So This Was Christmas.

帰国して、１週間が経ちました。早いような、のんびりしていた割りには、まだ１０日にもならないのか、といった感じです。
フライトは、問題もなく、乗り継ぎも楽でしたが、アトランタからの１２時間は・・・遠い！
もう嫌だ！２日間、お尻痛かったよ・・・。

It's been a week since I got back to Tokyo. The flight with Delta was delightful, but too long-- I flew from Atlanta this time, and 12 hours' just SO long, that my butt ached for 2 days :(

でも、成田では、大好きな人の、素敵なお迎えがあり、とっても・・・嬉しかった。
久々にデルタ航空だったけれど、新しいボーイングのジェットは快適。
サービスも、ユナイテッドよりも良かった。ユナイテッドは、落ち目を感じるね・・・

But someone I truly love picked me up at the airport, and that was so.... nice.

By the way, I flew with Delta this time, and I think they are much better than United.
Last time I traveled with United, the service was so poor.

で、帰国翌日に、短大からの大親友が東京に来ている、というので、ランチ！
超素敵な時間でした。本当に、心から笑って、食事、数ヶ月ぶり。

Following day I met up with dearest friends for lunch.
It's been years since I met one of them, since she now lives in Hokkaido.

それから、大掃除シーズンの到来であります。

and it's the house cleaning season in Japan. (It's like "Spring house cleaning)

私って、こう見えても、かなり家庭的な女でして・・・
掃除、得意＆大好きなんです。

Believe or not, I am really good at housework, and mostly I do enjoy cleaning the house.

今回は、主婦の友達の皆様に、素晴らしい革製品クリーナーをご紹介！

Today I wanna introduce the great leather cleaner!
This one is the best, ever.

その名も、New Neo Cleaner!ニューでネオって、すごいよね。
でも、その名に恥じない、素晴らしいクリーナなのです。
たったの６３０円だし。買い置きが無くなり、ちょっと焦ったのだけど、数々のスーパー、ホームセンターを回りましたが、イトーヨーカドーに売ってました。ほっ。

Here is my favorite leather cleaner. It's name is incredible: "New Neo Cleaner."
630 yen. (and usually can be found in Ito Yokado)

これで、父のソファも、ピカピカです。

Now my dad's chair is shinyyyyyyyyy.

それから、

クリスマスシーズンの日本は、結構面白いよね。
地元のバスが、「サンタ号」になっていて、サンタさんがバスを運転していましたよ。
子どもたちの嬉しそうなこと。見ているだけで、幸せ。

"Japanese Christmas season" is fun for me, especially when something like this happens in the town.
Below is the picture of Santa driving the bus. (Oh, and it's a female Santa)
Only kids get some small presents from him too.

電光掲示も、素敵なメッセージに。
Such a wonderful message, too.

普段お砂糖を控えている私にとって、今年のクリスマスは特別でした。
数年ぶりに、クリスマスケーキを食べたんだよ。

Oh, and I ate a piece of Christmas cake this year--for I usually stay away from every sugary foods, it was SO unusual.

「銀の葡萄」さんの、有名なケーキは、とっても美味。
We (my family) bought the cake at "Gin no Budou." http://www.ginnobudo.jp/index.html

見てください、この艶！

東京でのホリデーをいかに満喫中か、お分かり頂けたかと思います。
本当に、「良すぎる」くらいの居心地なので、今日からまた、狂ったように書きます。

So, I think you can see how I'm enjoying holiday in Tokyo.
It's been TOO good, so far, but I am going to write like crazy from today.

それでは、皆様よいお年をお迎え下さいね。
健やかな年末年始、新年を祈念して・・・

I wish you a very merry, happy new year 2012.
Please take care of yourself, and have a wonderful holiday and the healthy coming year...

