JPG: Stories: Photo Essay: No Loaves and One Fish

No Loaves and One Fish

By Keith Graff

8 Dec 2008

After the "Sermon on the Mount," Christ and his disciples are said to have performed a miracle by feeding a multitude with just five loaves of bread and two small fishes. Now I'm not saying that the people of Kin Town on Okinawa are miracle workers but they did find a way to feed a multitude of people at a festival with just one fish.

Making the task of feeding a multitude all the more difficult is the fact that bread is not the staple in Japan that it is in the west. Rice would be the grain of choice for the peoples of the Far East. Unfortunately, to my knowledge, rice doesn't really make for good bread dough. They do however; make some really fine cookies called senbei from rice that's been pulverized into a paste and baked. They're tasty enough but not exactly what you would call bread.

When it comes to fish in Japan however, size does matter. Tuna, called Maguro in Japanese is the fish of choice and the folks of Kin town decided they would probably need a whopper to satisfy the crowd they had on hand that day. The day was particularly sunny and mild and when Okinawan's are given an excuse to hold a party, well they tend to show up in droves. On this particular day, a whole multitude showed up to enjoy the sunny weather and participate in the annual health fair.

Throughout the day, people gathered and fellowshipped with friends, neighbors and strangers alike. The entertainment was provided from mostly local talent that put on a variety of dance and musical performances for free. Of course the little ones got on stage and put on a show that put a smile on everyone's faces. There were dancing troupes, Taiko drummers, musicians as well as arts and craft booths set up for the holiday season.

Surprisingly enough, the main attraction for the day was the health fair where people could get their blood tests done, counseling on alcohol, practice CPR and mostly to learn about healthy lifestyle choices and diet. There was also a petting zoo for the children, a few sporting events to include a round of "ground golf" which looks like a marriage of croquette and traditional golf, as well as a 5K walking race. All of the healthy stuff was provided free of charge.

Around lunch time the stage cleared and a small Japanese style pick up truck known to locals as a K-tora pulled up in front of the stage. On the bed was a large ice filled cooler. As soon as the announcement was made, people started gathering around to see what all the commotion was about. The two men in charge reached inside the giant ice chest on the truck bed and pulled out a healthy sized tuna that weighed around 140 Kilos or about 280 pounds.

It took three of them to wrestle it out of its icy confines and place it on the cutting board. The leader of the event was wearing a headset and microphone and informed people about the healthy qualities of Japan's favorite fish, the tuna. Throughout he described the different parts of the fish and demonstrated how to prepare it properly.

The whole dissection of the huge beast took only a few moments. The large fish was beheaded and then literally quartered along the spine. Sections of it (the quarters) were whisked off and quickly and then diced up into bite sized morsels for mass consumption. In a flash, trays of delectable fish flesh were placed out for the masses. Everyone politely got into line and walked through the gauntlet where they picked up their sample and hurried off with their treasure to greedily consume it. A few folks went back multiple times.

Although the fish wasn't the theme of the day, it looked from my perspective that it was definitely one of the many highlights. Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time and the weather for the event couldn't have been better. One of the great things about living in the Goya Republic is festivities and get-togethers like this are the norm instead of the exception. Just one of the joys of living in the southern platitudes! Okay, so it wasn't a miracle of biblical proportions but getting this many people through a line for a giveaway without injuries in these perilous times is no small task.