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      • Fiction

        I, I'am Going Alone

        by Chisako Wakatake

        Universal and eternal truths about human existence emerge in bold relief from the reflections of an elderly widow on what at first glance appears to be an unexceptional life. The Japanese title, which can be translated more straightforwardly as “I, I’m Going Alone,” is in the Tōhoku dialect that figures strongly in the story. It is a slight variation on a line from a poem “The Morning of the Last Farewell” by Kenji Miyazawa (1896–1933), a well-known poet and children’s author from near where author Chisako Wakatake as well as her story’s protagonist grew up. Narrator Momoko Hidaka is 74 years old. Her husband died 15 years ago, and since then she has been living alone in the home they shared in a suburban Tokyo residential community. Lacking anyone to talk to, she gets to thinking back over her life as she enjoys her daily cup of tea, or when sitting alone in a coffee shop, or as she makes a pilgrimage to her husband’s grave by an isolated back route. She is the mother of two children. The eldest, son Shōji, dropped out of college and moved away to a job in another prefecture. He rarely contacts her, and the words he spat out when he left home still ring in her ears: “You’ve got to stop smothering me, Mom.” Momoko had once lost ¥2.5 million (about $25,000) to an “It’s me, it’s me” scammer, thinking she was sending the money to Shōji. As she reflects on these and other events involving her son, she feels remorse at having taken the joy out of life for Shōji by being overly attached to him. Her daughter Naomi lives with her husband and two children just 20 minutes away by car. Their relationship has long been strained and distant, but she now calls occasionally to see if she can pick some things up at the store for her mother. During one such call, she asks for money to sign her son up for special art lessons. Caught off guard, Momoko is momentarily at a loss, which prompts Naomi to remind her pointedly that she was quick to pay when she thought it was her brother asking for money. After the exchange with her daughter, Momoko reflects on the relationship she had with her own overbearing mother, and her thoughts then drift by association to how she left northeastern Honshu for Tokyo 50 years before. Upon graduating from high school, Momoko had taken a job with the agricultural co-op in her hometown. When she reached 24 her parents arranged a marriage for her—as was the practice in a rural region still bound by old traditions. But the man meant nothing to her, so three days before the wedding, she fled to Tokyo. This was during the boom era of Japan’s economic growth, and there were plenty of jobs to be had. While working at a restaurant, she met and fell in love with a handsome customer named Shūzō who came from the same part of the country she did, and they eventually got married. Until this she had been self-conscious about her country accent and dialect, but the marriage allowed her to renew her fondness for the language she’d grown up with. From then until Shūzō died of a sudden heart attack, she had devoted herself body and soul to serving her husband and family. Shūzō’s death had brought her an unbearable sadness as painful as being torn limb from limb. Even after so many years have gone by, she still misses Shūzō dearly in her now solitary life, and frequently wishes she could see him again. But she also wonders if it was her love that killed him. It was out of love that she’d devoted herself to serving her husband, but at the same time, she had in effect held power over him by making it impossible for him to live without her. Then, just when she began to feel hemmed in by the walls she had constructed for herself, he had died. She blames herself for failing to notice how tired he had become. Now she feels her own decline, sensing the approach of death day by day. Momoko’s reflections often take the form of conversations in her childhood dialect with and among voices in her head—voices that are different “layers” of herself. One of the voices tells her that Shūzō died in order to let Momoko live freely. On a winter’s day, Momoko recalls a vision she once had in which a procession of women were walking along with mute determination, their eyes fixed straight ahead. She understands them to be women of the last generation who, like her, lived their entire lives in silent endurance. Soon spring arrives, and out of the blue one day, her eight-year-old granddaughter Sayaka comes to visit. Momoko feels a surge of happiness as she sits talking with her beloved grandchild. The reflections on love, self, and meaning that unfold within a lonely old woman’s internal conversations with herself will pull on every reader’s heartstrings.

      • Fiction

        Days at the Morisaki Bookshop

        by Satoshi Yagisawa

        25-year-old Takako has lived a relatively easy life. Born and raised on the southern island of Kyushu, she went to a good university and got a graduate job at a company in Tokyo where she met her charming boyfriend, Kashikoi. However, when Kashikoi casually announces that he’s been cheating on her and is planning to marry somebody else, Takako’s life is suddenly in freefall. She loses her job and with it all of her friends and acquaintances. She ends up in a deep depression but just as her despair seems to have reached a new low, she receives a call from her distant uncle.         Her uncle, who she refers to as Ojisan, is in his forties and has always lived something of an unconventional life, especially since his wife Momoko left him out of the blue five years ago. He runs a second-hand bookshop in Jimbocho, Tokyo’s famous book district which is home to hundreds of used bookshops, publishing houses and literary societies. Takako used to turn her nose up at Ojisan’s way of life but when he offers her the tiny room above the bookshop rent-free in exchange for helping out at the store, she reluctantly agrees. In the months that follow, Takako surprises herself by discovering a passion for Japanese literature from the “Modern” period (1868–1945), partly thanks to recommendations from Ojisan and the bookshop’s loyal customers. She becomes a regular at a local coffee shop where she befriends a graduate student who is waitressing there part-time, and she also meets a young editor from a nearby publishing house who’s going through his own messy breakup.         Just as Takako is learning how to enjoy life again, Kashikoi gets back in touch which unearths all the negative emotions associated with their relationship. Ojisan notices the decline in Takako’s mood and when she finally tells him the whole story he is horrified at Kashikoi’s behaviour. Ojisan convinces Takako to take a cab to Kashikoi’s apartment at 11pm. They confront him and this gives Takako the closure she needs. Takako is infinitely grateful to Ojisan and her life starts to come back together again: she’s offered a job at a design company and she finds a new apartment.         A year and a half later, Takako has the chance to return the favour and help Ojisan get closure on the mystery that has plagued him for the last five years: why his loving wife Momoko suddenly left him. When Momoko reappears and refuses to explain her absence, Takako senses that Momoko might not be comfortable sharing her reasoning with Ojisan but that she may open up to Takako. Momoko moves into the room above the bookshop and Takako visits often. They form a bond and go on a two-day trip to the Okutama Mountains in far western Tokyo. There, Momoko confesses that she left because Ojisan got so wrapped up in the bookshop that he was oblivious to the emotional turmoil she went through after the birth of their stillborn child. She always wanted children but had to have a hysterectomy. For her, it is all tied up in the guilt surrounding an abortion she had in her twenties.         Takako tells Ojisan. He runs after Momoko, who is leaving again. She says she’ll return one day but he needs to get his own feelings in order before she comes back. When Momoko returns a year later, she and Ojisan enthusiastically embark on the next chapter of running the Morisaki Bookshop together, and Takako has begun to date the editor she met at the coffee shop.

