Sunday, August 31, 2025

フィクション 4カワウのコーリ

 


この間(3日のブログ)に、天願川にカワウが来たと、言いましたね。今日のブログは、そのカワウの話にしていいですか。これは、英語ブログに英語で載せた(2023年2月)Koree the Cormorantという話です。

気のせい?岩槻の公園の池でこの話をした時、近くの川に住んでいたカワウが飛んできて話を聞いていたみたいで、次の日は、仲間を連れて来た。自分は勝手に鳥たちが聞きたいときめつけて、「カワウのコーリ」を、話しちゃった!下で簡単に説明することにしました。

*---*---*

むかし、中国。貧しい漁師が波辺でケガをしているカワウをみつけて家で息子と一緒に手当しました。恩返しとして、鳥は鵜飼をすることにしたため、その日から貧しい親子は毎晩おなかいっぱいで寝ることができました。コーリと名付けられた鳥は息子と兄弟のように仲良くなりました。

ある日、近くに役人が引っ越して来て、自分も鵜飼をしてもっと金儲けをしようと貧しい漁師のカワウを取り上げてしまいます。鳥は鵜飼をせず、魚を食べてしまうので、役人はたまらず、コーリを前の家に帰します。

ということで、あの親子はまた、満腹で寝ることができて、コーリ兄弟もまた、一緒になりました。

おしまい

Saturday, August 30, 2025

フィクション 3アロンゾのプレゼント

 「ハイジの物語のペーターのように、アロンゾという男性が、毎朝ヤギたちを集めて、山の高い所に連れて行っていた。そこの野草を食べさせるアルバイトをしていた。

だけど、一つの小屋の窓から、いつも女の子の声が聞こえてきた。

「空が見たい。花が、川が、木が、草が。あ~」かわいそうに。病気なのかな。外に出られないのか。声は、まだ小さい女の子だと、アロンゾは思った。よし。

その日、アロンゾは、ヤギの番をしながら、きれいな花をつんだ。病気で外に出られないんだったら、花をあの子の所に持っていけばいいじゃないか。アロンゾは、一番キレイな花がどこに咲いているか知っていたから、一生懸命それを集めた。

夕方になると、口笛を吹きながら、アロンゾは山道を下りて行った。気が付いた。どうやって花を渡すか、考えていなかった。窓の周りの台に腕いっぱいの花の宝物を置いて、走って、家に帰った。

次の朝、アロンゾは靴底が地面を感じないぐらい仕事に走って行った。どう思ってくれたかな?

花は大きいマグカップに生けられていた。そして、窓のヨコには手作りのキャラメルが2コ置いてあった!やったー!

アロンゾはニコニコニコニコ。今度は秘密の川に行って、あの子に見せるための石を選んだ。ここの石は数百年も水に磨かれてオパールのように輝くものもあった。神秘的に混ざるデザイン・ミルキーな色に彼女は魅了されるに違いないと、アロンゾは思った。そう思うアロンゾの時間は、あっという間に過ぎていくようだった。

また夕方に、アロンゾは、きれいに拭いた川の宝石を窓の外に置いて走って帰った。そして、やっぱり、翌日、「あのコップ」の周りを飾っていて・・・手作りキャラメルがあと2コ置いてあった!

もうあの子は、親友だよね。だったら、見せようッと、アロンゾは決めた。その日は、ヤギたちを特別な峠に連れていった。ここに生えているコケは、金に光って見える。アロンゾは、平ったい石を見つけた。その日の夕方、気を付けて、台の上にこの金の石を置いて帰った。

次の日がアロンゾのバイト代をもらいに各山小屋に行く日だった。アロンゾは、玄関に行く途中、あの窓をチラッと見た。あの石がコップの下に置かれて、金の台に花が生けられているように見えた。宝石のように光る石が流れるように、コップの周りから窓の台まできれいに飾られていた。2か所だけあいていた。そこには・・・手作りキャラメルが置かれていたから!

