Past Shop Diary entries

Wednesday, October 21, 2026

10/21 (Wed) Today I distributed a press release via PRtimes. I posted because I wanted people outside Kesennuma City and across Japan to learn about Marain BOOKS and our activities. I would be happy if not only those who currently live in Kesennuma but also people who are connected to Kesennuma could get involved from afar and keep Kesennuma in their thoughts. We have a corner in our shop called "Kesennuma: 100 People’s Bookshelves." Through books, I want to show what kinds of books people in Kesennuma read, what they feel, and how they live now. Kesennuma City is famous for sanma (Pacific saury) and katsuo (bonito), but this project started to focus on the people of Kesennuma so that people can feel the city more personally. Compared with big cities, rural areas are often thought to have nothing, but richness doesn’t come simply from goods and services in a visible economy — it comes from feeling connections with people. I moved back as a U-turn migrant two years ago, and I feel connections I couldn’t feel in Nagoya, where I lived for seven years. When the Kesennuma 100 books are gathered, we’re planning to create a first issue. A magazine filled with 100 active people from Kesennuma would be compelling. This also connects to last year’s My Plan at Numa University, RoundAbout "Creating a magazine that delivers Kesennuma’s cool," and I’m able to do what I want to do. I’m grateful for an environment where I can take small challenges, for the people and systems that support those challenges, and for the chance to express myself locally in Kesennuma. Now that I’m 30, I strongly want not only to take in information but to put things out and help liven up Kesennuma.

Monday, October 19, 2026

10/19 (Mon) A regular customer wearing a corduroy shirt in a maple-leaf color dropped by. It was even colder in Kesennuma today, and he had a hoodie over his shirt. He bought a bundle of books again, mainly suspense novels. I feel like his visits are becoming more frequent. Thank you, as always. He told me some of his high school exploits. It made me realize how different the Showa era and the Reiwa era can be. He looked back fondly on his three years of high school and seemed proud. An older customer who had seen Kesennuma City's cable network commercial also came in. I'm truly glad that local elderly people learned about the shop and came by. In areas with limited transportation, I want to create community spaces across many generations through books. I hope to work with mobile bookstores and pop-up bookshops to reach those who usually can't get around. I want to visit nursing-care facilities and retirement homes to bring the pleasure of shopping, time for reading, and the conversations that come from books. I hope Kesennuma will become a place where people can encounter books all over town and be known as a "book town." I'll continue testing ideas little by little and try to spread them.

Sunday, October 18, 2026

10/18 (Sun) Listening to the stories of local people. Someone said in one sentence, 'It's a "haikara" bookstore.' I looked up the meaning of 'Haikara'. It refers to people who adopt Western dress or lifestyles, or who are fashionable and sophisticated. It comes from 'high collar' — the high, stiff collar. I see. Indeed, I have been to Europe before, and that Western style exists within me. Being called a 'Haikara-san' made me happy, but at the same time I wondered whether being 'haikara' makes the place feel unapproachable. I have mixed feelings. Old secondhand bookstores used to be the kind where you picked books out of piles — covered in dust, like digging up a find. For me, as a challenge shop, I haven't been able to put 100% of my own worldview into the interior design (of course I did what I could without spending a lot). I realized my values differ from others'. It's a natural difference, not a matter of right or wrong. When I imagine a 'community space where people can connect regardless of age, gender, or generation,' I began to question whether the current form is truly correct. If I don't create a place that is loved and needed by the local community, it has no meaning. I don't intend to do it as a lone wolf. I feel I need to listen more to the voices of the region and get to know Kesennuma. What was Kesennuma like before we were born? I want to delve into its history and culture and learn more. There is history behind creating something new; that history is what gives it a soul. I want to aim to be a 'Haikara-san' beloved by everyone in Kesennuma.

Saturday, October 17, 2026

Now that it's October, I've been feeling that the inner-bay area of Kesennuma City, where our shop is located, is gradually seeing fewer people as it heads into winter. On weekdays, the flow of people is fewer than ten. On Mondays I keep the shop open but focus on work. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, the number of people slowly increases. Lately we've been seeing repeat customers and regulars. On weekends the parking lot fills up with people heading for the sightseeing boats, but most of them just pass by our shop. Today I set up a wooden box outside and tried displaying books outdoors. As of 3 p.m., there was one picture book and two paperback/standalone books. It was worth putting them out. I want to improve both the content and the appearance. I plan to offer more picture books aimed at families. The goal is to attract children to visit the shop. To draw people on weekdays, I'm thinking of holding daytime reading groups or tea gatherings. How can we get more local residents to come?

Friday, October 16, 2026

10/16 (Fri) It feels like autumn has fully arrived in Kesennuma. The inner bay was being tossed about by sea and mountain winds, and the nobori (long banners) were flapping wildly like fish thrown out of the water. Today a teacher who coached me when I was in middle school came to visit. He also helped us during the ekiden. He was also my math teacher in my first year, the subject I was weak at. Bitter memories from those days came back. My memories of middle school aren't very good overall. Of course there were fun times, but I experienced a major setback. Looking back now, I can see it was a valuable experience. I thought the teacher might have changed after about fifteen or sixteen years, but he had hardly changed at all — I recognized him at a glance. He said he had been transferred not only within Kesennuma but also to island schools and schools near Sendai, giving him a variety of experiences. He told me that he hadn't used to read books, but on his commute he felt it was a waste to spend 30–40 minutes on his smartphone, so he started reading instead. When he said he used to commute by ferry to work at a school on an island, I was surprised — a ferry! — and thought that, although inconvenient, it's a nice way to make use of travel time. I kind of envy ferry commuting. I turned 30 this year, and there will be a middle school reunion at the beginning of the year. I'm really happy that people who have been involved with me up to now will learn that I'm active in Kesennuma and might come visit my shop. It was a day that gave me a push — a reminder that I still have to keep working hard from here on.

Thursday, October 15, 2026

Since opening the shop in June, thankfully the number of repeat customers has been increasing. Today a man wearing a maple-colored corduroy shirt came in. He always buys five or six suspense novels at a time. When he's finished the books he bought last time, he comes back to return them. I handed him the book he said "Ah!" to when he finished reading it. Besides the books he bought before, he probably has books at home. He donated about ten books. Today again he was picking up suspense novels. As he chose books, he talked about his past exploits, his family, and how he retired and came to Kesennuma... The man, speaking with a Kesennuma accent, laughed wahaha and launched into a rapid-fire monologue. He seems to be overwhelmed by elder-to-elder caregiving. I felt like I had never heard the term "elder-to-elder caregiving" before. I looked it up and apparently there is even "super elder-to-elder caregiving," meaning both caregiver and care recipient are 75 or older. The man said he had returned to Kesennuma to care for his sibling. Once his sibling's situation calmed down, he wants to go back to work in Koriyama, Fukushima. Tokyo is close, he has many friends there, and since he used to live there he has drinking buddies and can go out and have fun. He said that with a laugh. Watching the man in the maple-colored corduroy shirt walk away, I thought that maybe he wasn't buying the books for himself but for the sibling he is caring for.