      • Fiction

        The Floating Castle

        by Ryō Wada

        Set in feudal Japan, the story is based on the Siege of Oshi and depicts the struggle of Oshi's villagers in defending their fortress against Toyotomi Hideyoshi's campaign against the Hojo clan. Against insurmountable odds, Narita Nagachika, the fortress's castellan, leads a group of 500 men against 20,000 men led by Ishida Mitsunari, part of Toyotomi clan's greater army of 20,000 samurai.

      • Fiction

        The Seventh Hope

        by Honobu Yonezawa

        In a rainy day, we met a 17 year western girl, Marija. She came from Yugoslavia. She came to stay with her father’s friend but the man died before her arrival. We decided to help her. Marija was girl full with curiosity. She asked many daily questions that we never thought of it. It was kinds of mysteries to solve one by one with her. It was in 1991, the time of Yugoslav Wars. Marija stayed two months in Japan and left. She promised to write but we never receive any words from her. We didn’t have her address. Because we were worried of the wars, we decided to find out where did she come from.

      • Fiction

        Run With the Wind

        by SHION Miura

        A few days before the start of a new academic year at Kansei University in Western Tokyo, former high school track and field star Kakeru is running away from a shopkeeper after stealing some bread. Fourth-year student Haiji immediately notices Kakeru’s speed and races after him on his bike. When Kakeru says he gambled all his money away before the start of term, Haiji tells Kakeru that he’s living in an old dormitory "Chikusei-so" near campus that is very cheap. They have a spare room if Kakeru is interested. After introducing Kakeru to the other eight residents, Haiji declares his grand plan: for the 10 of them to compete in the legendary Hakone Ekiden relay marathon.         Held each January, the Hakone Ekiden is a relay race spanning two days where teams of 10 university students run from Tokyo to the mountain town of Hakone and back again, spanning a total distance of over 200 km. The race is broadcast on Nippon Television and is extremely competitive, with each university putting forward its best team. When Haiji suggests that the 10 residents of Chikusei-so form a team to compete at the Hakone Ekiden it seems like a pipe dream.         Haiji and Kakeru are the only two members of the team with extensive running experience and the other residents are incredibly reluctant about Haiji’s plan. However, with about ten months left to train, Haiji manages to get each of them on board. Takashi, an honour student from a small mountain village, is the easiest to convince. Identical twins Joji and Jota sign up when Haiji tells them it’ll help them attract girls. Musa, an international student from Tanzania, agrees partly because he’s inspired by Takashi. Among the most reluctant residents are law student Yuki, heavy smoker Nico, and trivia lover ‘KING’. Nico ran in high school and hopes running will help him overcome his smoking addiction, while KING hopes competing in the Hakone Ekiden will make him stand out to employers after months of unsuccessful job hunting. Lastly, there is Prince, a manga enthusiast with almost zero physical stamina whose room is stuffed to the brim with books.         While officially the dormitory landlord is their coach, it is Haiji who gets to know each team member’s needs and strengths before making a tailored training programme. Over the gruelling six months that follow, Haiji leads the team through the highs and lows of training and competitions as their race times steadily improve and they become a close-knit group both on and off the track. Prince’s times are still much slower than everyone else’s but Takashi gets him a treadmill so he can read manga while he runs. Nico makes wire figurines to keep his hands occupied after giving up smoking and Yuki starts selling them to raise money for the team’s training trip to the mountains. Haiji helps Kakeru overcome his disillusionment with competitive racing and find meaning in running with others, while Kakeru’s talent and support inspire Haiji to persevere despite his knee injury. Thanks to a combination of Kakeru’s exceptional speed, Haiji’s determination and the whole team’s diligent training, they miraculously qualify for the Hakone Ekiden. During the race, each of them overcomes their own mental and physical demons, Kakeru sets a new record and Haiji pushes through his injury, putting the team in 10th place and guaranteeing them a position in next year’s race.     Story background Hakone Ekiden (箱根駅伝), which is officially called the Tokyo-Hakone Round- Trip College Ekiden Race (東京箱根間往復大学駅伝競走), is one of the most prominent university ekiden (relay marathon) races of the year held between Tokyo and Hakone on January 2 and 3. This two-day race from Ōtemachi to Hakone and back is separated into five sections on each day. Due to slight variations in the courses, the first day distance is 108.0 km while the distance on the second day is 109.9 km. It has been held since 1920, stopped during WII and started again in 1947.

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