Viburnum Odoratissimum (Sweet Viburnum) 珊瑚樹（サンゴジュ）

Japanese follows English.　英語の後に日本語が続きます。

These are berries of viburnum odoratissimum or more commonly sweet viburnum. The tree is called "coral tree" in Japanese because not only the berries but the stems turn red like red coral. The berries were still greenish in early July (2nd photo), but in three weeks, they have beautifully turned red (1st photo) and will turn black in autumn.

Coral always reminds me of a necklace with a tiny coral stone my parents gave me when I was a child. I no longer wear it. It's for children and broken, but I still have it to keep my precious memories of what I believed my parents were before distancing myself from them. I still have strong (but far less than before) attachments to, and residual desire for approval from, them, but I also know that being with them makes me discriminate against myself because they discriminate against women. The key to staying safe is to keep a social distance from each other. The key to a good relationship is also to keep a good distance from each other.

Sweet viburnum has pretty white flowers, though I missed them this year.  

Viburnum odoratissimum on July 29  珊瑚樹（7月29日）

Sweet viburnum on July 3  サンゴジュ（7月3日）

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珊瑚樹（サンゴジュ）です。実も茎も赤珊瑚のように赤いのでサンゴジュだそうです。7月の上旬まではまだ緑（2枚目）だったのに今は真っ赤（1枚目）です。

珊瑚というと、子供の頃両親が買ってくれたネックレスを思い出します。子供用かつ壊れているのでもう付けることはないのですが今でも大事に持っています。「リアルな両親」ではなく「私の中の愛すべき両親」の象徴です。コロナにかからないカギは適切な「社会的距離（ソーシャルディスタンス）ですが、良い人間関係を保つカギも「適切な距離感」だと思います。

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