Four summers back, I visited my family in Japan for about two weeks. Considering the fact that I lived in another country and could not afford to travel often, it was a rather brief stay. But again, that was all the holiday I managed to accommodate that summer. The two weeks passed quickly. We crammed […]
In this memory, I am four years old. It is shortly after the successful completion of my little brother’s second heart operation. I hear that one of my elder cousins is getting married and that I will be going to their wedding with my father. My whole family have been invited, but since my brother
My cousin’s wedding Read More »
FallingFallingLeaves are falling SilentlyFrom the skyThrough the air So gentlySo beautifullyAnd yet so quietly As if Not to be noticedBy anybody FallingFallingFalling
In this memory, I am five years old. Once every week, I attend a group lesson at the local YAMAHA music school with my two best friends. We travel there with our mothers and our little siblings in a single five-seater car. After leaving the car at the nearby parking lot, we walk over to
A Mechanical Clock Read More »
When I was about eight, my mother introduced me to something called new potatoes. My grandmother had recently sent us a box full of vegetables that she harvested from her vegetable garden, and among them were new potatoes. “I’m going to make you a delicious snack with these,” said my mother, her voice dancing with
Memory of New Potatoes Read More »
In this memory, I am five and my little brother is two. These days, my brother follows me around and likes to mimic whatever I do. When my mother calls us for a photoshoot, if I wince, my brother also winces. If I place my hand in front of my forehead with two fingers stretched
One late afternoonI decide to go outTo a nearby coffee shop By bike My first bike ride of this yearI grab the key, the pumpAnd a brand-new S.O.S. padTo remove the rust on my bike It was last summerWhen two experienced cyclistsSaw the rust on my bikeAnd told me to use S.O.S. pad I walk
The best moment of my day Read More »
In this memory, my little brother is two years old. He has recently started having his own “study time” with our mother. The task is to complete a few mazes in a toddler workbook that my mother got from an educational program for young children. The first time he tried it, I heard, he did
Study time, change of mind Read More »
In this memory, I am nine years old. One day in early March, as soon as the school lunch is brought in to our classroom, a cheer is heard. “Today’s dessert is a cake!” Somebody exclaims, and I cannot hide my excitement. Each day, our school lunch comes with some kind of dessert, but a
When greed led me to a practical problem Read More »
(This story is a loose continuation from “An ancient wedding on the couch” posted two days ago.) One evening of early March, after early supper, my mother calls me and my little brother to the living room of our tiny half-dilapidated apartment. She has her camera in her hands. “Stand there, Sweeties,” she says and
