Our doorbell rang the other day, and I opened it to see our postwoman, who smiled and handed me a large, flat manilla package. When I looked at the return address, I couldn’t believe it – “Say.” It was a package from Allen Say, the author, the illustrator, the Caldecott Medalist – my favorite writer about all things Japanese!

Here’s a recent picture I found of him at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles. I hope I’m not breaking any copyright laws by posting this — it’s from his publisher, Houghton Mifflin Books.

Image source: Houghton Mifflin Books

Here, at last, my virtual world collided with my real one. Mr. Say (Say-San, as he prefers to be called) and I have corresponded since last spring when he emailed me in response to a letter I sent him.

Let me explain.

I was sitting on the couch with my kids, making our way through a stack of picture books from the library. Most were the same old, same old — shapes, numbers, talking animals. But one — I’d picked out because it had a medal on the front, and it looked different: Grandfather’s Journey.

Finally, I started reading that one, and when I’d read about three pages, I just burst into tears. My kids asked me what was wrong, and I said, “He understands! Here is someone who understands!”

Say wrote this story about his grandfather, who was raised in Japan, but spent many years of his adult life in America. At last, he returned to Japan, but his heart was always in two places. He writes, “…I return now and then, when I can not still the longing in my heart. The funny thing is, the moment I am in one country, I am homesick for the other.”

When I finished reading this book, all I can say is there was some kind of “awakening” going on in my heart. It had been years since I’d attempted any kind of creative writing, but I felt like some kind of dam burst — and I HAD to start writing.

A few days later, I wrote some poems about Japan — about my mom and me having tea in a garden in Hiroshima. The irony was too much for me…almost too much to put into words. For some reason, I felt like I should send them to Allen Say — even though I’d never done this sort of thing before and I thought for sure he’d be too busy or they would get lost. I looked up his publisher’s address and mailed my letter off to Boston.

He wrote me back — via email! And he encouraged me to start writing about Japan. So I did. I’ve written lots of things — not all about Japan — but my well overflows, and I’ve reached a point in life where I feel compelled to write every day now.

I went back to the library and checked out all the picture books of his I could find. You’ve GOT to see them. They’re magnificent! We started an Allen Say bookshelf in our house and bought several books for our family to treasure: Tea With Milk, Tree of Cranes, Emma’s Rug, The Bicycle Man, Stranger in the Mirror, The Boy of the Three-Year Nap, and How My Parents Learned to Eat.

So, back to my package from Oregon — inside was a book, carefully wrapped in crisp, white paper. Say inscribed the book to my children, and drew a picture of himself holding an ink brush, with little droplets of paint leading to their names. He also included a hand-written card, illustrated with the cover from Tree of Cranes.

The book is called KAMISHIBAI MAN, and it was released last month. I wrote him immediately to thank him for the book, and within a few minutes received a nice message from his publicist telling me he would be on tour in the Southeast. I wanted to go meet him so badly when he spoke at Duke University — but it just couldn’t work out with our schedule.

Anyway, stop in tomorrow, and I’ll tell you what KAMISHIBAI MAN means. I think it’s his greatest book ever. You’ll love it too if you’re someone who prefers words on a page and storytelling — rather than sitting mindlessly in front of the idiot box.

I’ve discovered Allen Say to be a kindred spirit indeed.

P.S. If you would like to contact Allen Say, please write his publisher, Houghton Mifflin Books.