Status Updates From Η λίμνη

But aren’t a baby’s feet always soft and lovely before it walks this earth? – like those of the cherubs surrounding the figure of Christ in religious paintings. All feet harden like Gimpei’s as they cross the swamps and rocks and thornbushes of this world.

A mound rose gently to a grove of small pines, whose branches still bore the marks of careful pruning. The ginkgo trees along the road were tall, and their first tiny leaves were still not dense enough to hide the branches. The settling sun shone through the leaves in pale and darker shades, depending on the height of each leaf and the way it faced. The girl was bathed in fresh green light.