Yamanashi
Two blue pictures of magic lantern depicting the bottom of a small stream.
1, May
Two children crabs were talking at the bottom of the pale water.
"Clammbon laughed."
"Clammbon laughed 'kapu kapu'."
"Clammbon bounced and laughed."
"Clammbon laughed 'kapu kapu'."
Above and to the side are blue and dark, looking like steel. Dark bubbles drift across the smooth ceiling.
"Clammbon was laughing."
"Clammbon was laughing 'kapu kapu'."
"Then why did Clammbon laugh?"
"I don't know."
Bubbles were flowing down. The children crabs also continued to spit out five or six bubbles 'pop pop pop'. They shimmered and glistened like mercury as they climbed upward at an angle.
A fish went overhead turning over the silver belly.
"Clammbon is dead."
"Clammbon is killed."
"Clammbon is dead........."
"Killed."
"Then why did they get killed?" Big brother crab, placed two of his four legs on his small brother's flat head and said.
"I don't know."
The fish came back and went downstream again.
"Clammbon laughed."
"Laughed."
Suddenly it got brighter, and golden sunlight fell dreamily into the water.
The net of light coming from the waves stretched and contracted beautifully on the white rocks at the bottom. From the foam and small debris stood straight shadowy bars, lined up diagonally in the water.
The fish, this time messing up the golden light all over the place, and at the same time making themselves glow weirdly with quiet gloss of iron color, climbed back upstream.
"Why do fish come and go like that?"
Small brother crab asked, his eyes glaring.
"They're doing something wrong, they're taking."
"Taking?"
"Yes."
The fish came back from upstream again. It now slowly settled down and came with its mouth curled up like a ring, not moving its fins or tail, just drifting in the water. Its shadow slid black and quietly across the net of light at the bottom.
"Fish is......"
At that moment. Suddenly white bubbles appeared on the ceiling, and something blue glowing, like a glinting bullet, dived into suddenly.
Big brother crab could clearly see the black tip that was pointed like a compass of the blue object.
And then the white belly of the fish glistened and turned over, and it seemed to climb up. But then the blue object and the fish were no longer in sight, the golden net of light swayed and bubbles flowed.
The two were silent and became subdued.
Father crab came out.
"What happened? You're shaking."
"Father, now something strange has come."
"What does it look like?"
"It's blue and glowing. The edge is so black and sharp. When it came, the fish climb up."
"Was its eyes are red?"
"I don't know."
"Hmm. But that's a bird, named kingfisher. It's OK, don't worry. We're OK with it."
"Father, where do the fish go?"
"Fish? The fish are gone to the scary place."
"I'm scared, Father."
"No, no, it's OK. Don't worry. See, there are flowing birch flowers. Look, aren't they beautiful?"
Along with the bubbles, many white birch petals slid down the ceiling.
"I'm scared, Father."
Small brother crab said too.
The net of light swayed, stretched and contracted, and the shadows of the petals quietly slid across the sand.
2, December
The children crabs have grown up and the landscape at the bottom has changed completely during the summer and fall.
Soft white round stones came rolling, small cone-shaped crystal grains and pieces of golden mica flowed and then stopped.
The moonlight of the bottle of soda, to the bottom of the cold water, is transparent. On the ceiling, the waves are like burning and extinguishing a pale fire. The area is silent, only the sound of the waves resounding in and out, as if from far away.
As the moon was so bright and the water was so clean, the children crabs didn't sleep, and came out. They looked toward the sky for a while spitting bubbles.
"I knew my bubbles were big."
"Brother, you're spitting big on purpose. I can spit bigger if I do it on purpose."
"Spit it. Oh, that's just the beginning. Look, you can watch your brother spit it. OK? Look."
"It's not big. Same size."
"You're close enough to make yours look bigger. Then let's spit it together. OK? there."
"Yeah, mine is bigger."
"Really? Then I'll spit another one."
"No, don't stretch up so much."
Father crab came out again.
"Go to sleep, it's late. Otherwise, I will not take you to Isad tomorrow."
"Father, which one of our bubbles is bigger?"
"It's big brother's."
"No. Mine is bigger." Small brother crab almost cried.
At that moment, 'dobun'.
Then, a big black circular object fell from the ceiling, it sank deeply and then climbed up again. The golden edges glistened.
"Kingfisher." The children crabs shrugged their head and said.
Father crab stretched both eyes like a pair of telescopes as far as they could go and looked closely.
"No, that's not it. That's Yamanashi. It's going to flow. Let's go with it. Yeah, it smells good."
Well, in the water of the moonlight there was full of the good smell of Yamanashi.
The three followed the Yamanashi flowing 'boka boka'.
They walked sideways, and the three round shadows of the black bottoms, a total of six, followed the round shadow of Yamanashi, as if they were dancing.
Soon the water rumbled, the waves on the ceiling finally raised their blue flames, and Yamanashi lay down and perched on a tree branch, above which a rainbow of moonlight was gathering.
"Hey, it's Yamanashi. It's ripe and smells good, doesn't it?"
"It looks and smells delicious, Father."
"Wait a couple more days, this is going to sink down, and then it'll become a nice drink all by itself, so let's go home and sleep, come on."
Father and children, the three went back to their holes.
The waves raised more and more pale flames. It looked like spitting diamond dust.
*
This is the end of my magic lantern's.
(I translated Yamanashi (やまなし) by Kenji Miyazawa.)
