Compared to the research institute's dining hall ten years ago, Japanese food has become quite gourmet."

The calm former radical members followed Dr. Koga's pronouncement with a serious, almost solemn attitude.

Dancer spoke next.

"We've already come up with a proposal for Patron to give sermons in the chapel. We've posted the first announcement on the bulletin board in the dining hall, but this doesn't mean we'll follow the same schedule every week.

Some people have gotten in touch with us at the office requesting that a regu- lar program of sermons be set up as soon as possible. The main question is Patron's health. Patron has been mentally preparing so that the church can have a clean start. We've come this far. I ask that you be patient until he's physically and mentally ready to begin. At the beginning Patron told you some things that Ogi or I should have reported, and now I guess I've said some things that are more properly in Patron's purview."

Kizu was sure that calls-if not protests-for Patron to address them directly would arise from the assembled group, but instead a warm reaction welled up from the circle of participants. The feeling that we've come this far was clearly not confined to Dancer.

At this point Ikuo spoke up. To Kizu at least, his forceful words seemed aimed from the beginning at intentionally introducing something completely at odds with the congenial, homey atmosphere they'd built up.

"I think we've heard enough about the transfer of the Farm to our church," he said. "There's something else I'd like to talk about. I'm hoping Patron's new church will begin here, in this building-on this piece of land, I suppose I should say-at the earliest possible date. I can't imagine what direction the church will take, but like everyone else I trust in Patron and am looking forward to a new beginning.

"As we're waiting for the launch of the new church, all of us new resi- dents-individually or in groups-each have our own approach to things.

There's no need for us to criticize the way others are standing by, waiting for things to develop. As Patron's conception of the church takes shape, disagree- ments and agreements will naturally come to the surface, and we can cross that bridge when we come to it. At this stage, each group and individual must examine their relationship with the local people and ask how this might bene- fit the church. I'd like to mention what I'm doing myself. As this progresses, I hope you'll let me continue to act on my own.

"Right now, through the good offices of the former junior high princi- pal and the head priest of the Fushoku temple, I've begun to meet with the local youth group. At first they were rather antagonistic to our church, think- ing we just barged in here without consulting anyone. But the other side of this coin is their curiosity about us. The reason I'm interested in them is that they're still young-high school and junior high students, the age when people still treat them as children-but there are some real individuals among them, and as a group they're quite outgoing. About twenty or so well-disciplined members get together regularly with their leader, who himself is a unique guy. As I meet with them I'd like to consult with them and report any new developments in our church. May I have your approval to do this?"

Ikuo came to a resolute halt. Nobody said a thing. The Technicians' faces didn't show whether they approved or not, but Kizu could sense that they and Ikuo had long since come to an understanding.

"I'd like to hear Patron and the office staff's opinion, but from what I've heard here I have no problem with what Ikuo's been doing," Dr. Koga replied generously. "Nothing's more important than building good relationships with the local people. This may sound like I'm blowing my own horn, but that's why I took over the clinic. We can't give the local people the impression that we're just shut up in our buildings concentrating on our own affairs, no mat- ter how spiritual they may be. You only have to consider what happened with the Aum Shinrikyo satyans to understand this.

"On the other hand, though, it was quite a lot of trouble for the Quiet Women and the Technicians to come to the decision to move here, and actu- ally to carry it out. After finally settling in with their new church, do we really expect them all to be open to the local people right off the bat? I think we want to get deeper into ourselves and into our faith. That's how very great our expectations are of this new path Patron's taking. Which doesn't contra- dict Dancer's understandable call for us not to rush him.

"Our honest thoughts on this might disappoint you, Ikuo, but what I want to say is that we've only begun. I find your dealings with the next gen- eration here intriguing. And I promise you that every one of the Technicians will spare no effort to help you make the Farm a success. That's all I want to say. Do exactly as you wish."

# * *

The next day at lunch Kizu heard from Dancer that Patron, who except for his first announcement had remained silent throughout, was quite pleased with the results of the meeting. Patron had also said something else. Dancer lowered her voice so the Technicians seated nearby, who had returned for a late lunch from working to restart the facilities on the Farm, couldn't hear.

"Patron asked me, 'What's with the former radical faction? Why is such a formerly outgoing, active group now living like a bunch of monks?'"

21: THE YOUNG FIREFLIES

1

Since his plan to run a children's art class would be using a room in the junior high school, Kizu needed to look into how this would fit in with the second-semester curriculum-and though he had considerable time to con- sider this, with the summer vacation between now and then, he went again with Asa-san, the wife of the former junior high principal, to visit the school's staff room. While they were there he asked Asa-san about the group called the Young Fireflies that Ikuo had mentioned during the meeting in the chapel.

Asa-san began by explaining the local custom of the same name. She was nearing sixty and had first heard about it as a ceremony her mother had participated in as a child. When someone died in the valley, children ages seven to ten would light torches and climb up the surrounding slopes. The children were divided into pairs, and each pair climbed to a designated tree at the top of the forest. One of the pairs carried an object, representing the soul of the departed, to bury under the roots of a tree. Several pairs would go up at the same time in order to keep the chosen tree a secret.

"My mother said her first memory of this was when she was three or four," Asa-san went on, "still too little to be a Young Firefly herself. She said that when she looked up at the forest from the back sitting room of her house she could see countless torches ascending the slopes. The number was greater than the number of seven- to ten-year-olds who lived there, somebody told her later, because they were allowing smaller children to join them.

"One other thing you should hear concerns a child named Doji, who led the second of two rebellions around the time of the Meiji Restoration. After the rebellion was a success, they say Doji returned to the forest. The name Young Fireflies might have grown out of this, since Doji is a homonym for the Japanese word translated as young.

"The present Young Fireflies group that local junior and senior high school children have formed is connected with this history but has nothing to do with the defunct custom. They do, however, assemble at dawn and practice climbing up the forest, so at least they're maintaining the form of the ceremony.

"They're children, so they may very well be drawn to the figure of Doji, the child leader of the insurrection. Satchan told me they debate among them- selves how to live in this land and how to improve the environment. Her son Gii is the leader of the Young Fireflies. When he was little he used to come to our house to talk with my husband. An odd child, I'd say, to want to spend time talking with the principal."