Life with Rice Fields in Niihama: Moments When Ordinary Days Become Special
An unforgettable sunset I encountered on my usual way home
That day was just like any other. In the evening, as I headed home after work, the moment I happened to look up, what spread out before me was a golden sky so beautiful it left me speechless.
A gradient shifting from orange to gold, and then to a pale purple. The finely scattered clouds colored the sky as if it were a painting. I stopped in my tracks and instinctively took out my smartphone to snap a picture.
The rice field in this photo is actually one that my father-in-law takes great care in cultivating. In this place, blessed with the mild climate of the Seto Inland Sea in Niihama City, Ehime Prefecture, my father-in-law has been growing rice for many years. His house is nearby, and I live my life seeing the scenery of this rice field every day.
The regret of not being able to participate in the rice harvest this year
Every year, I help my father-in-law with his rice field work. This spring, I planted rice with him. It is steady, painstaking work, planting each seedling one by one. My back gets sore, but the time spent working alongside my father-in-law is an invaluable learning experience for me, having grown up in the city.
However, about a month ago, I fractured my toe. I thought it was nothing serious, but it hadn't fully healed by the time the rice harvest arrived, making it difficult to work in the fields.
Planting the rice together in the spring and harvesting it together in the fall—for someone like me who thought experiencing that entire cycle was the true thrill of rice farming, not being able to participate in the harvest was truly regrettable. I felt so sorry for my father-in-law.
Even so, just the other day, my foot healed and I was able to help with the rice hulling. The time spent working with my father-in-law while listening to the sound of the hulling machine. The seedlings we planted in the spring have now become rice right before my eyes. That realization hit me, and I renewed my resolve to participate fully in the harvest next year.
I am looking forward to the new rice.
The charm of the rural landscape in Niihama City
Although Niihama City is known as an industrial city centered on manufacturing, once you head a little into the suburbs, such beautiful rural landscapes spread out. It is a well-balanced city where urban areas and agricultural regions naturally coexist.
The mild climate facing the Seto Inland Sea is suitable for rice cultivation. There is plenty of sunshine from spring to autumn, and the soil has good drainage. The rice grown in my father-in-law's field is raised by fully receiving the blessings of this land.
The rice field in the photo is in the state of having just been plowed after the harvest. Looking at the orderly lines of soil, I can picture my father-in-law operating the tractor. It must have been hard work, especially since I couldn't help with the harvest.
Life with rice fields, felt all the more because we are neighbors
The fact that my father-in-law's house is nearby is a great happiness for me. I can drop by casually to check on the rice fields. I can feel the changing expressions of the fields with the seasons in my daily life.
In spring, the flooded fields reflect the sky, and in early summer, the lush green rice sways in the wind. Then in autumn, the golden ears of rice bow their heads, welcoming the time of harvest. In winter, the plowed fields quietly fall asleep, waiting for the next season.
When I visit my father-in-law's house, we always end up talking about the rice fields. 'Water management was difficult this year,' 'I was nervous during that typhoon,' 'The yield is pretty good this year.' Through such conversations, I am gradually learning the depth of rice farming.
Life in Niihama, where residential areas and fields harmonize
A characteristic of this region is that residential areas and farmland blend together naturally. The houses visible on the left side of the photo do not ruin the rural landscape at all. Rather, they add warmth to the scenery as proof that people's lives and agriculture coexist.
It has good access to the city center, and supermarkets, convenience stores, and hospitals are nearby. Yet, when you open the windows, you can feel the breeze blowing from the rice fields. I wake up to the chirping of birds in the morning and encounter sunsets like this in the evening. I believe this is the unique richness of living in a rural residential area in Niihama.
For my nieces and nephews who come to visit my father-in-law's house, this environment is a precious treasure. They catch insects in the rice fields and observe the growth of the rice plants. By watching their grandfather plant and harvest rice up close, a sense of gratitude for food will naturally grow within them.
What the sunset teaches us
On the day I took this photo, I stopped and watched the sky for about five minutes. The sky changing colors moment by moment, the silhouettes of the mountains in the distance, and the houses standing quietly. And the rice fields where I planted and hulled rice with my father-in-law. Everything harmonized to create a special landscape unique to this moment.
Although I regret not being able to participate in the rice harvest, I was still able to watch the growth of these rice fields from spring to autumn. Because it's in the neighborhood, I can go to check on the rice fields whenever I feel like it. That accumulation of moments deepens my attachment to this landscape.
Because it is a rice field landscape with nothing to block the view, you can fully enjoy the vastness of the sky, the expressions of the clouds, and the shifting of the light. In our busy daily lives, we tend to look down and walk in a hurry. But the luxury of being able to stop and look up at the sky—I feel that having an environment that allows for that is connected to spiritual richness.
The hardship of rice cultivation and the people who support it
By not being able to participate in the rice harvest this year, I realized once again how difficult rice cultivation is. From planting to harvesting, my father-in-law goes to check the rice fields almost every day, manages the water, mows the grass, and keeps an eye out for pests and diseases. He continues to do this at his age in his late 70s.
Behind every bag of rice we buy at the supermarket, there is the extraordinary effort of farmers like him. Since I started helping with my father-in-law's rice fields, I have been able to learn that firsthand.
I hear that in recent years, due to aging and a lack of successors, more farmers are giving up their rice fields. Niihama City is no exception. Even so, there are people like my father-in-law who continue to protect this landscape.
This beautiful sunset was something I could only encounter because there is an open space like a rice field. Thinking about it, I realize that not only the rice on our daily dining table but also this landscape is a blessing brought to us by agriculture.
Determination for next year and expectations for the new rice
My broken toe has healed, and my body is back to normal. Next year, I want to complete every step of the process with my father-in-law, from rice planting to harvesting and hulling.
The feel of the mud during spring planting, the sweat of summer weeding, and the sense of accomplishment during the autumn harvest. I realized again this year that only by experiencing all of these can one understand a year of rice cultivation.
Just the other day, I hulled rice with my father-in-law. Watching the husks come off to reveal the brown rice, I realized that the seedlings we planted together in the spring had grown this much. We will polish it soon, and we will be able to eat the new rice shortly.
Since I couldn't participate in the harvest this year, I want to eat that rice with even more gratitude than usual. Just imagining the aroma of freshly cooked rice makes me impatient.
Cherishing the extraordinary in the ordinary
You don't have to go to special tourist spots to find inspiration in your daily life. On your usual way home, in the familiar scenery, there are moments that appear like miracles. I think whether or not you can notice them greatly changes the quality of your life.
Every time I look back at this photo, the coldness of the air that day, the breeze blowing from the rice fields, and the memories of the days I worked with my father-in-law come back to me. A single photo brings back the entire story of the year.
If there are rice fields or farms in your town, please try taking a walk at dusk. With your smartphone in hand, while looking up at the sky. I am sure you will encounter your own special landscape.
Living in the rural landscape of Niihama. I believe it is a luxurious way of life where you can feel the changing of the seasons, be grateful for the blessings of nature, and cherish the bonds of family.
I am already looking forward to the day we eat the new rice I grew with my father-in-law. Next year, I will definitely participate all the way through to the rice harvest.
[Postscript]
If you have any questions or doubts after reading this article, please let me know in the comments section. As someone who has experienced moving here, I will answer as best as I can.
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