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 Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 2:04 am
Ziya hopped through the park holding on tightly to both his father's and his mother's hands. It was a glorious day, the sun was shining brightly and the trees were covered in pretty pink blossoms. Ziya was amazed. Not just because of the blossoms but also because of all the activities going on. There were food stalls and dancing ... it was amazing.
Isra held Ziya's hand tightly in the mass of people milling around. She did not like so many people and she definitely did not trust them.
"Why don't you two go and find somewhere to sit, I'll get us some food." She said smiling down at Ziya and then to her husband before dissapearing off into the crowd.
"Daaaddy." Ziya sang as they made their way through the crowds to the grass. "Can we sit under that biiig tree?" he asked pointing excitedly to the biggest tree in the park.
Azhar smiled and nodded.
"Of course, if we can find a space." He said raising an eyebrow at all the other people who seemed to have decided it would be a good place to sit too.
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 2:16 am
Yazu was tickled pink! Despite the masses of people converging on the park, he kept his green eyes fixated on the clouds of pink and white hovering above him. Kicking and wriggling in excitement, he tried not to drool on the comfy blanket Yusuke's mom wrapped him in. It was just enough to keep the lingering winter chills off his plump, baby skin.
Spring was by far, Yusuke's favorite time of year. Raised in a traditional family, he had a deep rooted appreciation in the beauty of all seasons, but he loved spring the most. Seeing the world come alive after the bitter winter, always made him happy. Also because it meant he could use the dojo without having blue feet from the cold.
Finding an unclaimed spot under the most gorgeous tree in the park, Yusuke quickly laid out a small tarp and placed a blanket over it. He took out his calligraphy and tea sets, almost beckoning strangers to come up and spend some time with him. The blanket certainly was large enough. Watching Yazu grope at the trees happy, Yusuke smiled. It looks like he really was part of the family after all.
"Now, don't eat the petals, Yacchan," Yusuke said, taking a strip of fabric and tying the sleeves of his kimono back. He chuckled when he saw Yazu furl his tiny brows at him. "Okay, maybe just one or two, but there are plenty in gran's sweets."
A single petal floated down, and landed on his nose. Yazu squealed and took it in his hands. After getting the OK from Yusuke, he stuck his whole hand, petal and all, in his mouth.
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 3:47 am
Ziya's eyes scoured the area for a good spot. There really were a lot of people, which he really didn't mind, being the attention seeker he was. No one looked very interesting though, well, not until he spotted the red haired baby and his dad on the blanket. They sure looked interesting.
bouncing a little he tugged on his dad's hand and dragged him over to the space beside the odd couple.
"Scuuuse me." He said happily, looking at the young man through his bangs. "Can we sit here?" he asked pointing to the grass beside them.
Azhar gave the young man an apologetic smile at Ziya's loudness and looked at the unusual child.
"If it's not too much bother." he added in his low, soft voice.
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 3:56 am
Yazu squealed happily as the boy with golden eyes like pure sunshine bounded up. The vivid colors of the child's sash definitely caught his eyes, so Yazu said hello by doing his tiger impression. Tiny brown hands groped the air as he gurgled in excitement and wrinkling his nose. Yazu's feet kicked as he pawed toward the little boy.
"Certainly, pull up some blanket, Chief," Yusuke said, giving the energetic boy a cheesy smile. Taking note of the concern on the face of the boy's father, he extended a hand in reassurance. Opening his bag, he took several extra cups out and reaches for his thermos. "It's not trouble at all. Finding decent places to sit this time of year are close to impossible. My name's Yusuke, and the little tiger is Yazu. Would you like some barley tea, Mister..."
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 4:02 am
"My name's Ziya!" Ziya laughed happily, peering at Yazu and making a tiger face back. "Raaaawr" he said, hoping to make the little baby laugh.
Azhar shook his head and smiled as he sat down, arranging his robes to keep them out of the way.
"My name is Azhar, trouble, here is Ziya as he's just said, and my wife, Isra is finding us some food in this maze of people."
he watched Yusuke with interest as he started to pour some tea.
