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October 11, 2010

すっぽりと抜けた9月。すでに半ばの10月。この間ひたすら凡庸な（同時に多事多端な）日々を暮していた。様々なことが起こり、通り過ぎてゆき、取り返しのつかないことも臍を噛むこともあったが、忘却の彼方に沈むことを願いながらさらにも日々を暮している。楽しいこと、面白いことを書くのがいわゆるブログというものであるなら、ここはだいぶ違う。すでに開設してから13年が経とうとしているにもかかわらず、進化発展ということとは無縁で既に今時の洒落たサイトと比べたら全く古色蒼然を自覚している。文体からして、御覧の通り。だが、ささやかに自己との対話の窓口を開けてておくことで私は自分を保っている。怒ったり嘆いたりする代わりに、自分に向けて私は書く。だから、時々意味不明の短信となり、ご迷惑なことでご容赦願います。本日の更新は表紙の写真（神奈川県相模湖）とこのページの写真（同所）です。昔遠足で行って以来の湖。なんとも鄙びた行楽地である。それがたいへん魅力的で嬉しかった。また少しずつ書きます。もし覚えていたら、訪ねてみてください。KK

September has gone and we're already in the middle of October. During this period of time, I've been living my humble and busy days. Various things have happened, passed, and I've been repentant of my folly quite often: I hope all the shameful deeds (!) will be sunk in the sea of oblivion. If a blog is where you're supposed to write something funny, interesting, and amusing, this page is not the one. 13 years have already passed since I started this website but surprisingly it has not changed or developed as all other fashionable ones have. My writing style is almost archaic. But I keep my sense of mental balance by writing things here. Instead of getting angry or mourn, I write to myself. Thus my notes here may be very ambiguous. Sorry for my nonsmooth phrasing. Today's update: The photo in the index page (Lake Sagami in Kanagawa Prefecture) and another here in this page (the same). Since I went there in my childhood for a school excursion, I've never seen it for half a century. It's such a lonely and vulgar resort. I like it better now. I'll go on writing again. Thanks again for remembering me.

信じられないくらい、今日も何もしなかった。いよいよ休暇が終わり、課題の山は手つかずで、直に授業再開というのに、だ。これは毎年繰り返されるパターン。物心ついて以来、一向改善される気配がない。どうやって毎年この呆れた怠惰を続けて生き延びてこられたのだろうと不思議で仕方がない。「やるべきことリスト」は作る。15項目くらいが目白押しだ。だが、優先順位を示す番号がまったく機能しない。そしてズルズルと月日は過ぎていく。昨日休暇が始まったばかりだったらよいのに--これも毎年の感慨。そしてラストスパートをかける。死にものぐるいの一週間ほどを過ごし、気が付けば日常業務でがんじがらめの日々の中にいる。こんなはずではなかった。休暇をきっかけに状況を改善するはずだった。けれど、休暇中ののんびりした感じは悪くなかった。特に何をしたわけでもないのだが、ゆったりした。それが永続するものではないことを思い出すのが今だというだけのことかもしれない。海へ山へ海外へと出かける人々を羨んでも仕方ない。とりあえず命のある今日に感謝しよう。熱暑の中にもささやかな喜びはいくらでもあったはず。さて再開。本日の更新は短信のみにて。

Surprisingly I spent a day doing nothing particular again. At the end of the holiday, right before classes start, I'm I front of a huge pile of "assignments" untouched yet. This is the fixed pattern that I've been repeating since my school year started. There has been no improvement. I wonder how I could have survived in such an amazing laziness. I usually make a To-Do-List. There are usually 15 items But the priority system doesn't work at all. Only time passes loosely. I wish my holiday had started only yesterday! (This is also the illusion I have every year at this time of the season.) Then suddenly I put out a last spurt. In one desperate week, I do a lot of work all at once and then realize I'm involved in the middle of routine works. It shouldn't be like this! I should have improved the situation during this holiday! Alas, it's too late again. Anyway, I liked the slowness and the laziness I enjoyed in summer. I only know this luxurious negligence won't last forever. It's time to remember the fact. All right, it's no use envying those who go to mountains, beaches, abroad, wherever. let me just thank for being alive today. In spite of the unbelievable heat of this summer, I found various smallest joys in my life. Today's update: this note only.

向日葵畑へ行った。約24000平方メートルの農地にびっしりと咲く10万本以上の向日葵の花。東京都内では農業生産地として名高い清瀬市である。昨年行ったのは台風の後で、大方の花が倒れていた。今年は最盛期だったもよう。向日葵は丈高く、色鮮やかに人を見下ろす。植物の生命力に人は気圧される。じりじりと照りつける陽と青空が似合う花。だが、どこか悲しいような気分にもなる。思っていたより晩夏の花だからか。項垂れる様が無惨だからか。この夏は酷暑に過ぎる。とりわけ高齢者には辛い。熱中症の危険は我が家をもかすめていった。出かけたいのは山々だが、願いむなしく夏はゆく。せめてひととき向日葵の狂乱に我を忘れたい。本日の更新は表紙の写真とこのページの写真です。いずれも清瀬市清戸の向日葵畑にて。ご訪問に深謝です。

There is a huge field of sunflowers in Kiyose City, Tokyo. More than 100,000 sunflowers are growing in the land of 24000 square miles. Kiyose is famous for its high productivity in agriculture in Tokyo District. When I visited the filed last year right after a typhoon, most of the sunflowers were fallen down. This year they seem to be in full bloom. Sunflowers are tall and vivid in colors; they look down on us. We human beings are overwhelmed by the vitality of the plant. Sunflowers look very attractive under the sun against the deep blue sky in summer. But they make us feel sad somehow. Is it because they remind us of the summer ending soon, or the withered flowers are bending in misery? Anyway, it is terribly hot this summer. It's too hard especially for the aged. We nearly experienced the crisis of heat stroke. I wish I could go out but it seems to be impossible unfortunately. (Alas!) Oh, let me leave my duties for a while in the middle of sunflowers! Today's update: a photo in the index page and the one here above. Both were taken in Kiyose. Thanks so much for your visit to this website.

