「あっ、お祭りの人」・・読売新聞「ひろば」投稿より

　このブログのコメンテイター「時計屋の隣」さんの投稿文が今日の読売新聞朝刊ぐんま「ひろぱ」に掲載されました。誠におめでとうございます。このためブログを通じて、全国の皆様、世界の皆様にご披露いたします。以下はその投稿文です。

　夏場、甚平をカジュアル感覚で愛用して過ごすこと２０年になる。軽く着られて清涼感があり、楽に動けるのが甚平の良さだ。大勢が繰り出す夏祭り、袖を肩までたくしあげた姿は粋でワイルドな感じがする。

　夏祭りも過ぎて１週間ほどたった頃、いつものように甚平を着て歩いていると母親に手を引かれた知らない坊やが「あっ、お祭りの人」と近寄ってきた。かわいい柄の甚平を着せてもらい楽しくはしゃいだ思い出がよぎったのだろうか。坊やは縞の七分袖のＴシャツとハーフパンツだった。母親は「まだまだ暑い日が続きますね。涼しそうでいいですね」とあいさつをしてくれた。

　坊やには、夏祭りの続きをひとり楽しんでるおじさんのように見えたのか。かっこいいおじさんに見えたのか。坊やの思いがけない一言に相好を崩した。

　祭りは、新型コロナの影響で昨年に引き続いて今年も中止になった。来年はあの時の柄の甚平姿で参加したい。坊やの顔を思い出し、３年分の祭りを楽しみたい。

For my oversea's friends

 My blog commentator's post was published in the Yomiuri Shimbun Gumma "Hiroba" this morning, so I would like to introduce it to everyone throughout the world.

 It's been 20 years since I've been wearing Jinbei which is the Japanese traditional men's short-sleeves casual, in the summer. The good thing about Jinbei is that it is lightly worn, has a refreshing feeling, and can move easily. At the summer festival, which is held by a large number of people, the appearance of the sleeves raised to the shoulders feels stylish and wild.

 About a week after the summer festival, when I was walking in Jinbei as usual, an unknown boy who was pulled by his mother approached me as "Oh, a festival person." I wonder if his memories of having fun and having fun wearing Jinbei with a cute pattern have passed. The boy was a striped 70 percent sleeve T-shirt and shorts. Her mother greeted me, "It's still hot days. It looks cool."

 Did the boy look like a mister enjoying the continuation of the summer festival alone? Did he look like a cool mister? The little boy's unexpected word smiled me unintentionally.

 The festival was canceled this year as well as last year due to the influence of the Covid19. Next year, I would like to participate in Jinbei with the pattern of that time. I want to remember the boy's face and enjoy the festival of three years.