Children's Day

When I was a little girl, our family celebrated Mother's Day and Father's Day, but I always whined, "Why don't we have a Children's Day?" My mother's reply was always the same, "Because every day is Children's Day," and she was right! BUT did you know that in Japan there is a national holiday on May 5th called Children's Day, Kodomo no hi, in Japanese? A long time ago they celebrated Girls' Day in March and Boys' Day in May, but now both celebrations have been combined and are held on the fifth day of the fifth month. The Japanese celebrate their children and honor their mothers on this day by hanging beautiful, colorful kites shaped like carp (koi, fish) from the tops of tall bamboo flagpoles. The father's carp kite is always the biggest and flying the highest. Then comes the mother's carp kite, a little smaller, and finally all of the children's kites in order of the children's ages and sizes. The carp kites blow and fly in the wind, looking a lot like fish swimming in the air. The carp is a symbol of courage and perseverence because fish must have strength and determination to swim upstream. Families hope their children will grow up strong, courageous, and determined, too.

P.S. Do you see snow-covered Mt. Fuji in the picture? People actually HIKE up the volcano in the spring, summer, and fall!