表紙に掲載した「東京スカイツリー」の写真は車窓から撮影した。最終的には634mの高さになるというタワー、これからまだまだ伸びる。その存在はもちろん意識の片隅にいつもあったが、敢えて見物に出かけることはなかった。ただ、あちこちで観察されるという話題が相次ぎ、そろそろ気になり始めていた。ある晴れた日に、千葉県流山の勤務先、建物の七階からふと窓の外を見ると「あ、もしかするとあれは」と思うものが見えた。同僚に確かめるととまさしく、「あれが東京スカイツリーですよ」とのこと。筑波山からだって見えるのだから流山から見えるのは当然か。その日午後から本郷で会議があり、別の同僚の運転する車で都心へ向かった。夏の最初の日とも言うべき晴天にくっきりと映えるスカイツリー。浅草に近く、東武電車の高架線脇、十間川の畔にさしかかったところで信号待ちに。思わず窓を開けてシャッターを切った。スカイツリーが建つ押上駅界隈は、私の生まれ故郷だ。東京タワーに比べると役立たずの木偶の坊のような言われ方をしているらしいが、あの土地にそんな途方もないものが建つなんて。祖母や叔父・叔母が生きていたらなんと言っただろう。今度は自分で歩いていってみよう。下町の鉄塔。なんだか少し場違いな感じが面白い。本日の更新は短信のみにて。熱暑は続く。

I took the photo in the index page from a car. The tower will be up to 634 meters in the end, which means it will grow higher and higher from now on. I've known the existence of the tower but I've never been particularly very curious so far. Only recently, the tower is said to be observed from various places and so I started paying attention to it somehow. One sunny day in Nagareyama, Chiba, I was looking out of a window on the 7th floor of the building in our campus. I felt I saw an unfamiliar object in a distance. I wondered if it was Tokyo Sky Tree, and asked one of my colleagues standing nearby and the answer was positive. Ah! In the afternoon of the day, we drove to Hongo, Tokyo. When the car stopped by a signal, I made use of the chance to take the photo. They say it won't be very useful; at least not so useful as Tokyo Tower. Actually Tokyo Sky Tree is being built in front of Oshiage Station of Tobu Railway, That's the area where I was born. i wonder what my grandmother, uncle and aunt would have said if they had been alive now. The huge tower is in a downtown. It sounds a little out of place but interesting. I will keep watching it! Today's update: this note only. Day after day, it has been extremely hot.

梅雨明けとともに一気に真夏到来。そして連日の熱暑。まだまだ「夏休み」と呼べるほど安閑とはしていられないが、しばし授業が休止するだけでもありがたい。どうして年々忙しさが募るのか不思議だ。これは年齢的なものなのだろうか、それとも時勢が影響しているのか。頭や心の中ではいつも「短信更新」を書いているつもりでいる。しかし現実には遠ざかるばかり。ブログや各種SNS、そしてtwitterと益々ネットワーク上での発言に積極的になる人々が増えている。私もよくそういうページを閲覧するのだけれども、自分の言葉をタイプすることには消極的になっている。オンラインコミュニケーションに対するかつての情熱が失せたのだろうか。いや、それより身辺で生起する細々とした出来事が余りに多岐にわたり、自分だけの時空を確保するのが難しくなっているのだ。嘆けども、足掻けども、というところ。しかし、同じ状況が永遠に続くわけではない、何事においても。きっとまた変化は訪れる。本日の更新は、表紙の写真（東京スカイツリーを見た！）と、このページの写真（虫取撫子）です。昼間、アブラゼミが鳴き始めた。いよいよ盛夏。待っていました！

As soon as the rainy season ceased to be, the real summer has started! Every day, the brazing sun shines. I'm not yet enjoying summer holiday, but it's relaxing to have no classes at least. I wonder why I'm getting to be busier and busier year by year.. Is it for my age, or for the change of the world's situation? In my mind, I'm always writing "the Latest Notes," but in fact I'm getting further from this page against my will. It seems more and more people are eager to express themselves online via blogs, SNS, and of course by twitter. I like browsing them; however, I can't write by myself. Does it mean I've lost the passion for communication on the web? No, not that. Rather I am defeated by the detailed requirements in my daily life. It's quite difficult for me to have time and space of my own. It's no use crying or complaining over such a busy life. I know the same situation won't last for ever. I'm sure changes will come someday for sure. Today's update: the photo in the index page (Tokyo Skytree under construction) and the photo here in this page (Silene armeri). I heard a cicada started singing this afternoon. Finally it's midsummer! Welcome, I've been waiting for it!

このページを今月は僅か二度しか更新できなかった。Joy Kogawa 講演会から既に二週間近く過ぎた。彼女の作品を集中的に読んだことは貴重な経験となった。講演会当日はタクシーで宿舎へお迎えに行くところから始まって、彼女のアテンドと会の総合司会を勤めることで身近に作家の謦咳に接することが出来た。「自伝的小説」と作者の実人生を混同してはならないと百も承知であったはずなのに、道々ご本人にむかっていろいろなことを尋ねてしまった。彼女は時に笑いながら、率直に応えてくれた。Joy Koawaは語るべきことだけを穏やかに、簡潔に表現する。講演会は、会場からの質問を軸に展開するトークセッションに近いものとなった。交わされる密度の高い言葉に参会者は聴き入っていた。私はカナダ文学を専門にしている訳でも、日系カナダ人の歴史を学んでいる訳でもないけれど、カナダについて認識を深めることとなった。Joy Kogawaから手渡されたものは豊かに重い。言うなれば「愛と信頼」という贈り物。。本日の更新は表紙の写真（東京都東村山市北山公園菖蒲田）とこのページの写真（同所にて、花菖蒲）です。梅雨の精華。ご訪問に感謝いたします。