"That would be nice, thank you. Your son is very cute, and enjoying the festivities it seems."
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 4:12 am
Another tiger! Yazu squealed in delight, as Ziya growled back. With his little hands balled up in fists, he rolled from side to side, laughing at the tiger face of his new friend.
"Wow, Yacchan's in heaven. I don't think he was expecting to find another tiger here among the cherries," Yusuke chuckled, casting an approving glance at Ziya and Yazu. He nodded at Azhar with reassurance, pouring him a nice cup of refreshing tea. "It's a pleasure to meet you Azhar, and I am sure Isra will have a challenge on her hands. There are too many foods to choose from. We have plenty of room, so I am happy to have company."
Leaning to the side, Yusuke picked up his ink stone and some light pink paper. Setting them on a piece of navy felt, he pinned the paper down with a metal weight shaped like a dragon. "Ziya, have you ever tried calligraphy?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 3:43 am
Ziya laughed with Yazu and rocked back so that he could land with a bump on the blanket. At Yusuke's words he shuffled forwards and clambered up into his dad's lap.
"Is it drawing." He asked, watching Yusuke with interest. "I like to draw."
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:54 am
"Not exactly, Ziya. It's more like writing, but not in normal alphabet letters. The in my and Yazu's native language. Check this out," Yusuke said slowly, hoping not to gloss over the explanation for the child. Dipping the tip of the calligraphy brush into the ink, he wiped the tip slowly on the ink stone before holding it above the paper. His form was rigid, yet elegant, and his wrist swayed fluidly, like a willow branch as he wrote 'sakura' in hiragana. The black ink soaked instantly into the thin paper in the shade of palest pink. "This says, "sakura". It is the name of these gorgeous pink trees we are sitting under. In common language, they are called "cherry trees", and are a prized sight in spring."
He set his brush down, and held the paper up for Ziya and his father to look at. A subtle, yet proud smile graced his lips, as the writing was one which is a**l retentive grandmother adored. Taking up a fresh sheet of paper, he raised a brow in interest at the young boy. "How do you spell you name, Ziya? I want to show you something."
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:12 am
Ziya stuck his thumb in his mouth and watched Yusuke write.
"It's like your writing daddy." he said as he leaned back against his father. Well, not exactly, but it was different from what most people wrote.
Azhar was equally as interested and nodded. "This is more like a picture though Ziya, do you see?"
Ziya nodded and smiled at Yusuke.
"I spelled it ... Z ..... I..... uhhhhhmmm .... Y .... A." He said, grinning broadly, rather proud with himself.
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 6:33 am
"Z-i-y-a, ne? Give me a minute to think here. Ah yes," Watching the child carefully, inspiration shot through him like a bolt of lightning. With a youthful, fighting spirit and hair as dark as the midnight sky, Yusuke wrote two characters. He selected the characters for "samurai" and "night", writing them vertically, in flawless penmanship. "This one is 'Zi', but the symbol means 'samurai' or 'warrior'. A samurai does many things, and does them with honor and discipline. They do more than just fight with one another." Pointing to the blank, right margin, Yusuke wrote 'Zi' in near common letters before turning his attention to the second character.
"This one is 'ya', but the symbol means 'night'. I picked it because your hair is the color of the night sky," Yusuke grinned as he wrote 'ya' beside the other character. On the left side, he wrote his full name in Chinese characters, using a smaller brush. The bristles danced on the paper as he whipped his name out quickly, and stamped the paper with an additional red ink stamp. "Just give it time to dry and you can take it home. My gift to you to commemorate our first meeting on such a gorgeous day." "Would you like to try it?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2007 2:18 am
Ziya watched with wonder as Yusuke started to paint the symbols. He wasn't sure what a samurai was but it sounded really cool. When he was finished Ziya just stared at it in awe.
Azhar laughed and ruffled his son's hair.
"I'm impressed, he is rarely speechless." he said with a wink. "What do you say Ziya?"