【転載】 カンボジア SOLS24/7-GDIメインセンター（ポチェントン） 移転に伴う寄付・支援のお願い

お久しぶりです。

今回は、普段ブログを見てくださっている皆様に、お願いのご案内があります。

大学時代の、素晴らしい後輩のひとり、 高橋　実華さんがお勤めしているNGOの学校が、この度、移転に伴い、寄付金を募集されています。

下記の通り、募集要項を転載させて頂きますので、ご協力いただける方は、どうぞ宜しくお願い申し上げます。最下方に、振込先等が記載されております。

私の帰国等々で、記載が遅れてしまいましたが、カンボジアの子どもたちへの、少し遅めのクリスマスプレゼント、とお考え頂くことも出来るかと思います。

何卒宜しくお願い申し上げます。

“SOLS24/7-GDI Building Cambodia’s Tomorrow キャンペーン” カンボジア　SOLS24/7-GDIメインセンター（ポチェントン） 移転に伴う寄付・支援のお願い 　 

Science Of Life Studies 24/7(SOLS24/7)は、金銭的理由や、家庭の諸々の事情により公立学校教育からドロップアウトした青年を対象に、無償での教育の機会を提供して いる国際NGOです。SOLS24/7はその本部をマレーシアに置き、現在、カンボジア、東ティモール、マレーシア、ラオスの４カ国 において活動を行っています。 　 


Grassroots Development Institute(GDI)は、SOLS24/7を母体とした、カンボジアの国内NGOで、16歳から29歳の青年を対象に、英語、コンピュータースキ ル、アカデミックスキル(会計、経営学等)、キャラクタースキル(リーダーシップ、コミュニケーション能力、規律等)を学ぶ、独自のプログラムを提供して います。2000年の活動開始以来、そのフルタイム(全寮制)とパートタイム(通学制)のプログラムを通じ、プノンペンとプロビンスを合わせ、 50,000人に及ぶ青年を、社会へと送り出してきました。現在、空港近くのポチェントンに構える本部(メインセンター)と、国内各地にある34の地方分 校(コミュニティーセンター)においては、2,500人の生徒が、より良い将来を目指し、日々学んでいます。 


　2001年、現在の土地にメインセンターを構えて以来、約10年間、地域や多くの人々の支援を受けながら活動を行ってきましたが、今回、長年の理解ある サポートを施して頂いていた土地オーナーの意向と、より多くの青年達へ、私たちのサービスを届けることを可能にしたい、という当団体の意向とにより、この 度本部メインセンターの移転が決定いたしました。 


今回のこの“SOLS24/7-GDI Building Cambodia’s Tomorrow キャンペーン”は、このGDIメインセンター移転に対する、寄付金支援プロジェクトとなります。 寄付金は、１万円からとさせて頂き、ご支援頂いた企業様、個人様におきましては、“SOLS24/7-GDI Building Cambodia’s Tomorrow キャンペーン”の一環と致しまして、その御名前を入れさせていただいたブリックを、新センター壁の建設に使わせて頂く予定です。 頂いた寄付金の全ては、建築資材の購入等、本移転にかかる全ての費用、またはその他の諸費へと当てさせて頂きます。 


当団体は現在まで、大きな建物ではなく、より多くの青年にその教育の機会を、という考え方を常に根底に持ち、全ての活動を、自分達の手作りで行って参り ました。その為、生徒の暮らすドームやクラスルームは、ココナッツ葉を壁としたとてもシンプルなものです。しかし、今回の移転を機に、その設備も現在のも のから、ブリックや木製の壁へと、生徒のより良い生活、勉強の環境の実現を可能にするべく、現在準備を進めています。 
また現センターでは、約300人程の生徒の受け入れが可能ですが、新センターにおいては約500人の生徒受け入れを可能とする設備を備える予定でいます。それにより、より多くの青年が、学びの機会へとアクセスすることが可能となります。 


今回の私たちの新センターの建設をご支援いただくことを通し、カンボジアの明日を担う若者の、その人生に何かしらのプラスの変化をおこす私たちのプロジェクトにぜひご参加頂けたらと思います。 　 ご寄付は、下記口座への振込でお願い致します。 

