The Japanese Monastary

Ronald Fujikawa was on a plane from Walla Walla, Washington to Hong Kong for a business trip, but the plane ran low of fuel partway there, so they had to land in Tokyo, Japan. As the crew was refueling the plane, it was discovered that there were other mechanical problems to be addressed. Thus, the flight out of Japan was delayed for 12 hours. Ronald, though upset by the setback, decided it would be a better idea to spend this time doing fun stuff. So, he goes to the information desk in the airport, and the girl there says cheerfully, «こんにちは！どのようなご用件でしょう？»

Ronald replies, «こんにちは！英語を話せますか？»

The girl says, «はい、そうですよ。»

He says, "Great! I was wondering, what's around here that's interesting?"

"I know one that's perfect! There's a mountain-climbing expedition on Mt. Fuji. You get to climb all the way to the top!"

"That is exciting! Still, I only have twelve hours until my flight leaves."

"Oh, too bad. Well, there is the Studio Ghibli Museum. It has all sorts of memorabilia from the movies, and it teaches about the history of the Studio and Hayao Miyazaki."

"Studio what now?"

"Oh, never mind… Anyway, I do know of this Buddhist monastery just half an hour out of Tokyo. It's absolutely gorgeous, and it has a lot of interesting history."

"Hey, that sounds pretty good! I'll do that!"

"Wonderful! I'll call you a cab. What's your name?"

"My name's Ronald Fujikawa."

"All right," she says, "We'll have that cab here soon."

"Great," Ronald says, «ありがとう。»

«をください、ミスター藤川、» she giggles.

With a polite bow, Ronald walks away to the airport entrance and waits for his taxi. Just a few minutes later, it pulls up right in front of him. Ronald can't help but notice (and mention) that the driver is Pakistani, to which the driver replies, "Some go to America to drive taxi, some go elsewhere to drive taxi. Is no big deal. So, you Ronald Fujikawa?"

"Yep, that's me."

"Alright, come aboard, friend!" He does so, and they're off.

About forty-five minutes later (what with city traffic and all), they arrive at the monastery. It's an absolutely beautiful sight: nestled in the mountainside with cherry blossoms and wisterias blooming all around; a small waterfall just behind the monastery that tumbles into a winding stream below; the soft grass layered with gold by the setting sun. Ronald is so captivated by the wonder of it all that the cabbie yells, "Hey, buddy!" Ronald, startled, responds, "Oh! What?" He hesitates for a second, then realizes, "Oh, right. The fare." Ronald hands him the money, and the cabbie leaves.

He meanders towards the monastery, taking in the view. He climbs the huge stone steps leading to the front entrance, when he's greeted by a monk, "Welcome. We are certainly glad to have a visitor."

Ronald, perplexed, asks, "Do you not have many guests?"

"Oh, we do. We are glad, nonetheless." Ronald smiles in admiration of their hospitality, and the monk says, "Come, this way." The monk leads him to a gigantic wooden door trimmed with gold. He calls out, "Bobo, come here, please!" Then, from around the corner comes a chimpanzee. "Bobo, would you kindly open the door for us?" Bobo walks over to the door, turns the handle, and pulls it open. "Thank you, Bobo."

As Ronald and the monk walk inside, Ronald asks, "Why did you need Bobo to open the door?" The monk replies,

"He's the monk-key."