Right before Golden Week (early summer holidays), we had a guest from Canada. Sometimes, our association is asked to volunteer as guides for people who visit Shimamoto. This time, the guest was a nice young guy named Kevin, in his 20s. We recruited members and took him to several places near our town.
During his stay, the weather was not quite good, unfortunately. However, he seemed to enjoy his holiday in the Far East. He stayed at a local's house and experienced typical Japanese life. We took him to three ancient cities near our town: Nara (710-784), Nagaoka-kyo (784-794), and Kyoto (794 – 1185). He went cycling to Adashino Nenbutsuji, famous for its collection of over 8,000 stone statues, and savored the local cuisine. He also took a walk through the old town atmosphere with people of the same age. We hope that his holiday was filled with joy and that he encountered many new experiences. Anyway, the most impressive thing was that he was always polite and friendly to the people he met.
In Japan, we have a proverb that says, 'Even a small chance encounter might be due to fate.' Now, looking at the photos of his smiling face, we cannot help but feel that our meeting was destined, and we are once again thankful to God.
ゴールデンウィークも目前のころ、私たちはカナダからのお客様を迎えました。当協会は、時々島本を訪れる人へのボランティアガイドを依頼されることがあるのですが、今回はケビンさんとおっしゃる20代の好青年でした。そこで協会の中でメンバーを募り、島本町の近くをいくつかご案内したのです。
残念なことに、彼が島本に滞在している間天候にはあまり恵まれませんでしたが、彼はこの極東の国での休暇を楽しんでいるように見えました。地元の人の家に泊まって普通の日本人の生活を体験し、奈良・長岡京・京都という３つの古都も訪れました。8,000を超える石仏が並ぶことで有名な化野念仏寺までサイクリングをしたり、同年代の若者たちと古い町並みの散策を楽しんだり。彼の休日が、喜びと、たくさんの新しい体験に満ちたものであったなら良いのですが。何はともあれ、最も印象的だったのは彼がいつも礼儀正しく、出会った人々に対しても好意的だったことでしょうか。
日本には、「袖すりあうも他生の縁」ということわざがあります。今こうして彼の笑顔の写真を眺めていると、今回の出会いも何かの縁だったのだろうと思わずにはいられません。そう思うと、改めて神様に感謝ですね。
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