Go after then while they`re weak

We are in Minamisoma, Fukushima, covered in mud. We`re trying to clear the gutter around a person`s house, but it`s filled with tsunami mud and some kind of oil. Worse, some kind of fat-stemmed weeds have been growing in the mud, so we have to pull out the weeds before we start work on shoveling the mud out.

It`s been more than a year since the disaster, but some areas of Minamisoma haven`t been cleaned because they were previously inside the exclusion zone. I check all the frogs to see if they have extra legs, but everyone at least looks healthy.

We`re almost done, and filthy, but still trying to clear out the drainage pipe under the road so water can drain to the gutter on the other side.

While most of us are resting, and a few are scraping away at the openings with shovels and things, a clean-looking van with clean-looking people inside slowly drives by. The painting on the van says they are Christians. (Denomination unknown.)

My volunteer buddies (Japanese) look at the van as it drives away and say to each other "That`s the worst. Go after them while they`re weak."
If you`re wondering what response people in need have to say about the good word, it`s that, if you don`t want to get your shoes dirty and help people first.

The first people I ever invited to volunteer were the LDS missionaries* in Kitakami. I was so proud of myself--I couldn`t wait to be patted on the back for bringing in all those volunteers! Because these were RELIGIOUS guys, so this kind of stuff was right up their alley! I thought. They`d be pouring in every week. Stronger moral compass or something.

But after they said they`d call me back, I never heard from them again.
I know these guys are mostly really young. I know they get orders from their church, probably pretty strict ones, about how to spend their time and what risks are and aren`t acceptable. I know they only get one day off a week. But I was still really surprised and disappointed, because it`s false advertising. What`s the point of being spiritual if you don`t give a damn about other people, or enough of a damn to act?

I just wish some people on religious missions, and self-described Christians in general, would think a little more in depth about what kind of message it sends when a bunch of atheists and agnostics and such are going to help a disaster area and they (the missionaries, or Christians in general) aren`t lifting a finger. I and everyone else I know who is a regular, at least in my area, is not religious, let alone Christian.

You know who actually practices what they preach? Caritas Japan. We`ve worked with Caritas Japan volunteers many times in Kamaishi. They`ve always been very nice and polite and hardworking. Caritas Japan has bases in many disaster-struck cities including Ootsuchi and Kamaishi. They are dedicated to helping long term (read: not just coming in for a week and then going right back home). They don`t force their religion on anyone. In fact, they don`t mention religion at all unless directly asked.
But do you know who knows that Caritas Japan is a Christian organization? Exactly everyone I`ve talked to. Christianity is unusual here, so they know, and they remember. Just like I`m sure they remember those jerks in Minamisoma and I remember the missionaries who wouldn`t do anything.


*I hope nobody is thinking, "Well, it`s just because those Mormons are such-and-such" because while I am not at all fond of the LDS church, there are plenty of churches that waste a lot of time and money that could be used to help people on mission trips that are primarily for evangelism. 

Recruiting November 10, 11, 17 (Fukushima)

HANDS taking volunteers so far on November 10/11 and 17th (Fukushima). No news on further dates in October, but as always, we can easily sign you up for Kamaishi (Fri-Sun) or Rikuzentakada (except Mon or Tuesday) if you can make your own way to the volunteer centers!

In for the long haul

After a year and a half, the adrenaline has worn off. I`m faced with a long, slow, uncertain path that I continue to go down for various reasons. Out of habit. For maintaining friendships. Because I want to help. Because I want to eat ice cream at Toono. Because I still remember what Kamaishi looked like. Because I want to meet the people who live there. 

The more time passes, the more things change. Before we just had to get in the car to shovel the mud and rubble away, whenever we could find the time to go. We had a small nonprofit that had secured funding for rental cars and had staff to lead us at volunteer sites. We had overworked but trustworthy leaders. I assumed those leaders would tell us a month from now, or a year from now, what we needed to do. 

I thought the regulars and the leaders were all united for a common purpose. I thought we would volunteer no matter what the work was, if it helped the coast. I thought I would never miss a weekend.

HANDS was made and and has always been run by people who already have full-time jobs. It was made, I think, because of Kitakami`s location. Kitakami is on the shinkansen line and within driving distance of cities like Rikuzentakata and Kamaishi. The people who started HANDS saw a need for organizations getting a steady flow of volunteers to and from the coastal areas.

The only full-time paid staff member we had stopped working for HANDS last March and moved on to a recovery-related position in Iwate University. One leader from HANDS has basically become part of Kamaishi volunteer center and does not keep in touch with many of the regular volunteers. The other leader continues to help register us with the volunteer centers. Instead of a funded rental car driven by staff members, the volunteers use personal cars and everyone chips in for gas money. 

Kamaishi volunteer center has steady work on the weekends, but it`s sometimes not as physical as we`re used to. When HANDS started, all the work was back-breakingly hard and exhausting, and I think we all learned to enjoy that kind of work as an outlet for physical strength and aggression. We certainly have a running gag about everybody in HANDS being a masochist. 

For almost 6 months, we`ve been running on the steam of a handful of drivers who can still take their weekends off despite working full time and having families. We started off going every weekend per month, but have now transitioned to maybe two to three weekends per month. There`s been talk of limiting trips to when volunteering is the kind of work we want to do (read: physical), and considering the workload these drivers have been put under, I don`t have room to disagree. 

We run off the masochism of middle-aged men and the tolerance of their wives and families. We run off ice cream and sadness and beer parties and friendship. We are no longer a nonprofit, we`re just a volunteer group. 

I miss weekends sometimes. This weekend, I`m going to an amusement park and to an onsen, and I`m going to finish the book I`ve been reading. I have a boyfriend and a full time job and my best friend is going to leave Japan for good come Christmastime. I want to spend time with the people I love, and relax and do my laundry. Then next weekend, I want to volunteer. If you want, you can come too. If there are no drivers, you can easily take the train. 

There are still almost 330,000 people in temporary housing. People ask me if there are still a lot of people in temporary housing, or if everything is OK by now. Many people in inland Japan ignore the situation on the coast, foreigners and Japanese alike. People in the US this Christmas probably won`t mention the tsunami at all. 