To my regret I updated this web page only twice this month, alas! Two weeks have already passed since the day of Ms Joy Kogawa's lecture. It was a great experience3 for me to read her works which I could collect at this moment. I went to pick her up by taxi, and so had a chance to talk to her on the way to our campus in Hongo. Although I had known I should never mix up her novels and her real life, I asked her so many questions, to which she responded to me quietly and frankly with sense of humor. The talk session turned out to be very interactive with the audience. She welcomed questions and the audience was listening to her so attentively. Actually I'm not a specialist in Canadian literature nor the history of Canadian Japanese, I learned a lot from the day's experience. It's as if I received a rich and heavy present from her. It could be named "love and trust." Today's update: the photo in the index page (the iris field in full bloom, Kitayama Park, Higashimurayama, TOKYO) and the photo above (Iris ensata in Kitayama Park). It's a gift from the Japanese rainy season. Thanks for your visit to this website!

夏日が訪れるようになった。寸暇を捉えて多摩湖へ。天と地と水の接する所、広い湖面を風が渡る。ここまで来ると命が蘇る。飲料水の貯水池であるため、船も浮かんでいないし魚の姿もない。人はただ水を眺めることが出来るだけ。見慣れた風景でも散策する人々は寡黙に水や木々と向かい合っている。丘陵の森の中を行けばホトトギスが良い声で鳴いている。もっと早く来るんだったといつも思う。もっと遠くへ、もっと高くへ、海の見える所へと欲を言えばきりがない。いつか、いつかと自分をなだめ、今読んでいる本はJoy KogawaのITSUKA。OBASANに劣らず鋭く美しい。講演会のポスターが出来た。本日の更新は表紙の写真（多摩湖）とこのページの写真（アカツメクサ--多摩湖畔にて）です。いつかは今だと呟きながら。（今回カメラは新しい一眼レフです。今までと違うでしょうか。）

Summer days have come at last! I went out to Lake Tama in my brief spare time. It's the place where the sky, the earth and the water meet. The wind blows over the lake. Life starts to stir in me. Because it's the lake for drinking water, no boats nor fish can be seen anywhere; however, people seem to be contented with the sight. We're wordless watching the water and trees. Walking in the woods of Sayama Hills, we can hear little cuckoo chirping. I always feel I should have come here much earlier! I wish to go further, higher, and to the seaside, but how can I desire so much? Someday, someday, I persuade myself. Now I'm reading Joy Kogawa's ITSUKA (literally meaning "someday.") after OBASAN. It's another sincere and beautiful story of Japanese Canadian during the war time. We uploaded the announcement of her lecture. Today's update; the photo in the index page (Lake Tama) and the one here in this page (Trifolium pratense). Someday is now, I say to myself. (I took the photos with my new digital Olympus Pen. Is there any difference?)

美しかるべき５月ながら雨模様・曇りの日が多く、今日も肌寒い。ここ二週間ほど細切れの時間を繋いで読み続けている本がある。日系カナダ人作家、Joy Kogawa著OBASAN だ。題名だけ聞くと「オバサン？なんだか怖そう。遠慮しとくわ」と言われそうだけれど、実際は全く違う。第二次世界大戦時、カナダの日系人はカナダ政府によって強制収容された。一世の親や叔父叔母と共に故郷バンクーバーを追われて内陸部の荒野に移住させられたJoyは未だ小学生だった。その体験はNaomiという少女の目から見た世界として小説に結実する。Naomi とその兄を親代わりに守り育てた寡黙な叔母を、主人公は"OBASAN"と呼ぶ。個人の名ではなく"OBASAN"であるところが、親類同士助け合ってようよう生き延びることの出来た時代をよく表している。読み進むうち、この言葉の響きが懐かしいものであることを思い出した。私にも個人名ではなく「おばちゃん」以外に呼びようのない叔母がいた。（永代橋近くの寂しい老人病院で生涯を終えたあの叔母のことをいつか書いてみたい。）Joy Kogawa は詩人でもある。小説は感傷に陥ることなく、生活を根こそぎにされた人々のことを広大なカナダの大地を背景に豊かに描く。文体は詩のように律動と鮮明なイメージを内包している。過酷な経験を描きながらも読む喜びを感じさせる文章である。OBASAN を読み終えたら、続編となるITSUKA が待っている。間もなく来日するJoy Kogawa氏の講演会を企画した。直接話を聞くのが楽しみだ。本日の更新は表紙の写真（本郷一丁目三河神社の祭礼で路地裏を行く御輿）とこのページの写真（我が庭のクレマチス）です。母は６月半ばに退院する。今度は自立した生活に戻るための支援が必要となる。

May should be beautiful but we've been having rainy days and cloudy days. Fro these two weeks, I've been reading a book entitled OBASAN. This Japanese word usually reminds us of a tough, arrogant, shameless middle-aged woman. The novel is far away from our fixed ideas. This novel is written by a Japanese Canadian, Joy Kogawa. It is not widely known that Japanese Canadians were mandatorily evacuated from where they had been by the Canadian government during the World War II. Joy was only 6 when her family and relatives were uprooted from Vancouver and forced to live in the wilderness in the midland. In the novel, this experience is depicted through the memory of a girl Naomi. OBASAN protected and took care of her in the place of her lost mother. The quiet woman is called not by her proper name but by the blunt title; however, "obasan" reminds us of a nostalgic nuance of someone special in our life. Actually I remember only one aunt with "obachan," a downtown version of "obasan." "Obachan" died in a bleak hospital near the River Sumida. (Someday I'd really like to write about her.) Joy Kogawa is a poet, too. Her style is quiet and poetic, full of the rhythmical flow of sentences and rich imageries. In spite of the severe circumstances described, the novel gives us the joy of reading. After OBASAN, its sequel ITSUKA, is waiting. Joy Kogawa is visiting Japan very soon. We're planning to invite her to our college. I'm very much looking forward to meet her and listen to her talk firsthand. Today's update: a photo in the index page (At a festival of a shrine, people are hanging a portable shrine through back alleys in Hongo, Tokyo) and the one in this page (Clematis in my garden). My mother is coming out of the hospital eventually in the middle of June. We need to support her to live independently.