アロンゾは笑みを隠せなかった。「おじいさん、今月のバイト代、いらないよ。代わりに欲しいものがあるんだ。とりかご。」

「トリカゴ?」

「そう。とりかご。凄いキレイなものじゃなくてもいいよ。板でも、枝でもいいよ。ひもとかワイヤーで縛り合わせたものでも。ペンキ塗らなくていいし。」アロンゾは一生懸命話して、おじいさんは、益々わからないような顔をしていた。

「実はね、今度したいのは・・・」そして、周りを見て小さな声で話し続けた。「かわいい鳥を取ってプレゼントしたいけれど、窓の台に鳥をオケナイよね。おじいさん、何かシンプルなカゴを作ってもらえないかな?」

「そういうことか。なんでもっと早くそういわなかったのかい?」おじいさんは、すぐ物置に行ってコンコンギーコギーコしたとおもったら、簡単なトリカゴを作って帰ってきた。

「鳥の座るところもあるし、餌・水の皿もあるし、ホラ、ドア、ひも、キレイじゃないけれど、これでいいかな?」

すごい・・・おじいさん、ありがとう。

カゴを作るために、おじいさんは1時間もかからなかったけれど、アロンゾは数週間後でも、鳥は全然捕れそうもなかった。アロンゾは、「かわいい鳥」をあきらめて、もっとゆっくり飛ぶ、地味な鳥を捕ることにした。見た目は、大した鳥ではないけれど、歌声は森一番だと思うと、アロンゾは自分を慰めるように、言った。女の子があまりがっかりしないように、光る石・きれいな花・金のコケでカゴを飾って、自分を怒るかのように、それをそっと窓の台に置いて、家に帰った。

翌日、これからは手作りキャラメルは、もうないかなと、思っていたところ、アロンゾは、ハッとした。窓は開いていて、女の子がそこに立っていた!

恥ずかしくて、アロンゾはすぐ木の後ろに隠れた。

「アロンゾ!そこにいるの?こっちに来て!」ええっ?!だけど、アロンゾは木の後ろから出て、しょうがなく窓の方に行った。だけど、見ると、女の子は、指の間を広げて、両手を前に伸ばしている。?と、いうことは・・・

目が見えない?!

「アロンゾのプレゼントは、今までもらった物の中で、いちばんステキ、どうやっておもいついたの?」アロンゾは窓まで来て、女の子は顔をさわっていた。「あら、なんで泣いているの?」

「うれし涙と聞いたことないの?」とアロンゾは必死に返事した。「ぼくのプレゼントを気に入ってくれたから、嬉しいのさ。」

アロンゾが色のブーケとして送った花を、女の子は、野の香水が送られたと思った。アロンゾが彼女をピカピカの宝石で感心させようと思っていたけれど、女の子は、石の滑らかの感覚・面白い形を指先で何時間も何時間もインジョイした。アロンゾにはコケの金が価値ある秘密と思っていたけれど、女の子はフサフサのコケを自分の頬に充てて楽しんだ。アロンゾの一番がっかりした贈り物:捕れなかった「かわいい鳥」は歌う鳥ではなかった。最後にトリカゴに入った鳥は、女の子に喜びをいっぱい運んでくれた。

その日のハイライトは、女の子がおじいさんに言ったこのことばだった:

「医者が新しい手術を試してみたい、私が見えるようになると思うと、先月言った時に、私、断ったの。それが失敗して、がっかりするのが怖かったから。だけど、気がかわった。少しでもおじいさん・アロンゾが見られるかもしれないんだったら、試してみたいの。」

今度ふたりが泣いたとき、本当にうれし涙だったんじゃないかな。

Friday, August 29, 2025

フィクション 2おとなしいカメWalter

 忘れるところだった。この話をすると結構前に約束しておきながら、していなかった。英語ではしたけれど!最初に口にしたのは、日本語なのに、なんで・・・

とにかく、自分が公園に来た時、好きな亀がいた。当時は噴水池からステップ・クリークの島まで川が通じていたので、コイ・カモ・亀・ザリガニ・蛙・たまには鷺も、あの小川を行き来した。一匹の亀Walterは、草の間の虫を探しながら、ゆっくり歩いて行った。

どこに歩いて行くというと、カメ・コブの亀孤児院まで。本当に。亀の親が殺されると、子亀はここで訓練された。おとなの亀2匹が親亀訳を引き受けて、数十匹の小亀の面倒を見ていた。Walterは、そこで訓練されたのか、成長して、そこでお手伝いした。

