Japanese Sushi Girls

On Friday January 19, 2024, "Japanese sushi girls" (Kaori, Naomi A., Yuri, Mami Ari and Naomi S.) gathered to prepare sushi for the soldiers at the front. For two hours, they put rice on seaweed, peeled avocado, added carrot, omelet, and cucumber, rolled seaweed, and cut it. One packs it and another writes greetings to the soldiers. The act is not intended to satisfy the hungry but to pamper them, to provide food that they are skilled in preparing, and which they usually prepare for their families. While preparing the sushi, there was a harmony and order among them that charmed me. The coordinated actions, the delicate acrobatics of fingers moving gracefully on seaweed, and the understanding that prevailed between them in silence, laughter, and talk, were beautiful to me, as were the ironed aprons and the Japanese handkerchiefs they wore on their heads. Six women, six life stories full of decisions, fears and hopes. Among the decisions is the decision to live in Israel, far from their parents, their families, their people, and their country. They decided to tie their fate to the fate of my people and show solidarity at this difficult and complex time. Their actions draw together a thread of grace, kindness, and magic.

I hope that in the selection of photographs presented here I was able to convey the whole range of feelings and impressions I felt during the short time we were together.

Hedva Rokach, project photographer