Takashi Hiraide: The Guest Cat

Looking back on it now, I’d say one’s thirties are a cruel age. At this point, I think of them as a time I whiled away unaware of the tide that can suddenly pull you out, beyond the shallows, into the sea of hardship, and even death.


The word “to grieve” or “lament” in Japanese is actually made up of two different kanji characters — “sadness” and “resentment.”


The noble-minded do not thrust others aside in order to make their way in the world. But then they themselves are ultimately thrust aside by the advancing tide.


By late autumn the yard would grow thick with fallen leaves, causing the landlady to heave many deep sighs.