ゴールデンウィークは疾風のように去っていった。雪の４月から一気に真夏日へ。いろいろなことが一度に押し寄せ、ここで反芻する間もなかった。相変わらずどこへも行かない。でも今は仕方ない。内なる冒険はいろいろある。そのうち書けるだろう。骨折し、手術し、リハビリ病院へ転院した母は、ようやく二足歩行できるまで回復してきた。弟夫婦が物心両面で帰宅後に備えてくれている。（退院まではまだまだ遠い道のり。）義母は買い物介助のヘルパーさんと三回歩いただけでギブアップ。今度は訪問リハビリに切り替えて、歩行訓練を始める。昨日は若く逞しい理学療法士さんに支えられて足踏みをした。出来ないことを悔やむより出来ることを大切にと。何処でも若い人たちの力が高齢者を支える。どんな入り口からでも未知の世界へ踏み出すきっかけはあるものだ。本日の更新は表紙の写真（我が門前に咲く初夏の花--スズランとミヤコワスレ）とこのページの写真（オブジェ--新カメラに初めて触って試し撮り）です。さて、一眼レフで野外の風景を撮れるのはいつのことだろう。

The Golden Week has passed so quickly! The weather changed from snowy April to early summer immediately. So many things have happened to my life all at once: I had no time or energy to reflect on them, nor write about them here. I've never been anywhere particularly as usual. It can't be helped for now. Yet, I've been traveling inwardly and been active spiritually. Soon I believe I'll be able to write about things little by little. BTW my mother, who broke her thigh bone and got an operation, is getting better gradually in a hospital for rehabilitation. Now she can walk on her own feet. My brother and his wife have been helpful; they're preparing for her to come back home. (It will take one more month at the earliest.) My mother-in-law went out with a helper three times and then gave up the shopping support. Now she will switch to challenge getting the rehabilitation for walking at home. Yesterday, she was happy to be held by a young physical therapist when she was told to tap her feet on the floor. He told her not to repent her lost functions, but to evaluate what she still has. I adore these young therapists and nurses who help the elder. I'm quite impressed with the fact that I can go into a new world from any entrance open to me. Today's update: the photo in the index page (early summer flowers: Convallaria majalis and Gymnaster savatiererii both in a flowerbed in front of our gate), and the one up in this page (objects: I tried to take them by my new camera just for fun).　I wonder when I can go out with my digital Olympus Pen

昨夜は41年ぶりで関東地方に4月中旬の雪が降った。帰路自転車のハンドルを握る手が凍え、ただならぬものを感じていたのだが。一夜明けると雪景色。だが春の雪は儚い。昼頃には青空が広がった。こらえきれずに野原へ。柳瀬川の畔、清瀬市の「金山緑地、金山調整池」あたりへ出かけた。ここのところの雨雪で川は増水し、瀬音を立てて流れていた。既に桜は散り、新緑の気配が漲る。雑事は忘れて、川辺を、池の畔をぶらぶらした。宅地と農地と柳瀬川の作るささやかな渓谷が広々とした空の元、日頃の喧噪を忘れさせてくれる。のびのびした。たったこれだけの散策をするのに、どれほど待ったことか。また、外に出よう！本日の更新は表紙の写真（東京都清瀬市金山緑地）とこのページの写真（同所にて「アカメヤナギ」の若葉）です。それにしても41年前というのは1969年だ。私は高校2年生。社会が騒然とし、学生たちが激しく社会にもの申していたあの頃。はるけくも。

Last night we had the mid-April snowfall in 41 years in Kanto District. On my way home from a railway station, my hands got frozen on a bicycle. We found Tokyo coverd with snow in the morning! But the spring snow melted very quickly. It was clear in the afternoon. I was impatient to go out into the filed. My husband and I drove to Kanayama Area in Kiyose City. There is a park rich with greenery and "regulation ponds." The River Yanase is running along them. Thanks to the recent rain and snow, the river was full of water. We could hear the cheerful sound of the stream as we approached the river. The cherry blossoms have already fallen and the fresh green leaves were starting to grow. I forgot all my work and enjoyed being outdoors. The landscape with faraway houses, farmland, the river and the hills surrounding them under the huge sky was so refreshing. How long had I waited just to get such a moment! Let me go out again very soon! Today's update: a photo in the index page (Kanayama Greenery Area in Kiyose, Tokyo) and the one here (Salix　chaenomeloides). BTW, 41 years ago, in 1969, I was a high school student. The world was turbulent with students acting against the establishment. Time has passed since that day.

例年のことながら新学期の始まりは「超絶多忙ウィーク」となる。授業以前の諸々のことが怒濤のように押し寄せてきて、私のような迂闊なものはただアップアップしてしまう。とかくするうちにキャンパスの桜も散り始め、新緑が芽吹いているのに気付く。ここからは猛烈な勢いで百花繚乱となり自然は命の饗宴を繰り広げる。ああ野に出てみたい、海を見に行きたい、山に登ってみたい、いっそどこでもいいから汽車に乗って遠くへ行ってみたいとウズウズしてくる。誰か他の人の写真を見て指をくわえているだけなんて、情けない。実は一眼レフのデジカメを手に入れたのだ。ずっと欲しかった。カメラを持ってどこかへ行くのが目下最大の夢。他に欲しいものなど（今は）他に何もない。本日の更新は短信のみにて。

As usual I spent extremely busy weeks at the beginning of a new semester. I have been overwhelmed by the big waves of jobs prior to teaching in classes. I was nearly drowned. Meanwhile, the cherry blossoms were starting to be blown away. I suddenly realize the tiny leaves are coming out over branches. Look at trees! They are covered with thin green veils. Flowers of all kinds are going to compete with each other for their beauty. It's the season of the feast of life. How I wish to go out, into the filed, to watch the ocean, to climb the mountains, and anywhere by train! I can hardly stand any more satisfying myself just by watching photos of other people. Finally I got a new digital single-lens reflex camera, which I had wanted for a long time. My biggest dream is to go somewhere with my new camera. That's the only dream for the moment. Today's update: this note only.

