Chapter 54: CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR

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CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR

When the Okusan called me for breakfast the next morning, I went out to the irori and found the Okusan and Dannasan already sitting there on their zabuton cushions waiting for me so we could all have our breakfast together. I was surprised to find a boiled egg and a salad instead of the traditional Japanese style breakfast of the miso soup, broiled fish, etc., I was expecting.

"David-san, which do you prefer? Coffee or tea?" the Okusan asked.

"Well, coffee I guess."

"Then I'll go get you another cup from the kitchen."

"Don't you usually eat Japanese style breakfasts when you don't have any other guests?" I asked the Dannasan. "This seems just like the 'morning service' breakfast I eat at a coffee shop every morning in Kyoto."

"Ha, because that's exactly what it is!" grinned the Dannasan.

"What? You get this from the same coffee shop I eat mine at?"

"Haha, of course not! But I used to work for an insurance company in Tokyo. And I had a morning service breakfast at a coffee shop near my train station before I had to take that absolutely horrible, crowded, two hour train commute."

"You come from Tokyo? But how did you wind up here in Shirakawa?"

"It's a long story," said the Okusan returning with my cup of hot coffee. "Dannasan, why don't you tell it while we're all eating breakfast together?"

"I hated the long commutes and the congestion of the sprawling Tokyo megalopolis area that's almost impossible to get out of and where there's almost no greenery. As for the work, well, I found insurance itself to be interesting enough if that were all I had to do. But no. It was the meetings, meetings, meetings that drove me crazy. Particularly since most of them were just for the sake of having meetings so far as I could tell."

"After work did you you go out drinking with your coworkers?"

"For the first year or so, yes. But that got to be a real waste of time for me, too. So after a year or so, I just stopped going."

"But I've heard from other businessmen I used to teach that would hurt your career with your company."

The Dannasan nodded. "It did. But by then I was getting sick of my life in the city anyway and didn't really care. I just wanted out of the job and out of the city."

"So how did you wind up here? I mean Shirakawa is a long way from Tokyo. And way out in the sticks, too."

"I read an article in the Asahi Shinbun newspaper about Shirakawa. It seemed like heaven to me. So I decided I'd take my full two weeks of vacation that year and come out here. I knew that, too, was going to hurt my career since most of my coworkers didn't take any or at most take only one or two days off during their vacation time to show their loyalty to the company. The trip by train and bus to get here took me more than fourteen hours. But it turned out to be the smartest trip I've ever taken because it changed my whole life. And all for the better too!"

"Did you stay here at this minshuku?"

"Haha. No, because it wasn't a minshuku back then. But it was the house where Okusan was born and raised. And I had the good fortune to meet Okusan while I was staying at another minshuku."

I smiled. "I think I'm beginning to understand where this is going. But if Okusan was born in this house, where are all her brothers and sisters and her parents?"

"Well, her brothers all moved to Tokyo or Osaka as soon as they graduated from high school to get good jobs. She was by far the youngest and didn't have any sisters. Her parents died in a traffic accident when she was very little. The roads back then were even worse than they are now and the drivers even more fanatical. She was brought up by her grandmother. Her grandfather had died before she was born."

I turned to the Okusan, "I very sorry to hear about your parents."

She sort of shrugged but kept smiling. "Oh, it happened so long ago, David-san, and I was just a toddler at the time. I hardly remember them at all."

"Well, Dannasan, did you and Okusan get married during that two week vacation of yours?"

"Ha, not that fast. But we became so intimate with each other during that time that we decided to have a very long distance romance. I couldn't get enough time off from my company to come out here just on weekends. But she could come to Tokyo and stay for much longer periods of time."

"Where did she stay?"

"With me of course. That saved her a lot money. And really sped up our romance."

I grinned. "I think I can understand why." I glanced at the Okusan. She just kept smiling even though the Dannasan was giving me intimate details of their relationship. I turned back to the Dannasan. "So, did you get married right after that?"

"Well, by that time her grandmother was getting quite old and frail and she needed Okusan's help taking care of this house. So she couldn't stay with me for too long at any one time. But it was long enough for us to know we we wanted to get married."

"So you got engaged?"

