My Mother at 60, Falling for Snow Man

"Maybe I should join the fan club."

When my mother said those words,
I quietly did a fist pump in my heart.

In 2025, my mother will turn 60.

She always makes sure to look her best when going out,
never misses her monthly nail and hair appointments,
and wanders around ZOZOTOWN every day,
enjoying the latest trends.

Despite my mother's love for fashion,
she never really had what people generally call a "hobby."

Some might think that,
but she is truly introverted.
She is a complete homebody.

When I lived at home,
during the few hours between me eating in the living room, spending time in my room, and returning to the living room,
my mother would be on the sofa, playing puzzle games on her smartphone the entire time.
And it wasn't just one game; she would rotate through about five of them continuously.

"Weren't you just playing that a moment ago...?" I would ask,

"Well, when I run out of hearts, I play a different game, and by the time I'm done, they've recovered, so I can play forever."
she would say, offering some logic I didn't quite understand.

She would have YouTube playing on the TV,
do chores in between,
go out for quick errands...

As her daughter,
"Once I move out, is this how she's going to spend her time forever...?"
I was a little worried.

In the midst of all that, a turning point arrived.

I fell for Snow Man.

Me, that is.

Honestly, I never got into idols during elementary, middle, or high school.
I had never even been to an idol concert; I truly had no interest in them.

At one point, I couldn't even tell SixTONES and Snow Man apart, to the extent that a younger colleague explained it to me by saying, "SixTONES are stones, and Snow Man are snowmen!!"

That’s how much I thought it was a world that would never have anything to do with me.

The person who thought that way,
fell for Snow Man.

Once I fell for them, it happened in an instant, as if I were tumbling down a cliff.

During the year-end and New Year holidays, I watched their YouTube videos incessantly,
I didn't really understand dance and had somewhat disliked it, but I realized, "They're so cool!"
and I started following their information on social media.

At first, I couldn't match the members' faces to their names,
and it took time to understand each member's personality.

But now, I can name all nine of them, and I remember enough to talk about the relationships between the members and their stories.

What’s so good about Snow Man is that,
despite being a large group of nine,
everyone is looking in the same direction,
and they are all putting in the effort for the sake of the group.

Everyone gives their all to their work,
and whenever I see them, I think, "I'll do my best too!"

My favorite must be working hard again today.
If so, I have to work hard too.

"Ah, so this is what it means to have a favorite!"
I understood for the first time in my life.

Now, my mother had been listening to me talk about all of this.

I wonder what she thought as she watched her daughter sink deeper and deeper into the swamp.

Well, it's only natural she'd think that, given that her daughter, who had never once been into idols since she was born, was talking about Snow Man every single day...
I mean, it's only natural...

The moment I woke up,
I'd talk about the Snow Man news that was on in the morning.

At dinner,
I'd make her watch funny YouTube videos.

And at every opportunity, I'd talk about the members.

So, what happened to my mother, who had been showered with her daughter's enthusiastic stories like that?

"These boys are working really hard, aren't they?"

She had evolved into a mother's perspective.

This was still just the first stage.
The proselytizing from here on out is the most important part.

As my own fandom activities picked up speed,
Snow Man's first dome tour began.

I applied under my own name, but naturally, I didn't get tickets.
However, thanks to a junior colleague who is an idol fan,
I ended up attending an idol concert for the first time in my life.

I bought merchandise in advance,
prepared a handmade fan,
at the concert itself, I was moved to see my favorite idol moving and alive,
and the idol concert was so glamorous and full of performance.

I felt like I finally understood a little bit why my friends who were idol fans were so enthusiastic.

I returned home with my heart and body still feeling like I was in a dream,
and I kept telling my mother all about the passion I had received from Snow Man.

Actually,
while I was watching the concert, a dream had come to mind.

"I want to take my mother to a Snow Man concert."

My mother was also gradually getting to know Snow Man, and she was even remembering their names.

I could feel in every little thing that she was starting to support them from a mother's perspective.

However, it's difficult to even win tickets to a Snow Man concert.
It really is just down to luck.

I invited her by saying, "If I win tickets next year, let's go together, Mom!" but...

"A concert?? I'm not interested in concerts, dear." was her reply.

Ugh, I haven't evangelized enough yet!
She hasn't fallen into the swamp yet!!

Feeling that way, I made a firm resolution:
I will make my mother fall into the swamp before the next tour...!!!

