?What an interesting occupation. We?re very fond of animals. Is your husband?s zoo near here??
Before Sachiko could reply, Mariko had clambered off the bench noisily. Without a word, she walked away from us, towards a cluster of trees nearby. We all watched her for a moment.
?Is she your eldest?? the woman asked Sachiko, ?I have no others.?
?Oh, I see, It?s no bad thing really. A child can become more independent that way. I think a child often works harder too. There?s six years? difference between this one? ? she put her hand on the boy?s head ? ?and the eldest one.?
The American woman produced a loud exclamation and clapped her hands. Mariko was progressing steadily up the branches of a tree. The plump-faced woman turned in her seat and looked up at Mariko worriedly.
?Your daughter?s quite a tomboy,? she said.
The American woman repeated the word ?tomboy? gleefully, and clapped her hands again.
?Is it safe?? the plump-faced woman asked. ?She might fall.??
Sachiko smiled, and her manner towards the woman seemed to grow suddenly warmer. ?Are you not used to children climbing trees?? she asked.
The woman continued to watch anxiously. Are you sure it?s safe? A branch may break?
Sachiko gave a laugh. ?I?m sure my daughter knows what she?s doing. Thank you all the same for your concern. It?s so kind of you. She gave the woman an elegant bow. The American woman said something to Sachiko, and they began conversing again in English. The plump-faced woman turned away from the trees.
?Please don?t think me impertinent,? she said, putting a hand on my arm, ?but I couldn?t help noticing. Will this be your first time???
Yes,? I said, with a laugh. ?Were expecting it in the autumn.?
?How splendid. And your husband, is he also a zoo-keeper??
?Oh no. Reworks for an electronics firm?
Really??
The woman began to give me advice concerning the care of babies. Meanwhile, I could see over her shoulder the boy wandering away from the table towards Mariko?s tree.
?And it?s an idea to let the child hear a lot of good music,? the woman was saying. ?I?m sure that makes a lot of difference. A child should hear good music amongst his earliest sounds.?
?Yes, I?m very fond of music.?
The boy was standing at the foot of the tree, looking up at Mariko with a puzzled expression.
?Our older son doesn?t have as fine an ear for music as Akira,? the woman went on.. ?My husband says this is because he didn?t hear enough good music when he was a baby, and I tend to think he?s right. In those days, the radio was broadcasting so much military music. I?m sure it did no good at all.?
As the woman continued to talk, I could see the boy trying to find a foothold in the tree-trunk. Mariko had come lower and appeared to be advising him. Beside me, the American woman kept laughing loudly, occasionally uttering single words of Japanese. The boy finally managed to hoist himself off the ground; he had one foot pressed into a crevice and was holding on to a branch with both hands.
Although only a few centimeters off the ground. he seemed in a state of high tension. It was hard to say if she did so
deliberately, but as she lowered herself, the little girl trod firmly on the boy?s fingers. The boy gave a shriek, falling clumsily.
The mother turned in alarm Sachiko and the American woman, neither of whom had seen the incident, also turned towards the fallen boy. He was lying on his side
making a loud noise. His mother ran to him and kneeling beside him began to feel his legs. The boy continued his noises. Across the clearing, passengers waiting for the cablecar were all looking our way. After a minute or so, the boy came sobbing to the table, guided by his mother.
?Tree-climbing is so dangerous,? the woman said, angrily.
?He didn?t fall far,? I assured her. ?He was hardly on the tree at all.?
?He might have broken a bone. I think children should be discouraged from climbing trees. It?s so silly.?
?She kicked me,? the boy sobbed. ?Shekicked me off the tree. She tried to kill me.?
?She kicked you? The little girl kicked you??
I saw Sachiko cast a glance towards her daughter. Mariko was once more high up the tree.
?She tried to kill me.?
??The little girl kicked you??
?Your son just slipped,? I interrupted quickly. ?I saw it all. He hardly fell any distance.?
?She kicked me. She tried to kill me.?
The woman also turned and glanced towards the tree. ?He just slipped,? I said again. You shouldn?t be doing such silly things, Akira,? the woman said, angrily. ?It?s very very dangerous to climb trees.
?She tried to kill me.?
?You?re not to go up trees.?