また当団体、プロジェクトにつきまして何かご不明な点がございましたら、本プログラム担当高橋実華までご連絡ください。 
ご協力の程、何卒宜しくお願い致します。 


☆寄付の振込先 
ゆうちょ銀行　 
普通預金 
店名　０２８ 
普通　９２３８６４７ 
Science of life studies 24/7　Cambodia 


☆SOLS24/7 Cambodia 
プロジェクトコーディネーター　高橋　実華 
Tel:(+855) 68-619-719 
Email: mika@sols247.org 
Web: www.sols247.org 

Sponsorship of SOLS24/7-GDI’s Building Cambodia’s Tomorrow Campaign 

To whom it may concern, 

Referring to the matter above, I am making a humble appeal for your kind consideration and generosity to support the SOLS24/7 –GDI Building Cambodia’s Tomorrow Campaign. 

Science of Life studies 24/7 ( SOLS 24/7) is an organization which provides free education to underprivileged youth between the ages of 16-29 in Cambodia. SOLS 24/7 is an international NGO based in 5 other countries which are Malaysia, Laos, Japan, Timor Leste and Singapore. Grassroots Development Institute (GDI) is the local organization under the parent umbrella of SOLS 24/7. We provide education in areas of English Proficiency, ICT Skills, life skills, vocational skills and job employment training. Our headquarters is located in Pochentong, Phnom penh and we also operate 31 community centers throughout Cambodia. SOLS 24/7 currently has 500 students in the main Headquarters in Pochentong and 2500 students throughout Cambodia. 

We are now in the process of locating to new premises to support the growing number of students and to provide students with better facilities. 

We launched the Brick Campaign called “Building Cambodia’s Tomorrow” . We humbly appeal to you to donate a minimum of $ 50 or more. All funds raised will be used to secure land and fund construction for our new facility and all our expenses. 

Our current school can only accommodate 300 boarding students. With the new space, we'll be able to serve 600 students each year, which will have a positive impact in the lives of Cambodian youth. 
We aim to provide the students with a better educational environment with more computers, upgrade their living conditions, to have brick walled classrooms, whiteboards, upgrade toilets and have a greener environment around the school. 

As Anne Frank once said, “no one has ever become poor by giving” . 
The more you give the more you get. 
I request for your full support during this entire period of fundraising as we will together build the new building of our school to make a change in the lives of Cambodian youth. 

Your kind consideration and support is deeply appreciated. 

Thank you. 

Yours Sincerely, 

………………………. 
Mika Takahashi 
SOLS 24/7-GDI Cambodia 
Web : www.sols247.org 
Contact No: 068 619 719 
Email: mika@sols247.org 


………………………. 
Bank Transfer 
You can also organise a bank transfer to our account in Cambodia. 

Payee Name: Science of Life Studies 247 Bhd 
Name of Bank: ACLEDA Bank Plc 
Account No.: 2200-10-828897-17 
Bank Address: # 61, Preah Monivong Blvd., Sangkat Srah Chork, Khan Daun Penh, Phnom Penh, Cambodia 
Phone number: (855)23- 994 444 / 15- 999 233 
Currency: US Dollars 
Swift Code: ACLBKHPP

謝々！２０１１年

明日に一時帰国を控え、ちょっと早いけれど、１年間を振り返ってみようと思います。

ふと思いついたことなので、脈絡なくなりそうだから、せめて１月から順番に書いてみようかな。

長いけど、お暇ならお付き合い下さいな。

１月・・・まだ大学院半年目だから、色々混乱していたなぁ。自信も無く、もがいてもがいて、学期末にたどり着いたのだけれど、達成感よりも、疲労感が多かった。

２月・・・春学期スタート。４日間隔で、詩、エッセイ、短編小説を書かされたのは、自分でもどうやったのか分からない。"You are crazy."と言われたのもこの頃から。詩とは違い、エッセイも短編も、フォームを考えずに自分を爆発させられるのが、良い感じ。ノンフィクションも書き始める。

