June 2023

Rider on the vacuum cleaner

In this memory, I am five years old. It is a weekend morning. My mother is vacuuming the floor of our tiny apartment. I am sitting on the floor with my dolls, and my brother is playing with his toy buses. The sound of the vacuum cleaner is piercing through the rooms, and I can […]

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Mikoshi Festival

In this memory, I am five years old. There are many festivals in the neighbourhood of our community of tiny half-dilapidated apartments since this is one of the older part of town. The local shop owners in the area organize a number of different festivals in summer to entertain the residents. Many of them take

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Illusion

I was waiting for my perfect day to unfoldThe kind where I wake up to the sound of birdsFeeling light and fresh and restedFollowed by my morning practice and A peaceful breakfast in the kitchenThen I jump into my workEnergized and readyLike I’ve been waiting for that moment my entire life InsteadWhen I woke upBirds

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The Night Festival

In this memory, I am five years old. One evening, my parents tell me that we are going to the community’s annual night festival that is happening just a short walk away from our tiny half-dilapidated apartment, on the premise of the nearby shinto shrine. After dinner, the four of us all walk to the

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When the boy really wanted it

Several summers ago, during my visit to Japan, my family went to a local hot spring not far from my parents’ home. This was a place where we used to regularly visit for a quick relaxation since when I was young. It was no fancy place. Though they had a good collection of baths including

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The spilled tea

I am five years old in this memory. Recently, my father is reading “The Hobbit” for my bedside story. It is the thickest book he has ever read me. I admire the beauty of this book all the time – its beautiful blue cover, the fresh fragrance of the smooth paper inside, and the bookmark

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