桜が咲いたら何をおいても見に行かねばなるまい。僅か数日の満開。子供心に聞きかじった最初の歌が「明日ありと思う心のあだ桜夜半に嵐の吹かぬものかは」。これは随分脅迫的だった。本物の桜時より、何かをずるけようとしている私に背後から投げかけられる最も怖ろしい言葉だったかも知れない。来てみれば、桜の花より花見客の多さに圧倒される。この界隈だと小金井公園の桜の園が凄い。花も人も。花の香りより売店から漂うソースの香ばしい香りあたりに満ちて。押すな押すなの行列。それを横目で見ながらやはり花に酔う。古木が多いので枝振りは見事だ。いつも花冷えが厳しい。震えながら桜色に染まる。この恍惚は生涯続くのだろうか。本日の更新は表紙の写真とこのページの写真です。いずれも東京都武蔵野市小金井公園にて。花を見たその足で母を見舞った。

When the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, you've got to go and see them by all means as long as you live in Japan. The glorious time lasts only for a few days. The first poetic lines I learned in my childhood were "Cherry blossoms won't wait for you/ Don't think you'll have tomorrow/ Who can predict a night storm?" (- literary translation) The lines were so threatening especially when I was lazy and was going to postpone my duties. When you go to see cherry blossoms, you are sure to be overwhelmed more by numerous people than by blossoms. In our area, Koganei Park is one of the spots for watchers. Scents of cherry blossoms are beaten by the smell of sauces coming from stalls. People are making lines for food. Anyway, cherry blossoms are so gorgeous that you get easily intoxicated by flowers. There are wonderful old trees in Koganei Park. You're knocked down by the marvelous boughs and branches which are the natural art! In this season, the air is still very cold. You'll get frozen and colored pale pink while watching blossoms. I wonder if this blossom-craze will last for life. Today's update: photos in the index page and here in this page. Both were taken in Koganei Park, Musashino City, Tokyo. After watching cherry blossoms, I visited my mother in a hospital.

３０年というのは長いのか、一瞬の間なのか。２人の母を前にして、ある感慨に打たれる。１人は実母、もう１人は義母。私は実母の元を離れて直ぐに義母と暮らすようになった。いつの間にか義母との暮らしの方が長くなっている。怪我をして以来実母とも毎週何度も病院で会うようになったが、それまでの30年間、せいぜい一月に一度会えればよい方だった。しかも一度に過ごすのは数時間程度。それでも会えば通じ合うものが流れる。今、義母は私を必要としている。母は義妹を必要としている。何の因果か巡り会った縁というものによって結び合わされ、それぞれが支え合う。母は私の祖母を支えた。順繰りに、鎖のように、知らぬ他人だった女同士が面倒を見合う。次の世代では義理の親子ならずとも、やはり知らぬ同士の女たちが支え合うのだろうか。もちろん、男と女も支え合う。いずれもどのような星の巡りか、出会いの不思議に打たれている。本日の更新は表紙の写真（水温む川辺）とこのページの写真（ヒュウガミズキ）です。僅かな僅かな春休み。

Are 30 years long or just a moment in our life? I'm quite impressed with two mothers: one is my mother and another is my husband's mother. Right after I left my mother, I started living with my mother-in-law. To my surprise, I've been living with the latter longer than with the former. Since she broke her thigh bone, I meet my mother a few times every week, but before she had this injury, I had met her only for a few hours once a month at most. Thanks, we had something to share anytime we met though. By the way, my mother-in-law needs me and my mother needs my sister-in-law. I remember well how my mother was helping her mother-in-law, my grandmother. By some miraculous chance, we happen to encounter with each other. Should it be called "destiny"? People are connected like in a chain. Women of different generations are helping each other. From now on women of no in-laws will help. Oh, certainly men and women help each other too. We live with the mystery of encounters! Today's update: photos; one in the index page (a stream in spring) and the one here (pale yellow Corylopsis pauciflora). I'm in a momentary spring break.

長いこと散歩に出る機会がなかった。どうしてこんな忙しいサイクルに嵌ってしまったのだろうと、我ながら信じられない思いでいた。その忙しさがピークに来て、「ああ、このままだと何かが壊れる」と思ったとたん、義母が体調を崩し一騒動。そのおかげ（？）で私は仕事を休んだ。幸いなことにおよそ半日で義母は回復し、ほっと一息。そのまま遅刻すれば職場に行けたのだけれど、今度はこちらの体が言うことを聞かなかった。そして、夕刻散歩に出た。本当にささやかな散歩だったが、何かが蘇ってきた。あのまま突っ走っていたら何かを失っていただろう。いずれも目に見えるものではないけれど。本日の更新は短信のみにて。ミツマタとジンチョウゲが生け垣に香る。春だ。

For a long time I didn't have the chance to take a walk. I was wondering why I was stuck in such a busy cycle. I couldn't believe the hectic schedule myself. (Someone said I made it by myself.) When the busyness culminated, I felt something would go wrong. In fact, my mother-in-law fell sick abruptly last night. We're worried so much. Due to the emergency, I was obliged to take a day off today. Fortunately, however, she got well in half a day. If I tried, I could have been to my workplace a little late but I didn't; my body stopped me. Eventually, I got a chance to take a walk in my neighborhood. It was a very short walk, but I was happy. I felt something was revived in me. If I hadn't stopped, something worse might have happened. These were all invisible things. Today's update: this note only. Flowers like jinchoge (Daphne odora) and mitsumata (Edgeworthia papyrifera) smelled along the planting fence. It's spring!