３月・・・２８歳に。沢山のカードやプレゼント、遠いアメリカまで送ってくれて、どうもありがとう。

それから、Arthur Sze氏朗読会のプレゼンターとして、壇上に。ディナーでは、広島の被爆した銀杏の木や、築地市場の話など。

翌朝、東北での大震災のニュース。心が、音をたてて剥ぎ取られていくような日が続く。

４月・・・毎日へとへとになるまで創作、勉強。食事がまともにとれなくなったのも、このころ。ただ食べ物が美味しくなくなり、食に興味が無くなり、一口食べてはトイレ、状態。

５月・・・学期末、目を回して創作・勉強。月末に帰国。

６月・・・日本での夏スタート。初旬、両親と神戸・京都へ。

７月・・・短期のアルバイト。色んな人に会って、詩の題材にさせて頂く。

８月・・・月初め、アメリカの新人賞受賞の知らせを受ける。また、修士論文の取材の為に、広島へ。江田島では、旧海軍士官学校へ。酒巻和男氏の足跡をたどるためにも、とても有意義な旅。

９月・・・再渡米。論文指導教授が決まり、初めて女性の恩師が出来ることに。公私共に、とても共感、そして尊敬できる先生。

１０月・・・勉強、創作共に、波に乗ってきた時期。夏の広島での経験が、詩に反映されて、修士論文構築が着々と進んできた時期。

同時に、ルームメイトとの問題が山積。

１１月・・・ストレスから、授業中にダウン。教授と面談、引越しを決意。感謝祭前に引越し。

１２月・・・引越ししてからも、忙しさに変わりはないけれど、料理や散歩でストレスを発散出来る１２月に。

・・・

さて、今年もあと２週間ほど。あっという間の１年でした。

どの月にも共通しているのが、やはり人々との繋がりが大切だった、だと思う。

今年の漢字じゃないけれど、わたしも「絆」を感じた１年でした。

離れていても、いつも応援ありがとう。同級生にも色々相談に乗ってもらったね（彼ら、日本語読めないんだった・・・）

こちらの明日、帰国します。

全員に会えるとは思わないけど、会えたら、ギューってして、いつも応援してくれること、お礼を言いたいよ。

いつも本当にありがとう！

70th Anniversary of the Pearl Harbor Attack

is today.

It's been raining all day in Roanoke.

I cannot stop thinking about all that mess before&after the attack on this day, 70 years ago.

It is the way too silly fact that people are still crazy about war.
War---that's the most silly thing I've ever known.

When I think about war and its victims, I never say "sad"-- for it only brings the sentiment that will never help us to stop fighting on and on.

While I work on my thesis, which is the books of poetry on my great uncle who attacked the Pearl Harbor, there is only one thing I keep in my mind:

NEVER GLOSS THE FACT OVER WITH POETIC WORDS.

I keep this promise to myself seriously and would like to publish the book someday as my prayer for all the victims and people on this earth today & the future.

Declaring something like this does remind me of John Lennon, who was shot on 12/8 in 1980, just a day after the 39th anniversary of Pearl Harbor Attack.

Hey, December can be just too depressing...


『真珠湾攻撃70周年』

は、今日です。

1日中雨降りのRoanoke。涙雨かと思う程に。

こんな日は、70年前の今日前後の、世界中の悲惨な状態を思わずには居られません。

未だに戦争どんぱち大好きな人が居るのは本当に馬鹿らしいことです。
戦争って、私が知る限り、最も馬鹿らしいものだよ。

戦争のことを考えるとき、戦死者を気の毒に思っても、「悲しい」とは思わないです。おセンチになったって、戦争は終わらないから。

そんな私には、修士論文（詩集）を書いているとき、ひとつだけ、必ず守ろうと決めていることがあります。

「詩的な言葉で、史実をきれい事で飾らないこと」

です。しっかりここを守って、完成したら、いつか出版したいと思っています。全ての戦死者、そして、今・未来を生きる人間全てへの祈りを込めて。

そんな事を言い始めると、真珠攻撃から、39年後の翌日に凶弾に倒れたJohn Lennonを思い出します。

12月って、割と暗い気持ちになる月だね・・・

John Lennon "Mind Games"

