Letter from Boston Happy New Year By MASAKO YAMADA	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
新年を迎えて 大学の期末試験を終えた雅子さんは、約1週間の冬休みの間、ニュージャージーに住む両親の家に帰りました。料理をしたり、服を縫ったり、中学校時代の先生と再会したり、有意義なひとときを過ごした雅子さんですが、休み中のメーンイベントは何といっても、大みそかに、タイムズ・スクエアで新年のカウントダウンを体験することでした——。

After finals were over, I boarded the Greyhound Bus to spend winter break with my family in New Jersey. I only stayed there for a week, but it was a fruitful vacation for me. I was able to sleep as much as I wanted and spend time with my friends and family. These days, that is the kind of vacation that appeals to me most.

Even before I got home, I had an intense craving to "make something." So in my first few days in New Jersey I made a big turkey dinner with all the trimmings, and I sewed a matching cape and hat. It was rewarding to see a "real" product of my handiwork, since my usual academic work doesn't often produce direct results. My brothers and friends all seemed to enjoy the turkey. I showed off my new outfit for everybody. The turkey and clothes both made me happy.

I also made tiramisu, the Italian dessert, to bring to my former junior high school teachers, Mr. Yampolsky and Ms. Okabe, who happen to be married to each other. I saw them for the first time in seven years, and I met their children for the first time too. Ms. Komiyama, my home economics teacher from junior high school, also dropped by. We've all changed since that time ― especially me ― but the comfortable old feeling was still there.

My friend Ryuji lives about 10 minutes from my parents' home, and we usually get together during vacations. We've known each other since elementary school, so we never feel compelled to "plan" anything special. This time, however, we did plan to go to Times Square on New Year's Eve to watch the lighted ball drop at midnight. It's a national event that neither of us has witnessed firsthand in spite of our having lived in the area for so long.

Ryuji ended up going to a friend's party near Philadelphia, though. He invited me too, but I was adamant about going to Times Square. I'd already planned a mini-festival with noisemakers, confetti, streamers and champagne, and I wasn't going to forfeit that. So I ended up going with the younger two of my three brothers. We took the 3-minute ferry ride from New Jersey to New York and then walked to Times Square. We got there a little early, though, so we had a late-nite snack at a Korean restaurant a few blocks away.

Soon it was time for us to hurry back to Times Square. The police had barricaded the roads with horses ― real horses, not wooden ones ― so we couldn't get very close to the ball. I was just able to see a bit of it out of the corner of my eye.

I guess the point of this event is to bask in the cheer of the people surrounding you ― not to stare at the ball. We could've seen the ball perfectly on TV, after all, but TV can't capture the excitement of hundreds of thousands of people in the streets.

Somewhat anti-climactically, the people started going home in droves as soon as the ball fell. Not many seemed in the mood for lingering. Granted it was very cold, but I was hoping for more festivities than that. Perhaps most people were heading to private parties. Or maybe they just wanted to sleep.

My brothers seemed to want to go home too, so we took the next bus back to Jersey. I was worried that there would be terrible traffic jams, but we were home safe by 1:30 a.m. on New Year's Day. We had "osechi" that afternoon, and I left for Boston the following day.

All of this coming and going made my vacation rich and full, but in the hubbub I lost the new hat I made and my camera too. Making another hat was easy enough, but it didn't quite turn out the same. And I can always buy another camera, but I can't replace the film that was in it.

Shukan ST: Jan. 17, 1997

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