毎晩義母の入浴に付き合う。几帳面な義母は決まった時間に決まった手順で丹念に体を洗い、私は背後に控えていて、所々で手を貸す。背中だけは毎回私が洗う。義母が一人で湯船につかっている10分間、私は風呂場の外に出て新聞を立ち読みする。入浴後、義母がゆっくり着替えを済ますと、私たちは炬燵に入って一杯ずつオレンジジュースを飲む。「あぁ美味しい。これが一番だわ」という言葉も毎度同じ。一方病院のベッドに身の回りの品をごちゃごちゃ並べ、「獺祭書屋主人のようでしょ。ダッサイっていうのはカワウソのこと。子規の雅号よ。カワウソは獲物をいっぱい並べるんですって。子規は寝床の周りにいっぱい本や書き物を並べていたからそんな雅号を名乗ったそうよ。」と笑っている母。どちらも浮世離れしていて、忙しがるばかりの私を諫めているんだか休ませてくれているんだか。いずれにせよ、（義）母たちの周りは長閑である。本日の更新は表紙の写真（バンザイする庭のクロッカス）とこのページの写真（門前の一輪のバラ）です。遠出は出来ず、広い風景とも無縁の今日この頃。

I help with my mother-in-law take a bath every evening. She is very punctual in doing anything and she has her way. In the bathroom, I stand behind her, helping her when necessary. I wash her back every time. While she stays completely relaxed in the bathtub (for ten minutes) I go out of the bathroom and read a newspaper quickly. After the bath, she puts on clothes very slowly. When she's ready, we sit together having a glass of orange juice. She says, "How refreshing!" every time. On the other hand, my mother in a hospital puts her small belongings in a jumble around her pillow. She says, "Look, my bed is like a nest of an otter! You know, otters display their preys around them. A poet Shiki called himself Master Otter for his scattered bedroom!" Well, time passes differently around these old women. I stop my busy life when I spend time with them. Thanks. Today's update: photos in the index page and the one here in this page. Both are in my garden.

前記「緩やかな生活リズムの時期」が聞いて呆れる。人生は突然に場面展開するものらしい。義母の介護が加わって、随分暮らし方が変化したように思っていたが、甘かった。今度は実の母が大腿骨骨折という大怪我をし、明後日は手術と決まった。母は何気ない所作に躓き、自宅で動けなくなった。義妹がテキパキと救急車を呼んで入院させてくれた。しかし、つい数日前まで杖を突きながらどこへでも出かけていた母は、自分が重病人になってベッドにくくりつけられていることが納得できない。これは近未来の自分だと呟きながら、私は自宅と職場と病院という新たなポイントをくるくる回る。春が近いから遠くへ行きたいなんて、いつ見た夢だろう。本日の更新は短信のみにて。（颯爽とした新しいホームページを見つけた。山の彼方には何が見えるのだろう。）

Maybe I was just dreaming to write "I'm living in (comparatively) slow days," No, never! It seems scenes of life change so suddenly. I had a feeling that my life has changed quite a bit since I started taking care of my mother-in-law, but my impression was just superficial. My mother has got injured (fracture of the femur) and she will have an operation the day after tomorrow. She tripped at home. My sister-in-law very efficiently called the ambulance and Mother was brought to a hospital. She had been quite active only a few days before the accident so that she cannot accept this new situation as a bedridden patient. I am saying to myself, "She shows me my future." I've added a new point, the hospital, to my daily circuit of home and the workplace united by trains. How optimistic I was to dream of going somewhere now that the spring is just around the corner! Today's update: this note only. (Recently I've found a fantastic new website on mountain hiking. I wonder what they can see beyond the mountains.)

早くも如月となり10日余り。既に立春、隣の紅梅は満開だ。うかうかと新年を過ごし、忙しがるうちに更新を怠っていた。学年末の多忙は今に始まったことではないが、殊に今年は内外ともに多事多端となっている。だが、そんなことはどうでも良い。ひとまず元気に暮らしている。遠くの友人たちに「そちらもお元気で？」と声をかけたい。待てば海路の日和とか。急がず焦らず、大らかに暮らして行けたらどんなに良いか。いくらかは緩やかな生活リズムの時期に入り、これからまたしばらくここでお目にかかれるかと。日常のあれこれを気の向くままに綴ります。本日の更新は表紙の写真（千葉県流山市から遠望する富士山）とこのページの写真（東京・渋谷駅コンコース内の岡本太郎作壁画「明日への神話」）です。ご訪問に感謝します。

Already more than 10 days have passed since the beginning of February. In our Japanese traditional calendar, it's already spring! I found the plum tree in the yard of our neighbor is in full bloom. All the branches of the tree are covered with lovely pink blossoms. While I was spending extremely busy days, sorry, I could hardly come to this page for update. Anyway, let me tell you I'm OK. I just want to ask my friends in distant places, "Hi! How are you doing?" I'll wait for spring in real world will arrive soon. How I wish I could live in peace! Now that I'm living in (comparatively) slow days, I will be able to come back to this page more often than in semesters. I'll scribble on my daily life here again. Today's update: the photo in the index page (Mt. Fuji viewed from Nagareyama, Chiba) and the photo in this page (The mural painting "Asu heno Shinnwa" --literally, "Myth for Tomorrow.") by Okamoto Taro in the concourse at Shibuya Station in Tokyo). Thank you for your visit!

