The song that led me home

As I finish writing this, another memory comes back to me.

Ten years ago, to mark the 30th anniversary of Mushaku Ryojo, the Wuxi Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment invited several Japanese families living in Wuxi to plant cherry trees at the city's iconic Yuantouzhu scenic area.

A decade has passed since then.

I imagine those young saplings have now taken root, their branches spreading wide, blooming each spring — much like the friendship that first began with a single song and has continued to grow ever since.

(The author is a Japanese national who loves Chinese culture and used to live in Wuxi for 23 years. Since retiring in 2019, he has written lyrics and essays to foster China-Japan goodwill.)