Oiwai
We are invited to attend an oiwai (a celebration) for the birth of Rinta, Tadashi’s and Shoko’s new baby boy. This particular “oiwai” is to welcome a new baby and takes place when the baby is 100 days old. Shigeru and Mika pick us up and drive us to their parent’s home where preparations of a feast are underway. Tadashi’s mother, sister and both daughters in law are in the small kitchen, busily arranging platters of food. Three large plates of various tempuras, pork, and fried tofu are laid on the long low table in the back room. We sit on the tatami floor around a table that accommodates about 14 people. Bottles of sanpin ice tea, orange soda and beer are self serve in the center of the table. The 4 women serve individual plates of sashimi to each guest. Our end of the table is seated first and we are encouraged to begin eating while more tiny plates and bowls are laid before us. In addition to our sashimi octopus and cucumber plate, we each receive a small dish of kombu, kelp, a special bowl of celebratory rice, and a covered lacquered bowl of pork miso stew. We serve ourselves from the large tempura and pork platters. Other guests begin to arrive and are seated at the other end of the table. Every guest, bows at the doorway, greets and holds baby Rinta and sits down to eat. I soon grasp that there is a rotation at the table and after we have finished eating we move away to allow others to sit and feast. I want to help, but know that I will just be a clog in the rhythm that these 4 women have set of preparing, serving and washing up. Shoko is extremely gracious and calm as mother and hostess for her son’s birth party. Tadashi is all smiles and when one of the guests isn’t holding Rinta, he cradles his baby. I see decorated envelopes pass to Shoko and Tadashi as each guest enters and I realize that these are gifts of money for the baby. This all seems much more sensible than our American style “baby shower.” We gave a small gift of clothing to Rinta several weeks back but have come to this “oiwai” without an envelope of money. This baby is a blessing, and I want to honor and gift the new family, and Art and I manage to manifest an “envelope” by the close of the evening.
Relatives, friends and neighbors stop in to greet the baby. Most stay to eat and when each group leaves, the family or individual is presented an elegant shopping bag with a “cake” inside, a gift from Tadashi, Shoko and Rinta. John spends most of his time in the front room with a 7 and 2 year old “nephew.” He seems to be having a good time with the younger boys and they play with blocks and battle plastic beetles together. When one of the three battling beetles looses a leg, there is a serious beetle dispute but overall the kids have a good and easy time together.
As the evening wears on and the table is cleared of food, Tadashi’s father and uncle take out sanshins and play and sing. They play a song that is traditionally the first song sung at every Oiwai celebration. It is an ancient melody that doesn’t seem very celebratory by today’s standards. We learn that the lyrics are about a young mute Prince that eventually talks so that he can become king. I assume that this song was first written hundreds of years ago when the Ryukyus existed as a kingdom. Several bottles of awamori are given to the family tonight and the bottle we bring, aged 7 years from Kumejima is the one opened and served. The music and the conversation become livelier as the bottle empties.
