Diary+Entry+1+JHS

July 11, 1937.

It's summer outside. The heat is going up every day, and it's almost getting to the point when I want to put on some loose clothes and jump into the nearest lake. Tokyo is bustling with people and tension. It's 1937; we won the Great War and now we're transitioning into a new war. Japan is now at another war with China, and my dear brother Kyouta himself is currently thinking about enlisting in the army. My family is very worried; he's the only boy in our family, yet he is thinking on whether he should fight for our country. Fighting for our country is an honorable feat, but I'm still very scared for the future of our family. If he dies, and there's an amazing possibility, our family's future is going to disappear. Who will continue our legacy? Apparently many people are planning on enlisting for the army, and my brother must've gotten the influence of his friends. My mother and father are very worried. They're trying to persuade him not to join the army, but I think they're unsuccessful so far.

I was thinking about my friend Daiki who left for Manchuria in January. He sent a letter to his family to show that he was healthy and sound. It put his family and me to ease, but I'm still very worried about him. Manchuria is a dangerous place right now; there are raids and battles on those grounds as we speak. I imagined Daiki running around with a weapon..and I just can't picture him in my mind. I've always seen him with toys like balls and running around kicking stones lying on the floor..and to imagine him suddenly a man with weapons and shooting at people is just hard to do.

I'm praying every night for Daiki's safety and that Kyouta niisan will change his mind. I'm positive that Daiki will return home, and he will with a beating heart.

Signed, Tokieda Airi