ところが、ある朝公園に来ると、小川の端っこじゃなく真ん中を、あの優しいWalterがフルスピードで泳いできた。いつもは自分の方を「オハヨウ」と、見てくれるのに、この日は目をくれなかった。

「ちょっと、亀さん、そんなに急いで、どうしたの?」

ウサギにおわれている!という返事がきこえたような気がした。

「うさぎ?この公園にうさぎっていないよ。」と、言って、自分は一瞬キョロキョロし始めた。

ウサギとカメのはなし、わからないの?ということばを、また感じた。

「うさぎと亀?勿論分かる・・・あ・・・コラ!」見たら、あのカメさん、もうスピードでカメ・コブの方に逃げて行った。

今日Walterは、お腹がグーグー鳴るはず。だって、虫いっぴき食べてないもん。

Thursday, August 28, 2025

フィクション 1親戚じゃない?

   ある山道で石3つがありました。1つ目は山のてっぺんが欠けて落ちた、スゴクずっしりした、土台に適したものでした。表面は太陽に輝く大理石でした。

2つ目は川を下って、急な角を曲がれなくて、木の底で休んでいました。何もしていないのに、美しく輝いていたのは、金だったからです。

3つ目の石?地震の時に、地面がシャックリをしたかなのように、奥底からヒョイと飛び出てきた、泥まみれの石ころちゃん。

「君、ボクが冬眠から出てきた時そっくり」と、近くの亀が土をキレイに拭きとり始めました。

それを見てたフンコロガシが言った、「ボクのフンのかたまりと、その石は似ているけど、しんせきかな?」近くの虫たちは、みんなクスクス笑った。



その時、博士のカラスさんが飛んできてポカンと口を開けた。きれいになった石をじっと見ている。

「えっ?こ、こいつはダイヤの原石だったんだ!」

人間は「ダイヤモンド」の音を知っている。虫は、特にフンコロガシは、知らない。

残念そうにカラスの博士に聞いた。「ボクのフンのかたまりの親戚じゃないと、言うこと?」

おしまい

Monday, August 18, 2025

QUASI - PART IV

 Oh—June was going to end the book here, but Quasi wants to add stuff.

 

 

PART 4 QUASI ADDS ON

Actually, there’s a whole lot June would like to talk about, that she didn’t, so I thought I’d tack some on. But when I told her how much I wanted to say, at first, she told me NO. Then she said OK if I could keep it down to six chapters, the length of one of her sections. She changed her mind again when she could see by my grinning face I was thinking 100 pages per chapter, and she said the whole thing had to be about 9 pages, the length of one of her sections. Well, I better get started.

 

 

  1 My Trusty Friend Coffee—see, June needs you now

  Remember when he first said, “I don’t think she needs me; she has Serra Fin to listen to her.”? Well, after Serra Fin was gone, he noticed June coming to Step Creek one day looking rather lost. From the top of the tree, he called down to her,

  “I’m not real smart, like Serra Fin.” And he continued; “But I’m not going anywhere, so if you want, talk. I’ll listen.”

And he did. From a heron’s high perch, he just listened. The next week he flew lower to a cherry tree, and the next month, Coffee flew over to a small sapling where he was close enough to touch.

 

2 Lenny, Tai

  Of all the animals, this one probably did the biggest turnaround in June’s heart her few years at the park. Several years ago, she was deathly afraid of them. Now she feels an endearment to them she can’t even explain herself.

  Perhaps her introduction to these creatures was when she was looking for a turtle, and at first jumped at the sight of the curled edge of sheet plastic around the island’s edge which looked queerly like a black snake. Although it was not any animal, it made her think about its right to live if it had been one. The next time was when June saw a turtle on a rainy day. Its head kept getting extended farther and farther out, and June could see no shell…no feet…she realized she was looking at a swimming snake.

  Because she’d started out looking at it, thinking it was a turtle—whom she loves—she thought she really had to love it now. She thought of it as a turtle that lost its shell and legs…the head of the non-poisonous snake, after all, looks very much like the turtle.

