There seems to be no sign of the heat diminishing even after the Obon period has passed. Yesterday’s high school baseball championship game between Keio and Sendai Ikuei had the whole of Japan excited and even more heated. The day before yesterday, I participated in the battle for those tickets and managed to barely secure infield seats, for which my grandchildren were grateful as well. Experiencing high school baseball so intimately like this is also a first for me. After seeing off my grandchildren, I watched the game on TV, and I was surprised to see the vast Koshien Stadium packed to capacity. However, what surprised me the most was that Keio won the championship by a wide margin of 8 to 2, going against most predictions. Regardless of the outcome of the competition, the admirable performance of the players from both schools, the fervent cheering battle between the two schools, and the vibrant colors of the summer vegetables harvested from the fields all were deeply engraved in my heart as the most cherished memory of this summer.

お盆が過ぎても暑さが衰える気配はありません。昨日は高校野球決勝戦、慶應対仙台育英に日本中が湧き立ち、いっそうヒートアップしました。一昨日はそのチケット争奪戦にも参加し、かろうじて内野券が獲得できて、孫達からも感謝されました。高校野球をこんなにも身近に体験できたのも初めてです。孫達を送り出した後は、テレビで観戦しましたが、あの広い甲子園のスタンドが満杯状態にも驚きましたが、あらかたの予想を裏切って、慶應が８対２の大差で優勝したのにも驚きました。勝負の勝ち負けはともかく、両校選手の立派な戦いぶり、両校の熱烈な応援合戦、そして畑から収穫された夏野菜の色鮮やかさと共に、この夏一番の思い出として深く心に残りました。