I am uninterested in your guilt and know hinging my self worth on your enthusiasm to help is a stupid idea. I only wish you wouldn`t ask me if everything is OK now, like you`re idly asking if I finally got that wart removed. Use your imagination, or use Google. 

Last week, I volunteered for the 77th time. I`m a bad blog writer and I never update, and this next weekend I`m going to a slacker, but please don`t confuse that with giving up. I`m going to muddle around volunteering when I can and keep working toward a way to help full-time. I still go between 2 and 4 times a month, and I still help register people who want to volunteer with us. 

But tomorrow: I ride roller coasters.

調査ー大槌町（日本語）

         数週間前、岩手県の大槌町の仮設住宅の住民を対象にした調査に参加させていただいた。調査は３年続けられ、今年は２年目になる。様々な質問をした。

·      仮設住宅の現状はどうか、どのように変わってきたか

·      回答者は震災の時詳しくどこにいたか、そしてその後どう行動したのか

·      収入源と仕事探しの優先性

·      将来のお住まいの計画（大槌の町内、町外に住むか、高台へ移転する予定があるかなど）

·      大槌町と自分自身の復興の程度

         去年、４０ヶ所の仮設住宅に住んでいる１３００人ほどの住民が調査に参加した。大半は５０代から７０代で、３割は年金生活を送っていた。

         私は富手さんという岩大の大学生と組んで、ほとんどの場合聞いて自分の為のノートを取るという役割だった。富手さんが質問を聞いて、時には自分は拡大してプリントアウトされた選択肢を回答者の前に持ち上げた。聞いて、理解して、ノートを取ることに集中出来たのは富手さんのお陰で、四日間外国人と付き合ってと言われても陽気に振る舞ってくれたことは本当に感謝している。

綺麗で不便な土地

         大槌の仮設住宅は綺麗な所にあるのを見てホッとした。素敵な田舎で山と森と畑に囲まれた仮設住宅で野鳥の鳴き声を聞いたり、小さなカエルがあちこち這うのを見たりした。仮設住宅の住民もいい所に住んでいると言う人もいた。

「時々夜に星を見ています。ここはいい所ですよ。ウグイスもキジも鳴きます。」

「お父さんが外で椅子に座ってホタルを探しますよ。この辺ホタルが出ますから。」

         しかし、綺麗な所だと言っても辺鄙で不便でもよく言える。国道と店から離れていた所で、よく普通の道路から逸れる長くて細い道を通らなければならない。車があっても不便で、運転免許がない場合は更に不便。ある住宅団地は店があったが、あくまで「ある」団地だけで皆あるとは限らない。

「交通は不便ですね。近くに郵便局もなくて、郵便局に行くのは１０分もかかります。店も欲しいですね。」

「町が欲しいです！　病院とか、店とか。」

「歯医者さんは混んでいますよ。３時間も待ちました。」

「店が近くにないので、店が欲しいですね。移動店舗が来るのですが。

冬になると内陸に行くのは大変です。電車は復旧して欲しいです。」  

当たりか外れか

         たくさんの事が仮設団地によって違うと思えた。違う仮設団地でも追いたきが設置されたと言う人が多かったが、店があるかどうか、物置が設置されたかどうか、部屋の数などは仮設団地によって違っていた。一カ所には共用の庭があって、もう一カ所に子供の遊び場があった。ある仮設団地は洪水が問題になっている一方で問題になっていない団地もあった。

「ここは長く住めないですよ。洪水が心配です。ここは低くて、排水が悪いです。」

「大雨になる時は洪水が心配です。最近の大雨で水が家の中まで入っていた住宅もありました。」

「ここは物置も追いたきも設置されました。」

「ここで物置を建てることになっているのですが、それはいつか、どんな物なのか分かりません。」

         仮設団地での共通の点は夏に暑くて、冬に寒くて、狭いことだった。持ち物を納めるスペースがなくて、部屋の数も足りない。

近所の関係は一般に良いが、地元の繋がりが薄くなってしまう

         多くのインタビューで近所の人についていいことを言っていた。近所の人と編み物などのサークルに参加したり、食事を作ったりをしている人もいた。年配の女性は特にお茶っこサロンを高く評価した。

         二人の回答者は震災が人々にいい影響を与えたと言っていた。震災の前はあまり挨拶していなかったが今は皆挨拶しあっている、と。

         とは言っても、私たちと話してくれた皆が震災の後、地元の人との繋がりが薄くなってきたと回答した。その一人の女性が未だに「子供の世話をしてくれた近所のおばあさんの行方を探していて」という。子供さんも女性もおばあさんにとても会いたいと言うが個人的な情報のため安否確認しか出来なくて、住所も居場所も教えてもらえない。

政府の言うことが信じがたい

         政府に言われていることは何回も変わってしまう傾向があったみたい。物事をもっと平等にする対策は時にうまくいったが、時に成果が出ない。去年の回答を読んでいると避難所ですでに不平等な扱い方を経験してしまった人もいた。ある大槌の避難所で物資を管理している人が自分の欲しい物をとって残りを一般人に配布したらしい。

         仮設団地に住んでいる人と話していると、政府などに言われている事が疑い深くて、あまり信用出来ないという態度だった。「これを与えるとは言っているが、本当はどうなるかな？」「こうして欲しいが、それはいつになると実現する？生きているうちに？」

「棚がないと置く場所がないですから棚が欲しいです。でも、棚を建ててはいけないと最初は言っていました。その後、棚を作ってもよくなりましたが私も旦那さんも仕事で疲れて棚を作る元気がありません！」

「まず家を元の場所で再建してもいいと言われました。その後高台にすれば再建してもいいと言われました。結局中止になって、再建出来なくなりました。」

「洗濯物の干場に小さい屋根を設置しましたが、短くてあまり意味ないですよ！」

「駐車所で少しトラブルがありました。始めから住んでいる人は私用の駐車スペースで駐車しましたが、新しく引っ越してきた人が他にスペースがないので個人用のに駐車してしまいました。もう解決していますが。」

