わたしは何歳だったのだろう
Yesterday (October 2) my second son and his wife visited me with their two sons: one, 3-year-old and the other, 3-month-old. After lunch I took the older grandson to a neighboring park. He enjoyed the slide, the swing, and the iron bar.
my grandson and his grandson
hand in hand
under the clean sky
昨日（１０月２日）次男夫婦と二人の孫（３歳と３カ月）が遊びに来ました。昼食後、三歳の孫を近くの公園に連れて行きました。孫は滑り台やブランコや鉄棒で遊びました。
滑り台ではキャッキャッと喜び、一緒に滑ろうとわたしを手招きしました。わたしも滑りましたが恥ずかしく思いました。何しろ息子達と一緒に滑ったのは３０年前だったからです。滑り台の次はブランコです。孫は自分で漕げないのでわたしが背中を押してやりました。ここでもキャッキャッと喜びました。最後は鉄棒です。背が低くて手が届かなかったので、わたしが抱っこして鉄棒に掴まらせました。身体を支えながら一回転させてやりました。目が回ったことでしょう。
祖父との思い出で今でも鮮明に覚えていることがあります。祖父と一緒に兄の通っている小学校に散歩がてらに行った時のことです。多分わたしは３歳か４歳だったと思います。祖父は学校の裏門に着くと平べったい円柱形の石に座りました。わたしも座り心地の良い石を探しましたがありませんでした。その時わたしは何歳で祖父は何歳だったのだろう。
孫は今日わたしと公園で遊んだことを６５年後覚えているだろうか。お前は３歳で、わたしは６８歳だったんだよ。
HOW OLD WAS I?
He went down the slide a few times happily and beckoned me to come and slide with him. I felt a little shy. I had never gone down the slide for these 30 years. The last time I slid was when I took my sons to a park some 30 years ago. After the slide my grandson played on the swing. Since he was not able to pump his leg, I pushed his back. He made a cheerful laugh. The last was the iron bar. Since he was too short to reach the horizontal bar, I helped him to grab the bar. He turned on the bar with my assistance. He must have felt uneasy.
The only vivid memory of my grandfather was the time when he took me to the elementary school my elder brother went to. When we reached the school back gate, he sat on a flat round rock nearby. I looked for a comfortable rock to sit on, but couldn’t fine one. I wonder how old I was at that time. Probably I was four or five years old. I also wonder how old my grandfather was.
Will my grandson remember the experience he had with me in the park today 65 years later? You were three and I was 68, Grandson.
my grandson and his grandson
hand in hand
under the clean sky
