| KATE EVANS | City
of Water |
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“It’s all for fun,” she says. “Is that how people feel about that dog, Hachiko?” I ask. “Is that statue just for fun, or is it serious?” “It’s for loyalty.” I wonder if that’s a personal dig or a historical comment. The train is almost to our stop, but I have a minute to take a few notes on the details she offers. * * *
Hachiko used to accompany his master, a professor, to the train station every day. The professor would go to work at the university and return every day at 3 o’clock, where the dog would be waiting for him. One day the professor didn’t return. The dog continued to return to the station every day at 3 p.m. He was held up as a shining example of loyalty. Gently touching the dog’s head was known to bring good luck. Nearly ten years after last seeing the Professor, the 12-year-old Hachiko was found dead on the same spot outside the station where he had spent so many years waiting for his master. * * *
“I want to take the shinkansen, travel outside of Tokyo, see some of the countryside,” I say, as we drink lattes in Starbucks. “Yes, that is nice.” “But I can’t do it by myself, travel by myself, try to get around alone. Would you come with me? Would you help me plan the trip?” “Okay, I know perfect place. You learn much about Japan.” “Really? Where?” “I take you. Surprise. We go during holiday.” “Your parents won’t care?” “My parents know I am twenty-nine-year-old woman.” I love Yuka’s confidence. And I’m glad she wants to plan a surprise for me. Rose isn’t into such things. She pushes too much independence on me. Go ahead without me, is one of her mantras. Another is, Go for it. * * *
“I think it’s great that you’re venturing out of the city,” Rose says a bit stiffly, her tone belying her message. I worry that she has an intuition that I’m sleeping with someone else. Guilt creeps up, burning my neck. “You should go to Hiroshima, see the A-bomb dome and the other peace exhibits,” she adds. The phone line crackles. “Yes, maybe I should,” I
say, not meaning it, suppressing a sigh that could set her off. The A-bomb
dome and peace exhibits? Yuka wouldn’t take me there, would she?
I imagine that she’s planning to take me to Kinkaku-ji, the Temple
of the Golden Pavilion, the paragon of beauty. To see cherry blossoms
reflecting in mirrored ponds. I want to experience beauty. Order. I want
to write about bento box lunches, their neat little compartments, the
design of sushi. Or funny surprises like curry at McDonald’s. |
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