Pearls, A Film Poem Made After Visiting Mikimoto Pearl Island

Mikimoto Pearl Island Divers.

I went to Mikimoto Pearl Island, Japan recently. We watched the female pearl divers, once beautiful in their natural nude forms, now heavily clothed to protect from sharks, it is said. While looking at the beautiful pearls in the gift shop, it brought up sorrow. I remember pearl earrings and a pearl necklace my late husband gave to me years ago.

I wore the pearls everyday when I was living in Mexico City in 1997, separated from my husband-to-be after a big fight. A Mexican man said of the earrings, “Pearls represent sorrow.”

Mikimoto Pearl Diver Bronze Statue at Mikimoto Pearl Island Museum. Photo by Sydney Solis.

The pearl necklace was recently stolen from my house in Orlando, Florida. I had hoped to pass this necklace onto my daughter, my late husband’s daughter. So looking at the pearls at Mikimoto Island brought up more sorrow.

Later at dinner in Ise City, a friend told a story of a jade bracelet she wore since the day her son was born. It you take it off yourself, it’s bad luck. If it’s broken, that’s something else. Good luck.

Another friend said, “In Japan, it is said that when something is broken or stolen for you, it’s about those taking that sorrow away for you. Taking away all that sorrow so you don’t have it any more.”

It was a happy story, realizing those stolen pearls were taken by someone to take away all that sorrow that they represent. And now I am light and happy. The burden of sorrow gone.

And so I wrote this poem and made this little film poem about the beautiful Pearl Divers of Mikimoto Island when I was there.

Pearls, a film poem by Sydney Solis, featuring Pearl Divers from Mikimoto Pearl Island, Japan.

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