『いつでも夢を』

"Itsudemo Yume-wo"

by Peggy March

(彼女と私、誕生日が一緒です・・・)

A Hunch 2/2

On the next day, Toko arrives at the hospital just on time. She takes off her bra and earrings, and takes a deep breath. When she enters the exam room, following the nurse and the doctor, she doesn’t miss the heavy door to shuts her in. Toko is already too nervous and looks pale. The nurse asks her if she’s feeling okay. Toko says something like “I’m fine,” but not sure what she’s saying. As she steps forward to lie on the machine, she can’t believe what she is going to do. It is too eccentric experience for her.

This is already enough, she thinks. She even thought such an awful experience can worsen her symptoms. Lying down, she is once again asked if she needs the sleeping pills, but she says
No. Then, suddenly the nurse brings the weird looking helmet-like devise. It looks like a helmet for football players, but a little bit bigger than those.

This is something Toko has never been told before. She becomes panicked. The nurse smiles at Toko and says, “Don’t worry. This is just the thing helps your head not to move.”

When the nurse puts the thing on her head, it looks more terrible from inside. She thinks, Oh god, I’m gonna be under the electroconvulsive therapy. They even put a headphone to shut the machine’s noise out. Toko feels completely trapped. While she is trying to take a deep breath, the nurse asks her to choose the songs she wants to listen to during the test. Toko replies, “Do you have David Bowie?”

“Who?”

“David Bowie.”

“I am sorry, but I don’t know him at all, and I don’t think we have his songs here.”

Toko wonders how she has been able to live without knowing him—she must be around forty. Toko asks for whatever she has. The nurse says “Sure thing.” Toko has no idea what she is sure about.

The door is shut and Toko closes her eyes. It’s her habit; she closes her eyes when she takes the x-ray too. Something in her tells her she should.

Then there is the terrible noise. It starts like a Chinese gong ringing constantly. This wasn’t so bad for the start, Toko thought, but she feels cold sweat on her back and the hip already. Her head is completely covered with the machine and she could only stare at the white arc above her head. The noise kept on going. Dadadadada dada gagaaga ga ga ga ga…then the music comes on.

It is a terrible choice—Hotel California. She just wants to hit that nurse for her mistake. How can anyone listen to such a suffocating song under the MRI machine? Ding-dong ding-dong…The machine sounds brutal and doesn’t match the music at all. In a way, the song sounds much creepier. Their chorus echoes in her head; Such a lovely place, (such a lovely place), what a nice surprise (what a nice surprise)... What a terrible surprise.

The next song is even worse: Saturday Night by The Bay City Rollers. As boys begin spelling out S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y with those twangy voices, the machine gives a great buzz. Toko tries to imagine her brain’s slowly scanned by the devise from the top of her head. It is impossible for her to tell what the machine is doing, though. This continuous buzz reminds her of a sixth grade boy who’s trying to play the toy guitar like Jimi Hendrix. Well, at least he’s trying.

By the time the third song, Bicycle Race by Queen is on the player, Toko begins to appreciate the nurse for keeping her upset throughout the test. At least she can get off her mind from the fear—but she can barely hear the music now. The machine seems like giving the last tenacity to picture her brain completely, and then, the machine stops and the nurse comes into the room. “You did a good job, honey. Now, watch your step.” The nurse takes Toko’s hand to help her sitting up. Her shoulders are stiff, and she stretches herself. She is free to go now.

The outside is sunny. It’s Friday afternoon and soon people will emerge from the offices for Friday nights’ release.

Toko is going to meet her fiancé for dinner tonight, and starts walking to the station. As she gets to the station, she notices she is out of cash. She finds an ATM machine to withdraw some money, but her cash cards don’t work. They are all wiped while she left her wallet in the breast pocket during the test. “Silly me—” she has no idea how she gets to the restaurant. She flips open the cell phone to call her fiancé, but she hesitates.

