This series, featuring artist Miran and writer Ban Obara spending their days off outdoors, is already on its third installment. In summer, it’s all about yukata and fireworks. Avoiding crowded places, we’re heading to a nearby park for some fireworks this time, dressed in yukata.
Note: Rules vary by park, so be sure to check the park’s website in advance and follow the rules to ensure a fun time.
INDEX
Sweltering Summer: Handheld Fireworks (from Ban Obara)
I tried to put on a yukata for the first time in a while and struggled with it, which made me late. It was drizzling outside, and I didn’t want my carefully styled hair to get frizzy from the rain, but despite that, I walked with the clacking sound of my geta.
I helped Miran-chan with her outfit a bit at the office, and then, with the geta clacking again, we walked to Hanegi Park through the persistent drizzle. The sweltering heat and the distant sound of cicadas were all around. Miran-chan looked great in her light pink yukata, and her exposed forehead shone brightly, making her look adorable.
While Nanako-chan took pictures of us at Hanegi Park, the sunset soon blazed with colors. It was so beautiful that I stepped away from the group to take it in.
Sitting on a bench, I enjoyed some ramune, ate takoyaki, and nibbled on yakitori. I got bitten by mosquitoes everywhere—on the tops of my feet, the back of my neck, and even my butt. The takoyaki was especially delicious.
The sun has set and there is a breeze. I light a hand-held firework. A green light appears at the tip of my hand.
I look at the light and smile. There is smoke and sound, and it soon becomes dark before I can feel each of these things. My eyes only flicker and I can’t see anything.
Rather than lighting a firework from a candle, we bring our hand-held fireworks close together like a torch and connect them.
If we all use handheld fireworks together, darkness will be hard to come by.
We finished one bag of fireworks, but we decided we wanted to do more, so we looked at the photos we had taken while Miran went to the store to buy more fireworks. I had never seen Miran-chan with such an expression on her face when she was shooting the fireworks.
We all set off the sparklers together. The sparklers didn’t light properly, and we fumbled around. Miraculously, they were lit, they were beautiful, and then, “Oh, they fell off. But somehow, that flickering red light remained in my mind. There was a small light for a while, a small light that was not rusty, but majestic.
I love it when people do sparklers, when they all huddle together and look like they are unsure of themselves.