The concert tour ended, and my fandom activities grew even more intense.

I started collecting past CDs and concert DVDs.

It was around this time that I started to realize that at this point, I was nothing but an otaku.
(I believe it was around the autumn of 2023)

I was watching the live concert DVD with my mother, trying to slowly drag her into the fandom.

That was the plan.

A few days after we watched the live DVD.

My mother spoke up out of the blue.

“You know, I can’t forget the look in Koji Mukai’s eyes that I saw on the live DVD...”

It finally happened.

My mother’s favorite member was confirmed.

By this point, I think my heart was as excited as if I were at a “Party! Party! Party!” concert.

Of course, I calmly replied,
“Oh! So you’ve finally found your favorite member!!”
I said.

“So, if we win tickets to the next concert, do you want to go??”
I asked, but

"No, I'm not quite there yet..."
she said, the wall between us still thick.

After all, for a mother who has lived for nearly 60 years
without ever having an idol to support, this must be a world too unknown.

I decided to wait and see, thinking that perhaps it wasn't the deciding blow yet.

Time passed since then,
we laughed and enjoyed the New Year's Eve countdown concert,
we watched 'Sore Snow Man ni Yarasete Kudasai' every Friday,
and for some reason, my father also started remembering the names of the Snow Man members.

Snow Man had become integrated into the daily lives of my mother and me.

It was February 2024.

"I think I'll join the fan club."

That's what my mother said to me.

It really took a long time...
It took about a year and a half to drag her into the swamp and get her completely submerged...

"Just join!"
I cheered with all my might, and my mother ended up joining her first-ever idol fan club.

Since then, my mother's momentum has only increased.

She makes sure to watch every drama and program her favorite appears in, plays the Snow Man channel on YouTube, and only listens to Snow Man music while doing housework.

My mother is living more vibrantly than I have ever seen her before.

As her daughter, I was a little happy.

About half a year after my mother joined the fan club, Snow Man's second dome tour was finally announced.

A five-dome tour, which is a major concert series for Snow Man as well.

The venues were
Sapporo, Tokyo, Aichi, Osaka, and Fukuoka.

Actually, my father's job transfer was decided around this time, and if Sapporo was one of the venues, we had to go! my mother and I had predicted.

And so, as soon as the announcement was made, I booked a flight to Sapporo.

However, as I mentioned earlier,
it is almost impossible to win tickets to a Snow Man concert.

Most people get tickets through connections or use multiple memberships...
The probability of winning with just one membership is far too low.

But I had a dream: I wanted to go to a concert with my mother!!

I will definitely win them.

I'll work hard in my professional and personal life to earn them,
I'll build up good karma, and I will win them!!

That was all I could hope for.

Before the tour results were announced,
my mother and I actually went to see the Osaka performance of the play "Catch Me If You Can," starring my favorite member, Hikaru Iwamoto.

It was the first time the two of us had traveled together as mother and daughter,
and in a sense, it was all thanks to Snow Man that we were able to go.

After we finished watching the play,
the first thing my mother said when we got back to the hotel was

"Ah, that was so much fun."

I can't forget how happily she said that.

Hearing those words,
I found myself wishing for even more.

"I want to let my mother meet her favorite idol!"

"I want to show her Koji Mukai in person!!"

If I do that, Mom will get even more hooked on Snow Man!!

This might be a bit selfish of me, though.

A few days after that trip to Osaka,
the fateful day finally arrived.

I was working remotely, so I called my mother the moment the lottery results were released.

It seemed she had already checked her own results,
and she was quite depressed, saying, "It didn't work out..."

Now, it's up to me to win.

But, will I actually win a ticket??

Trying to brush away that anxiety, I pressed the button, saying, "I'll start by watching the first day of the Hokkaido performance!!"

Unsuccessful

Well, of course...
I felt a little down.

"No, but there's still the second day!!"

I'm pressing it!!!

While making many wishes.

While hoping that my dream comes true.

I pressed the button.

Winner

“Huh?????”

“Wait, Mom, I won tickets for the second day.”

““W-w-whaaaaaaaat!?!?!?!””

We both screamed our heads off.
Not as mother and daughter, but just as two Snow Man fans.

I can take Mom with me!!!

I can finally show my filial piety!!!!

My heart was filled with joy just seeing that we had won the tickets.

Just the fact that I could take her meant one of my dreams had come true.

From there, I started planning everything by working backward from the concert date.

