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矢印の冬
チェンさんは、南の暖かい町で育ちました。去年の夏、仕事で雪の多い北の町に引っ越してきて、バス停まで歩く道で不思議なものを見つけました。道路の横に細くて高い柱が並び、そのいちばん上から、赤と白のしまの矢印が下を向いているのです。
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Chen grew up in a warm town in the south. Last summer she moved for work to a town in the snowy north, and on the walk to the bus stop she found something strange. A row of tall, thin poles stood along the side of the road, and from the very top of each one, a red-and-white striped arrow pointed down.
矢印の先には、普通のアスファルトの道があるだけでした。「地面を指す看板なんて、何のためだろう。」夏のあいだ、チェンさんはその前を通るたびに、少しおかしいなと思っていました。
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Below each arrow there was nothing but ordinary tarmac. “A sign pointing at the ground? What’s that for?” All summer, every time she walked past, Chen thought it was a little odd.
一月のある朝、カーテンを開けると、外は真っ白でした。夜のあいだに雪がたくさん積もって、外に出ると、どこまでが道路で、どこからが歩道なのか、まったく分かりません。真っ白な景色の中で見えるものは、赤と白の矢印しかありませんでした。矢印がまっすぐ指しているところが、道路の端だったのです。
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One morning in January, she opened the curtains and everything outside was white. Deep snow had fallen in the night, and when she went out she couldn’t tell at all where the road ended and the pavement began. In all that white, the only things she could see were the red-and-white arrows. Where each arrow pointed straight down was the edge of the road.
雪の中を歩いてはじめて、チェンさんはあの矢印の意味が分かりました。夏に何もない地面を指していたのは、雪で見えなくなる場所を先に教えておくためだったのです。それからチェンさんは、雪の日には矢印を数えながら歩くようになりました。今朝も八本目を過ぎたところで、雪の向こうにバス停の屋根が見えてきました。
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Only after walking in the snow did Chen understand what those arrows meant. In summer they had pointed at empty ground to show people, ahead of time, the places the snow would hide. From then on, on snowy days, Chen counted the arrows as she walked. This morning, just after she passed the eighth one, the roof of the bus stop came into view through the snow.
Three expressions
一人で暮らしてはじめて、料理の大変さが分かった。
Only after living on my own did I realise how hard cooking is.
「〜てはじめて」: “only after …”. A verb’s te form + 「はじめて」, often followed by 「分かる」 or 「気づく」, for something you only understand once you’ve been through it. In the story, 「雪の中を歩いてはじめて」 means “only after walking in the snow (did she understand)”.
日本に来てから、納豆が食べられるようになりました。
Since coming to Japan, I can eat natto now.
「〜ようになる」: “come to …”, “start (doing as a habit)”. It follows a verb’s dictionary form or potential form and describes a change in ability or habit. In the story, 「矢印を数えながら歩くようになりました」 means “she got into the habit of counting the arrows as she walked”.
冷蔵庫には、卵が二つしかありません。
There are only two eggs in the fridge.
「〜しか〜ない」: “only …”. 「しか」 is always followed by a negative and suggests “few, just these left”; 「だけ」 takes an affirmative. In the story, 「見えるものは、赤と白の矢印しかありませんでした」 means “the only things she could see were the red-and-white arrows”.
One small thing to do
Tip
Find a sign or mark near your home that you’ve never really noticed, such as a small plate on a telegraph pole or an arrow on the ground, and think about who it’s for and what it does. If you’re staying in, just look out of the window.