  That was June’s introduction to Lenny, the Four-Lined Rat Snake. She met the tree-climbing Ao Taisho (whom she named Tai) the following year. It coiled on some branches at Carp Cove, and June met Tai there three times that year.

  During their times together, she told him there is writing of the “wisdom of the serpent”, “movement of the serpent on the rock.” I think June has a special bias for Tai though. She thinks other snakes are fine, but says Tai’s eyes are “round, clear, and beautiful.”

 June says snakes have been given a bum rap: that they are timid and would not hurt you, would rather not fight. Only as a last resort—if stepped on, for example—would they bite.

 

3 Carp Old-Timers

June doesn’t talk about it much, but probably one of her fondest memories at the park is a rainy day party at Lower Bridge. When she first came to the park, she took lots of pictures of the carp there: a beautiful golden carp, her best friend Marble, 5 crimson carp: Marmalade, Cherry Fin, Slit, Valentine, & Young’Un; and the wise carp: Elder and Copper. From all the pictures was put together a story of friendship and of growing old. Now she recognizes Jesse Fin and Newsprint too.

  Carp gathered at Lower Bridge most rainy days. So one day, when I saw June was depressed for some reason, I called all the Old Timers who were in “Goldie’s Last Hurrah” plus Ben, another of June’s favorite carp friends (an “elephant” carp), and we had a great time talking about that story.

  (I shouldn’t say “we”. I wasn’t in the story or even a carp so left as soon as things got going!)

 

4 Flying Ballerinas

Something would be missing if the “elegant white birds,” weren’t flying overhead. The Egret seems to add a touch of beauty and class to a normal day.

  They are joined by the Great Blue Heron, and these majestic birds’ high calls can be heard in the skies of the park.

It’s a Mystery to Me

  What has awed me time and time again, however is when they fish. They stand in the shallow water of the pond and somehow convince the fish swimming in it that their feet and legs are the root and stalk of reeds; wait for them to come swimming close enough to catch them, spearing them with their beaks if they’re too large to swallow them quickly.

Vision of Hawks?

  These birds—what kind of eyes do they have, that they can spot fish swimming in the water underneath the lily pads? All my years watching them, I haven’t been able to figure out that one.

 

5 Snappy’s Still Here

  “What? Quasi, you’re not writing about THAT, are you?!” - June

  “But June, it’s like the Montys said: I need to get past a hurt in my life to go forward. This book isn’t touching something you don’t like thinking about--but can’t I write about it just a little?”

  “only a little then…”

  Good. It was after a terrible typhoon hit Japan. When June returned to the park, she saw all the carp in the creek were gone. This is part of a journal entry written about a dragonfly friend:

  When I looked over at Duck Pond, I saw the turtles basking, and there were baby turtles too. I was so glad. I’d been afraid the typhoon blew them all away. I kidded them about having shells to protect them, but I was so relieved. Most of the carp in Duck Pond weren’t protected, after all, I told them. But in the far end of the pond, a fish breeched, as if to let me know, “they didn’t get all of us!”

  A few red dragonflies were breezing over the pond.

  “Hey, if you’re Dragonfly Snappy, stop on this boulder here,” I said. I really didn’t expect it to. Guess what it did?!

  People will say—that’s just what dragonflies do. Coincidence!

  “Yeah?” I almost heard Snappy say. And it let me photograph it real close, then swirled up and stopped on a rock below in a Snappy-ish pose.

  “You remembered me?” it seemed Snappy said.

  “Of course I remembered you! I was worried the typhoon got you.”

  “No. Dragonflies were ok. Carp got it bad though.”

  “Yeah. I thought what if there’s no life left in the pond…not even Snappy!”

  (Snappy began flying in circles—was that a dragonfly smile?)

  “Take care, Snappy—I’ll be back tomorrow!”

 

6 Hodgepodge Birds

One day, lots of tripod photographers came to Duck Pond. The Mallards who were swimming in the pond didn’t make it a problem, just moved to Step Creek until the cameramen got tired and went home. The next time they came to the pond, the Mallards went across the path to look for insects. The Mallards looked like they thought they would encourage their friends by not getting in the way. Anyone needing an example of cooperation should watch the mallards.

