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小さな駅の駅員さん
家から歩いて五分のところに、小さな駅がある。ホームは一つ、改札も一つ。駅員は一人しかいないらしく、朝はいつも同じ人が改札の横に立っている。眼鏡をかけた、背の高い人だ。
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Five minutes’ walk from my home there is a small station. One platform, one ticket gate. It seems to have only one member of staff, and in the mornings the same man always stands beside the gate: tall, with glasses.
電車が来る少し前になると、彼は改札を通る一人ひとりに「いってらっしゃい」と声をかける。三年間、わたしはその声を背中で聞きながら、一度も振り返ることなく電車に乗ってきた。駅とはそういうものだと思っていたし、正直に言えば、朝のあいさつの一つとしか思っていなかった。
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A little before each train is due, he says “Have a good day” to every person who comes through the gate. For three years I heard that voice behind me and got on the train without once looking back. I thought that was simply how stations were, and to be honest, I never took it as more than one of the morning’s greetings.
先月、早い電車に乗る用事があって、まだ薄暗いうちに駅へ行った。ホームには誰もいなかった。いや、一人だけいた。あの駅員さんが、ほうきでホームの落ち葉を掃いていたのだ。掃き終わると、今度はベンチを拭き、改札の横のプランターに水をやっている。誰も見ていない時間に、一人で、静かに。毎朝きれいなホームは、ひとりでにきれいになっていたわけではなかったのだ。
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Last month I had to catch an early train, and went to the station while it was still half dark. There was no one on the platform. No, there was one person. That attendant was sweeping fallen leaves off the platform with a broom. When he had finished, he wiped the benches, then watered the planters beside the gate. At an hour when no one was watching, alone, quietly. The platform that was clean every morning had not been getting clean by itself.
考えてみれば、この街の朝には、そういう仕事がいくつもある。夜明け前に新聞を配る人、ごみの袋を集めていく人、横断歩道で小学生を見守る人。目立たないからといって、誰もしていないわけではない。わたしが気づかなかっただけで、わたしの毎朝は、こういう人たちの手にずっと支えられてきたに違いない。
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Come to think of it, mornings in this town are full of work like that: people who deliver newspapers before dawn, people who collect the bags of rubbish, people who watch over schoolchildren at the zebra crossing. Just because it doesn’t stand out doesn’t mean no one is doing it. I simply never noticed, but my mornings must have been held up all along by the hands of people like these.
次の朝、改札を通るとき、いつもの「いってらっしゃい」に、わたしは初めて「いってきます」と返した。駅員さんは一瞬目を丸くして、それから帽子のつばに軽く手をやった。掃いたばかりのホームを、わたしはいつもより少しそっと歩いた。
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The next morning, as I went through the gate, I answered the usual “Have a good day” with “I’m off” for the first time. The attendant’s eyes went wide for a moment, and then he lightly touched the brim of his cap. I walked a little more gently than usual along the freshly swept platform.
Three expressions
彼は一日も休むことなく、毎朝走り続けた。
He kept running every morning without missing a single day.
「〜ことなく」: “without (ever) …”. It follows a verb’s dictionary form, is more written than 「〜ないで」, and often comes with 「一度も」 or 「一日も」. In the story, 「一度も振り返ることなく電車に乗ってきた」 means “got on the train without once looking back”.
値段が高いからといって、おいしいとは限らない。
Just because something is expensive doesn’t mean it tastes good.
「〜からといって」: “just because …, (it doesn’t follow that) …”. It is often followed by 「〜わけではない」 or 「〜とは限らない」, and denies the easy conclusion drawn from the first half. In the story, 「目立たないからといって、誰もしていないわけではない」 means “just because it doesn’t stand out doesn’t mean no one is doing it”.
部屋の電気がついているから、姉はもう帰っているに違いない。
The light in the room is on, so my sister must be home already.
「〜に違いない」: “must …”, “surely …”. A confident guess with grounds behind it, firmer than 「〜だろう」. In the story, 「支えられてきたに違いない」 means “must have been held up all along (by these people)”.
One small thing to do
Tip
Today, notice one person who works near you every day, such as a station attendant, a refuse collector or someone sweeping outside a shop, and write down one thing they do. If you feel like it, you could say hello too.