Recently it seems modern people are more interested in meditation and its effect. Personally I try it sometimes but hasn't yet to reach the state which it does have effect on me. Maybe "try it" is not a proper attitude…just "do it". I'm not pursuing spiritual side of life and not sure if meditation is successful enough to change the human being. The effect should be so personal that it's hard to measure. But I'd like to imagine the state of meditation where you are released from routine, miscellaneous affairs, senses and noises, and you feel like rediscovering yourself with infinite expanse of potentiality in every aspects of life, far more than you would expect. It may sound exaggerating but this is how I describe meditation.
Living in large city people tend to be luck of getting together, or even getting to know their neighbors. It's true and the same with me.
But it's also true sometimes people happen to know their neighbors are probably, simply good friends.
Couple of minutes ago a man living in the same floor of the apartment visited me and said he was leaving. We never talked before. I once knew that he might be a terrible smoker (judging from heavy smell of cigarette when I saw he was just entering his room one day.) At another time I heard he was making noise in almost scratching the floor in order to shovel snow away. It's natural to say neither of the scene made his impression better. But he in person was a polite, decent man.
Back in years, just after the terrible earthquake hit us, one night I felt quite a big aftershock. Surprised, I almost rushed to the door (which was the worst thing when earth was shaking), and then hesitated a moment in front of the door. Then I heard the voice of my neighbors across the hall. They were just the same as me, frightened but knowing what to do in the end. Nothing calmed me down better than their existence at the nervous moment.
I feel once again that when your neighbor leaves you notice the possible value of mixing with neighbors.
2007年のイスラエル映画、"The Band's Visit"は説明のつかない魅力に溢れる作品です。ひとことで言えば、非常に美しい映画です。エジプトからイスラエルに来た警察の音楽隊が勘違いのために辺鄙な砂漠の田舎町で一夜を過ごすことになる、と一行で語れてしまうストーリーの中に、いやむしろストーリーの枠を超えたところに、ユーモアと味わい深さと淡々としたペーソスが綴られ、そして何より音楽隊の物語だけに、音楽が巧みに効果的に使われています。この映画では音楽は言語や国や文化を易々と越え共有できる、という意味も込められているようですが、それが別に奇蹟を起こすわけでも、大げさなハッピーエンドがあるわけでもなく、淡々としかし鮮やかに人間の心情を描き出すためにそこにあるという印象です。言葉のわからない土地で無言のまま音楽隊が奏でる伝統音楽、地元の若者が深夜に車を飛ばしながら掛けるクラブミュージック、そして世界中どこでも通じる「ビートルズ」や「ストーンズ」。そもそも音楽とは人間が作っているのですが、それにしても優れた音楽はカテゴリを問わず、まるで自然が作ってそこに置いておいてくれたもののように感じられます。
To those who really care for flying, gravity is something that one tries to escape from. But if you look at moon and stars in the sky, strangely but truly they exist, or float owing to the gravity between each other. Jumping out of one gravity means getting close to another. But if one stick to one gravity it will rotate the same circuit forever. Sometimes it will kick itself out to find a place of new balance in mutual gravity. It's so much like human relationship.
サン・テグジュペリの”Le Petit Prince"を読んで、生命や深い哲学を感じる人もいるでしょう。キツネとの温かい友情や、飛行士である主人公との切ない別れや、風変わりな星々への遍歴、絵に描いたヒツジや、勝ち気なバラの花の話が印象に残ることもあるでしょう。しかし子供の頃に初めてこの話を読んだとき、どういうわけか「ゾウを飲み込んだウワバミの絵が帽子にしか見えない」とか「朝ごはんを温めるのに活火山を使う」という突拍子もない滑稽なところ、中でも「バオバブの芽を見つけたら、大きくなって星を壊さないようにつんでおく」という逸話が一番心に残りました。
この美しい小説に教訓を探すのは野暮ですが、確かその話には「日常の面倒な雑事も、小さなことをきちんとこなしておくと、バオバブが育ってしまって住む星がなくなる羽目になることもない」といった言葉が続いていたように思います。なるほど雑用というのはそういうものなんだな、と子供心にはどんな小言よりも説得力があったように覚えています。（本当のバオバブは、巨大なことはさることながら、乾燥した土地に貴重な食料源をもたらしてくれる木でもあるそうなのですが。）
This spring I started again a life as rookie. The feeling surrounded by people who never knows me is something I didn't expect and was glad to have. Why? They have come to know me from scratch. They have little reason to compare me with myself in the past. If I have several social faces it's up to me which one I appeal or even I have liberty to create new one.
The new work isn't all fun of course. As a rookie I have to try to build myself up from the base, like all the rookies in the sports league or high school team. I'm running, practicing, shooting, jumping and sweating in my new business league. It's okay as I know I am rookie and that's what I am supposed to do, for the moment, to strike a higher goal in the future.
Winter begins slowly but spring does in a sudden. One day you feel sunlight as not just beam of light but unmistakable heat. All of a sudden there comes full bloom and fresh green appears. Personally I don't particularly prefer spring than other seasons because recently that spiteful hay fever annoys me a bit, but it's no doubt spring is entitled to claim the symbol of re-birth.
冬がゆっくりと始まるのに対して春は突然始まります。ある日突然、陽光が単なる光だけではなく確かに熱をも帯びていると感じます。突如として花が咲き開き、新緑が芽吹きます。個人的には、あのやっかいな花粉症のせいで春はあまり好きな季節ではないのですが、それにしても春が再生のシンボルであることは間違いありません。