Ziya blinked and smiled up at Yusuke.
"Thank you!" He cried happily. "I like to try." He said, slipping off Azhar's lap and walking over to plonk himself next to Yusuke.
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Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2007 6:39 pm
Yazu's expression calmed, as he carefully watched Yusuke write for his new friend. Something within the infant told him there were certain times, that silence truly was golden. Watching the pitch black soak into the fragile paper, his brilliant green eyes turned to Ziya with interest. The young boy appeared captivated with Yusuke's penmenship, and that made Yazu's heart soar. A serene smile like the summer sea washed over Yazu, his hands moving up and down slowly as if he were tyring to mimic Yusuke's motions.
"Art has this amazing ability to captivate even the most wild of spirits, Azhar," Yusuke smiled, passing an appreciative nod to the father. Taking a fresh piece of paper and setting the place for Ziya, Yusuke checked over his shoulder at Yazu, and shook his head in amusement to find the little fireball calm as well. "All right, then, Ziya. We'll start out with something easy. The important thing in calligraphy is starting and stopping. We'll start out easy, and work our way up."
Dipping the brush in the ink, he wiped it slowly across the ink stone. On the upper half of the paper, Yusuke drew a single horizontal line, and on the bottom half, a pair of paralell lines, the top one slightly shorter than the bottom. "First, it helps to sit on your legs with your feet underneath you, like I am. It will probably feel funny at first, but if your legs fall asleep, you'll have to run around a bit and take a break, " Yusuke said, pulling his hakama to the side to clearly reveal how he was sitting, in seiza. Taking the cooler box, he propped the writing implements and paper setting up to an easier height for Ziya to write.
"Start by putting the brush down on the paper, drawing it across the paper. Then stop, and lift the brush up carefully. This is 'one'."
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 2:48 am
Ziya bit his lip as he concentrated on sitting how Yusuke told him and took the brush carefully. He was guessing now was one of those times when he was supposed to be gentle.
He shifted to kneel as Yusuke told him to and looked at the paper. Biting his lip again he placed the brush on the paper and drew it across.
"One!" he repeated grinning down at his handiwork.
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 4:44 am
"Excellent. To help the brush not stick to the paper, put your hand here," Yusuke said, pointing to the bottom of the page closest to Ziya's free hand. Refilling Azhar's tea cup and then his own, Yusuke smiled at Ziya. "You have a natural talent, Ziya. Let's give 'two' a try, shall we?"
Using his finger, he traced the stroke order slowly on the bottom half of the paper; first a shorter horizontal line, followed by a longer one beneath it. He pressed slightly harder at the beginning and endings of each stroke, accentuating the importance of starting and stopping. "One... two... Nice and easy."
Watching Ziya, Yazu squirmed restlessly in his blanket. Something about the other tiger made him feel at home, like the time he met Yusuke top Tottori Sand Dune. Kicking his blankets loose and wriggling free, the little nashi baby, crawled toward Ziya and Yusuke. Rolling against Ziya's leg with a giggling bump, he put his little hands on Ziya's leg and his eyes widened. "S-s-saasaaa... bababa..... kuuuu..." Yazu gurgled, looking up at Ziya with his wide eyes alight. "Sa. Ba. Ku."
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Posted: Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:13 pm
Ziya concentrated hard on his writing.One, two. Easy peasy.
He grinned up at Yusuke as he finished and pointed at his handiwork proudly.
As Yazu came crawling over he giggled at the baby and handed held up his writing.
"What do you think Yazu?" he asked, grinning as he waited for the baby's response.
Isra fought her way through the crowds with a slight frown on her face. It was far too crowded around here. Sighing she shifted the boxes of random food in her arms and grinned as she spotted Azhar and Ziya talking to a young man.
"I made it." She said, sitting down next to her husband in a flow of colourful silk and a jangle of jewelry. "not sure what half of this is. Okonimi-something and yaki something else." She smirked and set the boxes on the floor.
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