Sean > Long Time No See!

Yeah! Long Time No See! (久しぶり)

This month has been busy with events!

My university students turned in their book reports and had a test last week, so I have been busy grading those. In addition to that, Word Up had a summer picnic at Ishite River Park! You can see the pictures of the event here! It has been a fun and exciting three weeks.

So, my news happened on June 1st, about 2 weeks ago.

For fun I went for a long bike ride from Ishite river to Tobe Town, then to Toon and finally Shigenobu. On this trip I had some exciting and interesting experiences.

First I went to a small park near Tobe. The name of this park is, I think, "Jo no Fuchi". I went before and it was very beautiful. This time, though, there was almost no water. Matsuyama has had a very dry spring.

At one of the shrines near Shigenobu, I met a dog whose leash (革紐) was tied (羈縻) to a tree. It looked like he had been left there for a few days- all the grass around him was broken and the area had a bad smell.

I sat with him for about 30 minutes, sharing some snacks I had brought with me- he ate them very quickly and I could tell he was happy. I decided to take a chance and untie (解く) his leash. I knew from his eyes I could trust him. I took him to a nearby pond (池) and let him drink as much water as he could- I was surprised that he could drink for a full three minutes!

After he finished drinking I took off his leash and set him free. I don't know if it was the right thing to do (正しい), but I imagine he is happier now.

After leaving the shrine, I continued my ride towards Shigenobu Fuji and one of the 88 temples near there. I didn't have a lot of time to stay, because it was beginning to get late. I made a plan to goto Ishite river park at dusk (日暮れ) to try and see fireflies (蛍). I had to get to the river before it was too late!

I went back to the red bridge at Ishite river and relaxed, eatting my packed dinner. It was very quiet and relaxing, but I didn't see any fireflies. I imagine it was too soon to see them - maybe I will have better luck near the end of June.

I did get to watch two cats trying to catch fish at the river. One of the cats, larger and pregnant (身重), was doing all the work. Of course, with of the kittens (小猫) inside her she was too slow to catch the fish. The other cat, who I imagine to be the father, just sat and watched and whined (駄々をこねる) about his dinner being late. Eventually the mother cat smacked the father cat and ran off into the bushes (かん木)... he followed slowly and quietly - maybe to say he was sorry for whining.
:-D

I don't know the true story here, but it was fun to watch how animals are a lot like people too.


Vocabulary: Leash (革紐), Tied (羈縻), Untie (解く), Pond (池), Right thing to do (正しい), Dusk (日暮れ), Firefly (蛍), Pregnant (身重), Kitten (小猫), Whine (Whined/Whining) (駄々をこねる), Bushes (かん木)
Review: Shrine, Temple,