Bohai-er (Bohai child)

I actually uploaded a cropped version of the shot on TE. I like both of the shots.

＜Story＞
The guy, who wrote the poem in the photo, is 79 years old. He had been raised in a Chinese family, in Tianjin, China until he was 16 years old. His father was Japanese 2nd generation in China, that means his grand father first arrived in China. His mother was Japanese who didn't understand Chinese. So between his mother and him, there were no communication at all.

For some reason that I shall not mention here, he was sent to a Chinese family, where he studied with other Chinese children, and played with them. He knew he was Japanese in his heart but he didn't recognise it so clearly until he actually was brought back to Japan after World War 2. He could not speak Japanese then. He was put in a high school but he didn't do well in the classes because of the language. Teachers'd beaten him everyday, so something in him had gone wrong..... he was really really bad kid, steals, fights, bossy, etc etc......

Now he speaks Japanese, just like locals do. But something is different in him, and that makes people ask him the same question repeatedly, "where are you from actually??"
He knows the answer clealy. "I am a Bohai's child"

Poem says :
60 years has past since I left the land
Even if I have lived in this home land
People ask me where I am from
Actually I am a Bohai child, in North East.

<お話>
この写真の詩を書いた人は79歳、中国の天津にて16歳まで中国人家庭で育てられた。
父親は日本人二世、ということは、おじいさんの代で中国にわたったことになる。母親は生粋の日本人で中国語を解さなかったため、母親とは交流はなかった。

中国人家庭に送られた理由をここで述べるのはやめるが、そこで他の中国の子供たちと勉強し遊んだ。
心の中では自分は日本人だと知っていたけれど、終戦後実際に日本につれて帰られるまで意識したことはなかった。そのときはまだ日本語がしゃべれなかった。学校に入れられたが言葉の問題で授業についていけず、教師に殴られる毎日だった。そういう環境で彼の何かがおかしくなったのだろう・・・盗み、ケンカ、などをする悪党となってしまった。

現在、彼は地元人と同じ日本語を喋る。
しかし彼の何かが違うのだろう、同じ質問を繰り返し聞かされる。
「本当はどちらの方なのですか？」
彼のほうも明瞭な答えを得ている。
「私、実は渤海の子なんですよ」

詩：
かの地を離れて60年経った
ここにずっと住んでいるというのに
人々は聞く
「どちらの方なんですか？」
私は言う
「北東の、渤海の子なんですよ」

Comments

[Lauryn]

Hi Brian, thanks for visiting my blog.
Yea, I like this shot too because I know there is a story behind it.
Old people always has stories so they can be quite nice subject for photography, ya know. Have a good day!
Lauryn

[Brian]

Hey Lauryn,
I love your "Off the Streets" series. Especially this photo with the story. It is a great documentary, a wonderful idea. I haven't seen this on TE, but I will take a look.
Very good work!

Take care,
Brian

[Lauryn]

みほこぉ～　ひさしぶりだぁ！
君は日本語を書いた途端に、違いが発覚する気もするけど・・笑
「ン」と「ソ」、書き分けできるようになった？（殴られそうなのでこの辺で・・）

[Mihoko]

同じようなこと、聞かれるなぁ・・・