My mother-in-law, Nanako, who had been with my father to Hokkaido when he was transferred to work, came back to see how I was doing this summer. Nanako, who is still beautiful as always, and I, who is in the middle of puberty, still have not been able to interact as a mother and child. On a hot afternoon, Nanako hangs out the laundry on the veranda. I began to think of her as a woman instead of as a mother.
