Miyako Diaries 14: Through the Void (Patreon)

Time for some history lesson today. Chihaya in a kimono dress is posing in front of the Hisamatsu Five Memorial close to the southwestern edge of the Island. This was erected in commemoration of five young village men and their selfless show of bravery and sense of duty for their country.

It was May 1904 - Japan was at war with Russian Empire, which had dispatched its Baltic Fleet a third way across the globe to destroy its budding naval power and control the seas of the Far East. However, the fate of the Russian armada met its turn on May 23, when it was sighted by a lone fisherman off the western  coast of Miyako. The sighting led to a hot debate within the elders council, which eventually ruled that it send an envoy of five young men to sail to Ishigaki Island, the only isle of the archipelago with a modern post office and a telegraph. Thus the team rowed out in a tiny "sabani" fishing boat  across the 170-km vast open sea, with just the tides, the sun, and the stars to guide them. The voyage took 15 hours, and after setting foot on Ishigaki, the group then trekked on a 30-km mountain path to finally arrive at Yaeyama Post Office, on May 26, 4am. Their witness report was promptly telecommunicated to Tokyo's Imperial General Headquarters - and a decisive battle between the fleets of the two nations ensued on the same morning (the Battle off Tsushima Island).

So, what is the lesson here? Well - we would say that history is not always owned by emperors and generals. Sometimes there are unsung men and women who take its helm, driven by a noble will to act for their people, their cause,  and the common good.