Chapter 14: A Variety of Sounds

Author's Thumbnail — Laura Honda-Hasegawa

Translated by: Matthew Galgani

Published Oct. 19, 2011

Pochi is a Japanese dog
Wagging his tail...“Wan, wan”
Perry was born in Brazil
He doesn’t understand “Wan, wan”
Perry says “Au au”
Au au is all he can say

Japanese cats say “Nya nya”
Roosters say “Kokekokko”
It’s different in Brazil
The gato says “Miau miau”
The galo says “Co-co-ri-coó”
Interesting, isn’t it?

“Train train poppo poppo
Shuppo shuppo shuppoppo”
So Japanese children sing
But that’s not how it’s done in Brazil
If it’s not “Piu-í piu-í”
It’s not a locomotive

Tick tock tick tock
The clock is hard at work

The heart too
Tick tock tick tock
Is sometimes
also
tickled

Illustration: Sakiko Suzuki

Brazil languages literature poetry

About this series

My grandfather immigrated to Brazil from Japan about 100 years ago, and I was born in Brazil. That is why I strive to become a ‘bridge’ between Brazil and Japan. I treasure the ‘Japan’ rooted deep in my heart, and I want to keep that part of me protected in my homeland of Brazil. This series was composed with those feelings in mind. (“Bom Dia” is “Good morning” in Portuguese)

About the Author

Laura Honda-Hasegawa @laurahh

Born in São Paulo, Brazil in 1947. Worked in the field of education until 2009. Since then, she has dedicated herself exclusively to literature, writing essays, short stories and novels, all from a Nikkei point of view.

She grew up listening to Japanese children's stories told by her mother. As a teenager, she read the monthly issue of Shojo Kurabu, a youth magazine for girls imported from Japan. She watched almost all of Ozu's films, developing a great admiration for Japanese culture all her life.

Updated May 2023

Episode 47 (Part 1) "I want to go home, but I can't"

Episode 46: Who is Rihana in the painting?

Episode 45: I'm glad Fujiko is Japanese!