My Son’s Car Accident: A Mother’s Confession

“Mommy, I crashed your car.” When my son called me in a recent morning, my brain refused to comprehend his words. Then came a mixture of emotions and questions in my mind: Is the car drivable and how much would it cost to repair it? And what about the rate of our insurance? Why did … Continue reading My Son’s Car Accident: A Mother’s Confession

On Being Mother or Ultimate Loneliness

Long, long time ago one afternoon, I was looking at my first baby sleeping in her crib. She was so little and looked helpless in her crib-cage. She looked alone. But I, her mother, was standing outside and just watching her. Ordinarily I would have seen peacefulness or bliss in a sleeping baby. But on … Continue reading On Being Mother or Ultimate Loneliness

always a friend: a Magnetic Poetry Kit

Some years ago my friend gave me something called a Magnetic Poetry Kit. It is a small plastic case filled with tiny magnetic strips, and a word is printed on each strip. I think it was a Christmas present but I’m not sure. I confess that I wasn’t too keen on it at that time. … Continue reading always a friend: a Magnetic Poetry Kit

My Mother’s Household Accounting Books

While cleaning out some old stuff, I came across three household accounting books used by my mother in the early ‘80s while I was attending Kyoto University. I never lived at home after I left for college in 1979, and she passed away in December of 1994. When I was about to put the books … Continue reading My Mother’s Household Accounting Books

An Old Lab Notebook

Since September, I have been cleaning up a lot of stuff at home. Boxes of papers, including copies of literatures related to my old research and my children’s school notebooks, have gone to recycling. Yesterday I found boxes full of old lab notes and data from early ‘90s. I was a brand new Ph.D in … Continue reading An Old Lab Notebook