If I will be diagnosed the brain tumor next week, Toko thinks, and if that happens to be malignant…Toko turns around and starts to walk to her apartment, keeps on thinking, It won’t take an hour to get there—I can call him when I get there and maybe suggest him to come over my place… but she knows that she won’t call him or cook him dinner tonight. Toko feels strange as she realizes herself wishing the tumor (now she really thinks it’s there,) will be malignant, so she can blame everything on the tumor as she lets go her relationship, unwanted marriage, the job at the bank, or the dull days to raise a baby.

Yes, Toko says to herself, I will be diagnosed a bad brain tumor and what should I care anymore?  And should I care to meet someone subsequent—someone like my fiancé?

Ayako M. All Rights Reserved

A Hunch (1/2)

A Hunch

(The First Part)

Toko has been annoyed with migraines for almost a year, every single day. They started right after she graduated the collage and started working for the bank in Tokyo. She doesn’t like it and she is never interested in her job at all. The pay is great, and maybe that’s why she took this job. Days are nothing but torture. Working for a bank is too boring. After 5 p.m., she meets friends, sip a glass of wine, and goes home. Toko has a fiancé she’s supposed to marry in three months. It’s the marriage her parents set for her. She is not happy about this at all, but she is also not desperate to oppose it. She grew up this way. Everything about her life seems lukewarm. Now she finds herself turning thirty, and she questions what she has accomplished: nothing but saving plenty of money—saving for nothing planned ahead, only getting married and have a baby or two.

Toko takes aspirins daily with breakfast. A very exemplary patient. Medications did work for her a while. She was just annoyed, but when she started vomiting occasionally in the morning, she was worried. One night, she could not resist it anymore and searched headache, early morning, vomit on Google. The results were not fun to read at all. On the screen along bold letters “headache” in each result, she saw the words “brain tumor.” This terrified her. She imagined a black, gruesome clod of tissue tingling in her head. She became suspicious about everything she encountered. When she lost her appetite, she felt the tumor clinging to her satiety center. When she dropped her pen at the office, she felt it tingling on the back of her head.

It could be anywhere and the place didn’t matter at all, actually. The point was, she has the possibility of having (and moreover, developing!) a tumor in her brain, and the possibility itself is close enough that the tumor might be well as real. It’s just like the rock dams a stream and suppresses the babble. She has become silent.

Going to see a doctor took courage though she knew she would need him sooner or later. As she explained her symptoms to the doctor, she felt as if she were mocking the patients’ story she’s taken from Google. The doctor was a middle aged man, the sort of a guy you can imagine in a white coat—glasses, the meaningful face, mustache, and the expensive pen in the pocket with a BiC pen side by side. He suggested that she have the MRI test soon. “It’ll be over in fifteen minutes or so. And you won’t be irradiated.” He smiled at her with a great confidence, though it did not make her feel better or relaxed. “Does it hurt?” Toko asked him innocently. The doctor’s response was simple but quite irritating; “Of course not!” Toko had no idea why he said of course. The doctor added, “Oh, are you afraid of the closed place? Is that your problem? If so, we can give you a sleeping pill so you can sleep while you are under the test.”

Toko said no. She was almost going to say yes, but she could not imagine sleeping with her head in the MRI machine. What if there was an earthquake while she was there sleeping and the door frame skewed and no one could open the door for her?

Toko was told to come back next day. She received the brochure about the MRI test. Back to her apartment, she made a cup of black tea and started reading it carefully. She made herself nervous this way. Sipping black tea, she learned she shouldn’t wear eye shadow on the following day, because it would be burnt lightly under the strong magnetism. This somehow made her think of David Bowie’s forehead in 1970’s. Would she be cool if she painted her forehead with glittering powder like him? and let her forehead burnt? What a spacey thought.

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--to be continued--

Ayako M. All Rights Reserved