Ge-ge-ge no nyobou 8/13
Aug. 13th, 2010 10:25 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mbarkera.k.a. sometimes visitors see more
Takashi, Fumie's younger brother, sat at the kitchen table with Yoshiko and Fumie. He had a large shopping bag, and started to pull things out of it. The first was a large jar of honey, which Yoshiko happily grabbed. Takashi said, "Genbee is still making honey." Then he pulled some vegetables out and set them on the table. "And Miyako sent vegetables from the country, because they're better."
Aiko came in the door with her red schoolbag on her back. She said, "I'm home." Takashi looked at her and said, "Is this Aiko? You've grown so much." Then he pointed at himself and said, "Do you remember me?" Fumie chuckled. "No, she doesn't remember you. She was just a baby then." Takashi shook his head. "Has it really been eight years?"
Yoshiko tugged on his sleeve and said, "Is that all?" She looked at the shopping bag. Takashi smiled. "I'm sorry, I didn't know what to get you and your sister. So I thought I could buy a present for you here. Would that be OK?" Yoshiko nodded with a big smile. "Yes!" Then she got out of the chair and said, "Would you like to see Kitaro?" Takashi got up. "Sure." He followed her into the living room.
Yoshiko held up her stuffed Kitaro doll, and pointed to the coat. "Do you see that? That's where the monster grabbed Kitaro." Takashi said, "Oh, yes, I see." She leaned closer and said, "Really, mom fixed it."
Kinuyo came in the door and groaned. "Do you know a good carpenter?" Fumie said, "What's wrong?" Kinuyo held up her arms and said, "That dresser is just so hard to open. I can't pull the drawers out." Takashi said, "Maybe I could take a look at it?"
Soon, Takashi had taken the drawers out, and was gently hammering on one. Then he put it back in and slid it in and out a few times. "There, that should do it. It just needed a little adjustment." His audience included Kinuyo, Shuhei, Yoshiko, and Fumie. Shuhei took his arm and said, "Maybe you could take a look at my shelves, too? They're very wobbly."
As Takashi started to take the magazines off and push at the shelves, Yoshiko held up her doll and said, "Maybe you can do something for Kitaro, too?" Takashi smiled down at her. "Of course." Yoshiko grinned.
That evening, Takashi sat beside Shigeru. Shigeru talked to him between gulping mouthfuls of food, then drained most of his glass of tea. Shigeru stood up. "Sorry, there's another deadline, got to work. Fumie, maybe some tea later?" Shigeru walked away. Yoshiko, Aiko, Fumie, and Takashi watched him walk away, then started to eat their meal again.
Takashi said, "More work? He's so busy." Fumie said, "Yes, he works and works, but never seems to get done. I think he's got the spirit of busyness."
Later, Takashi looked at Fumie's sewing machine. She said, "What do you think, do I need a new one?" He stroked it and said, "Well, buying a new one is always good for my business. But... you really don't need one." He turned the wheel. "I can get a new belt. And you've really taken care of this one." Fumie said, "What do you mean?" Takashi said, "Most of my customers tell me their machine isn't working. When I look at it, they never oiled it, there's dust and dirt in it that they haven't cleaned, it's just neglected. I have to admit, for them, getting a new machine may be easier." Fumie said, "Running a sewing machine business is a lot of responsibility, I guess." He smiled. "Well, that's not what Genbee thinks."
Then Takashi shook his head and said, "I wanted to ask you. You said something strange about the spirit of busyness?" Fumie nodded. She went and got a book of Japanese spirits and monsters, and laid it on the floor. Takashi sat down with her. She opened the book to a page she had marked with a small slip of paper. She pointed to the illustration. "There! See that. Long, twisted legs and arms, rags for clothes, and a long face? Grey, jumping around..." Takashi nodded. Fumie looked at him. "The other day, I saw that around Shigeru. I didn't know what it was, but I looked it up. And that's it. The spirit of busyness." Takashi started to laugh. Fumie said, "What are you laughing about? It's serious." Takashi said, "You've been living with Shigeru too long. Monsters and spirits? That's his influence." After a moment, Fumie started to chuckle. "I guess he's convinced me."
Then she sat back and said, "The business grew. A little bit at a time, and we needed it. But now I think maybe he's too busy." Takashi said, "Is he healthy?" Fumie said, "Yes, but..." Takashi said, "It's hard on everyone. You need to at least sit down and eat dinner slowly, with your children. I think Aiko looks lonely." Fumie said, "Yes, and there's really no time for the two of us to talk, either."
