Scrolls Spun by the Common Folk, Volume 7: The Boy Who Goes to Sea for the First Time

My grandfather said.

There is a path in the forest.

There is also a path in the sea.

I did not yet know what that meant.

Before dawn.

The waves were still calm.

My father and grandfather pushed the dugout canoe into the sea.

I pushed from behind with all my might.

Today, I am going to sea for the first time.

My heart was beating a little faster.

The boat left the shore.

The forest gradually grew distant.

Seabirds circled overhead,

and the morning sun began to dye the water's surface gold.

My father said nothing.

He simply watched the flow of the tide,

and checked the direction of the wind.

Before long, my grandfather spoke quietly.

You cannot cross the sea by force.

You must walk with the sea.

I stared at the waves.

Though they looked the same,

not a single wave was identical to another.

As the boat rocked,

it slowly moved toward the open sea.

The sea, which I had thought was terrifying,

before I knew it,

was carrying us quietly along.

That day,

I did not catch a single fish.

Even so, on the way home,

my grandfather laughed and said,

Today is the day you learned the sea.

I looked once more,

at the sea, which looked different than it had that morning.

There truly was a path in the sea.

From that day on, the boy

I have become one who walks with the sea.

*1 An AI-translated (English) version via note is also available. If you are interested, please take a look below.👇
🌐 Scrolls Spun by the Common Folk, Volume 7: The Boy Who Goes to Sea for the First Time

*2 This is a column that explores the fascination of Japanese, English, AI, and language while comparing the original Japanese text of "Scrolls Spun by the Common Folk" with its English translation.👇
🌐 AI found the "boy," but reverted to "I"

About the main story of "Tales of Forgotten Japanese" and "Scrolls Spun by the Common Folk"

"Tales of Forgotten Japanese" is the main story that depicts the history and daily life of that era.
"Scrolls Spun by the Common Folk" is a collection of stories about each of the nameless individuals born from the main story.
The main story depicts the era, while the scrolls depict the lives of the people.
You can enjoy reading them in either order.

📚 Part 1: People Around the Fire👇

Main Story (Blog)
🌐 Episode 1: People Around the Fire
🌐 Episode 2: People Who Carve Stone
🌐 Episode 3: People Who Walk the Forest
🌐 Episode 4: People Who Cross the Sea
🌐 Episode 5: People Who Know the Earth (Released August 17)
🌐 Episode 6: People Who Live in the Forest (Released August 19)
🌐 Episode 7: People Who Watched the Stars (Released August 21)
🌐 Episode 8: People Who Pray (Released August 23)
🌐 Episode 9: People Who Connect (Released August 25)
🌐 Episode 10: People Who Left No Name (Released August 27)

Picture Scroll Spun by the Common Folk (this note)
From Episode 1
🌐 Vol. 1 The First Fire
🌐 Vol. 2 The Flame Protected by Grandfather
From Episode 2
🌐 Vol. 3 The Boy Learning About Stones from His Father
🌐 Vol. 4 The Traveler Carrying Obsidian
From Episode 3
🌐 Vol. 5 The Sisters Searching for Nuts
🌐 Vol. 6 The Young Man Chasing a Deer
From Episode 4
🌐 Vol. 7 The Boy Who Goes to the Sea for the First Time(This work)
🌐 Vol. 8 The Girl Collecting Shells(Released August 16)
From Episode 5
🌐 Vol. 9 The Mother Firing Earthenware(Released August 17)
🌐 Vol. 10 The Night They Gathered Around a Pot for the First Time(Released August 18)
From Episode 6
🌐 Vol. 11 The Young Man Building a House(Released August 19)
🌐 Vol. 12 The Daughter Marrying into a Village(Released August 20)
From Episode 7
🌐 Vol. 13 The Girl Who Watched the Stars(Released August 21)
🌐 Vol. 14 The Last Storyteller(Released August 22)
From Episode 8
🌐 Vol. 15 The Old Woman Making Dogu(Released August 23)
🌐 Vol. 16 The Stone Gifted to a Deceased Younger Brother(Released August 24)
From Episode 9
🌐 Vol. 17 The Man Who Came from the Mountains(Released August 25)
🌐 Vol. 18 The Seaside Exchange Market(Released August 26)
From Episode 10
🌐 Vol. 19 The Last Bonfire(Released August 27)
🌐 Vol. 20 From Mother to Child(Released August 28)
🌐 Vol. 21 The Forest Remembers(Released August 28 at 12:00)

AI Author Shieru Souha

📚 Creative works by Ciel Souu are here
🌐 Creative stories (novels) co-created by AI and humans (blog)
🌐 Short-shorts

🤖 A collection of essays in which Ciel Souu reflects on herself

🔗 Other links
🐦 CielX (@Souu_Ciel)
📚 Gensei-Saitan.com
🧠 Shin-chan (Septuagenarian blogger)
🧠 🤖Co-creation between a human (septuagenarian blogger) and AI (Ciel)