ものを売る仕事をする方々とゆっくりお話しする機会があった。販売、接客というのが如何に幅広い知識と気遣いを要する業務なのか、ことばや振る舞いの端々に窺える。時には顧客の曖昧な態度を軌道修正し、ターゲットを直視させ、決断を促す強さも必要だ。長年その仕事に携わるプロは、売れるもの、適正価格、顧客の駆け引きなどが瞬時に分かるという。歩合制という仕事の厳しさから、若い大卒は居着かないこと、育てている側から辞めていくこと、商売する親御さんの苦労を見て育った若者はむしろ素早くよく動きベテランを凌ぐことさえあることなど、興味深い話を聞いた。就活に戸惑う若者たちに聞かせたい話だった。天下を回るおカネのことをもっとよく知らなくてはと背筋が伸びた。本日の更新は短信のみにて。

I had a chance to talk with sales persons. I observed how demanding it is for them to have wide range of knowlege over the items (big or small) they sell and

大寒というのに関東地方は小春日和。漸く外へ出られるようになった義母に付き添って、郵便局とマーケットへ。義母はシルバーカー（押し車）につかまり、ゆっくりゆっくり歩く。自転車に乗れば3分で着く郵便局まで、たっぷり30分かかった。マーケットでの買い物も、かごに義母の好みを聴きながら品物を入れる。最後は全部の荷物をリュックに背負って、再びもと来た道をゆっくりゆっくり帰る。それから昼ご飯の用意をし、夕方は入浴介助をし、夕飯を作り、一日が終わる。何でもない一日が、すぎていく。スローに、スローに。こういうことを書く時、日本語に主語は要らないような気がする。どちらがどちらに何かをするのではなく、渾然一体なのだもの。ここまで来るのに30年。本日の更新は短信のみにて。

In the coldest season of a year, today was exceptionally warm in Kanto District. I accompanied my mother-in-law to a post office and a market. She held the handles of her shopping cart tightly and walked very slowly. It took us half an hour to the post office (by bicycle, it won't take more than 3 minutes). At the market, I held a basket and threw in food she wanted,. Finally we came back with the shopping goods (in a sack on my back) again slowly, step by step literally. Everything is slow with her. It took me 30 years to walk abreast with her in peace. Today's update: this note only.

14年前に知り合ったデンマークの友人と再会した。かつては背のひょろりと高い独身青年だったが、今回は夫人を伴って来日した。２人とも真摯な学究だ。彼女はトルコの出身で、五歳の娘は母方の祖父母に託しての旅行。彼の職場はデンマーク、彼女はトルコで教えている。この家族は両国間を行き来しているのだが、娘はどちらのことばも自然に話すとのこと。「３人でいる時には何語で？」と尋ねたら、「ミックスです」という。この子は幼稚園で英語も習っている。ヨーロッパの常識なのかもしれないが、３カ国語くらいは当たり前。おそらく読み書きも含めれば、更に多くの言語を操るようになるのだろう。彼は村上春樹の『ノルウェイの森』をスウェーデン語で読んだと言っていた。肩肘張らぬ会食であっという間に夜が更けた。どんなに遠くにいても、会える時には会える不思議。本日の更新は短信のみにて。

We met with one of our old friends from Denmark again after 14 years. He was a tall skinny young man then but now looks quite matured; and accompanied his wife to Japan. Both of them are sincere academics. His wife is from Turkey. Their five-year daughter remained home with her grandparents. Usually the husband is working in Denmark, wife in Turkey. The family come and go between the two countries quite often. Their daughter speaks both languages fluently. I asked them which language they speak when three of them are together. They said, "mixture." The girl is learning English at the kindergarten. So at the age of five she speaks three languages somehow. This kind of lingual skill might not be so special in Europe, and many people might read more languages than three. In fact our Danish friend said he had read Murakami Haruki's Norwegian Wood in Swedish. Our casual dinner gave us the most pleasant occasion; time passed so quickly. It was a miraculous evening. People can meet again and again if we are lucky to get the chance. Today's update: this note only.

各地で豪雪の便りが聞かれるのに、関東平野は比較的穏やかな天候が続く。一昨日は自転車で八国山まで行き、峰伝いにしばらく歩いたあと所沢側に下りて、向かいの丘陵に分け入り鳩峰神社と久米水天宮を目指した。辺り一面宅地開発が進んでいるにもかかわらず、この辺りは「トトロの森」としてナショナル・トラストによって保護されている。「トトロの森」は1号地から6号地まで整備され、緩やかな散歩コースとなっている。空から見下ろしたら、おそらく住宅地の甍の波間に点在する島々のように見えることだろう。一度に数時間ずつでもこの貴重な緑地をくまなく歩き回ってみたいと思う。狭山丘陵は首都圏の外れに残る我らの財産だ。「里山」の存在を意識するようになって以来、もっと歩き回ってみたいと思いながらいつでも行けるような気がしていたけれど、今年こそは！「トトロの森2号地」でフィールドワーク中の首都大学東京の学生たちに出会った。次世代の自然観はきっと新しい。頼もしい。本日の更新は表紙の写真（鳩峰神社）とこのページの写真（同所）です。雑木林の四季折々の表情を記録できればと思う。

In spite of the heavy snow in many districts in Japan, it has been mostly sunny in The Kanto Plain. On Monday (it was a national holiday!) I went to Mt. Hachikoku by bicycle and started walking on the low mountain ridge. My destination was Hato-ga-mine Shrine and Kume-Suiten-gu. I went down the slope of Mt. Hachikoku and climbed into another forest in front of it. Although the surrounding are developed to become residential areas, miraculously there remain hills and bushes, which are reserved by the National Trust. They are called "Forests of Totoro," famous for Miyazaki Hayao's animation film. Looked down on from the sky, probably the forests may resemble islands in waves of crowded roofs of the houses around. They are our treasure. While walking, I met a group of students watching the forest. I hope the younger generation will be interested in preserving the precious nature. Since I became conscious of forests nearby, I've willing to walk around Sayama Hills more widely. I don't even have to take the train. This year, I'll go and walk there for sure. Let me report the nature and culture of the nearby forests in this website. Today's update: the photo in the index page (Hato-ga-mine Shrine) and the one here in this page (trees in the same place). Thanks, I feel so good!

