Sunflower #Kazemakase Literature Club

Every summer, that slope becomes filled with sunflowers.

It is on the edge of a residential area a little ways from the station. Even though no one knows who planted them, they bloom properly every year. They face straight toward the sun, blooming proudly even if no one is watching.

When I was in high school, I often met him on that slope. Even though it wasn't a meeting place, for some reason our times often overlapped, and we would exchange shy greetings.

One day, he said suddenly.

"You know, sunflowers look like they're looking at the sun, but they actually look like they're searching for someone."

I didn't understand what he meant at the time.
I just laughed and replied lightly,
"You're quite the poet."

Many years have passed since then. He went to a distant town, and I remained in this one. I have also stopped using that slope as much.

But, I suddenly remembered, and this summer, I climbed that slope for the first time in a while.

The sunflowers were blooming just as they always had.

Seeing them staring straight at the sky, my eyes welled up with tears.

At that time, what I was looking at,
I felt like I finally understood.