February 2023

Counting voice from a bathroom

In this memory, my little brother is two years old. He has recently learned how to count numbers, and he wants to practice his new knowledge whenever and wherever possible. Every day, when he goes to bathroom with our mother to poop, while squatting over the toilet bowl, he holds out his hand and shape […]

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A Glass of Water

Several years ago, when I studied in Yorkshire, England, one winter weekday, I made an overnight solo trip to Edinburgh, Scotland, to visit a university there and meet with a professor. I would have loved to stayed there longer since it was my first time to visit any part of Scotland, but unfortunately, it was

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Ruined opportunity

In this memory, I am five years old. One morning, when I wake up, I find my little brother sitting up on the bedding next to me. My mother is already up. I can hear her working on her typewriter in the next room. It is all very quiet except the typing sound. I sit

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Ketchup

You know that I don’t like ketchup too muchI’m not a person who puts ketchup in everything I eatOnly with fast food I use ketchup So when I first saw you pulling up ketchupNext to almost every food we ate togetherI was upsetKetchup? With this dish?No, no, no!It’s inappropriate!It’s impolite! But you looked so happy

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Strange dance in the bathtub

In this memory, I am five years old. It is a weekday evening, and I am taking bath with my mother and my little brother. After my mother washes me and my brother, we sit in the water by ourselves until my mother finishes washing herself. This is a gold moment that I have been

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A comment about aging

It was when I was about fourteen. We were at a large family gathering in a hot spring resort in Japan. My grandmother, her sister, my aunt and uncle, my cousins’ families were all there. In the evening, I was taking a long bath with my female relatives. The outside bath was made of smooth

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Life of Two

When she was born, she had no siblingIt was just her As she learned to turn, sit, crawl, then walk and talkShe was always on her own with adults around her One day, the life of one became a life of twoWhen a baby boy was born to the family Her life had changed foreverSuddenly,

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The Kindergarten Bus

In this memory, I am five years old. We have just finished a weekend shopping at a large mall in the outskirt of town and are now driving back home. My mother is driving, and my father is sitting in the backseat between me and my little brother. His assigned mission is to keep the

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