Word 105
In Totsukawa Village, Nara Prefecture, where hamlets are scattered along a deep gorge, a suspension bridge links the settlement of Tanise to the opposite bank at Uenochi. Rising fifty-four meters above the river and stretching nearly three hundred meters across, it was built in 1954, when the villagers themselves each contributed two to three hundred thousand yen — eight million yen in total — to raise a bridge for daily life.
Made of little more than steel cables and wooden planks, the bridge sways with every step. Grip the rail too tightly, and it tilts further. Loosen your hold too much, and your footing grows unsteady.
Those who cross it learn, without anyone teaching them, to lean neither too far left nor too far right. Neither rushing nor lingering too long, each traveler finds a pace of their own and moves toward the other side.
"Finding balance." "Staying moderate." These, in truth, are the hardest of all.
Try too hard, and it falls apart. Do nothing at all, and that troubles us too.
Be too serious, and it falls apart. Be too careless, and that troubles us too.
Be too strict, and it falls apart. Be too kind, and that troubles us too.
Sometimes we push forward. Sometimes we rest.
How do we find balance in all things, and uphold moderation, through the course of a life?
That is the lifelong theme.
Many who cross this bridge never learn that it was raised, more than seventy years ago, by villagers who pooled their own savings. Even now, it sways faintly with the footsteps of each traveler, quietly teaching each one to find a balance that is theirs alone.