"¡Te pareces a tu oji!", es lo que siempre mi mamá me dice cuando me molesto. No he llegado a conocer a mi oji, el papá de mi mamá, pero mi mamá me cuenta que era una persona muy enérgica y muy temperamental, pero cuando se le pasaba el enojo (que duraba muy poco), era el papá más cariñoso que podía tener. Una anécdota que siempre escuchaba a mi mamá, era que cada vez que mi oji se enojaba con mi oba, discutían muy acaloradamente. Pero al día siguiente, mi oji venía a la casa con vestidos nuevos para mi oba, como señal de arrenpentimiento.
"You look like your oji!", is what my mother always is telling me when I get angry. I have not ever met my oji, my mother's father, but my mother tells me that he was a very energetic and temperamental man, but when he was not angry anymore (for not so long), he was the loveliest father that she could have. My mother always told me, as an anecdote, about those times when my oji got angry with my oba, they both argued strongly. But, on the following day, my oji came home bringing with him new dresses for my oba, like a sign of regret.
(HACER CLICK SOBRE LA IMAGEN, PARA VERLA MÁS GRANDE)
(CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR A LARGER VIEW)
"You look like your oji!", is what my mother always is telling me when I get angry. I have not ever met my oji, my mother's father, but my mother tells me that he was a very energetic and temperamental man, but when he was not angry anymore (for not so long), he was the loveliest father that she could have. My mother always told me, as an anecdote, about those times when my oji got angry with my oba, they both argued strongly. But, on the following day, my oji came home bringing with him new dresses for my oba, like a sign of regret.
(HACER CLICK SOBRE LA IMAGEN, PARA VERLA MÁS GRANDE)
(CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR A LARGER VIEW)
| Mi oji, parte materna. Aqui luce con una actitud un poco relajada, hasta bohemia, pero era todo lo contrario, era muy trabajador y buen padre de familia. Mi oji, on the maternal side. Here, my oji is standing with a relaxed and even bohemian pose, but he was in fact, quite the contrary, because he was hard-working and a good father. |
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Y creo que yo también me parezco a él en eso, porque cuando me enojo con mi mamá, ya sea horas después o al día siguiente, le compro algún dulce o la llevo a comer (como una forma de decir: "¿me perdonas?"). Mi mamá siempre me dice que toda mi familia materna, Shinzato, tenemos ese carácter porque nuestros antepasados eran samuráis, y ahí me menciona a mi tatarabuelo, bisabuelo, etc... y bueno, comienza a contarme toda la historia.
I even think that I resemble him on that feature, because when I get angry with my mother, whether a few hours later or the next day, I buy her a dessert or take her to a restaurant (like a way of saying: "could you forgive me?"). My mother always tells me that my whole family on the maternal side, that is Shinzato, has that "explosive" personality because our ancestors come from a samurai line, and in this point she mentions about my great grandfather, great great grandfather, and so own... and well, she starts telling me (again) the whole family's story.
I even think that I resemble him on that feature, because when I get angry with my mother, whether a few hours later or the next day, I buy her a dessert or take her to a restaurant (like a way of saying: "could you forgive me?"). My mother always tells me that my whole family on the maternal side, that is Shinzato, has that "explosive" personality because our ancestors come from a samurai line, and in this point she mentions about my great grandfather, great great grandfather, and so own... and well, she starts telling me (again) the whole family's story.
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Mi papá con mi oji (en la tienda de mi oji)
Dad and grandpa (oji, in Japanese) in the oji's grocery store.
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Nunca he escuchado que me digan que me parezco a mi papá, salvo en lo físico, porque en el carácter, no me parezco nada. Mi papá era una persona tranquila, que casi nunca se enojaba, que tenía mucha paciencia, eso es lo que mi mama siempre me contaba, además, me asegura que nunca habían discutido entre ellos. Hay pocos, muy escasos pero valiosos recuerdos que tengo acerca de mi papá. Recuerdo que él siempre me llevaba de la mano cuando salíamos a pasear, incluso con mi perrito de peluche, con el que yo andaba a todos lados. O las veces que iba a la piscina, que me esperaba a mí o a mi hermano para regresar a la casa, con mucha paciencia, esperándonos a que nos cansáramos de jugar. A pesar que pasaba mucho tiempo en el restaurante (el negocio familiar de mi oba) que teníamos, siempre tenía tiempo para nosotros, al igual que mi mamá.
I have never heard from nobody to told me that I resemble my father, except physically, because I am nothing like him in terms of personality. My father was a quite person, he hardly got angry and was very patient. That is what my mother has always told me, and also, she assures that there was no quarrel between them. I have few, a very few but valuable memories about my father. I remember that my father always hold my hand when going for a walk, even with my little stuffed-dog, which I always took it with me everywhere. Or even those times when he went to the swimming pool, where he waited for me and my brother for coming home together, waiting for us until we had enough fun playing in the pool. Despite spending most of the time a t the restaurant (the oba's family business) that we had at that time, he always had enough time for us, just like my mother.
