Researching and writing Japanese and Japanese American history

Monkeys are known to be excellent tree climbers but sometimes they get carried away or overconfident, so even they can fall from trees.

Saru mo ki kara ochiru — even monkeys fall from trees — is my favorite Japanese proverb. I first learned it many years ago while attending Japanese language school, where I (unwillingly) spent my Saturday mornings with other Nisei (second-generation Japanese American) kids. It is the only proverb that stuck with me, and has since served me well during life’s ups and downs.

As a writer and maker, I often hesitate to get my work out there in the world — hampered by wanting everything to be perfect and fearing being judged. In some ways, this is worse than having tried and failed!

But when I stop and think about monkeys climbing and swinging through trees with not a care in the world, it helps me put things in perspective. Remembering the joy of creating — whether with words or fabric — and giving myself the grace to be imperfect releases the inner critics and judges that often stand in my way.

While I haven’t personally witnessed monkeys falling from trees, I think if they did, they wouldn’t remain on the ground for very long. They would probably climb up and get right back into the game!