「皆が誰かを亡くしています」

         去年の調査で「親戚の方を亡くしたか」という質問があって、４分の１が親戚が亡くなった、または行方不明になったと答えた。10%以上がゲガした。そして、40%弱が精神的な衝撃を受けてしまって元の生活に戻れないと回答した。

         今年の調査は同じ質問がもう一度出なかったが、話の流れで誰かを亡くしていると言う人が多かった。兄弟、おじさんかおばさん、姪か甥、いとこ、両親。ご主人（さん）を亡くしている人にも会った。

「友達が皆流された。息子も亡くしています。」

「この辺は（仮設団地で）皆誰かを亡くしています。」

「前より改善したか、悪化したか？　今は前より悪くなったと思います。去年は危機状態で生きることに精一杯でした。今はもう話す相手がいなくて、よく眠れないです。前は仕事をしていましたが高血圧のため休息しています。」

「夜中に目が開いてしまいます。」

恋しい

         調査に参加して一番圧倒的な印象は「恋しい」という言葉だった。本物の家が恋しい。家族と友達が恋しい。故郷の大槌が恋しい。    

         一生ずっと大槌に住んできた人、結婚してからずっと大槌に住んでいた人も多かった。

         年金生活を送っているお年寄りは家のローンを払える収入もなくて、将来は公営住宅に引っ越すしかないが、いつ住めるようになるか、または可能になった時に自分は生きているか？という問題を抱いていた。

「何がどこにあったかもう分かりません。全て取り壊されています。道のレンガを見てやっと分かります。「あ、ここにあったか」、と。」

「家を新しくリフォームしたのに、流されました！」

「家が欲しいです！ここら辺の家は皆そっくり。間違って他の家を自分のだと思ってしまいますよ！それは、歳のせいかもしれませんが。」

         一般に２人の家族に２部屋、３人の家族に３部屋と言う決まりだったみたいが、そうすると祝日などに子供や孫が泊まる余裕がない。娘さんが泊まりに来る時に部屋がないことによってお父さんが外で車で寝ると言う家族に会った。

「私は一人暮らしですが、偶然この仮設住宅に入って２部屋の所に住んでいます。娘が来る時はもう一つの部屋に泊まれるからいいです。」

「子供が泊まるスペースがないので、電話とメールで連絡を取っています。」

         この人たちのお家と家族と故郷の話を聞くのが自分の人生を思わせた。自分の新しいアパートと新しい物を持つこと、新しい町で友達と繋がりを作ることはなんてわくわくするのか、と。二人で将来の計画を立て始めることも。

家族からすごく遠く離れた所に住むのは寂しいが、帰る時はなんと懐かしく心値よいのか。古びたソファに座ったり、年を取った猫を撫でたり、冷蔵庫から何か出して食べたり。シルバートンで散歩して、コーヒとベーグルの食事をとって，教会と壁画と見て。

もし、もう戻れないとしたらどうなる？

  

「戻りたい人がたくさんいますよ。」

「祭りをやって欲しいです。祭りから元気もらうし、子供が帰りますから。」

「私自身の復興は０−２０％で、大槌の復興も０−２０％だと思います。大槌が大好きです。」

「大槌は本当にどれくらい復興するか分かりません。」

「友達で盛岡とか遠野とかに住むようになって、「遠野に住めば？　一緒に盛岡に来て！」と誘われますが、遠野に住みたくないです。盛岡に住みたくないです。大槌に住みたい。」

Survey: Ootsuchi

    A few weeks ago, I participated in a four-day survey for temporary housing residents in Ootsuchi, Iwate. The survey is in its second year out of three years, and asks a range of questions.

*How the living conditions in temporary housing are now and how have they changed

*Details about where the respondent was during the disaster, and what their movements were afterward

*Their income sources and what their priorities are for finding a job

*Their plans for housing in the future

*Their assessment of their own recovery and the recovery of Ootsuchi

    Last year, a total of about 1300 residents from 40-something temporary housing units took the survey. The majority were in their 50s to 70s, and a third were on retirement.

    I participated in the survey as mostly a listener, paired up with a nice college student named Tomite-san. Tomite-san would ask the questions, and I would hold up an enlarged print-out for multiple choice questions as needed. All I had to do (mostly) was just focus on listening and taking notes, so I really owe a lot to Tomite-san’s patience in letting me tag along.

Beautiful, Inconvenient Location

    I was relieved to see that the temporary housing units were in beautiful areas. Out in the country, surrounded by trees and fields and mountains. Often I could hear birds singing, or see little tree frogs crawling around. Some of residents themselves said they were in a nice area.

Sometimes I go out at night and look at the stars. It’s nice here, you can hear bush warblers and pheasants calling.

Father here goes out at night to look for fireflies. They come out here at night.

    The problem was, many of these beautiful areas were remote. They were far away from the highway, away from shops, and most often at the end of a really long, narrow driveway branching off from a regular road. It was inconvenient if you had a car, and even worse if you had no license. Some units had shops, but that depended on the unit.

Transportation is inconvenient, and there’s no post office nearby. It takes ten minutes to get to the post office. I want more stores nearby.

I want a city. Hospitals, stores.

The dentist around here is so crowded. I had to wait 3 hours to be seen.

There are no shops nearby, I’d like some shops. There are some mobile shops that do come around.

It’s hard to go inland by car in winter. I’d like the train to come back.

  

Luck of the Draw

    It seemed like everything depended on the unit. Many people we talked to in different units had gotten bath temperature controllers, so they could run a bath earlier in the day and it would still be hot for other family members later. But other things, like stores, and number of rooms, and whether there was a storage unit, depended on the area. One temporary housing unit had a garden. Another had some kind of playground.  Some units were having trouble with flooding, while others had no trouble at all.

I can’t live here long. I’m worried about floods. It’s not high enough ground here, and the drainage is bad.

I’m worried about rain and flooding in this area. During the big rains we had recently, I heard from other residents that parts of their house were flooded.

We have storage units installed here and a temperature regulator for our baths.

They say we’re going to get storage sheds, but I don’t know when that’s going to happen.

    The things that everyone seemed to agree on about the housing units is: that they were hot in the summer, cold in the winter, and cramped. There wasn’t enough space to put things, and there weren’t enough rooms.