"Ha, you really are an American. Here in Japan very few couples get engaged. They just decide to get married and have a wedding ceremony. Some couples don't even bother with that. They just get their marriage registered at their local town or ward office and move in with each other -- if they're not already living with each other, that is. And that's just what we did. We didn't even bother having a wedding ceremony. I was on the outs with my coworkers and it was too far for her friends and relatives to attend. Maybe we'll have one in a few years or so. Others do."

"Hmm. That does sound so much easier than the American way. For one thing we must be married by a clergyman or justice of the peace or the marriage isn't legal. And there have to be witnesses to sign the wedding certificate."

The Dannasan grinned. "That's why I like the Japanese way. You can choose to do whatever you want."

"So how did you and the Okusan come to open this house as a minshuku?"

"Okusan's grandmother passed away while I was staying here during one of the few times I could get away from my company and Tokyo. Like I said her grandmother was getting quite frail. Both Okusan and I were by her side when she passed. Really peacefully as a matter of fact. I think that's the way I'd like to go out, too, when my time comes."

Again I glanced at the Okusan. She was still smiling and nodding in agreement.

"So that left Okusan and me with this huge house to ourselves. That's when we decided to turn this house into a minshuku. By then Shirakawa was becoming a tourist attraction. In the summer at least. Besides, there are simply no other jobs out here. I went back to Tokyo one last time to quit my job at the insurance company and collect what little severance pay I had coming and move out of my apartment. And I've never looked back. Life's so wonderfully spacious and peaceful and quiet and simple out here. And so wonderfully green compared to Tokyo. And now I'm my own boss. With Okusan, of course."

He smiled at the Okusan. She smiled back and continued nodding in agreement.

"Where are you going to go after you leave us, David-san?" The Okusan asked as we were finishing our breakfast."

"Kanazawa."

"Kanazawa? Which roads are you going to take to get there?" asked the Dannasan.

"Well, I've checking my maps and it seems to me that Route 360 to 157 would be the best."

"No!" both shouted in alarm.

"But why not? That route seems to be the shortest and fastest."

"Shortest yes. Fastest no way!" explained the Dannasan. "And dangerous."

"Dangerous? How?"

"Do your maps show you how it keeps making sharp hairpin curves?"

"Well, yes, now that you mention it. But I've been on mountain roads with lots of curves before. Why is this one so dangerous?"

"Because it's so narrow and in very bad condition. And those curves are blind so they really slow you down. And God help you if you should meet any oncoming cars. Even on that little cub of yours you won't be able to get around one without falling off the side of the cliff."

"Well what route should I take then?"

"156 north to 304 west. It's much safer. And faster, believe me."

"I've seen that route on my maps, too. But it seems so roundabout.

The Dannasan shook his head. "It's fairly flat and straight. You can probably go at your top speed on your cub on most sections."

"How long does it take you to get there?"

"No more than three hours by car."

It took us more than five hours. But it was fairly fast and easy driving, like the Dannasan said And we did make it safely.

Looking for a minshuku to stay at took us another hour. But at last I found one that looked OK. I didn't try doing sudomari for the first night at least. I was too damn tired from the drive and Kanazawa was too large a city to waste time just looking for a place to eat.

I took my bath in their rather small ofuro. But even soaking in it for almost an hour couldn't get anywhere near all the kinks out of my body from that long drive with us making only a few short rest stops along the way to get us to Kanazawa as fast as possible.

Then I laid down my sleeping futon and gratefully slipped into it, wondering what tomorrow and Kanazwa would bring.

Submitted: September 05, 2024

Romance romance japan gaijin travel-in-japan japan-1970s

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Comments

B Douglas Slack

End of another great trip, Ken. The Okusan found that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, didn't she? Most of the time it doesn't turn out that way. Nice chapter.

Bill

Wed, September 18th, 2024 12:29am

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Reply

I'm glad you like this chapter, Bill. But it's the Dannasan who likes the grass on the other side of the hill, isn't it? I mean she came to Tokyo only to be with Dannasan. He, on the other hand found just exactly what he was looking for with life in Shirakawa. I hope my chapter shows this. But are we talking about two separate things here?
Again, as always thanks for your comments. I greatly appreciate them.

Ken

Tue, September 17th, 2024 10:42pm

B Douglas Slack

Yes. You're right. I was thinking one and typed the other.

Bill

Wed, September 18th, 2024 4:32pm

Author
Reply

Glad to hear it was your mistake and not mine!

Ken

Thu, September 19th, 2024 12:10am