ellen Gordon Allen in Tokyo in 1956. She was the wife of Major General Frank Allen who served as chief of information of the Far East Command in Tokyo from July 1951 to February 1952. I learned that her dream was to create an organization uniting the peoples of the world through the mutual love of nature and enjoyment of ikebana. 
 

Japan and the U.S. had fought a terrible war just 11 years prior to Ikebana International’s founding and the memories of the war were still fresh and the wounds were raw. There were attempts to heal the scars and find common ground to build a better future together. Kobe and Seattle became sister cities in 1957 as part of such efforts for rebuilding mutual understanding and friendship. I think it was deeply significant that the idea of “friendship through flowers” came from an American lady, who was the wife of an army general who served in Japan in the aftermath of that war. “Friendship through flowers” became the motto of Ikebana International worldwide. 
 

In my previous post, in Belgium, I witnessed this spirit of friendship, solidarity and unity through flowers displayed at the highest level. It was in March 2016. Japan and Belgium were celebrating 150 years of friendship. One of the most important events was the Ghent Flower and Garden Festival in late April, which is held only once every 5 years and has more than 200 years of history, a history longer than the country of Belgium itself. The Belgians take much pride in that festival. That year’s event was dedicated to the theme “East Meets West,” and Japan was invited to represent the flower traditions of the East. For that occasion, several important events were planned, including a big demonstration by the grandmaster of Sogetsu school, Ms. Akane Teshigawara.
 

On March 22 of that year, in Brussels, a suicide attack by terrorists took place at the international airport and a metro station. More than 30 people lost their lives. The whole world was shocked. Just one month before the festival, several events had to be cancelled because participants were too afraid to visit Brussels. 
 

I thought that it was almost inevitable and certainly understandable if the grandmaster of Sogetsu were to cancel her trip to Brussels. But she said she would come to Brussels precisely because she wanted to be in solidarity with the Belgians, who were facing such adversity. I cannot tell you how touched we all were to hear her determination. She came to Brussels. During the festival, she created a magnificent flower demonstration together with about 20 volunteers in front of a large audience.
 

1959 proved to be a significant year. The Seattle Chapter was established on March 16, 1959. I found on Google that it was two days before President Dwight Eisenhower signed a bill to grant statehood to Hawaii. In Seattle, Japanese garden experts had been appointed as designers for a Seattle Japanese garden and completed their plan in 1959. In Japan, the then Crown Prince Akihito married Ms. Michiko Shoda in early April. Four months after the completion of the Seattle Japanese Garden in 1960, the newly wed crown prince and princess visited the garden and planted a cherry tree there. 
 

Looking at that year of 1959, I am impressed with how people tried to bridge the chasm between Japan and Seattle with all available acts of goodwill, including through flowers. Thanks to them, we are able to enjoy today the fruits of trust and friendship. 
 

Ladies and Gentlemen, we cannot take today’s excellent ties for granted; we need to keep nurturing them for the next generation through small acts of goodwill. Like planting a tree together. Like arranging flowers together. In this beautiful Pacific Northwest, in this beautiful season, with the rich cultural ties between Japan and Seattle, it is a delight to be able to view the flower arrangement of a master florist, Koka Fukushima, on this special occasion. Let us enjoy the beauty of the figurative art of flowers and plants that we all love. Thank you for your attention.