When I committed to participating in the 11th Annual Exhibition of Asaka Sensei and his Students' Works, I was feeling a lot of uncertainty. I wasn't sure whether I could finish anything in time, or that was worthy enough for showing.

I studied moku-hanga (Japanese woodblock printmaking) when I did my Printmaking degree, but I have genuinely felt like a beginner all over again. Everything about the process of traditional moku-hanga is different aside from exposure to some of the tools and handmade Japanese papers. Even the method of holding the tools, and handling the paper, is different.

I have also never shown my work in Japan before, and it has been a fairly long time since I've shown work in America.

The first block I was working on for the exhibition broke. It was probably from the dry winter climate and faulty glue used during the production of making the cherry wood block.

While the broken block was under attempted repair by Asaka Sensei and one of his apprentices, I started drawing the design for the "Seaside White Wagtails" print on February 21st. This was less than a month away from the exhibition.

The next day I was preparing the first block for carving. The Sunday before the opening day of the exhibition, I was framing the final print. I designed business cards while on the train in Adobe Illustrator on my iPad, and printed them at a convenience store. Everything was ready the evening before opening day.

I couldn't believe the next day I would be showing a moku-hanga print in Japan that was carved and printed by traditional methods and learned by a master carver. I've been in Japan for approximately 4 1/2 years and it still doesn't feel real at times to be in my dream that began in college.

The next day, Asaka Sensei and many of the students arrived at 9:30 in the morning so we could all prepare the gallery for the opening in the afternoon. After everything was prepared, we were requested to vote for our top 5 favorites, so Asaka Sensei could put up the awards next to the winning works.

All was finished, and I continued on with my work in the gallery. I didn't look at my print yet when the awards were pinned up. That is how much I didn't expect to win anything for a first attempt at traditional moku-hanga.

It wasn't until I was walking towards the drink area for some tea, that I noticed the yellow tag next to my art. I must have looked 5 times, I was so surprised, and so happy. I was given the saku-hīn「作品」award, which can be translated as "honorable mention".

More importantly though, was the learning experience of finishing a traditional moku-hanga print for the first time. The sense I was able to gain of the process was substantial, even if it didn't turn out as I had hoped.

The color blocks (grey tones) didn't line up quite right because I used cherry wood for the "keyblock" and a softer, less expensive wood called Shina for the color blocks. Some of my lines also turned out a little thicker than the original drawing.

In addition, I gained considerable valued experience from participating, and volunteering in, my first exhibition in Japan. I was able to talk to other carvers and printmakers, people traveling from other countries, and many local visitors from Japan.

On the closing day of the exhibition, I went home and almost immediately started practicing with new brushes and handmade Japanese Gampi papers that I bought, despite my exhaustion from the busy week. I wanted to get back to carving as soon as possible. I was fueled by a week of inspiration and reflection on all that I learned and experienced.