Walking the Town at Midsummer

In the week of the longest days, the townspeople stay up a little later, wanting to remember the color of the rice paddies at seven in the evening.

In the week of the summer solstice in Higashikawa, sunset comes after seven in the evening. 43.7 degrees north. Being at a higher latitude than Tokyo, summer evenings darken slowly, reluctantly. At this time of year, the townspeople's way home takes a little detour.

At six in the evening, the surface of the paddies begins to take on the color of the sky as it is. From orange to pink, then pale wisteria. The paddies become a giant mirror, laying a second sky over the town. A kei truck done with farm work stops on a path between fields, and from the driver's window someone just looks at the sky.

"Evenings this time of year are too precious to go inside," a couple out for a walk said, laughing. There's a moment when Asahidake's lingering snow catches the last light and turns its reddest of the day. Only after watching it does everyone finally head to dinner.

After the solstice, the days grow shorter by a minute at a time. Northern summers rush by. That's exactly why the color of the paddies at seven in the evening can only be seen in that year, that week. If you ever come to Higashikawa at the end of June, push dinner back a little and walk the road along the paddies.