It was when I was about nine years old. One evening, our house phone rang. When I answered the phone, it was my father.
“Dad, where are you?” I asked him excitedly. I used to look forward to my father’s return from work.
“I’m in downtown. Can I talk to your mother please?”
My father replied. Somehow, his voice sounded low in spirit.
“Is everything ok, Dad?”
“Well, my bike was stolen.” He said in a sad voice. “I need to speak with your mother.”
My mother was busy cooking supper in the kitchen. But I called her in a loud voice.
“Mom! It’s Dad! His bike was stolen! He’s in a hurry to talk to you!”
This was all I heard about the incident that day. But later, I got to know more details about what exactly happened on that evening.
Back then, my father used to commute to the nearest subway station by bike. That day, he lost his bike lock. So, on his way back home, he decided to purchase one at his favourite 100-yen shop in a shopping mall near the station. Since he didn’t have his bike lock, he left his bike unlocked in front of the shopping mall while shopping. When he came back a few minutes later with his brand new bike lock, he realized that his bike was gone.
“First, a bike without a bike lock. Next, a bike lock without a bike!”
This is what happened to my father and his bike that day. It was actually a very good bike, and we were all sad that it was gone. However, my mother secretly enjoyed this story. She thought that the way things turned out was comical and the way my father told the story reflected his great sense of humour.