悪の巷に豪邸

退職の日、飯おごったくらいで泣くなよ。
俺、親孝行してないなって反省したぞ。
 　ー　福岡信之(男性·29歳)

On the day you retired,
"Don't cry just because I took you to dinner,
It occurred to me I've never done anything to repay you."
  - Nobuyuki Fukuoka (M.29)

New kanji / new words:
 退職　　ー　たいしょく　　ー　retirement
 飯　　　ー　めし　　　　　ー　a meal
 奢る　　ー　おごる　　　　ー　to treat someone, to be extravagant
 親孝行　ー　おやこうこう　ー　filial piety
 反省　　ー　はんせい　　　ー　reflection, introspection, reconsideration, contemplation

お父さん　気づいてますか？
私と　お父さん、２人の写真が
まだ１枚もないことを。
 　ー　廣部恵子(女性·20歳)

Father,
Have you ever noticed?
There is still not a single photograph of the two of us together.
  - Keiko Hirobe (F.20)

｢人間はな。。。」親父の説教 は凄かった。
昨日、息子に「人間はな。。。」と始めたら
あくびしていた。
 　ー　小山年男(男性·66歳)

"Ah, the human race..."
A father's most dignified sermon.
Yesterday, I launched into it with my son,
"Ah, the human race..."
Who yawned.
  - Toshio Koyama (M.66)

New kanji / new words:
 親父　ー　おやじ　　　ー　boss, old man, father
 説教　ー　せっきょう　ー　a sermon, to preach, to propound

---

田んぼが、黄色にみのったよ。
いねかりつかれるのに、
なぜ、うれしい顔してるの。
 　ー　中島浩貴(男性·7歳)

The rice fields are yellow with fruit,
Although you get tired from the reaping, you wear a smile.
Why?
  - Hirotaka Nakajima (M.7)

New kanji / new words:
 いねかり　ー　いねかり　ー　rice reaping

---

亀レスが、すみません。

ひまがあれば一日中しゃべっている父へ。
あなたには、体力の限界がないのですか？
 　ー　鬼頭浩二(男性·16歳)

To my father
Who talks from morning till night :
Are there no limits to your endurance?
  - Koji Kito (M.16)

New kanji / new words:
 体力　ー　たいりょく　ー　physical strength
 限界　ー　げんかい　　ー　limitations, bounds

お父さん、コワイけど弱い人。
気がついちゃってごめんんさい。
 　ー　山本明日香(女性·17歳)

Dad,
You act scary
But I know you're really weak.
Sorry I noticed.
  - Asuka Yamamoto (F.17)

New kanji / new words:
 弱い　　　ー　よわい　　ー　weak, delicate, unskilled, frail
 気がつく　ー　きがつく　ー　to notice

お父さん。
あまり関係がないようで、
かなり関係があるかも。
 　ー　森永友香里(女性·15歳)

Dad,
Maybe, though we don't seem to have a lot in common,
We have a lot in common.
  - Yukari Morinaga (F.15)

New kanji / new words:
 関係　　ー　かんけい　ー　connection, relation
 かなり　ー　かなり　　ー　quite, considerably
 かも　　ー　かも　　　ー　(prt.) maybe, perhaps, possibly

父さん、老人病院でも
　また窓際族だね。
でも今度は、神様がよく見える
　特別席だよね。
 　ー　村井泰彦　(男性·62歳)

Dad,
Even in the geriatric ward
You get shunted aside, like at the office.
But this time, you can see God.
A special seat, eh?
  - Yasuhiko Murai (M.62)

New kanji / new words:
 老人　　ー　ろうじん　　　ー　the elderly
 窓際族　ー　まどぎわぞく　ー　useless employees, shunted off to the windows to await retirement
 神様　　ー　かみさま　　　ー　god
 特別　　ー　とくべつ　　　ー　special
 席　　　ー　せき　　　　　ー　seat ( cf. 椅子, "chair" )

戦争へ行った父へ。。。
父ちゃんも人を殺したの？
昔、何もわからんで悲しい質問をして
ごめんなさい。
 　ー　浜田静江　(女性·35歳)

To my father, who went to war:
"Daddy, did you kill people, too?"
I'm sorry I asked such naive questions back then.
  - Shizue Hamada (F.35)