- To return to Japanese short stories translated into English
1, May
Two children crabs were talking at the bottom of the pale water.
"Clammbon laughed."
"Clammbon laughed 'kapu kapu'."
"Clammbon bounced and laughed."
"Clammbon laughed 'kapu kapu'."
Above and to the side are blue and dark, looking like steel. Dark bubbles drift across the smooth ceiling.
"Clammbon was laughing."
"Clammbon was laughing 'kapu kapu'."
"Then why did Clammbon laugh?"
"I don't know."
Bubbles were flowing down. The children crabs also continued to spit out five or six bubbles 'pop pop pop'. They shimmered and glistened like mercury as they climbed upward at an angle.
A fish went overhead turning over the silver belly.
"Clammbon is dead."
"Clammbon is killed."
"Clammbon is dead........."
"Killed."
"Then why did they get killed?" Big brother crab, placed two of his four legs on his small brother's flat head and said.
"I don't know."
The fish came back and went downstream again.
"Clammbon laughed."
"Laughed."
Suddenly it got brighter, and golden sunlight fell dreamily into the water.
The net of light coming from the waves stretched and contracted beautifully on the white rocks at the bottom. From the foam and small debris stood straight shadowy bars, lined up diagonally in the water.
The fish, this time messing up the golden light all over the place, and at the same time making themselves glow weirdly with quiet gloss of iron color, climbed back upstream.
"Why do fish come and go like that?"
Small brother crab asked, his eyes glaring.
"They're doing something wrong, they're taking."
"Taking?"
"Yes."
The fish came back from upstream again. It now slowly settled down and came with its mouth curled up like a ring, not moving its fins or tail, just drifting in the water. Its shadow slid black and quietly across the net of light at the bottom.
"Fish is......"
At that moment. Suddenly white bubbles appeared on the ceiling, and something blue glowing, like a glinting bullet, dived into suddenly.
Big brother crab could clearly see the black tip that was pointed like a compass of the blue object.
And then the white belly of the fish glistened and turned over, and it seemed to climb up. But then the blue object and the fish were no longer in sight, the golden net of light swayed and bubbles flowed.
The two were silent and became subdued.
Father crab came out.
"What happened? You're shaking."
"Father, now something strange has come."
"What does it look like?"
"It's blue and glowing. The edge is so black and sharp. When it came, the fish climb up."
"Was its eyes are red?"
"I don't know."
"Hmm. But that's a bird, named kingfisher. It's OK, don't worry. We're OK with it."
"Father, where do the fish go?"
"Fish? The fish are gone to the scary place."
"I'm scared, Father."
"No, no, it's OK. Don't worry. See, there are flowing birch flowers. Look, aren't they beautiful?"
Along with the bubbles, many white birch petals slid down the ceiling.
"I'm scared, Father."
Small brother crab said too.
The net of light swayed, stretched and contracted, and the shadows of the petals quietly slid across the sand.
2, December
The children crabs have grown up and the landscape at the bottom has changed completely during the summer and fall.
Soft white round stones came rolling, small cone-shaped crystal grains and pieces of golden mica flowed and then stopped.
The moonlight of the bottle of soda, to the bottom of the cold water, is transparent. On the ceiling, the waves are like burning and extinguishing a pale fire. The area is silent, only the sound of the waves resounding in and out, as if from far away.
As the moon was so bright and the water was so clean, the children crabs didn't sleep, and came out. They looked toward the sky for a while spitting bubbles.
"I knew my bubbles were big."
"Brother, you're spitting big on purpose. I can spit bigger if I do it on purpose."
"Spit it. Oh, that's just the beginning. Look, you can watch your brother spit it. OK? Look."
"It's not big. Same size."
"You're close enough to make yours look bigger. Then let's spit it together. OK? there."
"Yeah, mine is bigger."
"Really? Then I'll spit another one."
"No, don't stretch up so much."
Father crab came out again.
"Go to sleep, it's late. Otherwise, I will not take you to Isad tomorrow."
"Father, which one of our bubbles is bigger?"
"It's big brother's."
"No. Mine is bigger." Small brother crab almost cried.
At that moment, 'dobun'.
Then, a big black circular object fell from the ceiling, it sank deeply and then climbed up again. The golden edges glistened.
"Kingfisher." The children crabs shrugged their head and said.
Father crab stretched both eyes like a pair of telescopes as far as they could go and looked closely.
"No, that's not it. That's Yamanashi. It's going to flow. Let's go with it. Yeah, it smells good."
Well, in the water of the moonlight there was full of the good smell of Yamanashi.
The three followed the Yamanashi flowing 'boka boka'.
They walked sideways, and the three round shadows of the black bottoms, a total of six, followed the round shadow of Yamanashi, as if they were dancing.
Soon the water rumbled, the waves on the ceiling finally raised their blue flames, and Yamanashi lay down and perched on a tree branch, above which a rainbow of moonlight was gathering.
"Hey, it's Yamanashi. It's ripe and smells good, doesn't it?"
"It looks and smells delicious, Father."
"Wait a couple more days, this is going to sink down, and then it'll become a nice drink all by itself, so let's go home and sleep, come on."
Father and children, the three went back to their holes.
The waves raised more and more pale flames. It looked like spitting diamond dust.
*
This is the end of my magic lantern's.
(I translated Yamanashi (やまなし) by Kenji Miyazawa.)
- To return to Japanese short stories translated into English