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  • Heisei:A History of Japan, 1989–2011
  • Sacha Idell (bio)

1988, Summer

At some point during the last August of the Showa era, Azumi Nakahara becomes pregnant. She has recently married Kazuhiko, a former entomologist who now works for a large publishing company, proofreading textbooks. Azumi calls Kazuhiko "Nobita" because his round glasses make him look like a character from Doraemon. It is Kazuhiko's second marriage and also his second child; he is twelve years older than Azumi, and a lifetime of experience separates them on many issues. They do, however, care about each other deeply. They are excited by the prospect of their life together.

That August, they also visit Kazuhiko's family in Okayama prefecture for the Obon holiday. Azumi is from Tokyo, and it is the first time she has ever been west of Osaka. She is amazed by both the mountains and the heat, as well as the speed of the train through such rough terrain. In the evenings, Kazuhiko takes Azumi to a river in the neighborhood in which he grew up, to listen to cicadas. One evening, towards the end of their trip, a firefly lands on Azumi's hand. The season too is ending, and few fireflies are left. The firefly pulses and glows, lingering. The two of them take this to be a good omen. They stand on the riverbank in silence, listening to the cicadas and crickets, until the firefly rises and darts into the darkness. Though the summer is insufferably hot, though Azumi has a summer cold which has lingered for days, and even though her husband's family has been less than accepting of his choice to take a second wife, this is a moment Azumi will remember for the rest of her life as a time when she was happy.

1989, Winter

Hirohito, 124th Emperor of Japan, dies at 6:33 on the morning of January seventh. His son Akihito ascends the throne. Cancer is cited as the cause of death; apparently the imperial family has long been struggling with this illness in silence, walled off from the eyes of the nation. The end of an era is declared, and the name Heisei ("peace everywhere") is selected for the present age. In the evening, the Emperor's death is marked by cannon fire in the imperial gardens. The sound echoes throughout the center of Tokyo shortly before a press conference. The Nakaharas, like many other people on this day, mistake the sound for fireworks, and assume they have forgotten about a local festival. [End Page 148] They continue to eat their dinner in a small apartment in Ochanomizu, a district of Tokyo known for its celebration of music.

Among other things, Hirohito is famous for his postwar declaration that he was not, in fact, God, and should not be revered as such.

1989, Spring

After a labor the length of which Azumi had previously believed impossible, Hotaru Nakahara is born. She is named, by her parents, after the sort of firefly that landed on her mother's hand. Azumi likes the sound of it—it reminds her of a warm, soft glow. When they choose the name, Kazuhiko remarks that fireflies were once mistaken for wandering souls of the dead. He makes the comment as though it is something he read in a textbook (and, indeed, it was). While Kazuhiko's statement makes sense, Azumi assumes there's something even simpler at work: anything you don't understand looks magical from the right distance.

1989, Autumn

Kazuhiko and Azumi find some balance in the chaos of their apartment. Hotaru is up at all hours of the night, but after a confused six months, Azumi has started to develop a system for determining what her child needs. She notices, increasingly, the things which are unsafe or swallowable in the apartment, and somehow finds an extradimensional amount of time to clean, decorate, and straighten. Occasionally she cooks a meal of mackerel simmered in miso—Kazuhiko's favorite—and for hours the smell of the apartment, the miso settling into the tatami flooring, gives Azumi a feeling of confidence. She may be a young mother, and...

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