I have never heard from nobody to told me that I resemble my father, except physically, because I am nothing like him in terms of personality. My father was a quite person, he hardly got angry and was very patient. That is what my mother has always told me, and also, she assures that there was no quarrel between them. I have few, a very few but valuable memories about my father. I remember that my father always hold my hand when going for a walk, even with my little stuffed-dog, which I always took it with me everywhere. Or even those times when he went to the swimming pool, where he waited for me and my brother for coming home together, waiting for us until we had enough fun playing in the pool. Despite spending most of the time a t the restaurant (the oba's family business) that we had at that time, he always had enough time for us, just like my mother.
Realmente, el que podría contar más acerca de mi papá es mi hermano mayor, quien ha disfrutado más tiempo con mi papá que yo (porque él falleció cuando yo tenía 4 años y él tenía 13 años). Él me cuenta que a mi papá le gustaba viajar mucho, sobretodo al campo y al norte del Perú. Le gustaba el clima soleado, respirar aire puro y compartir ese momento con nosotros. También, le gustaba mucho las matemáticas (mi mamá me decía que era muy inteligente).
In fact, the person who could tell a little more about my father is my elder brother, who spent more time with my father than I (because my father died when I was 4 years old and my brother, thirteen). He tells me that my father liked to travel so much, specially to the countryside and northern Peru. He liked a sunny weather and to enjoy some fresh air and to share that time with us. He also liked mathematics so much (my mother told me that he was very intelligent).
Pero lo que no puedo negar, es que tanto a mi hermano como a mi, nos gusta arreglar o reparar cosas (o al menos, eso intentamos). Creo que es la curiosidad innata que tenemos y que hemos heredado de nuestro papá, porque a él le gustaba reparar todo aquello que estaba malogrado en la casa: radios, los juguetes que se rompían, etc. Por lo menos, mi papá sabía reparar las cosas, era un autodidacta. Le gustaba comprarse libros o revistas sobre mecánica o electrónica y con ello aprendía algo del oficio. En cambio, parecía que nosotros lo malográbamos más y para borrar la evidencia del "delito", simplemente tirábamos a la basura aquello que pensábamos "reparar". ¿A quien no le ha pasado que al querer armar nuevamente algo, por ejemplo, una mini-radio, no sabe de dónde han aparecido todos esos tornillos que al parecer, "han sobrado"?
But what I cannot hide is the fact that both my brother and I like to repair or fix broken stuff (or at least, we try so). I think that our natural curiosity is what we have inherited from our father, because he liked to repair everything that was broke at home: radios, broken toys, etc. But, at least, my father knew how to repair that stuff, because he was a self-taught person. He enjoyed to buy books or magazines on Mechanics or Electronics, with which he learned some of the craft. Meanwhile, it seems that we made them worse and in an attempt to "remove all evidence", we just throw away the stuff considered to be "repaired" by us. But, who has ever experienced that situation, when trying to assemble something again, for example, a mini-radio, that cannot figure out why there are so many screws left, which seems to have appeared "inexplicably"?
Mi papá no terminó la secundaria, porque era el mayor y tenía que ayudar a la familia, en este caso, a sus hermanos; pero eso sí, nunca le faltaban las ganas de aprender, aunque sea, por sí mismo. Le gustaba comprar libros de matemáticas o de electrónica, los famosos "Mecánica Popular" o "Selecciones" (que en esa época se llamaban Reader's Digests). Incluso tenía mucha afición por la filatelia y la numismática. Tenía una colección muy variada y hermosa de estampillas de muchos países y años. Y lo digo en pasado, "tenía", porque cuando encontré ese álbum de estampillas, pensé que eran stickers, y comencé a pegarlos en todas partes y en mis cuadernos del colegio (habían muchas estampillas conmemorativas de Mickey Mouse y el Pato Donald, asi que...¿cómo no iba a llamarme la atención?). Pero no puedo decir que me sienta culpable de mi travesura, porque solo tenía 6 ó 7 años cuando las encontré, pero ahora siento algo de nostalgia. Ahora que soy mayor, hubiera sido un recuerdo bonito que me recordaría a él. Y sobre las monedas, felizmente que no se me ocurrió hacer algo con ellas, porque aún las conservamos, muy bien guardadas, por si acaso.
My father did not finish high-school, because he was the elder son and had the responsibility to help the family, specifically, his younger siblings. But, despite everything, he was always willing to learn, even by himself. He liked to buy books on mathematics or electronics, the well-known "Popular Mechanics" or Selecciones (as Reader's Digest is known in the Latin American version). He even liked Philately or Numismatics so much. He owned a beautiful and well-stocked collection of stamps, from may countries and of different years. And I say it in past tense, "owned", because when I found that stamp album, I thought that these stamps were stickers and I was pasting the "stickers" everywhere and on my school notebooks (there were son may commemorative stamps of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, so...how they would not catch my attention?). But I cannot say that I feel guilty about my mischief, because I was only 6 or 7 years old when I found the album, but now, I feel a little nostalgic about it. Now, I am a grown-up, and this album would have been a nice memories about him. And about the coins, fortunately, I did not "touch" them, so we still keep them, carefully stored, just in case.
