mochabreads - Tumblr blog

[mochabreads]

Looking for my hometown

I am 26 years old and have moved 12 times. Sometimes I lived in unfamiliar lands, and sometimes I returned to the land I used to live in.

Having lived a mobile life, everywhere I went I was told I wasn't from this area. The difference in language and atmosphere may have made the other person feel that way. At some point, I started questioning who I was.

In 2017, the spring of my third year at university. When my grandfather gave me a sweet Konica Minolta α camera, I decided that if I ever visit again, I want to take pictures of the city I love the most. 2020, three years later. By chance, I had the opportunity to visit this town, and decided to take pictures while visiting the memorable places.

This is a photo exhibition in Matsuba Town, Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture. Kitakashiwa Life Town, a road around the housing complex developed by the Public Housing Corporation When I was in kindergarten and elementary school, this town was everything to me. I will be moving to Kansai in the spring after filming, and I have no home to return to in this town. Even so, Matsuba still feels like one of my hometowns.

I decided to hold this photo exhibition because I wanted to face my hometown, which I had been unable to answer for a long time. For me, the place I can call "hometown" is also the footprints I have walked.

What kind of place is home for you, and what kind of existence is it? I think there are many memories, both happy and painful. This time of year has a lot of encounters and parting. We hope that this photo exhibition will help you think about your hometown.

Kanon Fujisawa.

No.1

No.2

The ginkgo trees lining the road just outside my house are tall even now, even as an adult. Autumn leaves were falling. I want to go around this town slowly without worrying about time. From now on, I will collect the scenery of memories one by one. Taking pictures of this town was something I had planned for a long time. But there was no euphoria, it was calm and calm. Thinking that this might be the last time I see this scenery, I decided to print each one on film.

No.3

After a short walk, there is a long bench in the middle of the crossroads. When I was a kid, I used to think, "If it's a game world, this is the save point." I wonder why these pliers were placed in this place where visibility from three directions is good and where people can sit. On the way home from elementary school, I used to play rock-paper-scissors with my friends, and when I lost, I would hold my friend's school bag and say goodbye at this place.

No.4

This is 5-chome. There is a house where I lived from kindergarten to elementary school. When I was little, I used to line up and go home through this straight road. There is a kindergarten on the left. When I was a junior high school student, I was indebted for my work experience. There was not much difference between the town in my memory and the actual scenery. So I'm a little relieved. I went straight to the small park where I used to play with my friends. When I lived on 5-chome, it was the closest park to my house, and I hadn't been there in almost 10 years. I wonder if there will be today.

No.5

No.6

All the playground equipment that should have been in the park was gone. The swing and horizontal bar that I used to play on are gone, and only pliers and a sandbox remain. Compared to when there was playground equipment, it felt very lonely. I wonder if this park still exists in someone's daily life. The secret base I made behind the bicycle parking lot was gone. Collected BB bullets in the sandbox. I searched for iron sand with a magnet and a plastic bag. A large bee approached a parked bicycle and ran around. I once went around the park with a local woman on a scooter. At the secret base, I used a tire I picked up as a chair and played with a ball on it, but it was gone. It brought back a lot of memories and sounds, such as someone playing a prank on the swing and being unable to use it for a while. But now all I hear is the breeze and rustle of leaves.

No.7

There was a cleaning shop right next to the park. After I went shopping, my girlfriend's mother would give me 10 yen as a reward. Every time I went to the store with a big bag of her father's shirts, I was complimented by the owner's aunt. The building is still there, but the store is no longer in business. I have many memories on this road that I have traveled many times. Every time I looked through the viewfinder and released the shutter, I felt a sense of nostalgia and loneliness.

No.8

There was a cleaning shop right next to the park. After I went shopping, my girlfriend's mother would give me 10 yen as a reward. Every time I went to the store with a big bag of her father's shirts, I was complimented by the owner's aunt. The building is still there, but the store is no longer in business. I have many memories on this road that I have traveled many times. Every time I looked through the viewfinder and released the shutter, I felt a sense of nostalgia and loneliness.

No.9

This road connects the shopping district. It was the first time I realized that this town has a lot of sidewalks and almost no roads. "Kashiwa Odori" that most people in this area can dance. I was hesitant to dance to the up-tempo western music "Bahama Mama". Summer festival. Every year when I see friends from other districts wearing masks and dancing to Doraemon Ondo, I wonder why our district is Bahama Mama. You can see a small sidewalk and a city ahead. In the middle of the shopping street, there is a gymnasium, a library, and a public hall with dance classes. I went to various things such as drawing clubs and temple schools.

