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❤️Updating Every Saturday Evening (Japan Time)
(Translated and Arranged by Saya)
When I was small, my parents both worked, so there was someone called Sakuma-no-Obachan (Note: “obachan” means an aunt or a middle aged woman, “no” means of, and Sakuma is a common surname in Japan) who looked after me when my parents were not at home.
Obachan was not very bright so she didn’t have a proper job. She seemed to be earning her living solely by doing chores for my family and helping out on farms.
Obachan’s job in my house consisted of cooking a dinner for me when I came home from school, and cleaning and doing laundry, and also caring for my grandmother who was often in and out of the hospital.
One day, when I came home from school, I found Obachan wasn’t at home, which was very rare.
Instead, Grandma, *1 who was usually bedridden, was up, and she was drinking a cup of tea in the sitting room.
I wondered why Obachan wasn’t at home, and asked Grandma:
“Where is Obachan today?”
“She hasn’t come yet.”
Grandma replied, and took me to the second floor and pushed me into a room like she was locking me in there.
“You mustn’t come down no matter who visits our house today.”
She said, and handed me a Pom Juice and some snacks.
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| Pom Juice (a popular drink made from tangerine) |
“No matter who?”
When I asked, Grandma gave me a troubled look.
“No matter who.”
She said, and then:
“Just shhhh. OK?”
She closed the fusuma (Note: a sliding door in a Japanese style house) while placing her finger on her lips.
I obediently got into a kotatsu (Note: a heated table) and turned on the TV.
Later, around 6 pm, I heard a voice from downstairs.
It was Obachan’s voice.
Although I was on the second floor, it was still a tiny house.
I didn’t have to strain my ears too much to hear what went on downstairs.
“Yosuke (my name) hasn’t come back home yet?”
When I heard Obachan say that, I thought about going out to greet her, but then I remembered Grandma’s words and stayed lying around inside the kotatsu.
I continued to watch TV while keeping one ear turned towards any sounds that came from the front door.
After a while, Obachan came back to our house again.
“Yosuke isn’t back yet? I went to Mihama-ya (my favourite Dagashi-ya) *2 but he wasn’t there.”
Grandma replied:
“Not yet. I heard him say that he would go to a friend’s house, so he might be coming home late today.”
Of course, she was lying.
Young as I was, I vaguely understood that Grandma was trying to hide me from Obachan.
I remember crawling into the kotatsu and trying my best to stay quiet.
Then the sun went down and it was all dark outside.
Obachan came yet again.
“Yosuke is back home, isn’t he?”
Grandma replied, in a sharper tone of voice:
“No. Not yet! Don’t worry about the dinner tonight and go home.”
Grandma turned her away at the door.
After some more time had passed, my parents came back home at around 8 pm.
I heard Grandma’s slow, careful steps as she climbed up the stairs to my room.
She said to me:
“You can come downstairs now.”
I then had a dinner at a much later hour than usual.
That night, Obachan was found dead by hanging herself in a bamboo grove near our house.
Her suicide note stated something like this:
“I have no hope and decided to end my life.
I feel so lonely dying alone.”
What was Obachan, who had no family or relatives to depend on, thinking when she was trying to find me?
Whenever I start speculating about it, I become scared and a bit sad at the same time.
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*1 — Grandma in Japanese is Obaa-chan (with a long “ah” sound instead of a short “a” in Obachan (aunt)).
I left it as “Grandma” to avoid confusion.
*2 Dagashi-ya : a traditional snack shop for children.
⭐️This is unrelated to the story, but right now in Japan, it’s the season for hydrangeas!
Enjoy the beautiful sceneries with hydrangeas in this video ✨
Comments
When I read this story, at first I thought Obachan was already dead and she was a spirit when she came to the narrator’s house. But after translating it, I think she may have been still alive π€£⭐️ But I think my first theory is valid and scarier.
Let me know what you thought about it below!
Thank you for reading and leaving comments! You are all amazing!✨
Much love and see you again soonπππ
I have to say, though... this is just plain sad to me. There's mystery to uncover, and I really feel that this story is out of context considering how little the details are... but what if it's just plain and simple, done out of spite or any other negative emotion? Maybe it's because the last story dealt with bullying, or maybe I'm still kinda sensitive because I had gone through a period of depression myself, and know how it felt like to be so hopeless that it's better to just end your life...
I'm still thankful of the story regardless, though. And I think it's a good call to put a video with good scenery at the end. I do love flowers XD
Yes, that happens in Japan, but I can’t be sure how often it happens, because you know how the media tend to exaggerate all things to make sure we all stay in a place of despair π⭐️
Anyway, thank you so much for your comment ~πΈ
Thank you so much for your comment!ππ»✨
I too have gone through a phase where I felt like ending my own life every single day. But to anyone reading this who might feel like that now, please remember there is always hope. We tend to use our past to predict what might happen in the future. But what happened in the past is totally irrelevant. And please don’t judge yourself based on the opinions of others. Even if others don’t see it, you’re all wonderful and hold an inherent value in yourself. Situations can change anytime too.
Anyway π I’m glad you like the video ~ you should watch the part where they film Odawara Castle. It looks like heaven there lol
Thank you so much for your comment πππ
Thank you so much for your comment ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wow this story.. π₯²π₯²
Although I too thought Obachan was a ghost π€£
Guess grandma sensed something and immediately took action. I also am of the opinion Obachan wanted to bring the writer with her since she talked about being lonely..
The first line in the note.. is exactly what I had typed out on my phone before ww
I still keep the note as a reminder that well..it's not the end/worst possible situation yet and there are still things to do and places to visit π
δ»εγγγγγ¨γ! γΎγζ₯ι±!
Really happy that I check this blog every so often. Have a great day!
My first thought was she committed suicide first and then came back as a spirit to get him. I think this might still be a possibility!π⭐️
Yes! Remember that when things seem hopeless, that’s only how you are perceiving it at the time, and not the truth. Be kind to yourself and follow your joy✨You’re worthy of great happiness ✨
Visit Japan tooπ lol
εΏζ΄γγ¦γγγ¦、γ©γγγγγγ¨γγγγγΎγ！
γΎγζ₯ι± ~ π€πππ
I’m so glad my blog is contributing to your happiness ππΈ
Thank you so much and have a wonderful week too π
I think aunt sakuma was purposefully keeping the grandma bedridden, so as to spend more time with the child. Eventually the family seemed to take notice and fired sakuma. She was desperately trying to take the child away to commit suicide together
That sounds like a great theory to explain it! I never thought of that before!
Thank you so much for your comment ❤️