Stories in "Retoro" coffee shop

(レトロ喫茶店の物語)

Dark color leather sofa, thick solid wooden table, soft dim light old-fashioned atmosphere, and the strong coffee aroma, this is the authentic feel of a Japanese Retro coffee shop - a coffee shop filled with stories. Let Penguin tell you 7 of them……

An old couple is the first two customers enter the coffee shop early in the morning, even before it opens at 7 am. They sit at the same table for many years, across each other. Two cups of coffee and two different kinds of sandwiches, they share and eat half of each sandwich. They enjoy their time with delight every day. The couple has forgotten how they fell in love at the beginning, they have been together for so long. Have experienced both good and bad things together in their past 60 and more years, two hearts already have joined as one and happiness has increased with age. The blessed wishes on their wedding day come true.

A soft array of light comes through the window, it shines on a lady who just attended the birthday party of her boss who is in his 60s over the night. She is eating breakfast and very tired. She is thinking if she should forgive the one about the same age as her boss, the one she has been angry at all these years, the one who made her become a truck driver at a young age! And she has gone through 20 years of paying the debt of her runaway father…forget about him, sleep is what she needs the most now, work is waiting for her at night.

Almost noon, sandwiches and two cups of coffee are placed at the side of the wooden table, and the condo’s floor plans fill up space. Her only son has decided to move back and work at home town after college graduation. He invites his mother to live with him and thus they meet at lunchtime to plan for the move. The mother is smoking and excited about living with her boy, while the finger on the other hand is pointing at a one-floor plan. The son is young and tall, sketching on paper while listening to his mother. This room belongs to the son and the living room belongs to the mother, etc. In all these years, this table has been their tea table--a single mom talked about life and lessons whereas the son shared about dreams and complaints.

At tea time, there are two modern grandmas enjoying their coffee, their smiles look alike. They both don’t want to talk about their past experiences and failed marriages, what is past is past! They enjoy the moment and hang out with each other happily as bosom friends. The two old ladies get peace of mind in life, they really found out the rule for happiness.

Just finished housework and home gardening, four housewives get together on the other side of the coffee shop to take a break before preparing dinner. Exchanging the homegrown vegetables with each other, discussing the vegetables they have grown, sharing the secrets of cooking a healthy meal, their laughter fills the air. They seem like already holding the secrets of long life - more exercise, more laughter, and eating healthy food. Happy moms of four families, a sense of happiness is floating with the aroma of coffee.

At dust, a couple stops by the coffee shop for a simple dinner; they have been running around the whole day with their young son in a wheelchair. After the meal, they need to send their son with Down syndrome back to the hospital. This short break is really needed for the exhausted couple, so as their boy. It is a long journey to care for a sick child, parents must be healthy and optimistic to walk with the child to the very end. Life has difficult times and pain for sure, however, there is always time for a break so one can be recharged and continue the journey.

The last customer is a middle-aged white-collar who just finished overtime work, he ordered a hot sandwich plus hot coffee. Yellow dimmed light, the quiet space, hot food made him relaxed, and his highly utilized mind can unwind for a moment. His body is starting to de-stress, and expecting to soak in a hot bath, this is the happiest moment of the day.

Quiet and good life as reflected In Ecclesiastes Chapter 5:18-20

“This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart. “

*Chinese article published in Angel’s Heart Monthly Magazine, Vol. 173, Oct 2020.