He never thought that he'd be a gunslinger. He never thought he'd be sitting in a photography studio out in the Wild West of America with his grandson. He never thought he'd be a sheriff in a one horse town with outlaws learning that it was best to avoid the town.
Yet, here he was.
He grew up admiring his お祖父さん (grandfather). An admirable man. An honorable 武士 (samurai). A master of his 刀 (katana).
He thought he would honor him and join him on the fields as a samurai for the 天皇 (emperor). He would always sit beside his grandfather any chance he would get. As a boy, he would pick up his grandfather's 木刀 (wooden sword) and learn 剣術 (swordsmanship).
But, after famine, rebellion, and an earthquake brought great distress, his family decided to move to America to find a better, more stable life.
When he grew up, instead of a sword, he picked up a gun and would spend hours at a time honing his skill as marksman. He decided that the life of an outlaw was not an admirable and honorable life. He would become a Wild West equivalent of a samurai.
And now, with every opportunity that he could get, he would sit with his grandson (孫息子). He wanted him to admire what his grandfather had become.
* Thanks to The Walker Studio Exchange for hosting a get-together for photographers and models and thanks to Akio Utsunomiya for posing for the camera.
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