 

Good Neighbors, Weakened Community Ties

    Most people had nothing but nice things to say about their neighbors. Some people would get together with neighbors for sewing circles and for potlucks. The little old ladies we talked to, especially, had very positive things to say about the coffee/tea salons set up by volunteers so people can have a place to chat.

    Two people even said that the disaster had had a positive effect on people: that before, people hadn’t greeted each, but now everyone greets each other. Everyone is equal now.

    On the other hand, everyone we talked to agreed that the bonds with people in their community had been weakened after the disaster. One woman explained that there was an older lady in her neighborhood that had taken care of her children, and both she and her children wanted to contact her, but couldn’t because of privacy rules. They could know if the woman was alive, but not her location or address.

Grain of Salt

    Sometimes residents were told conflicting things about what they could or couldn’t do. Measures to make things more convenient or fair sometimes worked out, but sometimes didn’t. Reading the fill in the blank responses from last year’s survey, some respondents had already stayed in shelters where supplies weren’t distributed fairly. The people in charge of supplies would take what they wanted for themselves, and give the rest to everyone else. 

    I could hear in  the residents’ voices that they were taking everything they heard with a grain of salt. “They say they’re going to give us this, but who knows?” “This is what I want, but will that ever happen? While I’m still alive?” 

We wanted drawers, because if you don’t have drawers there’s not enough space to put things, but they said we couldn’t have drawers. Then, they said we could have drawers, but by that time my husband and I were both working and we were too tired to put them in!

They said, you can build your home in its original spot. Then they said, you can build there if you make the land higher. Then they canceled and said we couldn’t build there at all again.

They built a small roof so we could dry our laundry in the back, but it’s too short! So it’s kind of meaningless.

There was a problem with parking. Residents had their own parking spot, but then new residents came in and used reserved spots because there was no other place to park. It’s been sorted out now.

“Everyone Has Lost Someone”

    The survey from last year had already asked respondents if they had lost a family member, and more than a quarter had responded that yes, someone was dead or missing. More than 10% said they had been injured, and almost 40% said they’d experienced psychological damage and couldn't live their lives like they used to.

    This year’s survey didn’t repeat the question, but many people said to us they had lost someone. Siblings, aunts and uncles, a little niece or nephew, cousins, parents. One woman we talked to said she had lost her husband. 

My friends are gone. They were all washed away, and I lost a son.

Everyone around here (temporary housing unit) has lost someone.

Is it better now or then? It’s worse now. Last year I was in emergency mode. Now, I have no one to talk to, and I can’t sleep…I had work but I’m resting now due to high blood pressure.

Sometimes my eyes snap open in the middle of the night.

Longing

    The most overwhelming impression I got overall from the survey was longing. Longing for a real house, for friends and family, and for Ootsuchi.

    Many people we talked to had lived in Ootsuchi their whole lives, or since they got married.

The older people, who live on retirement, didn’t have the income to take on loans for a house, so they had to move into public housing, but again, when was that going to happen? Were they still going to be alive when it happened? 

I don’t know where anything is in Ootsuchi anymore. It’s all been torn down. You can tell by seeing tiles or something, “Oh, OK, that’s where it was.”

I’d just newly decorated my place and it was washed away.

I’d like a house! All the places here look the same. You mistake someone else’s place for your place! Though that may have to do with my age, too.

    It seemed like, as a general rule, a two person household would get two rooms, and a three person household would get three rooms, but that didn’t leave enough room for children and grandchildren to stay during the holidays, or just when they wanted to come and visit. One family we talked to said that when their daughter came to visit, the father slept in the car outside because there was no room for her to stay.

I live alone, but I just happened to be assigned to this housing unit and get two rooms. That’s nice, so my daughter can stay here.

There’s no place for our children to stay, so we just use phone and email to keep in touch.

 

    Listening to these people talk about their houses and their families and their city, I thought about my own life. How exciting it is to have my own apartment and my own things, to have friends and a community. To start to build a life with someone.

    How lonely it is living so far away from my family, but how comforting it is to go back for the holidays. Sit on our old couch, and pet the old cat and grab something from the refrigerator. Take a stroll through Silverton, get a cup of coffee and maybe a bagel, look at the churches and the murals.

What if I couldn’t have that anymore?

  

Many people want to come back.

I want us to have matsuris again. We can get strength from matsuris, and the kids come back.

I’d say my recovery is 0-20%, and Ootsuchi’s recovery is 0-20%. I love Ootsuchi.

I don’t know how much Ootsuchi will even recover.

Some of my friends have moved to Morioka, or to Toono. They tell me, “Come to Toono! Why don’t you like in Morioka!” 

I don’t want to live in Toono. I don’t want to live in Morioka. I want to stay in Ootsuchi.

Recruiting 8/3-8/4, 8/18-8/19, 8/25-8/26

HANDS dispatching volunteers on the following dates (so far):

Friday, 8/3 meeting at 9:30 am at Kitakami station, back later than 6 or 7. (Help with matsuri event in Kamaishi.)

Saturday, 8/4

Saturday 8/18 and Sunday 8/19

Saturday 8/25 and Sunday 8/26.

All days beside Friday 8/3, meet at Kitakami station at 7 am and get back around 6 or something. Split gas money.

If you want to go on dates other than those listed, keep in mind we can sign you up with Kamaishi or Rikuzentakata volunteer centers! All you need is a friend with a car (in Rikuzentaka`s case) or know how to take the train (Kamaishi). 

Rikuzentakata Volunteer Center is off for Obon vacation 8/13 to 8/15. It has regular days off on Monday, Tuesday.

Kamaishi Volunteer Center--I can`t find where it says its days off are. It usually only takes volunteers Friday, Sat, Sun.

Anyway, if you want to volunteer another day, there are many options! Shoot me an email or see Foreign Volunteers Japan Facebook group for other opportunities.

The head of Kamaishi Volunteer Center has retired, and is now coming as a regular volunteer (!). You can find him looking refreshed and upbeat on the weekends with the other regulars of team 023. Untucked shirt with an official VC jacket.