Takashi got up and sat down at the sewing machine. He told the sewing machine, "It's not good when work is too busy. You need to listen, talk about whether the weather is good or not, whether the food is tasty or not. You need to take time to listen, to find out what you think about things."
Fumie looked at him. "Takashi? Have you had trouble? Is your wife..." Takashi shook his head. "Well, some. But everybody has problems."
The next day, Aiko and Yoshiko were in the entryway, ready to go out. Yoshiko called up the hall, "Come on, let's go!" Aiko said, "Stop that. There's no reason to hurry." Yoshiko said, "But I want to go!"
Takashi and Fumie came out, and looked at the two girls. Takashi grinned. "Ready to go to the department store?" Yoshiko jumped. "Yes!" Aiko nodded. Fumie looked around. "Where's Kinuyo?" Aiko said, "Is grandmother going, too?" Fumie said, "Yes, I thought we would take her shopping so that grandfather could have a quiet day." Then she looked up the hall. "I thought she was ready. Let me go see."
Everyone went up to the grandparents' rooms. Kinuyo was sitting by the table, holding her side. She looked up at Fumie and said, "I don't know. I started to stand up, and my chest felt heavy. I've got such a weak heart." Fumie said, "Do you want to go to the hospital?" Kinuyo shook her head. "No, no. I'll just rest a little." She waved at Fumie. "I don't think I could make it into town. But you go ahead. I'll be fine here."
Moments later, Takashi went out the front door with Yoshiko and Aiko. The two girls tugged at his hands. He looked back at the house. "It's too bad your grandmother isn't feeling well. Does she have trouble with her heart often?" Yoshiko said, "Only when she wants grandfather to do something." Takashi chuckled. "Oh. Well, I guess that must be hard on Fumie." He looked at the two girls. "Let's go!" They raced down the street, hand-in-hand.
Later, Fumie brought a stack of white shirts that she had ironed into the grandparents' rooms. She looked at Kinuyo who was sitting at the table. "Here, I ironed these for you." Kinuyo said, "You didn't have to do that." Fumie said, "But you're not feeling well. I was thinking about dinner..." Shuhei turned around in their little kitchen. He wore an apron, and was stirring something in a bowl. "That's okay. I'm going to fix tempura." Fumie said, "But..."
Kinuyo said, "He'll do it. I told you to go shopping. Since my heart is so weak, he has to help me, but even though we're old and I'll die soon, he can do anything." She looked at Fumie. "You need to take care of Shigeru, only. Making sure he's healthy, letting him work, that's a wife's job." Kinuyo picked up a newspaper and started to read it. Shuhei dropped a piece of tempura into the oil, and hummed while it sizzled.
Later in the family living room, Yoshiko played with a red toy telephone. She picked it up and said, "A deadline?" Aiko sat at the table, and opened a musical jewelry box. The tinkling sound of the music filled the room, and she stroked the velvet lined interior. Aiko looked at Takashi and said, "That was so much fun. Going to the department store and looking at all the music boxes..."
Takashi smiled at her, then looked at Fumie. "There's something I wanted to talk with you about..." He glanced at the children. Fumie said, "Maybe we could go upstairs and fix the sewing machine?" He nodded.
Upstairs, he took out a new belt for the sewing machine. As he started to fix the machine, he said, "On the way back, we went through the shopping area. There were some kids singing the ge-ge-ge theme song." Fumie shrugged. "Well, yes, that's not so unusual. This is Mizuki's hometown." Takashi nodded. "Yes, but Aiko tried to hide behind me. I thought I heard someone saying Mizuki's daughter." He turned the wheel on the sewing machine, then looked at Fumie. "I don't really know, but has she said anything to you?" Fumie said, "No... wait. Her teacher said something about teasing. And Aiko asked me why Shigeru had to draw manga..." Fumie thought for a moment, and then said, "Maybe she tried to say..."
Takashi spun the belt on the sewing machine, tested the tension, and oiled it. He looked at Fumie. "Well, with this new belt, you should be able to use this machine for another 20 years."
Fumie shook her head. "I think I didn't listen. I thought being famous was good, but..." Fumie walked into the dark bedroom, and looked at Aiko's schoolbag, hung on her chair. "Aiko was making up stories at school, about going on a trip like a normal family. I thought she was just telling stories, but... maybe that's her dream?"
