An Unexpected International Response

“Misaki, why is there BTS music playing over the video of my presentation?”

Kentaro was bewildered. He had discovered that yesterday’s presentation at the international conference had been posted to social media in a form he had never intended. The “fifteen-second video of an uncle talking earnestly about rice”, which his niece had filmed without a second thought, had been viewed more than ten thousand times overnight.

“What? But when you post on TikTok it’s normal to add music,” Misaki answered innocently, her mouth full of breakfast toast. “I put hashtags on it too — #RicePhilosophy #JapaneseUncle #FoodCrisis — so it’s totally gone viral.”

Seiichi adjusted his glasses and peered at the screen of Misaki’s phone. Comments in English, Korean, Spanish and French were streaming past one after another.

“‘This uncle is seriously deep.’ ‘I respect the Japanese way of thinking about food.’ ‘We should treasure every grain of rice too’…” As Seiichi read them out, his expression grew complicated. “To think an academic presentation could be boiled down to fifteen seconds and spread around the world to a K-pop beat…”

Chiyo turned from the kitchen. “But everyone is moved by what you said, aren’t they.”

Kentaro’s own phone began to ring. It was a colleague from the conference.

“Kentaro, your presentation has caused quite a stir!” On the other end of the line, his American colleague David was excited. “My daughter watched the video, and since yesterday she’s stopped leaving food on her plate.”

“That’s… a good thing,” Kentaro answered, flustered, “but I’m worried whether the academic content is coming across accurately.”

“Never mind the difficult stuff. What matters is that it’s reached people’s hearts. Your story of the ‘Last Measure of Rice’ is striking a chord with people all over the world.”

When he hung up, a message came in from another colleague — a researcher from Germany.

“A wonderful presentation. A fifteen-second video has reached more people than our long papers ever did. Isn’t this what real outreach looks like?”

Watching the bewilderment of her grandfather and uncle, Misaki felt a little guilty. “Sorry, Uncle. I posted it without asking.”

“No, there’s no need to apologise,” Kentaro said thoughtfully. “It’s just a reaction I never expected.”

Seiichi sat in the chair by the window, pondering this phenomenon. “Communication in the modern age is a complicated thing. Scholarly rigour and the power to reach the masses do not always go together.”

Just then, comment notifications began arriving on Misaki’s phone one after another.

“Someone’s written, ‘Next time I go to Japan I won’t waste a single grain of rice’,” Misaki said, looking at the screen. “Oh, this one’s interesting. A girl in Italy says, ‘My grandmother used to say something similar — that wasting food is an offence against God.’”

Kentaro listened with interest. “Cultures may differ, but perhaps respect for food is something we all share.”

Chiyo said, as she cleared away the breakfast things, “If even one more person learns to treasure food from watching Misaki’s video, isn’t that a good thing?”

Seiichi nodded. “Indeed — it comes down to the question of which matters more, academic accuracy or social influence.”

Misaki seemed to have hit on a new idea. “Hey, why don’t Grandpa and Uncle make a proper video? This time I’ll be the interviewer and ask you all about the ‘Last Measure of Rice’ in detail.”

“That might be interesting,” Kentaro began to consider. “My conference presentation was aimed at specialists, but it’s the kind of content worth conveying to ordinary people too.”

But Seiichi was cautious. “And yet, if you oversimplify a complex theory, there’s a danger of losing its essence.”

“But look at the comments on the first video,” Misaki said, scrolling the screen. “Everyone responds to the experience more than the theory. ‘They talked it over as a family.’ ‘I felt the weight of every single grain.’”

Margaret came back from her morning walk and waved through the window. When Misaki went to the door, Margaret spoke to her excitedly.

“Misaki, I’ve got wonderful news! Since last night the food bank has been flooded with enquiries from local people who saw your video.”

“Really?”

“Yes. We’ve had so many messages, especially from young families. One after another they say, ‘We want to treasure food the way that Japanese family does,’ and they want to volunteer.”

Misaki went back inside and passed the news on to her family.

“More of a response than I expected,” Kentaro said, impressed. “Perhaps it’s the combination of a theoretical approach with an emotional one rooted in real experience that has done the trick.”

Seiichi had fallen into deep thought. “For many years I have insisted on academic precision. But it may be that a way of communicating which reaches people’s hearts, even if imperfect, has the greater power to change society.”

Chiyo smiled at her husband’s words. “You always used to say, ‘Eating is a social act,’ didn’t you. And changing society, too, surely begins in the heart of each individual.”