No.10

[mochabreads]

No.11

I really liked the colorful and cute chairs on the outskirts of the shopping street. I used to take a break here after buying sweets with my friends. I always subconsciously chose a green chair to sit on. As I sit here, I can hear people shopping at the nearby supermarket and the sounds of children playing. It was a place that made me think, "Who's sitting today...?"

No.12

There was a large square at the edge of town. Various events such as year-end countdowns and flea markets were held here. When I was in the lower grades of elementary school, I danced Mini Moni on the stage of a large truck during a countdown event. I didn't like the amazake that was handed out at that time, so I didn't drink it. And still no change I can't drink sweet sake. Even when there are no events, many children are playing in this place. An elementary school teacher once told me, "When you hear the sound of 'Yuyake Koyake' on the Panzamast disaster prevention radio, let's go home." In the past and now, children seemed to go home while the music was playing.

No.13

There is a park next to the square. There was a forest ahead, and once a month, an event for children called "Let's play" was held. When I was in elementary school, I always went to play with my younger brother, who was four years younger than me, after receiving flyers for school events. We played rope and ate marshmallows and bread baked over an open fire. I couldn't wait to eat raw bread and my stomach hurt. There are two elementary schools in the area, and children from different schools and grades gather. Even though we didn't know each other's names, we became friends while playing the same game. "Let's play" is still going on. I made precious memories here.

No.14

There was another big park next to the square, and it was very large without playground equipment. Many people call it by the nickname "Clover Park" instead of the official name (Matsuba Daini Neighborhood Park). I don't know where the name came from, but I have many memories of searching for clovers in this park. In spring, some people spread out leisure sheets and enjoy cherry blossom viewing under the cherry blossoms in full bloom. At the time of the summer festival, a tower was built in the center and many tents of stalls in the town were lined up around it. I was very moved to see so many people dancing Bon Odori. I also danced "Kashiwa Odori" and "Bahama Mama" at this place. As I was walking around taking pictures, I thought, "Everyone who lives in this town must have their own memories."

No.15

I looked down on the city from the footbridge near the park. My friend's house was connected to a large square, and I often went back and forth. The nearest station of private railway is around the building. I wanted to see a nostalgic scenery, so I decided to go by car with my mother.

No.16

The area around the station had changed so much that it lost all traces of the old days. It used to be a station, a shopping mall, and an apartment building, but now it is a modern shopping mall with izakayas, restaurants, and large bookstores under the elevated tracks. The regulating pond was named Aqua Terrace. Ten years have passed since my last visit, and it has become a well-maintained scenic spot. New private railway cars started operating, some looked familiar and some didn't. While watching the duck race leisurely, release the shutter so that the car you always ride is reflected. I parked my car and took a walk around the area with my mom. I made new memories and went home.

No.17

No.18

It was the first time I took a picture of the scenery from the window of the room. When I looked outside, I was always conscious of Mt. Tsukuba, which appears and disappears depending on the weather. Tsukuba is the mountain in Ibaraki Prefecture that appears in the lyrics of "Kashiwa Odori". Walking around the city, I honestly felt that Matsuba was my hometown. Home must be one. I thought so until now. But I have memories of other cities I've lived in, and I've come to think that maybe I can call them home. It doesn't have to be just one hometown. Not just where you were born, but where you grew up. By connecting memories and places, any piece of land becomes a home. When I thought so, I felt that the existence of my hometown was not something that tormented me, but something that was warm and important to me. The search for my hometown continues.

Ten years ago, I would have answered without hesitation, "Where is your hometown?" However, the more I moved, the more options I had. Chiba Prefecture, Saga Prefecture, Fukuoka Prefecture, Hyogo Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Shiga Prefecture, etc. Looking at the scenery of memories and thinking about my hometown again, I came to think that there is no need to narrow down the answer to this question that I could not answer well until now. And when I finally found the answer within myself, I wanted to know the hometowns of various people other than myself. I think that each person has their own answer, such as the land they were born in, the land they grew up in, or the places they have visited several times.

From here, please tell us about your hometown and memories of your hometown. Please write the place you can call "hometown", the reason why you can call it "hometown", the country name, the prefecture or town, your favorite shops and places, memories, etc. in the post.

I will be moving for the 13th time at the end of this month. Even if it's not now, the day may come when you call your new hometown home. I think my hometown gives me the richness of the heart that makes me think so. It doesn't have to be just one hometown. By connecting various memories and places, any place becomes a home.

When I think so, I felt that the existence of my hometown is not something to suffer, but something warm and loving.

The town I'm walking through now is someone's hometown.