Pigeons are so overlooked. Sweater designers forever need to look for inspiration for their winter wear, but these birds have feather designs that are delightful, all different; and on their necks, pigeons have lavender rainbow-like patches (natural pearl collars befitting gentlemen and ladies of the court?) And pigeons coo--a soothing, dreamy, charming sound, so different from the high trill, clear sound called “singing”, yet no less desirable—and you want to keep hearing it, over and over.

“It’s just a pigeon.” People say. Just a pigeon?! My dear pigeon, hold your head up high—you are a gift of nature—loved of God, smile of the Creator, a masterpiece!

  Oh no; only a little more space left to talk about all the “Little Birds” June has fallen in love with! (Quasi, you can have more room. I see you’re keeping it short. That’s okay; really. –June)

  Whew! Lessee…June thinks people don’t take enough time to notice the beauty of the blending black, brown, and white of Sparrows that go flying through the sky. If their comfortable chirping stopped all of a sudden though, something would seem very wrong. On the top of trees are small Japanese Finches, who look like little round notes skipping on leaves. There is no pushing around gutsy Mukudoris, and there are silver-tuxedoed Hakusekireis, woodpecker Peckwicks, chestnut-colored Tsugumis photographed thru’ a car window, tiny feathered soprano Sumis.

Recently, when June was sad she couldn’t tell birds apart by hearing their call, as famous writer, Gilbert White, could; a nearby sparrow told her it was ok; maybe he could recognize birds’ voices after many years, but even he started out by just loving them all!

 

 

Sighing, Quasi took off her neuro-scriber headgear and yawned.

“Well, I got it all done in less than 9 pages; did I pass June?”

“Yes, Quasi. Thank you.”

“I was…just wondering,” Quasi said in the middle of another big yawn, “June, will you own a park someday?”

“Oh Quasi, that would be so nice.” She gently pushed Quasi’s sleeping form into her shell, then found herself falling asleep too.

A great white bird tiptoes in thru’ the windowsill then carries the turtle back to her home in Deeper Pond, leaving June’s head resting on Quasi’s 9 pages, tiny arrow marks tracking across them.


END

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Added Later:

IS THAT QUASI?

From email 5-20-2022

 

 

A piece of good news from the park--you'd be familiar with this name. Quasi. I'd been slightly saddened that altho' I was happy her shell had healed and she was shaped normally, she looked like all other "normal" turtles now. Other than swimming towards me--and having a really strong telepathy I don't know how to explain--I had no other way of identifying her. Until the other day. I think I noticed one of the turtles basking at Lower Bridge--the largest one, actually--had, if you looked carefully, a light indentation mark all the way across the diagonal front part of the shell--I think that's where the lawmower blade hit her shell at the accident, so when I first saw her, Quasi had a shoe-shaped shell, but that part has domed out now...but I realized if I'd looked closely, I could tell now, since none of the other turtles have those marks! That made me happy.

Oh--the other turtle with Quasi? That's Bilbo. I decided to name him too, because he comes regularly. "Bilbo Basker," see? This poor fellow, for some reason, after a certain number of years, his shell stopped growing. So the rest of his body kept getting bigger, but his backbone cartilage seemed to have quit. In good spirits tho', see him quite often basking at Lower Bridge, and once just his snorkel in Deeper Pond.


QUASI - PART III

 PART 3 QUASIS MEMORIES

 


1 Rockette’s Winter

One warm spring day, when an egret flew down to Deeper Pond to see some turtles out of hibernation basking, He noticed there was one turtle that wasn’t with the rest of its friends on the island but was already swimming. Didn’t this turtle have to “thaw” from the winter sleep too? Why? What happened?

  Well, the previous year, all the turtles had gone into hibernation together, but one warm day in Dec., Rockette the turtle woke up out of her sleep and swam with the handful of the carp in the pond. To her horror she realized she was the only turtle awake! After that, for 63 days, she had to paddle around in the icy waters alone. She probably found more strength inside herself than she knew she had.

  The long months passed, and her friends finally woke up,began basking.

But before they’d all finished drying their shells, temperatures dropped again, and the turtles went back into hibernation. Rockette couldn’t be left alone! But no; one turtle stayed with her when all the others disappeared. It must’ve been to see this turtle that Rockette was able to keep going those icy months.

