Photo/Illutration People walk with umbrellas in hand on a street near Hakata Station in Fukuoka on June 30, the day a massive downpour hit most of the Kyushu region. (Minako Yoshimoto)

Ah, there’s no umbrella. Oh no, I’ve forgotten my umbrella.

I feel like these days, I say these words to myself more frequently than before. Strong sunshine like what’s typically felt in the height of summer suddenly gives way to a torrential downpour. Such an abrupt change in weather often drives home to me the value of an umbrella.

Japanese singer-songwriter Yosui Inoue composed his famous song “Kasa ga Nai” half a century ago. The newspaper is reporting on a serious social problem while problems facing the nation’s future are being discussed on TV. “But hey, the problem is, you know, today’s rain--there’s no umbrella.” So go the lyrics of Inoue’s song.

The English translation of the song’s title is “No Umbrella.” Inoue said no to the proposed title of “I’ve Got No Umbrella,” which has a subject.

“The umbrella is a symbol. It is not ‘my’ umbrella, but man’s, mankind’s umbrella,” Inoue was quoted as saying in “Inoue Yosui Eiyaku Shishu,” a collection of English translations of the lyrics of Inoue’s songs, by Robert Campbell, an American expert in Japanese literature. 

The news being reported in newspapers and on TV are often stories about things far away that are not part of our daily lives. And we human beings are more hastily moved by the problems that are just in front of us. The episode about the title strongly reflects the singer’s views on this.

Japanese journalist and TV anchor Tetsuya Chikushi (1935-2008) once said the song had led him to decide he would never make news programs that are divorced from the interests of everyday citizens. It seems Chikushi then pursued news reporting that covered big issues while not forgetting the “cold rain” that seeps into people’s hearts.

“The umbrella is also peace and kindness,” Inoue said in the collection.

Oh, I understand. That’s why people forget their umbrellas so often. They forget or lose their umbrellas and then, always with regret, think, “Oops.” Ah, there’s no umbrella.

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 2

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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