Fireworks at Tokyo Racecourse and the People of the Tobitakyu Shopping District
I really want to help liven up Tobitakyu even more.
Today is the fireworks festival at Tokyo Racecourse.
I was invited by the members of the Tobitakyu Station South Shopping District to join them for a dinner party that also included watching the fireworks.
When it comes to the shopping district, they aren't holding events as actively as they used to.
But everyone is still there, continuing to run their respective shops just as they always have.
Even to me, a newcomer who just started a bookstore, they are truly kind, and whenever something comes up, they invite me along, saying, "Why don't you join us?"
I am very grateful for that warmth.
They are also my seniors in life.
They may seem to be running their businesses peacefully now, but to have kept their shops going this long, there must have been hardships and joys that cannot be summed up in a single word.
Sometimes, they stop by my bookstore during breaks from their work and tell me stories about Tobitakyu in the old days.
"There was nothing here back then."
"It was nothing but fields."
Every time I hear stories like that, I feel like I am learning a little bit more about the history of this town.
There is so much I can learn from everyone who knows a Tobitakyu that I don't.
And today.
We ate delicious food, drank, laughed to our hearts' content, and chatted.
We got excited over old stories and teased each other with jokes.
There is a certain atmosphere that only comes from having spent many years in the same town.
It is a sense of closeness that only exists between people who know each other's "good times" and "difficult times."
I felt very happy to be included in that circle.
Outside, it was drizzling.
Even so, not a single person suggested that it was time to go home.
A time spent looking up at the fireworks together, laughing and saying,
"They're beautiful, aren't they?"
.
The fireworks at Tokyo Racecourse were truly magnificent.
However, it wasn't just the fireworks that left an impression on me today.
In this town, there is a connection between people.
I believe that is the greatest treasure, nurtured over decades of time.
By starting a bookstore, I have found a new place to belong in the town of Tobitakyu.
That is precisely why I want more people to know about the charm of this town.
Tobitakyu has wonderful people, wonderful shops, and warm moments.
I hope to continue sharing the goodness of Tobitakyu little by little.