日が短くなってきた The days are getting shorter.
8月も終わりに近づき、最近、日が短くなってきましたね。
夕方暗くなるのが早くなってきたのを感じると、秋ももうすぐなのかなと思います。また、夜など少し涼しくなると、秋の虫の声が草むらからしてきて、ここでも秋を感じます。
日本では、蝉などの夏の虫が鳴き止んで、コオロギなどの秋の虫の声がすると、季節の変化を感じますね。
今、皆さんにもっと日本語に親しんでもらうために何ができるか考えています。例えば今日のような季節の変化を感じ取るフレーズは、日本的なだけでなく、皆さんも日記に書いて身近に使うこともできますよね。
皆さんは日本語で日記を書くことに興味はありますか?
知りたいフレーズなどがあったらぜひ教えてください。
いろは
The days are getting shorter.
As August draws to a close, I've been noticing it — the evenings darkening a little earlier each day. That shift in the light makes me feel that autumn is not far off now.
And in the evenings, when the air turns just slightly cooler, something else changes too: the insects. The sounds from the grass begin to shift — the cicadas of summer giving way to the quieter, more delicate calls of autumn insects like crickets. A seasonal handover, announced not by the calendar but by sound.
I've been thinking about how to help you feel closer to Japanese — not just study it, but actually live with it a little.
Phrases like today's, for instance — noticing the days growing shorter, sensing the first hint of autumn in the air — these aren't just poetic observations. They're the kind of thing you could write in a diary, in Japanese, as part of your own daily life.
Would you be interested in writing a diary in Japanese? Even a line or two a day?
If there are phrases you'd like to learn — for your diary, or for anything else — please do let me know. I'd love to hear.
Iroha