Miss Matsuko's last suitor

When I was forty, the son of an old lawyer proposed to me

When I was ten years old, a strange suitor came

When I was sixty, another suitor also asked to live below me

If you ask who is the most beautiful girl in the town, everyone from old people to children will tell you that it is Miss Matsuko.

Miss Matsuko lived in the center of the town with her father, the old blacksmith. The old blacksmith was sometimes as hot-tempered as a red lump of iron, but the clanging of his iron was almost as clear as a song. The pounding blended with the cries of the vendors and the shouts of the children into a harmonious symphony that flowed down the town's only street until it reached the little carpenter on the far west side.

Miss Matsuko was turning twenty this year, and many young people were standing by the old blacksmith's shop just to say good morning to her. The old blacksmith drove away the idle young men. He wanted Miss Matsuko to marry the son of the town's gold store owner, or the son of an old lawyer.

But Miss Matsuko didn't like any of them. She liked the hard-working carpenter. She loved his kindness. She loved how he stood by the fountain in the middle of town and played the violin he had made himself. She could hardly breathe under the weight of the melody, breathing deeply, trying to absorb every note into her heart. She also liked to watch the little carpenter tell the boys about the outside world. She stood by the window, her heart beating in response to the carpenter's gesture. She closed her eyes and the lavender fields filled her heart. It was their world.

She asked him to take her away, to escape from the town and the routine of life here. But the carpenter smiled and looked at her. Of course, he hoped to live a happy life with her, but now he only had a humble log cabin. How could he let his favorite person live such a life with him?

"You wait for me." He pinned his bag on and said to Miss Matsuko.

The carpenter went over the mountains. He came to the country of lavender that he had described to Miss Matsuko. He would make their home here.

"We will create a garden here, not only lavender, but also roses, rose."

"From here, looking into the distance, at the end of the flower field, is the sea."

The little carpenter thought of their vows in his heart, and of her rosy face in the setting sun. Like a child, she described her dream with joy and longing.

I will bring you here one day, the little carpenter stood in the wind, he hoped Miss Matsuko could hear his voice.

He built a house, but he thought it was not enough. He wanted to build the biggest garden for Miss Matsuko.

He built a garden, but he felt that something was missing. He wanted to build a playground for his future children. Day after day he worked, day after day he thought of Miss Matsuko.

Just wait, just wait. I'll be right back and get you here. At last, in the setting sun, he hammered in the last nail. I bet you've never seen such a beautiful estate. In the breeze, it is like a peaceful island in the purple sea, waiting for the most beautiful girl.

He returned to town with the diamond ring.

He did not hear the old blacksmith hammering, but he had a feeling that Miss Matsuko was waiting for him in the attic in the center of town.

He could hardly keep his legs from shaking as he reached the attic, for all he had done was for the girl he loved so much. He pictured himself kissing her long, soft blond hair. He pictured them talking to each other on the island in the purple sea, with heart-stopping love words.

The stairs seemed so long that he trembled and exulted. As he stood in front of the door he knew so well, he felt for a moment that his heart would stop beating.

At last he wept, and he had no strength to knock on the door again.

"Sir, I was asked to give you this letter." A fat boy was standing in front of him, and he could not help laughing. How much he looked like the old lawyer's little son.

"My dear, I always believe that you will come back.

"When I was thirty years old, the gold shopkeeper's son proposed to me, you know, a very good-natured looking young man. He said he could bring me untold riches. I turned him down, of course. I knew you'd come back.

"When I was forty years old, the younger son of an old lawyer proposed to me. He was already a member of the House of Representatives. He said he would give me unlimited power. I turned him down, of course. I knew you'd be back.

"When I was fifty, a strange suitor came to me. I refused him without thinking, but he asked to live downstairs. He said he would be with me for the rest of my life, whether I refused or allowed him.

"When I was sixty, another suitor also asked to live downstairs. He looked a little frail. He kept asking me, he said he would only visit sometimes. Yes, he does visit occasionally, but more often in recent years. I occasionally talk to him about how crazy we were when we were young.

"Today is my seventieth birthday, as I know you must remember.

"But I can't wait. I'm getting married.

"I think if he hadn't been there first, I would have waited.

"You know, my dear, we never know who will arrive first."

He met Miss Matsuko in the town's only church.

She is still so beautiful, although the Siberian wind dyed her blonde hair into the color of snow, although no longer like the most shining star, but still gentle people can not extricate themselves.

She took the bridegroom's hand, and received the blessings of all, and as they walked on, her face was stained with a golden glow. Her smile melted like honey. She walked briskly and calmly as if she had not seen the carpenter.

At the end of the letter, Miss Matsuko wrote: "By the way, I forgot to introduce you to the two gentlemen downstairs. The first one is called senescence, and the second one is called disease. And my husband, his name is death."