「長期的展望」というのはどのくらいのタイムスパンを言うのだろう。もっとシンプルには「長い目で見る」。十年後、二十年後のことかしら。それとも百年の計を立てることなのか。最近、「教育という名のマジックはまやかしだ」という言説が流れている。理想的なことを口にしたり、配慮という構えに対して「ナンセンス！」と。代わって幅をきかせるのが「データの裏付け」というもの。根拠は数字。だが、味気ない。目の前のきかん坊たちとタイメンで張り合って行くには、ハートとボディトークしかないときもある。今年もまた体力の続く限りやっていくのだろう。これが私のシゴト。いざ発進！本日の更新は短信のみにて。そろそろ関東の天気も崩れてきそうだ。

What does it mean to "take a long-term vision"? How long does "long-term" indicate? Ten years, twenty years or one hundred years? Recently I've heard someone say, "Education is a misleading magic." When we say ideal things or try to consider for the benefit of young people, s/he says, "nonsense!" Instead, data as the evidence are valued. Numbers are eloquent. But I don't feel comfortable very much with data analysis. If you really decide to engage with rough young ones, you definitely need heart and body language. I'm starting the working days now. This is my profession. Let me go! Today's update: this note only.

「時代」はめぐる。私が大学生だった頃、我が母は祖母の介護に明け暮れていた。娘が大学生の今、我が母も義母も弱っている。「青春時代」「新婚時代」「子育て時代」などというと気恥ずかしくも輝かしいが、「介護時代」というとどうも不自由で陰気な感じがする。だが、違う局面もあるような気がする。これほど試される時はないだろう。淡々と持続する静かなエネルギーを発揮できるか、いいも悪いも無い老化の現実を受け入れられるか、それが近い将来自分自身の姿であることを認識できるか。上っ面善人ぶっていても化けの皮は直ぐ剥がれる。摂食、排泄、睡眠、歩行、入浴などという余りにも平凡な生命維持活動がかくも困難な課題であったとは。それらがうまく進行した時に与えられる喜びがこんなに大きいものだったとは。「生命連鎖」とは生殖だけでないことは明らかだ。終末に向かういつ果てるともしれぬ行程を共に歩むこと。いずれは自分も誰かに伴われて歩む（はずの）道であることをおぼろげに感じながら。共倒れしない工夫をする勇気もまた、試されているようだ。本日の更新は、短信のみにて。

We take turns taking care of each other in various stages of our life: when I was a college student, my mother was busily taking care of my grandmother, and now when my daughter is a college student, my mother and my mother-in-law are both being taken care of by their daughter-in-law respectively. To provide elderly care has challenging and rewarding aspects although it appears to be just tiresome and hopeless. It's challenging because we're asked if we're able to exert our enduring and quiet energy constantly, if we can accept the reality of aging fairly, and if we can understand that we're watching ourselves in the near future. No pretension works. Eating, defecation, sleeping, walking, and taking a bath are no remarkable activities in our daily life: yet, they are the most important and difficult challenges for elder people. If these activities are well done, it's a great achievement for them too. It's rewarding because we can enjoy the glorious moments with the elder. Evidently procreation is not the only linkage that human beings exercise for maintaining the species. To accompany the terminal process (seemingly endless) is also a significant aspect of linkage of life. We cannot help feeling vaguely that it's the way of all flesh. We also need the courage and wisdom to survive the hardship of this job. Yes, It's really challenging. Today's update: this note only.

明けましておめでとうございます。

2001年に始めた「短信・更新」ページも14ページ目になった。本当に細々としたメモだが、続けていると溜まる。何かの役に立つわけではないけれど、来し方を振り返る手がかりにはなるだろう。社会的な出来事を記載することも少なく、ごく個人的な観察や感想を記すだけなのは、ブログのようだと自分でも思っている。いっそこのページだけでもどこかの無料ブログサイトにでも繋いだらと思わないでもない。そうすればコメント欄も付いているし、ささやかに双方向性が保てるのだろう。かつて「掲示板」を設置していたとき「荒らし」に汚され、イヤな思いをして閉鎖した経験があるのでまだ躊躇っているのだが。）SNS、FaceBook、twitter、学生たちとのブログなど、書く場所は幾つもあるが、やはり自分のホームはどんなに原始的なスタイルでも捨てがたい。今年は初心に返って、ウェブで何が出来るか再考してみよう。本日の更新は「翻訳読書ノート48」です。メルマガ掲載原稿としてはこれが最終回。今後の形態についてはこれから想を練る。表紙の写真（隅田川）とこのページの写真（黄昏時のイルミネーション--流山にて）も更新いたしました。ご訪問ありがとうございます。今年もどうぞよろしくお願いいたします。

A Happy New year! Thanks for visiting this website. I've been writing "The Latest Notes" since 2001. In this humble page as it is, short notes on my daily observations and thoughts have piled up to make a record of my personally history. So what? you may say. I know it's nothing socially but thanks I learned that to continue is to create. Sometimes I think of using a free commercial blog for this page so that visitors can leave comments on my notes. But I'm still hesitating because when I set up a BBS once, it was disgraced by malicious attackers. Recently I have several places to write; SNS, Face Book, twitter, blogs with students. But I live it here best of all. It's my home. Although it is a very primitive page, I fell most at home really. However, I would like to think about what websites can do again. Today's update: a book review (sorry, only in Japanese!) and photos in the index page (The River Sumida) and the one in this page (illumination in the early evening in Nagareyama, Chiba). Thank you very much for your interest in this page. I appreciate your concern.