A Year in June: Chapter 14

             It was a special night in March that Mina and June finally finished building the porch. They had been working on the project on and off since mid-January, but snowy days and busy days delayed them for months until they finally put in the finishing touches near the end of March. The temperature was also uncharacteristically warm; it was a balmy 18 degrees Celsius, and although June had yet to learn what that meant exactly in Fahrenheit she knew that it was a number higher than any she had seen in recent months.

            They inaugurated this momentous occasion by bringing out several canned beers chilled in a cooking pot full of ice. As the night wore on, the alcohol went more and more to June’s head until she nearly felt like it was someone else who asked, “Mina-chan, what do you want to grow up to be?” As soon as she said it she felt like it was a ridiculous question. Mina was already in her late 20s and had established herself as a talented carpenter. On the other hand, June, at 22, still had no idea what she wanted to do after her time in Japan. She had interests, hobbies, and talents, but no passions. Mina already was what she wanted to be. She started to retract her question when Mina answered along a different vein,

            “Stronger, I want to grow up to be stronger.” She took a sip of beer, “When I feel something is important and try to talk, my voice become weak and sometimes I want to cry. But I don’t want to cry anymore." A cat darted across the rock lot in front of them. “Calm, cool, not so emotional. I want to be stronger.”

            This must be a Japanese thing, June thought to herself, to associate strength with stoicism. “You’re the strongest person I know.” June said too quietly for Mina to hear.

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