matcha with me…

Life is pretty normal in Tokyo though stores are still running a few shortages of items which are grown or manufactured along the northern Pacific coast of Japan. Although some of these shortages are due to lack of the product itself, there is another big reason: lack of a small but important part of the packaging. Take, for example, natto, one of the most basic love-it-or-leave it foods here in Japan. Made from soybeans that have been fermented until they begin to dissolve into a viscous brown and yellow goo, natto is a wonder food: nutritious and cheap, filled with vitamins, minerals, protein, probiotics, and things science has yet to identify. Depending on who you ask, it may prevent cancer, blood clots, Alzheimers, and any number of other unhealthy situations. In Gunma, it is traditionally mixed with raw sliced green onions, a spot of hot mustard and vinegary soy sauce, then eaten with hot rice and perhaps a raw egg on top. I’ve never been able to eat it this way (or most of the other ways it is offered), but if I were able, I’d probably live a lot longer.

Natto is usually packed and sealed in individual serving cups or tiny Styrofoam boxes. Inside the lid, across the top layer of the natto is a thin sheet of special paper, something akin to tissue-thin wax paper. This seals in the goodness, prevents spoilage and texture change. And that is the part that is missing. True, some natto manufacturing companies have been damaged by the earthquake reducing total production capacity, but more can be produced than can be packaged at this point. The limiting factor is the shortage of thin special paper which covers the surface.

Natto manufacturers will either have to find a different way to package natto, import the paper from other countries which also produce it, or wait until the paper factories in Japan are rebuilt. There are no doubt complexities with any of the three options though many of my friends are eager to see a solution found.

For lack of a pack…Japan has very few Christians, and the rate of people finding new life in Christ is also low. The US has many Christians…but the rate of people finding new life in Christ is also regrettably low. What’s the bottleneck? One thought that occurs to me is this: Too many of us lack the “pack,” lives that will allow the treasure in us to be carried long distances, handled by different people in different ways, and yet still retain the goodness and essential texture of the Gospel. Perhaps we are missing the outer cup which would allow us to mingle with a variety of people who think differently than we do without getting bent out of shape. Some of us might be missing the thin sheet of special paper which protects the goodness and freshness and seals out contaminants. Some of us are no doubt low on the essential ingredient in the first place. Soybeans+good bacteria+ time=natto; for a Christian, the essence is the truth of God permeating all of our thinking, emotions, and actions as we live listening to the Spirit in committed relationships with others.

Is the “good stuff” in you ready to move out of the processing plant and into the streets, stores, and homes of our world? There are a whole lot of people waiting for it…