TOP

Short short with English summary                         

お国柄
新型コロナビールスのせいで、世界中の生活事情が目に付くこの頃である。
長い間、欧米諸国では、サングラスは誰でも掛けているのに、我々の、眼鏡とマスク姿には批判的だった。そして、我国では、色眼鏡は危ない人が社会通念でした。だが、近頃は我国でも、サングラスは日常の実用品でお洒落アクセッサリーである。マスクの方は、ビールス感染対策の効果を欧米諸国も認めざるを得なくなった。何となく、欧米諸国で流行している入れ墨・刺青の話を連想する。
トイレットペーパーをパニック買い、買い占めに走るのは、日本の小母さん達だけと思ったら、世界中の小母さん達も全く同様でした。ただ、アメリカでは、ピストル・ライフルの買い溜めもするという。
家に閉じ込められたストレスの発散に窓を開けて国歌を合唱する国々。これは、日本の国歌では成り立ちませんね。
春が来て、青空の下お花見を楽しむ我々。外出禁止で人っ子一人いない、欧米の街角。楽天気質対悲観気質? それともこれは、案外、お辞儀多用の日本式挨拶と、欧米式、キス・ハグ挨拶に原因があるのかな。コーヒー・外食・居酒屋、会食は日本、諸外国を問わず文化の重要な要素です。これが一切禁止された人々は、つらいでしょうね。
未知数とは言え、季節が一回りした一年先には、被害の決算報告がでるでしょう。世界諸国の文化パターンに変化が起こるかも知れませんね。
Countries and their characters
Nowadays, we get many urban life information from all over the world due to the new type coronavirus spreading. People in the western countries used to pick at Japanese habit of wearing glasses and mask, at the same time they commonly wear sunglasses. Japanese consider a man with sunglasses belongs to the dark side of society. However, today, among young Japanese people, sunglasses are fashionable accessory. Concerning to wear the mask, western people has to admit the effect of mask’s protection against the coronavirus infection. Somehow, I associate these phenomena with the modern western fashion of tattoo and Japanese traditional tattoo.
In Japan, housewives are panic shopping toilet-paper roles since the coronavirus caused distribution disturbance of household goods. I thought it was a typical Japanese women attitude but the toilet-paper role hunting seems happening everywhere in the world. In US, people are also panic shopping guns.
In some western nations, their governments force people stay at home. Then, to get rid of the stress caused by total lack of human contact, the people open their windows and chorus the national anthem. For Japanese it would never happen. Japanese anthem sounds too heavy and too serious.
Spring has come. We enjoy cherry blossoms under high blue sky. In many western cities, it is strictly forbidden to be out in the street. How come the difference? Optimist vs pessimist? It might be that Japanese greet is to bow and western greet is hugs and kisses. A cup of coffee, dining together, the convivial occasions are important for all of us. The people who lost this freedom must have hard life now.
We do not foresee how the case of the coronavirus would develop, but after a year, we will meet the consequences. Then the pattern of daily life and culture of countries can be different than today.
TOP