Consequences Unforeseen

Tokyo, June 4th 1991 - Yoshikawa's office

Tokyo, Tuesday Afternoon, June 4th 1991 – Yoshikawa’s office

 The ritual of the tea ceremony was ignored for the most part in an office environment, but none the less, the preparation and setting up was still slow, meticulous and tedious – to Bill Douglas - and particularly right now.

He admired Yoshikawa’s novel slant on the event by his having one of the men prepare and serve the tea. It illustrated his slightly unorthodox tendency and confirmed that he did consider that women, particularly bright well educated women had a rough time making it in the corporate workplace.

Douglas had no way of knowing for sure, but he thought the fifty-fifty split of men and women out in the main hall were indicative of Yoshikawa’s attempt to right this particular Japanese trait. It was not unusual to have women with Ph.D.’s serving coffee as secretaries to way less qualified men.

The tea was served in traditional silence. This was a time for inward reflection and shared, when not for the tourists, with trusted family, close friends or colleagues. In some ways it reminded Douglas of the American Quaker traditions of silent, meditative worship and deliberate consideration.

Yoshikawa had his eyes closed in thought, but Bill Douglas was absorbing the details of the room. It was not ostentatious, for the Japanese were never boasting or showy, but it did have hints and artifacts from this man’s warrior past. The photographs of him in full dress naval uniform, his proud stance alongside the Japanese Prime Minister and once more alongside his daughter at her graduation from Princeton University in New Jersey.

Yoshikawa sensed that Douglas was finished with reflection and was observing the younger man through hooded eyelids. He too had some deeper questions and he was struggling with his inner Japanese being to avoid direct questions and come at this next part of their relationship from an oblique angle.

His prevalent Cultural self lost this one and he blurted out in English, “So Bill Douglas, what the fuck are you really doing in my country?

Douglas was snapped back to full attention. Yoshikawa had never spoken to him in English before and certainly not with such direct and descriptive language.

He did give a slight chuckle though when he thought the cheeky answer to be, “Well, to be honest Yoshikawa san, other than dealing with the Chinese assholes, that’s pretty much all I have been doing since I got here, with my wonderful lady Kris. It has been altogether perfect so far.” It was all he could do to prevent laughing out loud when he thought of the effect this would have on his benefactor.

Again ever observant, Yoshikawa continued, “Ah Douglas san, I see that my directness has amused you. No doubt you are convinced that our non aggressive and benign outward displays are the reality of our military presence.” He continued, “But I would have thought that our small display of expertise out there would have removed any humor from this discussion. I need to know what you are doing here if I am to help you further. But for your timely intervention on my daughter’s behalf, you’d never have met me and the opportunity I have to help you would have been absent from whatever mission you have in mind.

Douglas responded with a serious face now, “Yoshikawa san, no, far from it, I have no lack of respect for Japan’s capabilities military or technological, and I certainly did not mean any offense with my silent chuckle just a moment ago. I sometimes can’t help myself smile when I consider what I have just witnessed in terms of a mind boggling demonstration and compare it directly to the simplicity of serving and drinking tea. Forgive me, but I am a mere Gaijin on your shores.”

Now it was Yoshikawa’s turn to give a slight controlled chuckle and smile and he said, “You are right Douglas san, I expect too much from a foreigner, but you are such an accomplished martial artist, that I occasionally forget myself. That and your mastery of our Japanese ‘man talk’ are confusing to my old mind.”