Goldfish scooping


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(Translated and arranged by Saya)

πŸŒˆπŸ’—Hi everyone! πŸ˜ŠπŸ’•thank you for your love and support for this blog! I am busy right now so the✨NEXT UPDATE will be in August✨ 


Kids playing Goldfish Scooping

This happened when I was still a junior high school student. 

We were on a summer holiday. I went fishing with three of my friends. 
It was a bright sunny day, but on our way home,  the sky suddenly turned dark and we got caught in a downpour.

We ran to the nearest large tree to shelter from the rain. 
But a split second later, the tree was struck by lightning. 
All of this happened so fast that I was left disoriented for a few moments.

Pretty soon, though, I realized that I was in a very strange situation.
First, I noticed that all my friends were gone.
Secondly, I noticed that there was a goldfish scooping stall (like the one you would often see in festivals) in front of me. **

A Goldfish Scooping Stall

"Fancy playing goldfish scooping?" 
The old man standing at the stall called out to me. 
I sensed that I was stuck in a place which was not in the world I knew. 

"How much?" 
I don't know why I asked that question.
"One poi (paper scooper) equals to one year of your life, " replied the man. 

I walked up to the stall and peered down into the fish tank.
I saw in there three goldfish, whose faces resembled those of my friends...

"You want to rescue your friends, don't you?" 
The old man asked. 
I nodded, instantly understanding my role in this world.

"Please...give me a poi." 
"Sure. This is one year." 

Paper scoopers (Poi) for Goldfihs scooping


I don't mean to sound arrogant, but I am quite good at this kind of game that requires high level of concentration. So I imagined it would be a piece of cake for me.




......But soon I discovered that I was useless at this particular game. The poi was so fragile and tore very easily. 

So far, I had rescued only two of my friends, but I had already wasted more than 60 poi. 

"Now, this is your last poi (meaning the end of my lifespan) . " 

I took it from him, determined that I would succeed this time no matter what. 
This is my last chance! I know I can do this!
I will legit lay down my life for my friend! 

I don't know if my strong determination worked magic, but this time I was able to rescue him with a surprising ease. 

"Yes! I did it...!" 
I lost my consciousness right after that.....


................

"Hey, wake up!" 
"Don't die on us!" 
"I've just been to that house over there and they are coming to help us now."

I heard some voices and opened my eyes.
"What ... You lot! You are alive?" 

"We all woke up around half an hour ago, but you stayed unconscious." 
One of them told me. 

I felt my eyes well up with tears. 
"Oh... I'm so glad you are all alive... I'm really, really glad..."
But why was I still alive? I thought I had used up all of my life. 

It must have been all a dream.
But I still remember vividly the last words the old man uttered:
"You have done a really good job. Here, I will give you one extra goldfish as a reward." 






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** Goldfish scooping (ι‡‘ι­šγ™γγ„, ι‡‘ι­šζŽ¬γ„, Kingyo-sukui) is a traditional Japanese game in which a player scoops goldfish with a paper scooper.  "Kingyo" means goldfish and "sukui" means scooping. Sometimes bouncy balls are used instead of goldfish. Japanese summer festivals or ennichi commonly have a stall for this activity.

Rules:
Each person plays individually. The basic rule is that the player scoops goldfish from a pool with a paper scooper called a "poi" and puts them into a bowl with the poi. This game requires care and speed as the poi can tear easily. The game is over when the poi is completely broken or incapable of scooping properly. Even if one part of the poi is torn, the player can continue the game with the remaining part.

⭐More Links:




Asakusa Kingyo


Comments

Saya_In_Underworld said…
I promise I will post more interesting and exciting stories in August! I will be busy until 1st August so I might post something on 8th August!πŸ˜ŠπŸ’—
Saya_In_Underworld said…
Until then you all take care of yourself and be happy πŸ₯°πŸŒˆ✨
Anonymous said…
Yaaayy, thank you for the heartwarming story! The boy has such a kind heart to rescue his friends like that, so the man decides to save him too.

Please take care of yourself too, Saya. I can't help but guessing that it is the Olympics which keeps you busy haha.
Saya_In_Underworld said…
You are very welcome!πŸ˜†πŸ’—✨

The Olympics have nothing to do with me. I am not interested in them in the slightest.πŸ˜†⭐
George V said…
Good story! It pays to be good to people. See you in August!
Saya_In_Underworld said…
I am glad you liked it! 😊✨ Thank you and see you soon! Take care πŸ€⭐
Anonymous said…
Actually it kinda made me feel bad... well not your fault, I just remembered my pet fishes that died either of disease, stress, or just me being a bad caregiver.
As everyone probably knows, keeping fishes as pet are not as easy as it seems.