Recruiting volunteers July 1, 15-16, 21-22 (so far)

HANDS recruiting for volunteeeeeers (with excessive e)! 
July 1 (Sunday), July 15-16 (Sunday Monday), July 21-22 (Sat-Sun). 
Probably more dates to follow soon, or please contact if you are interested in dates not listed and maybe we can find a driver.
Kitakami station at 7 am split gas money blah blah contact me to register in English! 
Or contact HANDS at 35iwate@gmail.com if you wanna register in Japanese!


Update: Bad volunteer blog writer, part II--forgets to post updates
Update: July 15th has been changed to a trip to Minamisoma, Fukushima. Gathering time at Kitakami station is 5:30 am and expected to return at around 7 to 8 pm. Please sign up by July 10th if you are interested.

Recent volunteer jobs:

Recent volunteer jobs:

• Assisting with joint wedding ceremony for 6 couples in Kamaishi who had planned to get married in March 2011, but were forced to cancel because of the disaster. Set up, take down, handing out balloons, and general answering questions for guests.
• Cutting grass and removing tsunami mud and rubble (yes, we are still cleaning) from the tops of culverts. This was last weekend so still a bit sore.
• Digging ditches (drainage ditches and a ditch for installing a water pipe). This was the special Minamisoma, Fukushima trip. HANDS was split into two groups, and my group of four did the ditch digging. The others went to another worksite. The man who made the work request wanted to make his backyard into a camping area for volunteer workers. There were big tents from Shelter Box already set up (I guess Shelter Box donates its tents?) and he was in the process of setting up a toilet. 
• Making land suitable for being a garden or a field. Dig out the rocks and the rubble (yes, we are still cleaning). We've had a couple jobs like this in the past month or so.
• Picking up fine rubble, especially glass, to make a driveway more suitable for cars. The people making the request were concerned about tire punctures.

Taking volunteering June 16/17, 23/24

Volunteering in Kamaishi (or possibly Rikuzentakata) June 16 and 17, 23 and 24 (aka the weekends)! The usual crew (HANDS), the usual meeting spot (Kitakami station at 7 am), the usual split the gas money!
Contact me to sign up at thomasanna85@gmail.com

Volunteer Resources (for Professor Heuser's class)

Most of these resources are in Japanese. Edit: HOWEVER, you can click through to English versions on some of these sites, so do not lose hope, English speakers!!
They are almost all resources for tsunami relief.


Tasukeai Japan
You must look at Tasukeai Japan!
Go look at it right now!
You can look at each city or prefecture, see if the volunteer centers are still running, the plans to rebuild the city, and much more.

Also, information about volunteering, including the best volunteering search websites: Yahoo! Japan 復興支援
Skillstock (try searching for opportunities in Tokyo or opportunities in Saitama)

JCN
See JCN's website for even more general information.

Foreign Volunteers Japan
Foreign Volunteers Japan is a Facebook group for foreign volunteers that can answer your questions (in English). Check out the wall for recent news.

Tohoku-Involved NPOS Taking Volunteers in Tokyo
-->
ARK (animal shelter based in Kansai) needs help in Tokyo taking foster animals, including animals “ made homeless from the TOHOKU-PACIFIC earthquake and tsunami”

SALA (Save Animals Love Animals) also involved in animal rescue from Tohoku


Peace Boat (volunteering at Tokyo office)

Second Harvest Japan
sometimes asks for volunteers to make food packages for Tohoku.

Volunteering: List of Volunteer Centers
県外からのボランティアを受け入れているボランティアセンター

NPOS Taking Volunteers in Tohoku (only the ones I know)
It's Not Just Mud in Ishinomaki, Miyagi
Magokoro Net in Iwate
Save Iwate in Iwate
Peace Boat in Ishinomaki, Miyagi
Farm Arcadia in Fukushima (animal shelter)
Kawai Camp in Iwate
Habitat for Humanity Japan in Ishinomaki, Miyagi and Ofunato, Iwate
HANDS in Iwate (We go on weekends, and can help you register with volunteer center on weekdays. Go to link or contact me at thomasanna85@gmail.com for more details)

Other ResourcesTasukeai Japan's list of antenna shops and places to shop online
Remember: the businesses that especially need your help are not inland, they're on the coast. Please buy from the coast.

Bad Volunteer Blog Writer!!

Oooooh, there have been very very few updates! Bad volunteer blog writer!

First off, technically recruiting should end today, but we'll probably still be in need of last-minute help this weekend.

Charity Bazaar!

Where: Tenshouchi Park Rest House, Kitakami.

When: May 26th (Sat) and May 27th (Sun) 9 am to 4 pm

Why: JCI (Junior Chamber International) Japan has a store of unused donation items, mostly everyday items like toilet paper and etcetera. HANDS is selling some of these items at Tenshouchi Park to raise money for the volunteer centers in Kamaishi, Rikuzentakata, and Kitakami, as well as other organizations that benefit the coast.

The Work: mostly carrying donated items, setting up, selling to customers, guiding traffic. *Don't worry about your language abliity. HANDS will not ask you to do something you can't handle.*

Please let me know asap if interested.

Also, there will probably be usual weekend (Saturday/Sunday) volunteering next month. Let me know when you want to come.

Also also, HANDS is taking a special volunteer trip down to Minamisoma (Fukushima) on the 9th. Departing from Kitakami station at 5:30 am, returning at about 7 or 8 pm. If you're interested and want more details, please contact me. Deadline for signing up is May 31. For this event, serious inquiries only please. Please be reasonably sure you'll be able to participate on the 9th and prepare yourself with clothing, a lunch, etc before signing up.

Introduced!

Oh!
Looks like I've been introduced by HANDS's "sister" Japanese blog, so I figure I should return the favor! And here you have the Japanese HANDS website, which features more consistent content and better pictures:

http://www.npohands.com/

HANDS dispatching April 20-22, 27-29, May 3-4

HANDS dispatching volunteers from Kitakami April 20-22, 27-29, May 3-4! Meet at 7, split gas money, contact me to sign up!

New donations list!

Want to donate something to help the cause, even from overseas?

