The art of Masahiko Kimura initially strikes me as dazzling. His disciples may prefer the word majestic. Connoisseurs of great bonsai may call it exquisite. For me personally he takes me to a mountaintop that I've hiked. The air becomes crisp. I can feel the wind whirling around me with the damp air splashing my face. I pause and gaze upon a juniper cascading down from its perch in a pocket of soil in the cliff above. I drink in the fresh air and look again. Off comes my backpack. It's a perfect time to stop and eat. As I munch on my sandwich I survey the horizon of dancing clouds and distant mountains. The view is awesome indeed. The wild flowers dotting the face of the cliff catch my eye. What lovely "creatures!" What a pity that so few come to be touched by their delicate splendor. Each one invites me to itself. I feel a new freshness inside me.

Then my eyes catches another glimpse of the juniper, but passes on to the pine tree towering above it in glory. I study its massive trunk and branches swaying gracefully in the wind. The song of the bird perched in its limbs dances in my ears. The fog clears diverting my eyes to the valley. Far below the river gently winds through the fields. A soaring eagle catches my eye. She swoops down with her young teaching them to fly by bearing them up on her wings. Finally the juniper catches my attention. Its swirling white wood fascinates me. My flighty eyes come to rest. I no longer notice the eagle with her young or hear the songbird. As I fix my gaze on this jin, time stands still. Slowly a new strength comes over me. When eventually I move on something has changed in me, a new courage surges in my veins as I return to my home below. This is the gift Masahiko Kimura gives us in his art.