A Gift
All mothers
possess one heaven.
Every mother,
every mother has one.
It is a gentle back.
On every mother's back,
a baby has once fallen asleep.
The back swayed here and there.
Children
thought their mother's back
was a true heaven.
All mothers
possess one heaven.
Hideko Nagano has adapted "Heaven" into a picture book.
My mother was a nursery teacher,
and when she was in charge of the oldest class,
there was one girl who did things at her own pace.
She was laid-back and moved at her own speed,
and even when the group was moving, she rarely kept the same pace as everyone else,
often spending time by herself,
that kind of girl.
One day,
the oldest children went out into the nursery school garden,
where there were many yellow flowers in pots.
The children were told they could each take one flower home,
and they were overjoyed!
The principal said,
maybe your moms and dads would be happy if you gave it to them as a present when you get home.
The children were thrilled, shouting "Yay!"
"I'll give it to Mom at home."
"I'm going to give it to Mom as a present."
Everyone was excited, saying they would "give it to Mom."
However,
the girl who was always laid-back and at her own pace,
even then,
was slow to receive her flower,
and while everyone else went to put their flowers in their lockers,
making a fuss, she was all alone.
Then, finally, she picked up her flower,
and she brought it to my mother.
"Give this to your mom, teacher," she said.
Saying that,
the girl gave the flower to my mother.
Everyone was a child once,
and everyone has a mother.
Or someone who acts as a parent.
Hearing this girl's story,
I felt as if my heart had been purified.