The Kamaishi Volunteer Center has set up an Amazon donations page! Currently they are taking donations for albums to store cleaned photographs. Don't worry about the yen prices: you can buy albums from Amazon Japan from overseas using a foreign credit card. To switch the Amazon page to English, please click this link first:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/In-English/b/ref=topnav_switchLang?ie=UTF8&node=1094656
Then click here to see the wishlist:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/registry/wishlist/3NXIMVV4DSJU0

HANDS dispatching 4/7 and 4/8, 4/14 and 4/15

HANDS dispatching 4/7 and 4/8, 4/14 and 4/15. Contact me to register etc! If I happen to forget to announce a weekend, it's a safe bet that we're probably still going!

Dispatch March 31, April 1

Ooops forgot to mention HANDS unofficial dispatch 3/31 and 4/1. Will split gas money between participants contact me to register!

Habitat for Humanity Japan (日本語 version）

Sorry about the sudden change to Japanese, I needed a place to tell volunteer friends about my experience with Habitat for Humanity Japan. Will write English entry about my experience very soon, with much better grammar and probably in more detail than in Japanese.



アメリカではHabitat for Humanityが有名。困っている人のために家を建てるNPO。ボランティアが建築を手伝うため安く建てることが出来る。アメリカで参加したことないが、「誰でもボランティア出来る、家を建てるNPO」という印象を持っている。
ということで、Habitat for Humanity Japanが存在することに気付いたら、しかも、宮城県でボランティアを受付していると知ったら，家を建てる仕事ではないか？　岩手県にも来てくれないか？　とわくわくして，参加することにした。

Habitat for Humanity JapanのHPを見ると海外建築ボランティアは簡単に見つけるがなかなか国内のボランティア募集は見当たらなかった。やっと、活動紹介ー＞国内ー＞ページの下にあった記事のリストに募集報告を見つけた。今は３月の受付が終了になったためリンクがもうなくなったみたい。４月の始まりにまた現れるかもしれない。

ボランティアが参加出来る復興支援活動は、家の解体、泥だし、そしてコミュニティーセンターの建築も書いてあった気がする。リーダのはなさんに聞くと、７０％が解体だが今のところ何パーセントで何をやっているかは難しい質問。大工のJoeさんによると、宮城県のボランティア派遣は先月に始まったばかりで、プログラムが始まる時にいつも出る問題はどう解決するか、これから何をするかはまだ検討中らしい。例えば、今のところSamaritan's PurseというNPOと組んで活動しているが、私の参加した日が日曜日だったため皆協会に行ったらしい。プログラムが成長するにつれてHabitatの活動がSamaritan's Purseから独立していくかもしれない。

申し込みはちょっと厄介だった。申込書を記入してメールで送ってから同意書を印刷してサインして、身分証明書のコーピと共にHabitat for Humanity Japan HQ (東京）に郵送する。また参加する時同じ手続きをしないとだめか分からない。

ボランティアは多賀城のボランティアベースに宿泊出来る。１日の参加費は１０００円で、宿泊、１日に３食（！！）も提供してくれる。朝ご飯は台所でトースト、シリアル、などなどが揃えて、ランチはコンビニによって好きな弁当がリーダに買ってもらう。晩ご飯は夜皆で作る。
３食まではちょっとビックリでした。そんなにお金があったら岩手県にも来て下さい、大工さんに少し給料をあげて下さい、みたいなww

大工さんというと、もちろん日本人のおじさんに決まっていると思ったが、「大工のJoeさん」が話に出たら何とアメリカ人だと分かった。しかも現場のリーダだった。初めての外国人リーダ！　日本人のリーダがどうやって説明を英語でしたらいいじゃなくて、今回はアメリカ人のリーダが日本人のボランティアにどうやって説明すればいいかと逆の問題になっていた！

Joeさんはアメリカ人の大工さんでHabitat for Humanityのベテラン指導員。なんだか自分のおじさんみたいない人だなと会った時に思った。おじさんの雰囲気？オーラが強すぎて、実家から１０分のMount Angelが出身ではないか？と本気で思ったほど私が育ってきた環境に近い人だった。実はIowa州からだが、親戚が昔オレゴン州に住んでいたみたい。

Joeさんが宮城県で指導する緊急募集メールを見たら、資格と経験の条件はぴったりと自分のに合ってて、奥さんに「行ってきます」と言って，日本に出発。
日本は初めてかどうか聞いていないが、Joeさんは日本語があまり喋れない。英語が分からないボランティアにやってほしい作業をジェスチャーで見せるか、英語がぺらぺらなリーダのはなさんに通訳してもらう。
合計５ヶ月ぐらい宮城県にいる。その後、プログラムが続くかどうかは、また指導できる大工さんが参加するかの問題です。指導員は完全なボランティア給料が出ないため難しいかもしれないとJoeが言った。

作業は女川というところだった。多賀城から１時間半ぐらいだったので、北上から派遣する時とちょうど同じ長さ。が、いつもと違って、その１時間半見ている景色が今の石巻の様子。そして、
松島！！　松島がめっちゃ奇麗！！　そこに泊まりたい！　絶対に戻る！
松島は有名でも先週末まで聞いたことなかった。ぼーっと外を見ていたら松が一杯の小さい島が広ーい湖の上に浮いてるのを見て「！！　何この景色？　どこ？」ととてもビックリ。

女川に着いたら、リーダのJoeとはなさん、インターンの一人、ボランティア６人と作業を始めた。壁、天井、床はがし、泥だし。その日はプラスタボードの壁と天井を落として、壁のネギを全部とって、床はがしをし始めるところだった。
最初は喜んで、壁を壊してたが、Joeさんがやってきて、バールを私に渡して、使い方を少し教えてくれた後、初めて床をはがした。やっと少しバールの使い方分かっていることにあまりにも盛り上がって、今これを書いていると水曜日か木曜日まで筋肉痛だと思う。
今までボランティアでは「男性がああします、女性がこうします」という時があって、同意しなくても日本の文化でしょうがないと思った。でも好きでもない習慣の一つです。普段ボランティアしていると初心者の日本人男性ボランティアに自分がスコープの使い方が分かるとか疑われたりするけど、Joeさんが初めて会った女性の私にやってきてバールを渡してくれた。「君もバールだぜ」みたいに。正直とても嬉しかった。私と一緒だった大学生のエビちゃん（女性、実名不明）も機会と指導を与えられたからすっかりと床はがしのやりかたを覚えた。

