08/27/2026
What a way to finish Japan.
Our final day became one we will remember for years.
We had the honor of spending time with Hakuhō — the 69th Yokozuna and the most successful champion in sumo history, with an incredible 45 top-division championships.
But today wasn’t really about records.
It was about discovering what lives behind sumo:
Shinto. Sumo. Sake.
Three worlds deeply connected through ceremony, purification, gratitude and respect.
Soon we will have the honor of sharing Hakuhō’s sake with our guests back home, and after today, We understand the story behind that bottle very differently.
Then we met renowned Japanese artist — 井上文太.
There is a wonderful legend surrounding Bunta:
Be careful what he paints for you… somehow it has a way of becoming true.
One of his paintings showed a dragon rising from Mount Fuji.
Then he gave me something personally:
A phoenix flying through the sky. 🔥
For centuries, the phoenix has represented rebirth, renewal and rising again.
But when I looked at it, I saw something else.
Hiimori.
That inner strength rising again — the invisible force that reminds you who you are and somehow pushes you forward.
Earlier in our journey, my children used that same word while talking about animals and the freedom to be where they belong.
Now, on our final day, a phoenix brought the word back to me.
Maybe Bunta simply gave me a beautiful painting.
Or maybe, if the legend is true, he gave me something much bigger. 🗻🔥
Either way, I’ll take it.
What a beautiful way to close this journey.
We came to Japan to explore.
Instead, Japan kept teaching us — through its people, traditions, food, craftsmanship, kindness and incredible attention to everything it does.
And somehow we are leaving carrying a phoenix and a little more Hiimori than we arrived with.
Arigato, Japan. 🇯🇵
You always bring us up to the next level. 🙏
