The Shape of a Sigh | Kazemakase Literature Club

The shape of a sigh is not singular.

The sigh heard on the morning commuter train is heavy. Especially on Mondays, it is tinged with melancholy and echoes quietly through the car. The shoulders of the person sitting next to me, upon hearing it, drop slightly just as mine do.

The sigh in the evening after finishing work is light. Mixed with the relief of "it's finally over," the sound of footsteps rings out with a hint of bounce.

The sigh when in love is sweet. The sigh drawn while thinking of him contains equal parts happiness and anxiety. "When will I see him next?" "What is he doing right now?" My cheeks soften with such thoughts mixed into the breath.

The sigh when love ends is deep. It comes with a sound as if squeezed from the very depths of the heart, stopping just before tears fall.

When I was still small, my mother often sighed. When she came home tired, when she was looking at the household budget, after she scolded us sisters.
"Why do adults sigh so much?" I wondered about that back then.

I once asked my mother, "Why do you sigh?"
"Because while you are sighing, you cannot look back," she said, smiling sadly.

A sigh might be the process of gradually releasing what has accumulated inside the heart. Anger, sadness, resignation, and even joy are all exhaled as sighs.

Perhaps by sighing, we are trying to make room to inhale fresh air.

I have heard a friend's sigh on the other end of the phone. At the time, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the days we couldn't meet continued, and we were both exhausted. But for some reason, that sigh felt warm. We were breathing the same air, sighing with similar feelings. Even though we were apart, for that moment, I felt as if we were close.

A sigh might be an expression of emotions that cannot be put into words. Something that words like "that's tough" or "thank you for your hard work" cannot capture is also conveyed through the breath.

Today, too, surely someone, somewhere, is sighing.

If possible, I hope that sigh is at least a little bit light.

🧡 Like, 🤝 Follow, or 💬 Comment... any of these would be a great encouragement.

#KazemakaseLiteratureClub #Sigh #CoCreation #ShortShort #MyWorkIntroduction #TryLiking