♦︎❤︎4♠︎♣︎ "Is my composure coming across?"

Around 10 PM
Inside a bustling izakaya with red lanterns hanging outside
Haru-san
Aki-kun
Miki-sensei
and Yoru, the planner, the four of them were gathered

Aki opens his mouth

“When the baby is born...
regarding money and work
honestly, I don't know what to do.”

Haru smiles a little

“I was the same at first.
I thought I had to increase my income
so I started a side job.”

He pauses for a moment and continues

“But before I knew it
the time we spent talking at home decreased
and somehow...
the atmosphere at home got a bit bad.”

Miki nods

“I've heard that at the nursery school too.”

The three of them look at her

“A mother said
‘Ever since my husband started a side job
even when he's home, it feels like his mind is elsewhere.’”

Aki is a little surprised

“Even when he's home...?”

Miki continues

“The children change too.
A child who used to come over saying ‘Daddy, look’
gradually stopped coming.”

“So the child was being considerate in their own way...”

Haru falls silent for a moment

“...I can kind of understand that.”

The atmosphere becomes a little quiet

At that moment, Yoru opened his mouth

The three of them turn their gazes toward me

“Increase income
→less time
→less ease
→less conversation”

After a short pause

“Many people think that ‘increasing income equals peace of mind’,”

“but I actually think that anxiety often comes not from income, but from ‘not being able to see things clearly’.”

Aki asks.

“Not being able to see things clearly?”

“For example, ‘a state where you don’t know how much you need to feel secure’.”

Haru nods.

“That’s true…
I might have been acting out of a vague sense of anxiety.”

Yoru smiles a little.

“You just decide on your ‘worst-case scenario line’”

The minimum cost of living and the lower limit of savings.

“You calculate this, and if you don’t fall below it, you’re okay.”

Aki leans forward slightly.

“Does that change things?”

“In one household, the husband was increasing his side work. But once they calculated their ‘worst-case scenario line,’ they realized their current income was enough.”

Haru laughs.

“And then?”

“They decided to limit their side income to a few extra tens of thousands, so if they exceed their target amount, they don’t earn any more that month. By doing it this way, they are working on their side job while also maintaining peace of mind.”

Aki mutters

"I feel like I'm starting to get greedy..."

Yoru nods

"However,
based on what we've been discussing,
the 'atmosphere at home' is different beyond just the time spent."

Miki continues

"When a dad's composure and smiles increase, children will return to saying 'Look at me, Papa.'
They realize that Papa will look at them,
and that it's okay to talk to him."

Haru relaxes his posture

"...That might be more important."

Aki says quietly

"I might have only been thinking about increasing things."

Yoru says

"Knowing the 'line of sufficiency' before trying to increase things
will change how you choose your work as well."

Finally, Miki says slowly

"By considering the balance of both time
and money,
for your children
and those around you."

""Whether your composure is being conveyed or not""

The four of them nod quietly and raise their mugs

My thoughts behind making this post.
I would be happy if you could take a look. ↓

Last week's post

Original fiction

Last week's⭕️❌quiz