Strange Weather in Tokyo

by Hiromi Kawakami

“A person can learn all manner of things, no matter where he finds himself, provided his spirit is determined.”

And I never really acknowledged that any of them were alive in any way. I never gave any thought to the fact that they were leading the same kind of complicated life as I was.

And then as the years passed, I turned into quite a childlike person. I suppose I just wasn’t able to ally myself with time.

“Would you consider a relationship with me, based on a premise of love?”

That was quite a discovery for me, the fact that arbitrary kindness makes me uncomfortable, but that being treated fairly feels good.

In loneliness I have drifted this long way, alone. My torn and shabby robe could not keep out the cold. And tonight the sky was so clear it made my heart ache all the more.

Those nights, I open Sensei’s briefcase and peer inside. The blank empty space unfolds, containing nothing within. It holds nothing more than an expanse of desolate absence.