Kopo was crouched at the foot of the stone bridge.
At dusk , the bridge railing had dyed orange, the moment when Dragon God’s Lake’s rippling surface seemed to dissolve straight into the sky. In Kopo’s hand was a single small white stone, picked up from the riverbed .
“What are you doing, big brother?”
Minico came trotting up, a city newspaper tucked under his arm.
“…No reason.” Kopo rolled the stone in his palm. “Just wondering where this stone came from.”
“Isn’t it from upstream?” Minico said, as if it were obvious.
“So where’s upstream, then? The mountains? Or maybe it flowed from somewhere even farther. Maybe it went on a really long journey before settling here.”
Minico silently peered at the stone. Its roundness was proof of decades of water flow wearing down its edges.
“Did you read today’s paper?” Minico said quietly. “Apparently, people who left their hometown long ago finally got to go back. Fifty-four years ago today.”
Kopo didn’t nod. He just tightened his grip on the stone a little.
“They must have wanted to go home, this whole time.”
Footsteps crossed the bridge. It was Sonchō. A furoshiki bundle tied to his back as always, he stopped between the two of them, laughing his “Feh-feh.”
“Picking up stones, were you?”
“Yeah.” Kopo held out his hand. “Where do you think this came from?”
Sonchō didn’t take the stone; he just narrowed his eyes and looked at it.
“From somewhere far, I’d say. But the stone is here now. That’s enough, I think.”
As the orange pond slowly turned indigo, Kopo set the stone down on the bridge railing. Crossing the bridge without looking back, he thought he felt it glint faintly behind him.
Margin note: That night, Minico wrote the character for “home” on the edge of the newspaper, over and over, as if practicing it.
【Today’s Motif】
- Okinawa Reversion Day: May 15th, 1972, the day Okinawa returned to Japan after 27 years of American administration. 2026 marks the 54th anniversary.
- International Day of Families: A day designated by the United Nations, observed every May 15th, to reflect on family bonds and the diversity of family forms.
This is an English translation of “帰り道の石を拾う”, part of Tales of Amencho Town (蛙鳴町奇譚).