When we should go to the hair salon,
buying new makeup,
and what we should wear to the concert.

In our lives up until now,
this was the first time we had both been able to enjoy something with such enthusiasm.

The day of the concert.

Our makeup was perfect,

Mom had made a fan,

and I had rented high-end binoculars.

The preparations were perfect.

My father drove me to the venue, Sapporo Dome.

"Let me know when it's over."

He said he would kill time at a nearby pachinko parlor.
(Thanks as always.)

As I got closer to the venue,
the people around me were becoming more and more Snow Man fans.

While taking pictures of the posters and such displayed around the venue,
I started lining up for entry,

Wait, is the signal not working...?

I realized.

If there is no signal, I can't even open my ticket.

= I can't get in.

While pretending to be calm,
I prayed with all my might that the ticket screen would open.

I kept toggling mobile data, Wi-Fi,
and airplane mode on and off.

Nothing is changing.

It's over.

When the entrance gate was right in front of us,
I quickly stepped to the side and struggled to get my ticket to display.

Apparently, other people in similar situations were gathering nearby.

While talking to a mother and daughter who were there just like us, saying,
"It won't open, will it...",
we were looking for some way to make it work.

Just then,
a lady from the side called out to us.

"There's free Wi-Fi in Sapporo, so if you enter your email address, it will connect!!!"

And with that, she immediately disappeared.

This was the goddess of Sapporo Dome.

I immediately connected to the Wi-Fi using my email address and
confirmed that I could open my ticket.

From then on, I became a whirlwind of a free Wi-Fi connection assistant.

I taught the procedure to those nearby who couldn't connect, and
by the time I had helped about 10 groups, over 20 minutes had passed.

Thinking it was time to head in, I
passed through the entrance gate feeling like I had done a good deed.

The ticket was issued, and
our seats were handed to us right there.

Since they are basically handed over on the back side, when I tried to check them in a quiet place,

"Excuse me! Thank you so much for earlier!!!"said the young woman I had first helped with the free Wi-Fi as she approached me.

Even though they had entered before us,
they had waited for us to come in.

What wonderful people...
Snow Man fans are just too kind...

With that even warmer feeling in my heart, I looked at the seats on the ticket.

It's a stand seat, but I feel like the number is incredibly low.
Wait, could this be an amazing seat?? we said, while
heading to our seats.

We went through the gate and headed down the stairs.

It's still further ahead.

Wait, still further?

Wait, isn't this basically right in front of the arena...?

It was that kind of god-tier seat.

I had been acting as the free Wi-Fi connection assistant, and I thought I must have built up some good karma, but
my hands were frozen from the cold outside.

From here on, if I write in detail, it will turn into a concert report, so I will omit it.

My mother's favorite, Koji Mukai, came within range to see with the naked eye, and
I was feeling the amazing power of high-end binoculars.

It was truly a dream-like moment that passed in an instant.

After it ended, my mother and I kept saying to each other, "Was that a dream?"

We couldn't believe the scene we had just been watching moments ago.

The next day, my mother was still saying, "That was so much fun."

She also said she wanted to go again.

When I asked, "Did I manage to be a good daughter?"

"Oh, I'm so glad I gave birth to you!" she replied.

It seems that for my mother, "going to a Snow Man concert" has now ranked as the number one best thing about having children.

My father watches the two of us, mother and daughter.

My father said happily.

My mother has really seemed happy lately. It's a good thing to have something the two of us can enjoy together like that.

Snow Man is definitely the presence that connects the three of us in our family.

News related to Snow Man comes out every day.

Every time it does, I send a LINE message to my mother.

When Snow Man's best-of album was released,
my father went out of his way to take pictures of all of them.

I feel that Snow Man has truly become a national idol group, to the point where even my father, who originally had no interest, is willing to help out.

This year's stadium tour.
We failed to win tickets for the April performance.

But I'll win tickets for the June performance.
That is what I am hoping for.

I want to go to a concert with my mother again!

I want to see my mother enjoying herself.

Snow Man is,
surely trying to entertain everyone in Japan,

no,
everyone in the world.

This year,
the nine of them will surely race through it while having fun.

We fans will just support them from nearby,
and let them be our fuel for living.

Thank you, Snow Man!!!!!!!!!

Us and everyone,

Snow Man!!!!!!!!!

#LetMeTalkAboutTheFandomIHaveFallenInto