私の父が存生中にあつめた道具類は、例の伯父のために滅茶々々にされてしまつたのですが、夫でも多少は殘つてゐました。私は國を立つ時それを中學の舊友に預かつて貰ひました。それから其中で面白さうなものを四五幅裸にして行李の底へ入れて來ました。私は移るや否や、それを取り出して床へ懸けて樂しむ積でゐたのです。所が今いつた琴と活花を見たので、急に勇氣がなくなつて仕舞ひました。後から聞いて始めて此花が私に對する御馳走に活けられたのだといふ事を知つた時、私は心のうちで苦笑しました。尤も琴は前から其所にあつたのですから、是は置き所がないため、已を得ず其儘に立て懸けてあつたのでせう。
translation
The tools my father had collected during his lifetime were destroyed by my uncle, but even my husband had some left over. When I left the country, an old friend from junior high school gave it to me. Then, among them, I stripped off all the interesting things and put them in the bottom of the cart. As soon as I moved, I took it out and hung it on the floor to enjoy myself. However, when I saw the koto and flower arrangement, I suddenly lost all my courage. When I heard about it later and learned that Konohana had been arranged as a treat for me, I smiled wryly inside. Of course, the koto had been there for a long time, and since there was nowhere to put it, it had to be placed upright.
kanji (pronunciations & definitions)
| 私: I (わたし), me, I (あたくし), I (あたし), I (アタシ) | 父: father (あて), father (かそ), father (かぞ), father (しし), father (ちち) | 存生: being alive (ぞんじょう) | 中: inside (なか), interior, among, within, middle |
| 道具: tool (どうぐ), implement, instrument, utensil, apparatus | 類: kind (るい), sort, type, class, genus | 例: example (れい), instance, illustration, case, precedent | 伯父: uncle (おじ), uncle (しゅくふ), uncle (はくふ), uncle (one’s father’s older brother) (えおじ) |
| 夫: husband (おっと), male (お), manly, brave, heroic | 多少: a little (たしょう), some, somewhat, slightly, to some degree | 國: country (くに), state, region, national government, central government | 時: time (とき), hour, moment, occasion, case |
| 行李: wicker trunk (こうり), wicker luggage | 底: bottom (そこ), sole, base (logarithmic, exponential, number system) (てい), radix, base (triangle, cone, cylinder, etc.) | 入: entering (いり), setting (of the Sun), containing, content, audience | 否: no (ひ), the noes, no (いや), no (いな), nay |
| 出: coming out (で), going out, outflow, efflux, rising (of the Sun or the Moon) | 床: bed (とこ), bedding, sickbed, alcove, riverbed | 懸: credit (かけ), money owed on an account, bill, hanger, holder | 積: product (せき), volume, area |
| 今: now (いま), the present time, just now, soon, immediately | 琴: koto (13-stringed Japanese zither) (こと), koto (13-stringed Japanese zither) (そう), stringed instrument, stringed instrument, zheng (Chinese zither) | 活花: ikebana (いけばな), ikebana (せいか), Japanese art of flower arrangement, Japanese art of flower arrangement, fresh flower | 見: looking (み), viewing, (please) try (to), view (of life, etc.) (けん), outlook |
| 仕舞: end (しまい), close, finish, termination, noh dance in plain clothes | 後: behind (あと), rear, after, later, remainder | 對: versus (たい), against, vs., v., to (e.g. score of 4 to 2, ratio of 3 to 1, vote of 320 to 180) | 御馳走: treat (esp. food and drink) (ごちそう), entertainment, treating someone (to a meal), taking someone to dinner, gorgeous dinner |
| 事: thing (こと), thing (こん), matter, matter, incident | 知: wisdom (ち), jnana (higher knowledge) | 心: mind (こころ), heart, spirit, the meaning of a phrase (riddle, etc.), heart (しん) | 苦笑: bitter smile (くしょう), wry smile, strained laugh, sarcastic laugh |
| 前: point (さき), tip, end, nozzle, head (of a line) | 其所: there (place relatively near listener) (そこ), there (place just mentioned), that place, then (of some incident just spoken of), that (of point just raised) | 是: here (ここ), this place, this point, here, now | 得: profit (とく), advantage, benefit, gain, rebirth in paradise, entering nirvana |