A Beautiful Story
Yesterday, I came across a book.
I had decided to take the evening off and relax. A strange urge suddenly came over me to visit the bookstore, and after carefully perusing each floor of the megaplex they call a bookstore, I was about to leave empty-handed, slightly disappointed and perhaps a bit confused as to why I felt so compelled to come.
I decided to make one more round of the English Books section, hanging onto the hope that perhaps this quiet little adventure wasn't quite over.
And that's when I came across the book.
At first I was slightly skeptical. I recognized the author-- Mitch Albom. He's a famous sports writer who writes for the Detroit Free Press. One of my best friends in college is from Detroit, and the sports nuts we were back then, I was inevitably introduced to some of his works over our four years together at college.
The next thing that caught my attention were the words 'life's greatest lesson.' I must admit that I am a sucker for anything that professes to teach you the important lessons in life.
I made a cursory check over the preface and back-cover reviews and decided to buy it. After all, it was an international bestseller. How bad could it be?
I went to Starbucks, got a drink, and started reading. Before I knew it, three hours had gone by.
The book is called Tuesdays with Morrie .
Now that I am familiar with the book, I wonder why I didn't know about it until now.
Here are some quotes from the book that were memorable to me:
-----------------The culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves. And you have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn't work, don't buy it.
-----------------
The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.
-----------------
You have to find what's good and true and beautiful in your life as it is now.
-----------------
I don't go around naked. I don't run through red lights. The little things, I can obey. But the big things--how we think, what we value-- those you must choose yourself. You can't let anyone-- or any society-- determine those for you.
-----------------
The problem, Mitch, is that we don't believe we are as much alike as we are.
-----------------
In the beginning, when we are infants, we need others. And at the end of life, you need others to survive, right? But here's the secret: in between, we need others as well.
-----------------
A little wave, bobbing along in the ocean, having a grand old time. He's enjoying the wind and the fresh air-- until he notices the other waves in front of him, crashing against the shore.
'My God, this is terrible,' the wave says.
Then along comes another wave. It sees the first wave, looking grim, and it says to him, 'Why do you look so sad?'
The first wave says, 'You don't understand! We're all going to crash! All of us waves are going to be nothing! Isn't it terrible?'
The second waves says, 'No you don't understand. You're not a wave, you're part of the ocean.'
-----------------
日常のちょっと嬉しくなる光景
思わずニコッとしてしまう、優しい気分になれる、応援したくなるシーン、ありますよね。
今日はそんなことがたくさんありました。良い１日だった。
今日図書館のパソコン専用席を通りかかったら、軽く70歳を超えてそうなおじいさんがメガネをかけて、となりの学生より早いタイピングでワードに論文を書き上げていた。思わずじいさんを尊敬し、応援していた。
駅までの道を歩いていたら乳母車を押してゆっくり歩いているお父さんがいた。近づくと、乗っている2，3歳の息子と二人で歌を歌いながら楽しそうに歩いていた。気付いたら自分は笑顔で、目頭が熱くなっていた。
バスに乗っていたら60歳くらいのおばさんが若い妊婦さんに席を譲っていた。がんばってね、と言わんばかりに。良い光景だった。
皆さんもこんな光景ってないですか？
Help change the world...
In my humble opinion, this website calls upon the internet to serve what very well may be its ultimate purpose of existence. And for that reason, I think it will succeed in accomplishing what it plans on doing. In what way I have no idea, but I invite you all to take part, or at least watch with me as it unfolds.
