New year holiday season.
A few days of exhaustion.
How should I spend my time? Vaguely.

I was walking on a snowy mountain. The footprints in the snow that I trampled on follow me all the time. The sound of my clothes rustling was loud, I felt sad, and I wanted to blend in somewhere, so I got on the bus to Sapporo.

I swam my feet unsteadily and arrived at waya.

Warm light shines through the cracks in the wooden wall, which looks like roasted green tea. I can hear laughter. Just like when I was walking through the forest at night and found a firefly, my heart was suddenly illuminated. When I opened the door, feeling a little nervous, I noticed a nice smell. Since it's New Year's Eve, I decided to make hand-rolled sushi. People with a lighthearted atmosphere were having conversations as if they were playing Jazz music.

Before I knew it, I was in charge of arranging the food. Is that it? Nice to meet you, we sipped soba while watching Kohaku. I even ate the rice cake. We shared little bits of our lives in different languages.

At night, we chase each other to the shrine. Greetings to God. We were chanting sutras at the temple next door, and we were all smiling in a relaxed atmosphere, when the New Year's Eve moment dawned and we all jumped in a panic.

The story of Kishimojin that I was secretly taught at the temple has never left my mind.

In the morning, we all slept under the kotatsu.

At that time, I was working as a staff member at Guest House Setsugetsu Karou in Kimobetsu.

(Setsugetsu Karou. That's what a wonderful inn it is. I wonder what it is, like the letter I wrote a long time ago but never sent, the candy wrapper I loved, the hair clips, etc. A treasure chest full of sweets filled with memories. Something like that.)

While we were talking about this, all the waya staff took time off at the beginning of the year to come visit us at Setsugetsu Karou. Wow.

Promises made during a journey are made for that moment. There's a part of me that's clinging to a formless illusion, a beauty that will wither away if tied too tightly, so we told each other to come and go, and I was quite surprised that she actually came. of.

We rolled around, got covered in snow, and had fun. It was as if the friends I had lived in my head as a child had come to see me in their real form.

It was the moment when the sun shone through the heavy winter sky and the river surface sparkled.

Gather at waya and mingle. I wanted to believe it. a lot of things. If you listen to the small voice inside of you and surrender your body to the slight sensations of touch, you will be led to meet the person you need to meet. Even if I can't see you again, I'll still be here.

Now everyone is in different places collecting their own stars. I'm the only one who's lost, but I can live a little bit knowing that there's another lost child somewhere. When you feel like you're about to wither, let's bring your solitude again and share the warmth for just a moment.

Sumire