WELCOME to the JOURNAL

Last summer, I stood in a covered alcove of a barn in rural Vermont, holding a block of cherry wood, watching my mother work. Seventy-five years old, her hands weathered and strong — hands shaped by a lifetime of carving, building, sanding, joining. A carpenter, a luthier, a maker of things that last. We were […]

A few weeks ago, on the island of Vieques, we gathered with friends from across the map — different languages, different lives, all held by ocean light and long evenings. One morning, my friend Tomo brought out her travel matcha set and quietly made tea. There, in the tropics, with sand on our ankles and salt […]

Each summer invites a turning — a soft shift in pace, a return to the deeper rhythms beneath our schedules and roles. For me, that turning takes the shape of a migration — from our hilltop home in Karatsu, where I guide the Mirukashi Salon, to the salt-kissed coast of Maine, where I return to […]

Sometimes, healing grows right at our feet. Along narrow mountain lanes and wood-edge paths, dokudami grows wild and thick — heart-shaped leaves catching the hush of morning light, white bracts opening like quiet little stars. The scent is sharp, unforgettable. Some call it unpleasant. But it doesn’t seek to charm or please. It proclaims. Something […]

The Signature Flavor of Mirukashi June arrives soft and swollen with rain.The tsuyu season — plum rains — breaks open with claps of thunder and settles into a steady thrum. The air thickens with mist. The landscape softens and swells, glowing green. The air hangs heavy with the scent of something ancient. And in this […]

Plant Wisdom for Daily Life The wild landscape of Mirukashi is rich with quiet teachers — leaves, roots, blossoms, and seeds offering their subtle wisdom to those who know how to listen. For years, I’ve foraged handfuls of wild foods, drawn to the flavors of the seasons, passed down to me by my mother-in-law. Now, […]

Just 7 months after our groundbreaking ceremony, I received the keys to the Mirukashi Salon’s new home and it is exquisite – open, airy, warm, inviting, and very personal. Beauty and soul are my north stars and this building marries both in spades. The building is stately and handsome and the objects in it are […]

Tuesdays are now my favorite day because each Tuesday, Hana Greer and Héctor Barrantes Montes, the architects who designed the Mirukashi salon building, make a site visit to talk with the contractor, check specs, track progress, and take photos. And with Japan being 13 hours ahead of Maine (where I am now) that means that […]

We are entering the season of shincha when leaves of the first tea harvest of the year are released. Tea benefits from some post-harvest aging to allow the flavor to intensify. But it’s hard to wait and so we celebrate the harvest by drinking an aromatic and delicate tea brewed from the freshly harvested leaves. […]

Spring must have partied hard last year because she was late to rise this year. The cherry trees haven’t bloomed this late in over 10 years. Sandwiched between cold winds and drizzle, we were graced with one bright and balmy day to celebrate them with our Sakura Season guests, enjoying a picnic under the first […]