2019 February 08

Did Sayuri have any friends? I thought about Mameha, but if Japanese is like Korean, I don't think Mameha was a friend in the 친구/友達 sense. The closest she had was Pumpkin, but for most of the time they spent together, they didn't talk to each other. So she lost her family when she was nine and for most of her life, she had no friends.

The adoption took place the following week. Already my given name had changed to Sayuri; now my family name changed as well. Back in my tipsy house on the sea cliffs, I'd been Sakamoto Chiyo. Now my name was Nitta Sayuri.

Such ordinary words make me extraordinarily sad. I think it is the mention of her childhood house that does it.