New kanji / new words:
 戦争　　ー　せんそう　ー　war
 殺す　　ー　ころす　　ー　to kill, to murder
 昔　　　ー　むかし　　ー　long ago
 悲しい　ー　かなしい　ー　sad, sorrowful
 質問　　ー　しつもん　ー　question

大好きなお父さん。
私たち三人と結婚してくれて、
ありがとう。
 　ー　庄野恵美　(女性·18歳)

Dearest Dad,
Thanks for marrying the three of us.
  - Megumi Syono (F.18)

New kanji / new words:
 結婚　ー　けっこん　ー　marriage

どうして　あんあに
私を殴ったの
子供を産んだら
余計　わからなくなりました。
 　ー　幸田亜子　(女性·29歳)

Why did you hit me like that?
I still wonder.
When I had children
I understood even less.
  - Ako Koda (F.29)

New kanji / new words:
 子供　ー　こども　ー　children
 産む　ー　うむ　　ー　to give birth, to deliver, to produce
 余計　ー　よけい　ー　too much, unnecessarily, to excess ( note: used on negative verb here )

事情はあったでしょうが
やっぱり認知はしてほしかったです。
 　ー　糀谷弘美　(女性·53歳)

You probably had your reasons,
But I still wish
That you had recognised me as your own.
  - Hiromi Kojiya (F.53)

New kanji / new words:
 事情　ー　じじょう　ー　reasons, circumstances
 認知　ー　にんち　　ー　recognition, acknowledgement

Note: Coincidently, "koji" is also a word for "orphan".
Do they get any less depressing? In spots...

父がコップに残しましたビールは
父の残りの人生のようで
寂しくなりました。
 　ー　大久保昇　(男性·29歳)

The beer that Dad left in his glass
Was like a little of his life left behind,
Making me feel lonesome.
  - Noboru Okubo (M.29)

New kanji / new words:
 残す　　ー　のこす　　ー　to leave behind, to bequeath, to reserve, to save
 残り　　ー　のこり　　ー　remnant, left-over
 人生　　ー　じんせい　ー　the span of someone's life
 寂しい　ー　さびしい　ー　lonely, lonesome

合格発表の日、
掲示板に僕の番号を見つけて
僕を殴った父さん。
うれしかった。
 　ー　大石悠太　(男性·17歳)

Dad,
The day the test results were announced
And, finding my number on the board, you hit me,
I was so happy.
  - Yuta Oishi (M.17)

New kanji / new words:
 合格　　ー　ごうかく　　ー　success, passing of an exam
 発表　　ー　はっぴょう　ー　announcement, publication
 掲示板　ー　けいじばん　ー　bulletin board
 殴る　　ー　なぐる　　　ー　to hit, to strike

Interestingly, the character 僕 ( ぼく, "me (masc.)" ) and one of the ways to write なぐる are very similar - 撲る.

石けん　よーし
タオル　よーし
湯加減　よーし
パパが風呂場のぞく口実
全然　なーし
  ー　今村嘉之子　(女性·13歳)

Soap - ready!
Towel - got it!
Hot water - all set!
Daddy wants to check my bath -
no way!
  - Kanoko Imamura (F.13)

New kanji / new words:
 石けん　ー　せっけん　ー　soap
 湯加減　ー　ゆかげん　ー　water temperature
 風呂場　ー　ふろば　　ー　bathroom
 のぞく　ー　のぞく　　ー　to peep, to look in on
 口実　　ー　こうじつ　ー　an excuse
 全然　　ー　ぜんぜん　ー　absolutely

I would translate the last two lines as "Now dad has absolutely no excuse to bother me!"

In 1996, the Maruoka-cho Cultural Foundation, with some help from the Sumitomo Group Public Affairs Committee and the postal service began a "A Brief Message from the Heart Letter Contest". Following a successful round of letters to people's mothers, there was then a successor competition for fathers - 73,933 letters were collected.

Down the line, a book was published containing the judges selections - 51 Japanese letters, and 13 English ones. It also contains translations into the opposing tongue for each.

Nearly every school I have taught in has a copy of this book, and I found it quite moving to read in parts, and an interesting insight into the character of the Japanese father. This is quite a feat for me as most of the Japanese I can read at my level tends to be quite dry. Anyway, I was lucky today to receive my own copy - it's a little ripped, and has been replaced. I am going to put the letters up here on LJ, on wednesdays and fridays, tagged with 'japandads'.