Mami-okusama shared with us the story behind the birth of the Sumikko Gurashi bento #2, so I would like to share her words below: “The lead minister at one of the churches had a passionate desire to deliver fresh, morning-harvested vegetables grown with Christ Farming to Kyoshu-sama and Masaaki-sama. Since he wanted to accomplish this no matter what, he harvested carrots and daikon radish from the church farm in the morning and delivered them to Atami right away on that very same day. The color of the leaves on the morning-harvested carrots was so vibrant! Since I did not want to make the lead minister’s heartfelt gesture go to waste, I cooked the vegetables immediately on the day I received them. The vegetables had a rich aroma and sweetness to them, and they were incredibly delicious. They were fully enjoyed by not only Masaaki-sama, but our children as well. Looking at these beautiful green leaves, I thought about how to incorporate them into a bento, and the world of Sumikko Gurashi suddenly came to my mind. I imagined the Sumikko Gurashi characters leisurely enjoying a picnic and decided to make the carrot leaves look like a grassy lawn.” Mami-okusama does not let the sincerity of members go to waste—their passionate desire to have Kyoshu-sama and Masaaki-sama enjoy their produce as fresh as possible. I cannot help but feel that Mami-okusama is one with this lead minister and all the members of World Church of Messiah, and she stands in front of all of us as she serves Kyoshu-sama and Masaaki-sama. Vegetables harvested in the morning are said to be fresh and delicious because they are harvested when they contain the most nutrients from the photosynthesis carried out on the previous day and their moisture content is also at its peak at this time of day. And just as Mami-okusama said, how vibrant and full of spiritual energy are the carrot leaves spread beneath the feet of the Sumikko Gurashi characters! The rice balls that the Sumikko Gurashi characters are holding are tiny. I take my hat off to Mami-okusama’s dedicated heart, shaping each one and wrapping them with nori. The vegan picnic by the Sumikko Gurashi characters looks so fun too! ✨ I heard that Mei-sama, the eldest daughter of Masaaki-sama and Mami-okusama, said that this bento packed full of Mami-okusama’s love and featuring her beloved Summiko Gurashi characters was “so cute and absolutely delicious.” And even her friends’ eyes turned into hearts as they exclaimed, “So cute~🩷” 【Bento Menu】＊30 percent polished rice cooked in a clay pot (200g) 🍚Shirokuma, a character from Sumikko Gurashi, was designed using rice and nori seaweed. Each character is holding a mini mini rice ball. The empty spaces in the bento box were also packed with rice.＊Lotus root with nori flakes (recently posted on Instagram)＊Simmered hijiki seaweedSimmered hijiki, carrot, and Chinese cabbage. To finish, freshly roasted sesame seeds were ground and sprinkled on top.＊Steamed sweet potatoI mashed steamed sweet potatoes and rolled it into a ball, and designed it as Ebi Furai no Shippo, a character that appears in Sumikko Gurashi. It has a comforting taste that brings out the natural sweetness of the ingredients. I also used freshly roasted black sesame seeds and nori.＊Sweet potato kinpira (stir-fry with soy sauce and mirin)I made kinpira with sweet potato, while being mindful of giving it a toasty aroma. I mashed and rolled it to design Tonkatsu, a character that appears in Sumikko Gurashi. I also used freshly roasted black sesame seeds and nori.＊Flower DecorationsMade with boiled carrots, daikon radish, and komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach). The Sumikko Gurashi characters are so comforting~🩷 Mami-okusama’s super cute vegan bento, no. 13Likes, saves, and shares are most welcome✨ ---About Mami-okusama (Mami Okada)She was born in Aichi Prefecture and grew up in a farming household. She is also known as “Japan’s vegan beauty.” During her studies at University of Tsukuba, she became actively involved in volunteer activities such as refugee support. She was also repeatedly asked to participate in the “Miss Tsukuba” contest and was approached by many modeling agencies, but she declined all of these offers as she wanted to focus on refugee support activities. In recognition of her efforts in refugee support, she received the “University of Tsukuba President’s Award” in 2012. She holds a license to teach English to intermediate and high school students. After graduating from university, she began working for World Church of Messiah in 2013. In 2014, she married Masaaki Okada (Masaaki-sama), the great-grandson of the founder of World Church of Messiah, Mokichi Okada (Meishu-sama 1882-1955), and the representative and successor of Kyoshu-sama. Currently, while raising three children, she is single-mindedly walking the path of God, including working more energetically unlike anyone else on the Sacred Word of the founder, “In the world of Miroku, humanity will follow a vegan diet,” which was resurrected in our day by Masaaki-sama. She currently resides in Atami City.