Fumie turned and looked at Takashi. "You know, I guess maybe I've got the spirit of busyness."
<to be continued>
Takashi, Fumie's younger brother, sat at the kitchen table with Yoshiko and Fumie. He had a large shopping bag, and started to pull things out of it. The first was a large jar of honey, which Yoshiko happily grabbed. Takashi said, "Genbee is still making honey." Then he pulled some vegetables out and set them on the table. "And Miyako sent vegetables from the country, because they're better."
Aiko came in the door with her red schoolbag on her back. She said, "I'm home." Takashi looked at her and said, "Is this Aiko? You've grown so much." Then he pointed at himself and said, "Do you remember me?" Fumie chuckled. "No, she doesn't remember you. She was just a baby then." Takashi shook his head. "Has it really been eight years?"
Yoshiko tugged on his sleeve and said, "Is that all?" She looked at the shopping bag. Takashi smiled. "I'm sorry, I didn't know what to get you and your sister. So I thought I could buy a present for you here. Would that be OK?" Yoshiko nodded with a big smile. "Yes!" Then she got out of the chair and said, "Would you like to see Kitaro?" Takashi got up. "Sure." He followed her into the living room.
Yoshiko held up her stuffed Kitaro doll, and pointed to the coat. "Do you see that? That's where the monster grabbed Kitaro." Takashi said, "Oh, yes, I see." She leaned closer and said, "Really, mom fixed it."
Kinuyo came in the door and groaned. "Do you know a good carpenter?" Fumie said, "What's wrong?" Kinuyo held up her arms and said, "That dresser is just so hard to open. I can't pull the drawers out." Takashi said, "Maybe I could take a look at it?"
Soon, Takashi had taken the drawers out, and was gently hammering on one. Then he put it back in and slid it in and out a few times. "There, that should do it. It just needed a little adjustment." His audience included Kinuyo, Shuhei, Yoshiko, and Fumie. Shuhei took his arm and said, "Maybe you could take a look at my shelves, too? They're very wobbly."
As Takashi started to take the magazines off and push at the shelves, Yoshiko held up her doll and said, "Maybe you can do something for Kitaro, too?" Takashi smiled down at her. "Of course." Yoshiko grinned.
That evening, Takashi sat beside Shigeru. Shigeru talked to him between gulping mouthfuls of food, then drained most of his glass of tea. Shigeru stood up. "Sorry, there's another deadline, got to work. Fumie, maybe some tea later?" Shigeru walked away. Yoshiko, Aiko, Fumie, and Takashi watched him walk away, then started to eat their meal again.
Takashi said, "More work? He's so busy." Fumie said, "Yes, he works and works, but never seems to get done. I think he's got the spirit of busyness."
Later, Takashi looked at Fumie's sewing machine. She said, "What do you think, do I need a new one?" He stroked it and said, "Well, buying a new one is always good for my business. But... you really don't need one." He turned the wheel. "I can get a new belt. And you've really taken care of this one." Fumie said, "What do you mean?" Takashi said, "Most of my customers tell me their machine isn't working. When I look at it, they never oiled it, there's dust and dirt in it that they haven't cleaned, it's just neglected. I have to admit, for them, getting a new machine may be easier." Fumie said, "Running a sewing machine business is a lot of responsibility, I guess." He smiled. "Well, that's not what Genbee thinks."
Then Takashi shook his head and said, "I wanted to ask you. You said something strange about the spirit of busyness?" Fumie nodded. She went and got a book of Japanese spirits and monsters, and laid it on the floor. Takashi sat down with her. She opened the book to a page she had marked with a small slip of paper. She pointed to the illustration. "There! See that. Long, twisted legs and arms, rags for clothes, and a long face? Grey, jumping around..." Takashi nodded. Fumie looked at him. "The other day, I saw that around Shigeru. I didn't know what it was, but I looked it up. And that's it. The spirit of busyness." Takashi started to laugh. Fumie said, "What are you laughing about? It's serious." Takashi said, "You've been living with Shigeru too long. Monsters and spirits? That's his influence." After a moment, Fumie started to chuckle. "I guess he's convinced me."
Then she sat back and said, "The business grew. A little bit at a time, and we needed it. But now I think maybe he's too busy." Takashi said, "Is he healthy?" Fumie said, "Yes, but..." Takashi said, "It's hard on everyone. You need to at least sit down and eat dinner slowly, with your children. I think Aiko looks lonely." Fumie said, "Yes, and there's really no time for the two of us to talk, either."