いつものように依頼されたご家族がお茶をお菓子を下さって，よく聞く話だが解体している家が結局使えない可能性もあると言っていた。政府がまだ出していない町の企画次第。

女川の仮設ビルに「まげねえ鵜住居」みたいに「まげねど、女川」が塗ってあった。

Habitat for Humanity Japanは大船渡で修繕活動を行ってるみたいけど、はなさんによってボランティアの受付をしていないと言う。
http://www.habitatjp.org/jpblog/2012/02/ofunato-1.html
でも、どうかな。家を直す。家を建てる。そういう仕事があったら、手伝っていたいね。
これから，岩手にでも、宮城にでも何の活動をするかを楽しみにしている。

Field Trip: Toono Magokoro Net

What am I doing reviewing Magokoro Net?

Let's get this straight: I love HANDS and I think we are awesome. I'd love for you to participate with us. If you come on the weekends, you can totally participate with us! If it's not on the weekends, you still might be able to participate if we can find you a driver! But depending on the length of time you're here, or the dates, we might not be able to take you.

Therefore, I am reviewing other volunteering opportunities, with way too much detail, to give you the (probably) foreign volunteer enough information to participate comfortably with other NPOs! So, with that explained...Toono Magokoro Net in Iwate!

Stuff you need

You should be checking out the website to make sure you have everything you need, but off the top of my head: you definitely need volunteer insurance, a signed consent form, clothes to get dirty, boots with protective insoles, a warm (warm!) sleeping bag, various usual toiletry items and stuff if you're staying over, plus food. There are shops in the area but no convenience stores nearby opening early, I think, so for the first day you need to buy breakfast and lunch the night before.

Basically, just go to an outdoor store. You can get most of that stuff there. Please don't go unprepared. It is a pain.

The week before.

At first I was planning on staying overnight at Magokoro, but then I noticed that registration for people arriving the day was at 4:30 pm. Since I had work until about 7, I couldn’t make it in time. Therefore, the only other option was staying someplace else and showing up for morning registration at 6:30.

Fortunately, I`d already stayed at a nice little minshuku called Minshuku Rindou a few months before. I don`t know if the owner speaks English, I`d assume not, but he`s a very chill person and the rooms are nice and comfortable. It`s only 3500 yen a night without meals, plus you can take a dip in the onsen bath downstairs anytime you like before about 8 in the morning. Definitely, definitely a very relaxing pre or post volunteer stay.

5:30: Waiting for registration

Up at about 5:30, I took one last dip in the nice Rindou bath and made my way to the center.

See map to the center here

Magokoro Net is at the end of a road that really doesn`t look like something worthwhile is at the end, but don`t worry. If you see this sign (picture) you`re headed in the right direction. Follow the arrow.

Once you get to the nice gate thing, turn left. Don`t enter that central building there that looks like it`s important, just go arrrrounnnd the building until you find a smaller brown structure.

At left, you can see the smoker`s exile area. The actual entrance is in in the middle.

I went inside and waited until 6:30. I was kind of feeling awkward lugging around my bag everywhere, but later I found out I could just put my bag in the women`s dorm room. You can do that too. Just don`t leave your valuables in the bag, just in case.

By the way, before 6:30, I had spotted about two other foreigners, and an older man had come up to me asking if I understood Japanese in English. Not a bad sign for those of you wanting to come with less Japanese.

6:30: Registration

At 6:30, the new volunteers went inside and one of the leaders, who looked pretty busy, attended to us. He checked our volunteer cards, took our waiver forms, and checked a form of ID. Then he passed out an information packet, but unfortunately the packet was in Japanese.

Later, I found out there`s an English equivalent, but it doesn`t look like they pass it out much. I`d recommend either asking for an English one when you get there, or printing out information from the English Magokoro website and bringing it with you. The most important thing was the schedule, which is as follows as of March 22nd:

6:00　Wake up alarm (for those staying in center)

6:30 Registration (for those coming in the morning. Those coming the day before register at 4:30 pm.)

7:20　Gather outside, do warm up exercises, informational speeches from leaders about 8:00 Leave for worksites in buses.

about 10:00　Begin volunteer work.

12:00〜13:00 Lunch (bring your own lunch).

about 15:00 Finish volunteer work.

about 16:00 Return to Toono.

17:30　Meeting for reflecting on day’s activities.

18:00　Free time

22:00　Lights out

Anyway, he then passed out our volunteer name badges, we wrote down the date and our name, and then we had time to explore the place until about 7:20.

I noticed toasters, a microwave, bathrooms, sinks for people to wash their faces, washing machines, and a free wireless password posted below the Japanese flag and above a board full of work requests.

The work requests themselves are interesting. In general, a volunteer can choose between “hard” (physical) work like picking up rubble and “soft” work like doing coffee salons or talking to people. Volunteers can also choose what location to go to. When I went, we could choose between Kamaishi and Ootsuchi.

On top of that, it looks like Magokoro Net itself is taking work requests, and putting out its own work requests. When I went, the following jobs were out: giving foot baths and holding a coffee circle in Rikuzentakata, helping another nonprofit build a kind of shed?, something to do with a Sumo contest, building showers at Magokoro Net (right now only public baths in the area available), and etcetera.

These weren`t all for the same day. Some were one day only, some were ongoing, and some were already filled up with names and nobody else could sign up. Still, the number of choices were intriguing. If you want variety, variety is definitely available here.

7:20: Warm-up and speeches, Crested Kingfisher

Radio Taisou, a traditional Japanese radio program for warming up the body and stretching a little. We warmed up to a recording of the program.

Then the leaders came up and gave some informational speeches. What jobs were going to be done that day, plus a reminder to please bring boots and safety insoles. During the boot speech, I saw a Crested Kingfisher. This is going to have significance to approximately 0% of you, but I do not care. It gets included. I also heard a Blue Rockthrush.

Crested Kingfisher!!! I love you!

