[Essay] Pointing and Calling - Aobura Literature Department

On a rainy morning,
I drive to the station to drop off my children.
It is my usual routine, or rather, I was a minute later than usual. If I am a minute late, I get caught at the traffic light. That light is long.

I approach an intersection with good visibility and no traffic lights.
Because of the sound of rain lashing against the windshield and the busy sound of the wipers, I cannot hear the radio personality's voice very well.

I thought I had chanted "Right is clear, left is clear" in my heart. Just like always. No, perhaps I had been a little careless.

Then, suddenly, a red car sped past right in front of me.

“Whoa!”
I reflexively slammed on the brakes.
Despite the situation, the children kept fiddling with their smartphones.

If I had been one second earlier... I broke into a cold sweat.
Still gripping the steering wheel, I thanked the God who watches over me from somewhere.

Even so, time moves on.
I get the children to the station. A little late, but safe.
“You don't have to worry about traffic lights,” my second daughter says.

I think about it while driving to work.
Every time I stop at a red light, that red car crosses my mind. I retrace the same spot over and over, wondering if I had really looked.

What was the "thing" I called out at that moment?
I have the memory of being convinced it was safe.
But I cannot remember the red car coming from the right, the wet asphalt, or the scenery at that instant.
All I can remember is the fact that I had "checked."

They say that pointing and calling is effective in reducing accidents.
But I wonder, could pointing and calling itself eventually become the goal?
The words "I checked" are completed first, and reality is left behind. Even if that reality is "dangerous."

We might think we are looking at the world, but in reality, we may only be looking at our own words that say "I have looked."

That night,
It seems my wife went to the hair salon.
Her hair is shorter, and the waves are noticeable.

“You got your hair cut. It looks good, it suits you.”

“It was two days ago, though.”

It seems I need to point and call at my wife's appearance too.

“I am looking at you properly. Because I love you.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
Her bangs were a little shorter.
The hair swaying slightly by her ears looked lighter than before.
Looking closely, the waves were finer and sharper than before. It felt like they were asserting something.

This time, I looked at my wife properly and said,

“I love you.”
Just like pointing and calling, perhaps these words only hold meaning when you truly look at the other person.

I would like to participate in this prompt.

I don't point and call while driving, but I wrote this wondering if the "act of checking" and the "reality of recognition" actually align.
Thank you.