Takashi got up and sat down at the sewing machine. He told the sewing machine, "It's not good when work is too busy. You need to listen, talk about whether the weather is good or not, whether the food is tasty or not. You need to take time to listen, to find out what you think about things."
Fumie looked at him. "Takashi? Have you had trouble? Is your wife..." Takashi shook his head. "Well, some. But everybody has problems."
The next day, Aiko and Yoshiko were in the entryway, ready to go out. Yoshiko called up the hall, "Come on, let's go!" Aiko said, "Stop that. There's no reason to hurry." Yoshiko said, "But I want to go!"
Takashi and Fumie came out, and looked at the two girls. Takashi grinned. "Ready to go to the department store?" Yoshiko jumped. "Yes!" Aiko nodded. Fumie looked around. "Where's Kinuyo?" Aiko said, "Is grandmother going, too?" Fumie said, "Yes, I thought we would take her shopping so that grandfather could have a quiet day." Then she looked up the hall. "I thought she was ready. Let me go see."
Everyone went up to the grandparents' rooms. Kinuyo was sitting by the table, holding her side. She looked up at Fumie and said, "I don't know. I started to stand up, and my chest felt heavy. I've got such a weak heart." Fumie said, "Do you want to go to the hospital?" Kinuyo shook her head. "No, no. I'll just rest a little." She waved at Fumie. "I don't think I could make it into town. But you go ahead. I'll be fine here."
Moments later, Takashi went out the front door with Yoshiko and Aiko. The two girls tugged at his hands. He looked back at the house. "It's too bad your grandmother isn't feeling well. Does she have trouble with her heart often?" Yoshiko said, "Only when she wants grandfather to do something." Takashi chuckled. "Oh. Well, I guess that must be hard on Fumie." He looked at the two girls. "Let's go!" They raced down the street, hand-in-hand.
Later, Fumie brought a stack of white shirts that she had ironed into the grandparents' rooms. She looked at Kinuyo who was sitting at the table. "Here, I ironed these for you." Kinuyo said, "You didn't have to do that." Fumie said, "But you're not feeling well. I was thinking about dinner..." Shuhei turned around in their little kitchen. He wore an apron, and was stirring something in a bowl. "That's okay. I'm going to fix tempura." Fumie said, "But..."
Kinuyo said, "He'll do it. I told you to go shopping. Since my heart is so weak, he has to help me, but even though we're old and I'll die soon, he can do anything." She looked at Fumie. "You need to take care of Shigeru, only. Making sure he's healthy, letting him work, that's a wife's job." Kinuyo picked up a newspaper and started to read it. Shuhei dropped a piece of tempura into the oil, and hummed while it sizzled.
Later in the family living room, Yoshiko played with a red toy telephone. She picked it up and said, "A deadline?" Aiko sat at the table, and opened a musical jewelry box. The tinkling sound of the music filled the room, and she stroked the velvet lined interior. Aiko looked at Takashi and said, "That was so much fun. Going to the department store and looking at all the music boxes..."
Takashi smiled at her, then looked at Fumie. "There's something I wanted to talk with you about..." He glanced at the children. Fumie said, "Maybe we could go upstairs and fix the sewing machine?" He nodded.
Upstairs, he took out a new belt for the sewing machine. As he started to fix the machine, he said, "On the way back, we went through the shopping area. There were some kids singing the ge-ge-ge theme song." Fumie shrugged. "Well, yes, that's not so unusual. This is Mizuki's hometown." Takashi nodded. "Yes, but Aiko tried to hide behind me. I thought I heard someone saying Mizuki's daughter." He turned the wheel on the sewing machine, then looked at Fumie. "I don't really know, but has she said anything to you?" Fumie said, "No... wait. Her teacher said something about teasing. And Aiko asked me why Shigeru had to draw manga..." Fumie thought for a moment, and then said, "Maybe she tried to say..."
Takashi spun the belt on the sewing machine, tested the tension, and oiled it. He looked at Fumie. "Well, with this new belt, you should be able to use this machine for another 20 years."
Fumie shook her head. "I think I didn't listen. I thought being famous was good, but..." Fumie walked into the dark bedroom, and looked at Aiko's schoolbag, hung on her chair. "Aiko was making up stories at school, about going on a trip like a normal family. I thought she was just telling stories, but... maybe that's her dream?"
Fumie turned and looked at Takashi. "You know, I guess maybe I've got the spirit of busyness."
<to be continued>