Ahora que ya soy adulta, lo extraño mucho, aunque cuando era pequeña, nunca lamenté su ausencia. ¡Qué paradójico!, ¿no? Como les había comentado en un post anterior, tengo a una tía a quien le estoy ayudando, y a veces, me siento impotente de no poder ayudarla más. Y como toda persona adulta, también tengo mis propias preocupaciones y anhelos. Y es en esos momentos, en que siempre pienso: "¿Qué haría mi papá en estos casos?". Aunque no lo haya conocido muy bien, instintivamente pienso en él, es algo que no puedo explicar. A veces le pido consejos a mi mamá, pero la mayor de las veces me deja con más dudas de las que ya tenía; pero eso sí, siempre me apoya en todo lo que decido. Felizmente, tengo a un hermano mayor que es muy parecido a mi papá y muy diferente a mí, en carácter y temperamento, claro está, y es a él a quien siempre recurro para pedir algún consejo, o cuando algo no me sale bien, como dice un refrán: "dos cabezas piensan mejor que una".
Since now I am already a grown-up, I miss him so much, although when I was a little girl, I have ever regretted about his absence. ¡What a paradox!, isn't' it? As I told you in a previous post, I have an aunt to whom I am providing some help, and sometimes, I feel powerless not to be able to provide her more help than already provided. And, as any adult person, I have also my own concerns and wishes. And here is when this comes to my mind: "What would my father have done in these situations?" Although I have not met him so well, I think about him, instinctively. This is something I cannot explain. Sometimes, I ask my mother for advice, but most of the time she leaves me with more questions than I already had, but she always support me in all my decisions, instead. Fortunately, I have an elder brother, who resembles my father so much, and who is totally different to me, both in character and personality. Always asking him for some advice or when something goes bad for me, as a saying says: "two heads are better than one".
Muchas personas, como yo, ya no tenemos a nuestro papá a nuestro lado, pero aunque tengamos a un tío, abuelo o hermano que nos ayuda y guía como si fuera nuestro papá, un papá es irremplazable. Y los que tienen a su padre aún con ellos, traten de vivir cada momento como si fuera el último, disfruten y pasen un tiempo con ellos y aunque a veces los papás nos saquen "canas verdes" (sobretodo a los que pasan de los 30 años y tienen papás ya mayores), tengámosles mucha paciencia, así como ellos nos tuvieron cuando éramos pequeños y hacíamos nuestras travesuras. ¡Feliz día del Padre!
Many people like me, do not have their father alive, but even if we have an uncle, grandfather or brother who provide all his support and guidance as he was our father, a father is irreplaceable. And those who have their father still alive, you should try to live every single moment as it was the last one, try to enjoy and spend more time with them, and even sometimes our fathers could "drive us mad", we should be more patient with them, as they were when we were little kids and did mischiefs all the time. Happy Dad's Day!
Since now I am already a grown-up, I miss him so much, although when I was a little girl, I have ever regretted about his absence. ¡What a paradox!, isn't' it? As I told you in a previous post, I have an aunt to whom I am providing some help, and sometimes, I feel powerless not to be able to provide her more help than already provided. And, as any adult person, I have also my own concerns and wishes. And here is when this comes to my mind: "What would my father have done in these situations?" Although I have not met him so well, I think about him, instinctively. This is something I cannot explain. Sometimes, I ask my mother for advice, but most of the time she leaves me with more questions than I already had, but she always support me in all my decisions, instead. Fortunately, I have an elder brother, who resembles my father so much, and who is totally different to me, both in character and personality. Always asking him for some advice or when something goes bad for me, as a saying says: "two heads are better than one".
Muchas personas, como yo, ya no tenemos a nuestro papá a nuestro lado, pero aunque tengamos a un tío, abuelo o hermano que nos ayuda y guía como si fuera nuestro papá, un papá es irremplazable. Y los que tienen a su padre aún con ellos, traten de vivir cada momento como si fuera el último, disfruten y pasen un tiempo con ellos y aunque a veces los papás nos saquen "canas verdes" (sobretodo a los que pasan de los 30 años y tienen papás ya mayores), tengámosles mucha paciencia, así como ellos nos tuvieron cuando éramos pequeños y hacíamos nuestras travesuras. ¡Feliz día del Padre!
Many people like me, do not have their father alive, but even if we have an uncle, grandfather or brother who provide all his support and guidance as he was our father, a father is irreplaceable. And those who have their father still alive, you should try to live every single moment as it was the last one, try to enjoy and spend more time with them, and even sometimes our fathers could "drive us mad", we should be more patient with them, as they were when we were little kids and did mischiefs all the time. Happy Dad's Day!