  That one turtle was named Barney, after Barnabas in the Bible who stayed with Paul when all the others ran away.

 

2 Play, Forgive, Rest

  Slit, a red carp in the pond, when she was young, loved action games just like human children. Her favorite play? It was called: “Oh no; I’ve been seen!” Slit swam slowly towards someone on the bank. But when the person saw the brilliant orange form in the water, Slit acted like she saw the person just then and darted away.

  At first, June didn’t realize Slit was playing and wondered what she did to scare Slit. Of course, now June knows it was all in fun—as a matter of fact, Slit is too old now to shoot around like that, and gracefully glides through the water anywhere she goes.  

  Once, when June was standing on the bank near the Irrigation Ditch—a place she rarely views the pond from—she saw a black carp swimming quite a ways away who responded to her voice.

  “What a smart, friendly carp,” she thought. “Can I give you a name?” she called out. But the carp seemed almost displeased.

  June thought it huffed, “I already have a name!” It paused, then swam closer. She recognized the golden-tinted bronze carp then.

  “Copper! SORRRREEE!”

  June hopes carp know the difference between those who forget friends and those don’t know who they are when they see them from a distance. Honest, Copper!  

  Probably a carp June will ever hold dear to her heart is Winnie. She looked like a carp in mourning with tiny bits of glowing orange peeking out of her black lace gown. It must’ve been a weak carp, because the others seemed to gather protectively around it.

  Perhaps the memory that stands out to June is the saddest. Most animals leave other species alone. But one time, when a Crow noticed a Human teasing Winnie, a Carp, this bird flew in angrily at the shoulder of the person.

  “Leave her alone!” the bird cried, then flapped to a branch nearby. It wasn’t much, but Winnie was weak.

  But the damage had been done, and the next day, the corpse was found in the reeds. Rest now, Winnie.

 

3 Seeing Quasi

  Did it seem one afternoon, when June went up on the bridge and saw Quasi coming, that something was different about her? June couldn’t explain it, but she sensed something was about to happen.

  But she didn’t seem to do anything unusual. Rather, she swam to the bottom of the pond and curled into her shell and stayed there. The place she swam to, the light’s rays angled to hit the shell just right, and all the flecks and chips and dents could be clearly seen.

  “Quasi?”

  It seemed the answer came back, “Take a good, hard look June.”

  June realized she had never really looked that way at Quasi before. When she met Quasi, she thought the turtle may’ve had some kind of sad happening in the past but never gave it much thought since then.

  Suddenly, June wasn’t sure, but her mind saw images of a lawnmower, a turtle—Quasi--getting caught in it and then being blamed, finding her way here to the park. Could that be what really happened? Was it her imagination? She looked at Quasi. If it was true, June wanted to cry.

“What can I do?” she thought. Quasi swam away. June went home that night, troubled by…what she wasn’t sure she’d seen.

The next day, when June and Quasi met, there seemed to be fewer flecks and chips on the shell, and the difference between the front and back levels was less apparent. June wondered if it was just her imagination. But Quasi’s improvements continued steadily, and one day, June found herself saying, “Quasi, you’re beautiful! How am I going to tell you apart from the others?”

(Well, she felt Quasi had a lovelier head than the rest and swam towards her when most turtles ran away from human beings.)

“But how did this happen?” she asked Quasi.

“When you learned my full story and you hurt for me,” Quasi answered, “for some reason, that set me free, and my physical healing began.”

June’s husband—the one who spotted her that Midnight walk--doesn’t recognize Quasi anymore!

 

4 Two Terrorists and Monty’s Rock

  Okay; they weren’t “terrorists,” but two little girls were terrorizing the carp at Corner Cove when June came back from the other side of the park. With twigs as weapons, they reached into the area where Serra Fin and his carp family cowered. Because the carp were on the other side of the creek, the girls couldn’t quite reach them, but sometimes they got uncomfortably close.

  Little girls can be mean. They began throwing pebbles and sticks into the bush. In a desperate attempt to distract the predator—this is the job of the father—Serra Fin jumped out in the open, hoping to draw off their attention. The girls looked at him for maybe half a second, but since he went to the center of the pond, they resumed their attack on the carp home.

