today, i sent my children and wife to the west, where my wife grew up and still have some good friends. for my son, 3 year old, it was just a unexpected journey, but for my daughter, who is 7 now, she seemed to have thought about many, many things, because of this so sudden trip. feeling sorry about my wife who has to take care of the troublesome young children just by her self, staying among her old friends -- i hope good care will be taken. when we had to depart at tokyo train station, where took about one hour from home because of some unusual jam at shinjuku station, we were facing each others over a train window. we realized that departing is a sad event -- perhaps, it had been so happy that we didn't need to imagine this. anyways, it was a good lesson to the children that things will be apart in some unexpected way. it was actually a good brushup to myself.
my wife, who is still a fledgling food writer, had been a little crazy since the earthquake hit us on 311. i kept seeing her cooking something all the time. i learned something about preservative foods by watching what she does, and i actually got a bit fat since 311 because she fed us a bit too much. everything she does was about food. i really felt happy that i saw she is doing things she is really passionate about -- food, cooking, writing, and eating. her decision about quitting work to cook and write was absolutely a right thing.
this afternoon, when i went to my daughter's school to pick her up for the journey, it was an unexpected thing for her. she has good friends at the after-school-care-program, and it was a usual day for her to join her friends at the program after schooling. she heard me telling to the teachers that she will be away for awhile with her mom and brother. she asked me nothing -- well, only one question "why is this trip". i tried to tell her why, but it was difficult to explain. it wasn't really about the continuous earthquake, but it was because of the possible nuclear disaster. how i can explain such things to a little child? i have too little knowledge about it -- and i didn't want to make her feeling too scared.
medias, especially tv, they are spreading some very unwelcoming pictures and arguments about what's going on. they make their business based on sponsorships that it is important for them to prove audience ratings. they have too little imagination about people watching tv -- there are people seriously watching news at evacuation centers, and there are people watching the news thinking of their families and friends still living and dieing at the areas things are actually happening. i tried never to tern on the tv when my children are at home, because those we see on the screen are just expressing excess shocking stories and visions about what is going on.
before i picked up my daughter at her school, i wrote two letters, one to her, and one to my son, who still don't read. the letters are with little bewitchments -- letters are to function easy and mindful relationship among my daughter, my son, and my wife. the daughter and the son always fight about little problems, which are not even problematic to my perspective. she's good, and he's good -- there is no fight but please take care of each other, and never irritate their mother by causing stupid struggles. she's a good sister and he's a good brother, but they just have conflicts. stop fighting! is what i always have to say to them. they can stop it, because they like each other, basically.
i hope they won't fight and make some bad noise at places they are supported to stay.
they are gone safe, and i am free. that i went drinking at my best friend's cafe. he also runs small bar called rinne. i drunk with him and another friends joined us, he came to tokyo from nagoya, after traveling to osaka, takamatsu and fukuoka. it is such an interesting time being in tokyo. things are shifting, and you can see it.
it got late and i got a message on my mobile that my wife and children arrived at shin-osaka. my wife's old friend came to the station to pick them up. it is great.
it wasn't only me, but some fathers seeing off their kids and wives at the platform. i have things to do here, and they also do.
what is going to happen in east part of japan!?