Of course I've learned and still learning from my past mistakes and other sources too, I still have a huge aquarium with many healthy tropical fishes, so far they've been with me for months, I have no idea how long they'll live, hopefully very long.

well sorry I ended up talking about fish, but yeah its also a tale of life and death.

Thanks Saya!
Saya_In_Underworld said…
You shouldn't blame yourself and feel bad, because as you said yourself, keeping fish isn't easy. Maybe they were already weak even before you bought them.

Just focus on the joy of being with them while they are still alive!

Thank you for your comment 😊⭐
Mia said…
I just wish it was still the same person who came back, after all, it was an "extra" goldfish o.o
But don't mind my skepticism hehe
Saya_In_Underworld said…
I hope so tooπŸ˜†✨
Kah Wai said…
Hi Saya!

Long time fan, been following for what, close to 10 years already? There was once you were gone for some time due to the earthquakes and the recent hiatus (not so recent though, now that I think about it). Decided to check out the page again and found out that I have been missing out on a year of posts! Glad you're back again~

Anyway, I have followed your account using an alternate account of mine, 3D Creations, do accept! I'm not using it anymore except for instagram as I don't like to create too many accounts since it's hard to keep track.
Saya_In_Underworld said…
Oh I think I just accepted your account! Thank you for following both my Instagram and this blog! 😊✨

I am glad you have decided to checky blog again! I will post more interesting stories in this upcoming August😊⭐🌈 I have an important event soon and once that's over I will start translating again ✨

Thank you so much for leaving the comment 🌸✨
Anonymous said…
Hi Saya!! Thank you for this story, it is a sweet yet chillingly summer horror story I love it! Thank you and I hope you have a good summer ^^
Saya_In_Underworld said…
Thank you so much for your lovely message! I hope you are enjoying the summer tooπŸ˜ŠπŸ™πŸ’Ž✨
Anonymous said…
Hi Saya! Hope you're alright and happy and healthy :D
just checking to see if everything's ok, take your time with your amazing stories if you're busy or just have other things in mind, hope you are a good day!

Regards! A horror fan who haunts the internet as usual XD
Saya_In_Underworld said…
Thank you for your kind message! I wanted to update the blog this month but there were a lot of things going on for me. πŸ˜… But I will do my best to upload something soon! Take care πŸ’—✨
Jack said…
This one is sweet! What a good friend
Saya_In_Underworld said…
I am glad you like it!
Steeple said…
summer is the season for ghost stories in japan, right? it's already september now, but a last summer story feels like a good way to welcome autumn, the spooky season here!

i've actually played the goldfish scoop game once before, it's definitely not easy. i think the trick is to not make any jerking up motions, but instead swirl it around mostly parallel to the surface of the water, and "herd" the fish more than scoop up. ive always felt bad ever since that the game would be too stressful on the poor fish.

this story started out scary, but the end was unexpectedly sweet! i think it would make a good animation or short film. i think the goldfish man was so moved that this child would sacrifice his whole life for his friends, and thats why the man gave him a 1up fish.

i can easily imagine a longer version where other people give up after a few tries in fear of their own lifespan, and lose their friends. kind of like a fairy tale.
Saya_In_Underworld said…
I wanted to post more stories during summer, but I was a bit busy 😱✨

I think goldfish that is used in this game usually have a short lifespan.😱⭐⭐⭐I feel sorry for them too!
misseal said…
Hi Saya! I'm late but still wanted to say this was so creepy even though the ending was nice this time! Looks like the old man ended up rewarding them. Such a good friend!
I've been following you for maybe more then 10 years! It's incredible so much time has passed but you still post new stories! Thank you for the scares Saya, hope to see you again soon, take care!
Saya_In_Underworld said…
Thank you so much! I admit that this blog hasn't been a priority in my lateltly. πŸ˜…⭐ But I am receiving so many comments that I feel I should start working on a new story!
Anonymous said…
Oh. So he got an extra life? That's sooo cool.

Great story, Saya-san. Thank you. :D

- nunu -
Yes, if it weren't for the extra life he got, he wouldn't be aliveπŸ˜†⭐

I am so glad you enjoyed the story. Thank you for your comment!πŸ’–✨