My wife suggested we go mountain vegetable picking in Hirugano Kogen.

Not something I had planned.

But I went.

I didn’t know what to expect.

Only that I was curious.

What would we find?

How do you even recognize what you can eat?

A local guide showed us.

At first, I couldn’t see anything.

Then slowly, it changed.

He pointed things out.

Small differences.

Shapes.

Leaves.

And suddenly, it became obvious.

It was all there.

Easy to miss.

Easy to overlook.

We learned when to pick them.

And when not to.

They appear.

Then disappear again.

If you don’t know the timing, you don’t see them at all.

Without the guide, we would have walked past everything.

It was always there.