Ya’s Reviews > The Mad Kyoto Shoe Swapper and Other Short Stories from Japan > Status Update

Trial by Fire

Genbei's Curse

How oblivious they all were, as if they're each traveling in their own impenetrable bubble of space. I didn't see them this way; to me, they're all connected by tiny details—resemblances of hand or ear, bag or hat, print of shirt or blouse. They're like drops in an ocean of humanity. But they didn't understand this—they all thought they're alone & all important.

And of course, lots of them were looking at their phones. The universal pose of modern man. If we don't watch out, our spines will curve back into a Neanderthal shape, and our revolution will start going backwards.

The Rescuer