"I'm leaving now," she said. "It will take me about 40 minutes to reach the station, but we'll meet at nine just outside the North Gate wickets, right?"He promised he would be on time. He lived nearer to the station than she did.
"I've booked us tickets on the 9:20, so we'll be there by noon. My parents won't arrive until three, but it's better if we get there first and have some time to get reacquainted, isn't it?"
There was a pause. They had been over this before.
"Oh, and I'm wearing my blue outfit," she said. "You know, the one with the emblem on the pocket. Do you think your parents will like it? I feel so drab dressed in brown or gray, and I know a kimono would suit the New Year, but I really wouldn't feel comfortable."
She would look lovely, no matter what color or style of dress she wore, he assured her.
"You just don't take an interest in clothes," she replied. "But, oh, look at the time. Don't forget the money packets for neighbors' children and the gift for your mother. I'm bringing some fruit. Do we need anything else?"
Only their parents' approval, he joked. He confirmed the time and place of their meeting once more, then hung up to finish dressing.
"My wife," he laughed to himself as he knotted his tie.
* * * Keiko was waiting for him at the North Gate wickets when he finally arrived at 9:13.
"Do you realize how late it is?" she exclaimed. "I was worried sick. The train leaves in just five minutes. What took you so long?"
She handed him their tickets and they began hurrying toward the platform. Had she forgotten anything, she asked. Did she look all right? She was beautiful as usual. Only the nervousness in her voice and her darting eyes seemed out of character. It was a strain on her, this meeting of their parents.
"Oh, why didn't you wear your gray suit? Anything but the blue one. It looks like we sat down and planned what to ear."
He wanted to tell her to calm down, to stop worrying, but it wouldn't serve any purpose. She wanted to fuss, and it might help her to get it all out of her system.
"Here's our car," she said, and they hurried inside. "Thank goodness we made it. The trains re so crowded this time of year. We'd never be able to get seats on the next one."
They found their seats, and a minute later the train pulled out of the station, right on time. Saito put their bags on the rack overhead as the train rocked gently from side to side and picked up speed. Keiko had brought along some magazines to read, and she quickly settled down with them in silence once they were under way. Calm and smooth once more, she might even have been riding to the office instead of the meeting that would determine their future together.. It had been nervousness after all, thought Saito. If they talked now, they would have to skirt what was really on their minds with small talk. It was best to remain quiet.
Saito watched the buildings roll past outside for ten minutes or so, until he felt Keiko's head rest sleepily against his shoulder. She probably hadn't slept much the night before, but everything was going to be a lot easier from today on. Saito knew his parents were quite traditional. She had said that her folks were too. With a little luck, their fathers would find they had a lot in common and be getting along like old schoolmates in no time. All the worry and preparation would be behind them soon, and they would be free to marry.
The buildings outside the train had given way to green and brown hills. Mount Fuji must be out there somewhere, Saito thought, but the clouds were covering the peak today and a heavy haze hid the lower slopes from view. Saito couldn't remember the last time he'd seen the mountain clearly. Perhaps only those who lived at its very base could see it at all. Yet what an enduring symbol it was.
Enduring, he mused, somewhat like arranged marriages. When his father had been his age, arranged marriages were the absolute rule. A distant uncle had acted as nakodo, or matchmaker, for Saito's parents-to-be. And the importance of the nakodo has always reached far beyond the wedding ceremony, with the go-between continuing to serve as a lifelong mentor to the couple, a marriage counselor in times of trouble, a ready sponsor in financial matters, and even the first-to-call as a baby-sitter should grandparents prove unavailable.
Saito guessed that even today nearly half of all marriages were still arranged in some way or other. And quite certainly, the nakodoÕs role in society was in no way diminished. In fact, he thought, there's much to be said for the practice of matchmaking. Good families could be brought together. Lineage could be extended. Even property benefits could be had if the middle-man was clever.
For many couples, the arrangement meant security and a firm sense of duty, not only between partners, but also to the relatives who had made the match possible. It could be argued that any man could marry any woman and together they could make the marriage work, as long as both were willing to compromise and do whatever might be necessary to make the union an their families strong. Only quite recently had young people begun talking about marriages based on love. Love had always been a sort of sweet filling in the cake, not to be mistaken for the cake itself. Duty forms the most durable bonds. Or so it was said.
