When I receive the next postcard…
The email ends by telling me:
Travelling towards Mochizuki, I got my first view of Mt Asama, a volcanic mountain that in 1783 erupted over a period of 15 hours with lasting effects that carried on for the next three months. The arable land in the area was already in poor condition because of cold weather but after the eruption the land became fallow for several years. These events led to the Great Tenmei famine that lasted for five years. Mt Asama continues to rumble and threaten with earthquakes and it is said that the mountain often wears a “benign plume of smoke”, as if to warn that it is always ready for another eruption.
I am happy to admire it from a distance and mentally wish that it keeps itself in check whilst I am passing through.
That feeling of being in awe and also hoping the rumbling volcano stays quiet reminds me of visiting Costa Rica. And Hawaii. And Yellowstone.
Earth is actually a pretty exciting planet to live on.
aka gringita 