ももこの話 (Momoko's Story) by Momoko Sakura *Japanese Text Only (Shueisha)

Momoko Sakura was first introduced here with her travel essay (またたび ‘Mata Tabi’, Asia by the Book, October 2004). She was first and foremost a manga artist. The creator of Chibi Maruko-chan which has become one of Japan’s longest running television anime series. 

ももこの話 (Momoko’s Story) is the third collection of essays in her “Those Days” series which mainly focuses on her memories and episodes from her childhood. These essays were originally published by Shueisha in 1998. The essays were compiled and released in book form in 2006. 

At the beginning of the year in 1998, Sakura got a call from her editor asking when she wanted to holed up in a hotel to focus on writing her next batch of essays. Instead of staying at the Park Hyatt, Sakura requested the Hotel Otani which surprised her editor. 

Her reason for staying at the New Otani instead of the Park Hyatt was simple. Although she likes both hotels, she really enjoys the room service at the New Otani and was looking for to eating Chinese fried rice. She would also be able to enjoy the Otani’s annin-dofu (almond tofu) for dessert. 

Sakura had her editor make reservations for mid-February. She said it was fortunate that one of co-workers came to pick her up as she always brings a number of items with her even if it’s for a short stay. As Sakura is a tea and coffee drinker, she needs her tools to make good tea - tea strainer, a special mug and tea and she needs her tools to make a good cup of coffee - coffee beans, coffee liquor, filters, etc. 

She also brings her favorite sparkling wine, chocolate, konjac jelly (also known as devil’s tongue, voodoo lily, snake palm, or elephant yam), cigarettes, health foods, CDs and CD player, work tools, and clothes. While being holed up in the hotel, the offices of Shueisha were moving to a bigger and more convenient location. By the time Sakura finished writing half of the book's essays, the office move had been completed. 

Sakura wrote half of the book's essays in the five days she spent at the Hotel Otani. She felt relieved that she would have enough time to complete the essays for another book in a reasonable amount of time. So she went back to gardening, went to flower shops, repotting pots in the garden, etc.

After finishing taking care of the garden, she took care of her tropical fish. After the fish, her pet turtle. Once that was done, then it was off to the department store to buy spring clothing. On weekends, she would play with her son at the park. He was at the age when he began to think that Momoko Sakura was his own mother. February turned to March, March turned to April. 

Sakura showed her face at the office around the middle of April. Her editor asked how the rest of her essays were coming. At the time, Sakura was truthful and said she hadn’t written any in a while. Her editor said the deadline for the book is the twenty-fourth of this month. Sakura was at the office on the fourteenth. 

Oh no! Sakura had only ten days to complete the book. She was a little nervous about finishing the project but being a professional, she finished in the nick of time. Some of the things she talked about from her childhood were being a kid without a huge appetite, trying to teach her father the words to popular songs at the time while taking a bath together, her own forgetfulness, trying to stay warm under the kotatsu in the winter, her kakizome homework which is a special piece of calligraphy for the new year, buying sweet potatoes from the sweet potato truck even though her parents ran a fruit and vegetable shop. 

Sakura’s memories of her childhood are nostalgic for anyone who loves the Showa era of Japan or had lived in Japan during that time. Sakura was born in 1965, so she was only two years younger than me when my family moved to Tokyo from Greece. Which means I grew up watching the same television shows and listened to the same music she did. These essays brought back memories of my own childhood.~Ernie Hoyt