冬が來た時、私は偶然國へ歸へらなければならない事になつた。私の母から受取つた手紙の中に、父の病氣の經過が面白くない樣子を書いて、今が今といふ心配もあるまいが、年が年だから、出來るなら都合して歸つて來てくれと頼むやうに付け足してあつた。
translation
When winter came, it happened that I had to return to my country. In a letter I received from my mother, I wrote about how my father's illness progressed uninterestingly. It was added as if asking for it.
kanji (pronunciations & definitions)
| 冬: winter (ふゆ) | 偶然: coincidence (ぐうぜん), chance, accident, fortuity, by chance | 國: country (くに), state, region, national government, central government | 事: thing (こと), thing (こん), matter, matter, incident |
| 母: mother (あも), mother (いろは), mother (おも), mother (かか), mother (はは) | 受取: receiving (うけとり), receipt | 手紙: letter (てがみ), missive, note, mail | 中: inside (なか), interior, among, within, middle |
| 病氣: illness (usu. excluding minor ailments, e.g. common cold) (びょうき), disease, sickness, bad habit, bad behaviour | 面白: amusing (おもしろ), funny, interesting | 書: letter (ふみ), writings, book (しょ), document, calligraphy (esp. Chinese) | 今: now (いま), the present time, just now, soon, immediately |
| 年: year (とし), age, years, past one’s prime, old age | 都合: circumstances (つごう), condition, convenience, to arrange, to manage | 付: furnished with (つき), furnished with (づき), furnished with (ツキ), including, including | 足: foot (あし), paw, arm (of an octopus, squid, etc.), leg, gait |