Anyway, so then we got into lines. The guy with the microphone first asked all the volunteers who had registered as groups to come aside and line up. Then, he asked the rest of us to split up into two groups, but I didn`t hear what the two groups meant.

This was the most confusing part of the day. We split into two groups, and then each group split into a couple of lines. I found myself in the left side, lined up, but didn`t know what my line meant. When I finally caved and asked somebody, she told me I was in one of the “soft” work lines, as opposed to the “hard” physical labor ones.

NOOOOO I am not ソフト, I am ハード!

I quickly got into the right line.

They then split the hard groups into two more groups, one group going to Kamaishi and another going to Ootsuchi. I chose Ootsuchi, because I`d never been there before. The Ootsuchi leader pointed us to the correct buses, told each of us to pick up one of the nice Magokoro Net vests that we`d wear all day, and onto the buses we went.

I`d say it took about an hour or so to get to Ootsuchi. On the way, we stopped at Kamaishi for a rest stop. The bus driver said that they’d leave as soon as everybody was back, but on a later stop he gave a specific time. I would ask for a time or stick with a group to make sure you’re not late back to the bus.

10:00: Arrive in Ootsuchi and start work

So: arrived in Ootsuchi. I was surprised to see that most of the buildings had been reduced to foundations in the area we were working. One of the leaders explained that, unlike the cities I was used to working in, Ootsuchi had burned. The area had still needed a lot of cleanup, but the houses had started as mostly just burnt frames of buildings.

Leader split us up into to smaller teams and gave each team a pretty arbitrary leader. The guy who was my group’s leader, for example, had no experience. This was his first day. Another guy in our group who was really tan and kind of anti-social seeming was Mr. Veteran San, who had worked on the same site the day before. You might wonder, “why did the site leader make the inexperienced guy the leader?” but I think it’s just because he didn’t have enough time. The guy was in charge of a LOT of people.

So the usual: we gathered tools, walked over to the work site, and began cleaning rubble from the foundation of a building. It was usual volunteer work, and the usual tips apply.

Don’t be afraid of using whatever tools you want, you don’t need anybody’s permission. Just don’t leave them there on the ground in a weird spot so somebody can trip on them, or where you could lose them. If you don’t know what to do, ask somebody who looks like they know what they’re doing or look at what other people around you are doing.

If they say there’s a break, you take a break.

12-1: Lunch

We had lunch outside or in the buses, whichever people preferred. Only, don’t tromp inside those buses with your boots on. The site leader told us to change into our regular shoes so the bus wouldn’t get dirty.

I’d brought some really cheesy store-bought peanut butter sandwiches, but there had been an opportunity to order okonomiyaki in the morning, so I had a half okonomiyaki and the sandwiches to boot. There’ll probably be an opportunity to get extra food in the area and help the economy, but I wouldn’t bank on it.

1-3: More volunteering

More of the same. We switched to another foundation with more rubble in it and began cleaning.

The site leader did come to us during one of the breaks and tell us about what had happened to the area. He said that a lot of people had died in this particular neighborhood, but since it was such a small area he hadn’t known until he talked to a nearby store owner. He recommended talking to the store owner if we had a chance. The jobs we were doing, he added later, could only be done by hand. Heavy machinery had come in to take care of the big chunks of buildings, but completely cleaning the area required human volunteers.

He gave longer speeches than I was used to hearing during volunteering, but it was all important information that the volunteers would bring back to their communities. Most folks were from Tokyo, which seems really disconnected from Tohoku’s situation nowadays. This was Magokoro Net’s opportunity to educate about what had gone on in the area.

So the usual wrap-up: everyone is like “It’s time to finish!” and of course you don’t want to stop. Bring tools to storage area, clean tools, put tools back, and get on bus to return to Toono.

3:00: Start back to Toono

Rest/shopping break at a complex of temporary shops in Ootsuchi. I was really happy with just this bit. A big organization like this has the power to move busloads of people to places where they can spend money to help local communities. 15 minutes or so can make a big difference.

I only bought a cup of coffee, but I saw people buying bags of cookies as souvenirs, doing their grocery shopping, or having a nice post-volunteer yakitori chowdown.

5:30: Post-volunteer meeting and reflection

After we drove back and arrived at about four, there was a rest period where you could mess with your luggage or check your email. Then, everyone cleaned the building a little bit, and gathered in the men’s sleeping area to have a post-volunteer meeting.

I think if you have time, it’s polite to help clean the building and attend the post-volunteer meeting, but if you need to catch a train, it’s OK to leave after you arrive at Magokoro Net. They had interested things to say at the meeting, but most of it was relevant for people who were going to continue volunteering the next day.

Overall impression:

Of course, I love HANDS and I prefer working with them, but I still had a really positive experience participating with Magokoro Net. You might not get to know staff members very well, as they all seemed really busy, but riding the bus and going to worksites offers a lot of opportunity to get to know different people. I’d imagine you’d become even better friends with folks if you stayed the night and participated for a longer time.

The variety of activities offered were also a big plus. This was the first time I could choose whether I wanted to volunteer physically or not and what places I wanted to go to.

The work that Magokoro Net does, at least the physical work I was doing, was for Ootsuchi Volunteer Center. The volunteer centers are run by the local welfare councils, which work by taking work requests from people in the region and then matching groups of volunteers with those requests.

So you can at least be sure that the work you are doing has been requested by someone from the area and is therefore important.

Possible downsides:

Yeah, it’s larger, it can get a little crowded, but I thought it was kind of fun that way. There are plenty of hotels around if you find you absolutely can’t stand it.

The room people sleep can get cold at night, especially because they turn the stove off later at night, so bring a good sleeping bag and dress warm. This will probably become less of an issue in the spring…

There are speeches, but as I said before, it’s mostly Magokoro Net educating people about the region and situation. I learned a lot myself.

I heard one report that a volunteer wasn’t satisfied with the kind of work they did with Magokoro Net, but I think that is less a problem with the organization itself than the participant’s expectations about volunteering and lack of flexibility. If the work you do really isn’t a good fit, at least Magokoro Net has opportunities for things that can be more fulfilling.