At that moment a message reached Kentaro’s phone from the conference organisers.

“Kentaro, we’d like to arrange a follow-up session to your presentation. This time a public session for a general audience — could you make it reflect the response on social media?”

Kentaro looked round at his family. “What do you think? Giving a presentation in an academic setting that’s designed from the start to spread on social media.”

Misaki answered at once. “You absolutely should. But this time speak to ordinary people from the start. Not jargon — words everyone can understand.”

After a long silence, Seiichi spoke. “I should like to take part too. As a theorist — and as one who actually lived through the ‘Last Measure of Rice’.”

“Really?” Kentaro was surprised.

“Yes. If my research can help solve a real problem, that is the most valuable thing of all — even if it becomes a fifteen-second video.”

Chiyo was moved. “Seiichi…”

Misaki said excitedly, “Then I’ll take part too, as a proper interpreter! I want to convey Grandpa’s words accurately to people all over the world.”

That afternoon the Shinomiya family began preparing for the public session. Seiichi picked out the key passages from his own books and rewrote them so that ordinary people could understand them. Kentaro gathered the data on the global food problem into a clear, visual form.

Misaki got in touch with Jamie and suggested that the perspective of British young people be included in the presentation as well.

“That’s a brilliant idea,” Jamie said excitedly over the phone. “If we combine my research data with your first-hand account, we can cover both theory and practice.”

Chiyo, too, was thinking of how she might contribute. “I’ll do a cooking demonstration,” she suggested. “I’ll make Japanese dishes from discarded ingredients, right there in the hall.”

“That’s a wonderful idea,” Kentaro agreed. “It would show not just theory but action as well.”

In the evening, Margaret arrived in great excitement. “I’ve got incredible news! London’s city authorities have taken notice of what you’re doing, and they’ve been in touch to ask you to become ambassadors for an official environmental campaign.”

Misaki’s eyes went wide. “Really?”

“Yes. They especially value your influence on the younger generation. They want to bring the Japanese concept of ‘Mottainai’ into London’s environmental policy.”

Seiichi said, gazing out of the window, “I never imagined that a story which began with a single measure of rice would grow into anything so large.”

Kentaro, too, was deeply moved. “Our experience in Aogawa has come to hold a new meaning here in London.”

Misaki was composing a new post on her phone — this time carefully, after obtaining her grandfather’s and uncle’s permission.

“#FromOneGrainToTheWorld Our story of the ‘Last Measure of Rice’ is spreading across the world. A heart that treasures food carries across borders. Let’s build a new food culture together.”

Before pressing the post button, she showed it to her family.

“That’s lovely,” Chiyo smiled.

“A fitting way to put it,” Seiichi nodded.

“Planned and deliberate this time,” Kentaro said, sounding relieved.

When Misaki posted it, comments began appearing at once. Messages of sympathy and support arrived from people all over the world.

That night the Shinomiya family talked over this unexpected turn of events around the dinner table.

“I underestimated the power of social media,” Seiichi admitted frankly. “To think a fifteen-second video could affect more people than an academic paper that took years to write.”

“But if there’d been nothing inside it, I don’t think it would have spread this far,” Misaki said. “It reached people’s hearts because there was heart in Uncle’s presentation.”

Kentaro said thoughtfully, “The medium is only a means. What matters is the truth of the message you want to convey.”

Chiyo nodded quietly. “A heart that treasures food will surely move people, however it is conveyed.”

Beyond the window, the lights of London stretched out. A new challenge was about to begin for the Shinomiya family, with tomorrow’s public session ahead of them.

A story that had begun with a single grain of rice was now developing into a dialogue on a global scale. The unexpected international response meant, for the Shinomiya family, both a new responsibility and a new possibility.

“I’m looking forward to tomorrow,” Misaki murmured, looking out of the window. “To seeing how our experience connects with people all around the world.”

Seiichi stood beside his granddaughter, gazing at the same night view. “Theory and practice, scholarship and the public, past and present… I feel as though everything is beginning to connect.”

Kentaro said, as he looked over the next day’s presentation materials, “Perhaps the ‘Last Measure of Rice’ was not an ending but a beginning.”

Chiyo looked round at her family and smiled quietly. Understanding and empathy through food were spreading beyond the barriers of language and culture. It was the most beautiful realisation of what she had believed for so many years as a nutritionist.

The London night was deepening, but the hearts of the Shinomiya family were full of anticipation for the day to come.