Serra Fin turned around and came back, stayed a little hidden but watched, worried for his family. June saw the girls couldn’t do any real harm because they were separated by the stream but was glad when their mother called they had to go home. When they were gone, Serra Fin came out of hiding, and rushed back to see everyone was safe.

  One of the girls came running back and threw her twig at the carp. They had to leave the park, but just to be mean, she threw it at them!

  June was so upset at the girls, she wanted to cry. She told Serra Fin only of how glad she was that they were all right, but then she told Quasi about what had happened and how frustrated she felt. That is when Quasi gave her the flat, orange rock.

  “What’s this?” June asked.

  “I’ll tell you later.” Quasi said. “Guard it with your life.”

  For awhile, June wondered about where Quasi could’ve gotten the rock, what value it had, etc….

  After some time had passed, Quasi told June Monty had given it to him as well as explained what it meant. Some problems, you just can’t do anything about, he’d said. Can’t fret about it; put a period on it and go on.

If necessary, think about…a rock.

 

5 Parting With Serra Fin

  “Little terrorists can be scary, but what they do is on the mild side,” June’s husband had said; “since it’s play, it’s temporary.”

  June went to the park one morning and told Serra Fin about an exciting e-mail response from someone who’d been a friend over 30 years ago. She thanked June for her letter, saying she was just thinking about her the day before.

  “Serra Fin, I made a difference in her life! She hasn’t forgotten me, said she was thinking about me!”

  “Yes,” Serra Fin thought; “but can you imagine how happy she was to get your first e-mail that you were thinking about her?”

  June felt whopped both sides of the head with big bangs of “happy” and couldn’t think of anything else to do but say a big, “Thank you, Serra Fin!”

  Serra Fin seemed happy to have made June happy, and swam away. When June returned from her walk, there were some young mothers with their toddlers at Duck Pond in a very good mood. June saw they saw a pretty white carp—it looked especially happy today, swirling around in the water, leaping out of it here and there, making them—the kids--squeal with delight and clap their hands.

  June was glad she’d let Serra Fin know of her love. Duck Pond was dirty and needed to be cleaned, it was decided. Most of the carp there were removed, and Serra Fin was never seen from again.

  Granted, that carp looked like a glistening pearl with sapphire eyes, but its worth to June was the simple wisdom the pond angel surprised her with time and time again.

  “Why are you beautiful, outside and inside too?” June had teased; “some of us have to struggle with even one of those. Not fair!”

 

6 Rainbow & Early Butterfly

  One day, after all this happened, June was sitting on a stone stool at the edge of the pond, looking at the clean water, wondering what she’d do for the day. The park was full of laughing people celebrating the spring festival. It was for this yearly break, when schoolchildren would be at the park, the pool was cleaned. Now the place was full, people leading pets, others in traditional costumes, still more munching on snacks sold at stands.

  Yes, the pool water was clear. It had been cleaned, and the rocks at the bottom could be seen. But there was no Serra Fin swimming in it. In the midst of the gaiety around, June couldn’t make herself smile.

  But instead, she noticed the fountain in the middle of the pond turned a little, and in the seven years she has lived in Iwatsuki, she had never seen this—the spray and the sunlight formed a soft rainbow—not once, not twice, but over and over. It was as if the water was shouting to June:

  “Maybe this park has been through the rain; but here’s something to let you know the sunshine’s coming, so heads up, Junie!”

  And as if in support of that, a white butterfly announcing summer—she was very, very early—fluttered over the water and landed on the grass by the side of the pond.

  “Really! Count on it!” It seemed to say. And it flew away.

How was June to know that because Quasi’s shell healed, she could be joined to Mr. Terto, June’s favorite turtle at Duck Pond?

How was June to know that when Rockette died after her long winter struggle, leaving Barney to swim alone...he would notice another turtle Anna—Mrs. Monty—swimming alone, and the two would be perfect for each other?

How was June to know that on the next rainy day, 27 carp would come up from Deeper Pond to Duck Pond, to replace the ones she thought she would never see again?

  How was June to know? She didn’t. There are lots of things she doesn’t know, just looks forward to.