When his wife gave him the child he had dreamed of, Takumi was 60 years old. He didn't care that she was a girl, he loved her more than the cranes love the sky. That day he planted a tree and its leaves trembled green as his heart trembled for Aiko's sake. But one day a strange rain made the tree grow until its shadow covered the wife's heart. Cut down the tree and use its wood to make a Geta for Aiko. She must be a geisha. He dragged on for as long as he could but when the sandals were ready, Takumi's soul turned into a crane.
(Translated by Beatrice Porumb / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year I / Corrected by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)
Versiunea în română a acestui text se poate citi aici, în rubrica Ficțiuni Reale.