仔牛近道

この日、（う）は算数の掛け算の授業で「ゼロ」について習っていました。

先生と、唯一のクラスメートのMちゃんとあーだこーだ言いながら授業は進んでいきます。向こうの1年生スペースでは、（す）とこれまた唯一のクラスメートでありMちゃんの妹のMiちゃんが、ひらがな「あ」や「う」の練習中。

「はい、では『あ』のつく言葉は何がありますか？」（す）の担任の先生が問いかけると、さっそく（す）が元気に手を挙げ、
「あほ！」と発言。するとすかさず隣のMiちゃんが叫びます。
「すくらくん、違うでしょ！『あほ』じゃなくて『あほぅっ！』でしょ！」

どうやら発音を正したかったようです。先生は苦笑しながら黒板に小さめに「あほ」と書いて、
「・・・はい、他には？」
と続きます。

　この日は、早川町立北小学校の今年度初めての授業参観で、私と（ま）でうきうきと出かけていきました。私とMちゃんMiちゃんのママのYさんは、1年生と3年生のところを行き来しながら、それぞれのコンビの掛け合いに大笑いの連続。早川北小では、教室を仕切る壁がありません。実は、いつどの時間に行っても、授業参観OK。短期で体験入学する子どもも少なくないそうです。（ま）も、この学校がこんなに好きなのに、なぜ自分だけ通えないのか、と毎朝わめいています。なので今日は大はりきり。あっちこっちを駆け回り、疲れたら床でごろごろ。3年後が楽しみですね。

　まだ仮住まいの部屋で生活している私たちなので、学校が終わって帰ってきても段ボールやリュックの山。テレビもなければ、おもちゃもどこにしまったか分からない状態ですが、それはそれで豊かなに過ごせるのが、さすが子どもだなと思って眺めています。どこからか見つけてきた麻雀セットでおままごとをはじめ、図書館のマンガを読みふけっては真似してひたすらに絵を描いている。さすがの（う）は、ずいぶんドラゴンボールのキャラクターが上達しました。

　普段の平日、私と散歩して過ごしている（ま）といえば、暑くなるとすぐ服を脱いでしまいます。（う）もある頃まではそうだったし、（す）は今でもすぐ脱ぎだしてしまうのを、しっかり見て育っているのかしら。今日も（ま）は、パンツ一丁で桜の下で大はしゃぎ。

　こちらの桜はまだ3分咲きというところ。それぞれの新生活が動き出しています。

（わ）




Season with cherry blossoms


One sunny day,　Makasa and I were at the elementary school Umeo and Sukla have started going from this spring. It was the first "official open class day" of the year. We found 3rd-grade-Umeo learning about "zero" in the class of Math. Besides Umeo, there was a teacher and her only classmate M-chan, and all three of them were discussing, trying to understand how zero works in calculation.

Then,I moved to the area where 1st-grade-Sukla was studying. He seemed like studying the very basic Japanese alphabets of "A" (pronounced 'ah' in Japanese) and others. Sukla also has one classmate, Mi-chan who is the younger sister of M-chan.

"Tell me any word starting with A sound." Their teacher said, and soon Sukla raised his arm up and screamed,
"AHO (fool)!"...which was something the teacher didn't expect at all...! Mi-chan burst laughing and commented loudly,
"Not AHO, but AHOU, Sukla!"
Well, she wanted to correct his pronunciation.

The teacher gave them friendly, but a bitter smile and wrote "AHO" on the blackboard in small Japanese letters. I couldn't stop laughing, and their study kept going on in the same chaotic way. Y-san and myself, as mothers of those four students, enjoyed a lot watching how they interacted with teachers and friends. At this Hayakawa-kita-elementary school, you find simple partitions dividing the students of each grade students, but not walls. You will be welcomed whenever you visit the school to see how students are doing. What an open atmosphere! Makasa also had a good and relaxing time there that day. Makasa loves the elementary school, so she tries to go to school with Umeo and Sukla every morning by school bus. She gets ready with her own bag with full of stationeries and in yellow school hut that Umeo brought from previous school but doesn't use here anymore. However, of course, she is too young to go....poor Makasa! Well, she has to keep dreaming for another three years to join Umeo and Sukla

Well, since we reached Hayakawa-cho, we have been staying, as temporary guests, at one room of the institution that Yuki is going to work as a full time staff. We have already bought an old house in Hayakawa-cho, but the house needs a lot of renovation to let us settle down. However, we've decided to move to the house this weekend. We thought we should start renovation as living well as living. Anyway, right now with limited items, surrounded by a lot of unpacked carbon boxes and bags, kids are doing supper finding something fun by themselves, for example, they found a set of MAJAN from somewhere and started using those pieces as blocks. Instead of watching TV, they read many comics and try to draw the characters on their notebooks. Actually, Umeo has really improved drawing many characters of "Dragonball".

Well, since we reached Hayakawa-cho, we have been staying, as temporary guests, in one of the rooms of the institution, in which Yuki is going to work as a full time staff. We have already bought an old house in Hayakawa-cho, but the house needs a lot of renovation to enable us to settle down. However, we've decided to move to the house this weekend. We thought we should start renovation while we are living there. Anyway, right now with limited items, surrounded by a lot of unpacked carbon boxes and bags. The kids are doing super, for finding something by themselves seems fun for them. For example, they found a set of Mahjong from somewhere and started using those pieces as blocks. Instead of watching TV, they read many comics and tried to draw the characters on their notebooks. Actually, Umeo has really improved drawing many of the characters of "Dragonball".

As for Makasa, she walks around and explores the neighborhood with me every weekday. As Umeo used to do, and Sukla still does, Makasa gets naked as soon as she feels hot outside. Also today, she was running around only in her favorite underwear under the cherry blossoms.

Here, cherry blossoms have started to bloom, and for each one of us a new season has indeed started.

Wakana