The Witch of Shirakawa-cho Shopping Street [6] Simmering Down the Task

Chapter 6: Simmering Down the Task

It has been almost a month since I became the witch's apprentice.
I have been visiting the Shirakawa-cho shopping street almost every day.

Sometimes I just look at the witch's face from outside the shop and go home, sometimes we wander around the shopping street together for about an hour, and other times we have a deep conversation at the shop for about three hours.

It depends on the situation of that day and time. There is nothing specific that I have to do.
Even though I am an apprentice, I am very free.

There is only one thing the witch has told me to do.

On the day it was decided that I would participate in the Shirakawa cleanup, she gave me an instruction to simmer down my task.

"Oh, right, that thing about writing down 100 things you imagine from the 'me I want to be' and the 'happy me'—well, try to write them out once every three days if you can, or at least once a week. For now, until we move on to the next step, that is your task. Make sure you do it properly."

"Eh, I've already written it once, do I have to do the same thing again?"

I don't know if she saw through my honest feelings that it takes a lot of brainpower and is quite a hassle, but the witch peered into my face and said this.

"Misaki-chan, you know, there is a big difference between 'not knowing' something and 'knowing' it. But the difference between 'knowing' and 'being able to do' is also big. And the difference between 'being able to do' and 'being able to do it at a level where it's as natural as breathing' is even bigger."

"O-oh, I see... Um...?"

"Everything isn't over just because you've done it once. There are sceneries you can't see unless you do it many times. In terms of this task, yeah, I feel like I want you to simmer it down more."

"Simmer down... you mean?"

Honestly, I thought 'simmer down' was a term used when cooking. Simmering down a task.

I was a little surprised that it could be used in that way too.

"Yes, simmer it down. Simmer it down more and more to make the content richer and the purity higher. I want you to wash out the essence of what kind of person you, Misaki-chan, really are, what you are seeking, and how you want to be."

"Make the content richer, increase the purity, wash out the essence...?"

"Yes. I don't necessarily want you to go on a soul-searching journey. You are already here, Misaki-chan, without having to search for yourself. It's just that many people, including me, are wrapped in various rules, constraints, and all sorts of impurities like wanting to be seen as a good person. Sometimes, through the process of simmering down, you strip away those impurities and extract something like your core that has been buried and hidden inside. That's the image, I suppose."

"Haa... Strip away the impurities, the impurities..."

I don't really understand. Even if she says that's the image, I can't really imagine it.

"Well, anyway, just try it. Even if you do it once, by the time you do it next, what you write should have changed. Because humans change every day. Even if it seems like you're spending the same kind of days, something is definitely changing. Did you know? It seems that some cells in the body are replaced on a three-month cycle."

"Eh, is that so?"

"That's right. You could say that we humans are physically transforming, couldn't you?"

I didn't know that. That the body, that cells, are being replaced.
Maybe humans are some kind of amazing organism.

"It seems it takes about 10 years for bones to be replaced, and heart muscle cells and brain cells don't seem to change throughout your life. So, it's not like the whole body changes all at once, at least for now. Medicine also changes with the times, so I'm sure the understanding will change again in a few years. That's why, Misaki-chan, don't just take what I say at face value, make sure you research it properly yourself."

“Yes, I’ll try searching for it when I get home.”

“Right. Make sure to check at least five different sources that seem reliable. I’ll say it again: it’s too dangerous to trust the opinions of just one or two people. Always scrutinize information, including what you get from AI, and start by being skeptical about whether it’s trustworthy. Don’t you forget that.”

“I understand.”

I couldn't help but think she was being a bit too cautious.
But since I believe that’s part of what makes the witch who she is, I decided to do as she said.

The task of writing down 100 things that come to mind when I think of the 'me I want to be' and the 'happy me' was actually quite tough. I couldn't manage to do it once every three days at all.

In the end, including the first time, I only performed this task six times in a month.

After trying it, I felt like I somewhat understood what it meant to strip away the impurities.

Back when I broke up with him, I wasn't myself. I couldn't find joy in anything I did, and I was so depressed that I couldn't even focus on my work.

I wanted to run away somewhere, but I couldn't.

Even after I quit my job, I didn't know what to do or where to go.

But after meeting the witch and working on the 100-item task, I started to understand myself.

Because in all my life until now, I had never really thought about myself properly.

Who do I want to be with, what kind of life do I want to lead, what do I want to do for work, and how do I want to feel while living?

Just as the witch said, the content of the 100 items changed a little bit every time I wrote them.

I can feel my heart and mind gradually settling down.

“Oh, hello, Misaki-chan. Are you heading to Ueda-san’s shop now?”

“Hello, Natsuko-san. Yes, that’s right.”

“In that case, could you hand this to Ueda-san for me?”

“Yes, I understand. I’ll take care of it.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it.”

I took the shopping street newsletter from Natsuko-san, whom I met in front of the cafe, and headed toward the shop.

The number of familiar faces in the shopping street has been increasing.

It’s been a month since I started coming here.
The day of that Shirakawa cleanup is coming soon.


~To be continued~

Thank you for reading (^-^)
The illustrations used are AI-generated.


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[About this story]

A woman in her 20s, nursing the pain of a broken heart, finds a sign that says "Witch Available" in a retro shopping street, and the story begins to unfold. This is a "laid-back, sports-spirit-style sisterhood" tale about her healing and growing as she completes various tasks given by the self-proclaimed witch and interacts with the unique shopkeepers of the shopping street.

[Recommended for those who]
🟢 Feel tired every day and want to detox their heart
🟢 Want a slightly meddlesome older mentor to give them a push

This work is a coming-of-age story for the protagonist, and at the same time, it is my personal "experiment in spontaneously supporting a real, beloved place through a story without being asked." After experiencing the nostalgic shopping street and local community, please be sure to go shopping at a shopping street near your own home 👍

⏩️ Although I used a certain shopping street in Higashiyama, Kyoto as a model, the content is completely fictional. It has no relation to any real-life stores or entities. Thank you for your understanding.

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