ゆりかもめ
休日、ゆりかもめ新橋駅ホーム。
人がドアから溢れ出て出発時刻を待っていた。
ホームに片足、車内にもう一方の足を置いてボーっと待っていると中年のオバサンが息を切らしてドア口まで駆け寄って来た。
ん？
「ねぇ、これはどっち方面？」
「全部有明、同じ方面ですよ。」
「あぁ、そう？じゃぁ日の出駅には停まるのね。」
「停まりますよ。確か2つ目か3つ目だったと思います。」
軽くうなずくと、オバサンは謝りながら車内に自らを押し込んで一緒に出発を待った。
前日の夜に日の出駅付近で夕飯を食べたので少し気になって聞いてみた。
「日の出駅では何をされる予定なんですか？」
少し驚いた様子でこっちを見る。が、オバサンは突然体制を取り直し、おしゃべりモードに入った。
「あのね、これから船に乗るのよ。友達と待ち合わせてたんだけど、なかなか来ないと思ったらもう…あの人あっちで待ってるんだってさ。本当にもう。私ゆりかもめなんて全然乗らないからわからなくてね…ごめんなさいね。まぁ、暑いわねー。」
「おぉ。船ですか、良いですねぇ。」
ちょうど前の晩に日の出桟橋から出航する洒落た船を見たので実際少しうらやましかった。
そんな具合で話をしていると日の出駅に到着。オバサンは身体に似合わない軽い足取りでさっそうと駅の階段を降りてクルーズへと向かっていった。
目的地の台場駅に到着すると出口付近＆階段付近という幸運が重なって一番で改札を通過した。気持ち良い。
日航ホテルの入り口付近で、ファンファーレを浴びながらカメラに追われ式を挙げているカップルが記念撮影をしていた。
「おめでたいなぁ。幸せになるのかなぁ、あの二人。」
などとのん気に思いをめぐらせていたら、隣を歩いていたオバサン4人組から思いもよらぬコメントが飛んできた。
「全くもう、あんなにカッコつけて…どうせこうなっちゃうんだから。ねぇ？ギャハハハ！」
オバサンのパワーを強く感じた朝だった。
Traveling
Down the winding road we go.
Dark and damp, every step a fight
against the black clouds within
Stirred by the wind, voices turn to thunder.
And yet we battle, anxiously for firm ground.
And we dream, silently to ourselves
that the winds stop and the clouds part.
that the winding road no longer winds.
Every step brims with purpose and resolve.
And the voices disappear behind your own.
Only then do our travels begin in earnest.
Scenes
A taxi whizzes through the narrow, winding streets, kicking up a waft of hot & humid summer in its wake. Inside, a young lady perched comfortably in the corner between the backseat and the side door. In her air-conditioned stupor, she leans ever so slightly against the side door and glances out at the scenery, which at 9:30am this morning, happened to include me. Sweating, walking, envying.
黄色は自信が出る色。
カラーセラピー。ここ3，4日で２人これに詳しいという人に会った。
色が引き起こす感情だとかフィーリングを利用して心身の健康を促進する。。。みたいなものらしい。面白そう。
何やら色によって引き起こされる感情というのは生理的なものが多くある程度普遍性があるため、それを利用するセラピーというのも大分体系化しやすいとか。
こんな質問を今まで何度もされてきたんだろう、ウザイだろうから、という自制の声は自分の好奇心に見事にかき消され、気付いたらこんな質問を連発していた。
「赤はどういう色？」
「緑は？」
「んー、そっか。じゃぁ青は？」
「へぇ。じゃ黄色は？」
ひとつだけ妙に印象に残った色があった。
黄色は自信が出る色。自信がある人が身にまとう色。
確かに…
友達で自信に満ち溢れた（少なくとも外見は…）ヤツがいる。本当にしょうもないくらい自信だけはある。この前久しぶりに会った時マッキイロのT-シャツを着ていた。
最近日本でも少し話題になっている（？）色着きのリストバンド。アイデアの発祥はアメリカのLivestrong Foundation。 ツール・ドゥ・フランス７大会連覇の偉業を成し遂げた伝説のサイクリストLance Armstrongが自身のガン闘病（＆克服）の経験から打ち建てたガン撲滅の基金。リストバンドは黄色だ。
自分を信じることができる色。黄色が好きになった。
Old Apartment
Remember when we used to hang out on that porch and do hanabi?
Remember those TV shows we used to watch and laugh at but watch anyway because they were actually pretty funny?
Remember when I'd cook, and it'd be so nasty but you'd eat it anyway and say it was good?
Remember when you'd sleep out here because it was so much nicer than sleeping in those beds?
Back at the old apartment. That overworked AC is still humming. Leaves rustling outside. Children chirping, playing in the park across the way. Nothing's changed. And yet everything's different.
Your favorite chair-- now empty, waiting, arms wide open for its next occupant.
I guess I can't find it here anymore-- you, me and H903.