河辺のくらし
Settle in Kawabe
プロフィール
性別：女性
年齢：40代
職業：農業移住者・シングルマザー
河辺移住：平成23年
河辺町移住への経緯／Background of my decision to move to Kawabe
私は若い頃から田舎暮らしに憧れていました。幼少時から、毎年母の実家である河辺村（当時）に長期休暇を利用して訪れており、田舎での生活がどういうものなのかを理解していたつもりです。ですから、何も知らず、ただ「田舎暮らしに憧れと希望」を持ち移住してきたわけではありません。
移住前の私は幼い娘と二人で東京都品川区に住んでいました。田舎暮らしをしたいと思い、移住フェアに参加したり、関東圏の田舎と呼ばれる地域を訪問したりもしました。しかし、そういった地域では保育園の確保が難しく、母子家庭の受け入れは難しいなどの理由で移住先が決まることはありませんでした。
そして、田舎暮らしを諦めて都会で住む決意をし、1年が経った2011年3月11日、東日本大震災が起きました。東京もかなり揺れました。物流が途絶え、店舗から水や食料品が消えました。水道も放射性物質に汚染されている可能性があるため、「乳幼児には飲まさない事。ミルク用の水は配るので取りに来てほしい。」と、品川区からの放送がありました。「ここにいては、幼い娘を健康に育てることは難しいかもしれない」そう思った私は3/31に母子2人で新幹線に乗り込み、母の故郷である愛媛県大洲市河辺町へと移住しました。
結果として、田舎への移住に踏み出せなかった私に、震災が移住を決意させました。
I was always aspired in living in the country side. Since I was young, I’ve visited Kawabe, which is my mother’s hometown, during my long school breaks and thought I had a good understanding of how the country living was like. It’s not like I decided to choose this country life just because, “I had hope and aspiration in living in the country”.
Before I relocated I lived in Shinagawa-Ku, Tokyo with my young daughter. Wishing to live in the country, I attended all kind of events related to relocating and also visited so-called “the country” of Kanto-area. However, I found out that it was difficult to secure pre-schools for my daughter and a single-mother household was not easily accepted in those areas. Therefore, I was unable to relocate.
I gave up on my dream and decided to continue to live in the big city. A year after making my decision, the Great East Japan earthquake occurred on March 11, 2011. Tokyo was also hit hard. Logistics shutdown and water and food were all sold out in stores. Shinagawa-Ku announced that it was not safe to give tap water to infants and toddlers due to the concern of the water contaminated by radiation and they will provide water for the formulas. I thought “It would be difficult for me to raise my young daughter as a healthy girl if I continue to stay here”. On March 31, I jumped on a bullet train with her and headed to my mother’s home town Kawabe-Cho, Ozu-City, Ehime. The earthquake pushed my back to move to the rural area.
実際に移住してみての感想／Thoughts after relocation to Kawabe
移住して数年が経ちました。
町内には役場や郵便局、農協、幼稚園、小学校、中学校、診療所、郵便局、ガソリンスタンドがあり、規模は大きくありませんが雑貨店や飲食店がありますので日常生活に不便を感じたとはありません。町内では取り扱っていないものを買うために週に1回程度、車で約40分のところにある大洲市内や内子町へ買い物に出かけます。
人付き合いは、都会でも田舎でも同じだと思います。田舎の人たちは保守的だと考える方も多くいらっしゃいますが、人口が多いか少ないかの違いだけで、様々な考えや性格の方々がいらっしゃるので、私はそう思います。
現在この町には少子高齢化が進み、中学校の統合の話が出ています。学校がなくなればますますこの町や、この町に住む子ども達が幸せに暮らすことが難しくなると考え、地域に中学校を残すための活動に参加しています。
A few years past since I moved in here.
In the town, we have all basic necessities here- town office, postal service, agricultural cooperative, kindergarten, elementary school, junior high school, medical clinic, and a gasoline station. There are also some small grocery stores and restaurants, so I never felt inconvenience in living here. Once a week, I drive to Ozu-city or Uchiko-cho, which is about 40 minutes driving, to get things that are not sold in my town.
I think that the social relationship in the urban and rural areas are the same. Some people think that the rural people are more conservative, but I think there are just as many diverse personalities and beliefs that exist here. Difference is just the size of the population.
Currently Kawabe is facing the problem of declining birth rate and aging of population which results in talk about consolidating junior high schools. I believe that it would become more and more difficult for the children to live here happily if the schools disappear from the town, so I am participating in activities to keep and maintain the schools in this town.
今後のわたし／My life here on forth
私にとって大切なことは「自分がどう生きたいか？子ども達に何を残したいか、何を残せたか？」ということです。そのために自分という存在が最大限活かされる場所はどこなのか？ということを考えると、私は都会ではなく田舎だと思っています。まだまだ遠い未来ですが、6次産品の製造を行う会社を立ち上げたいと考えています。
最近娘が私の手を見て「お母さんの手、年とったねー」と言います。少し前までは真っ白で白魚のような細くてしなやかな指だったのですが、今はゴツゴツ、黒くてシワシワ。だけれども！今はこの手が私の誇りです。今までもそうでしたが、これからこの町で生活をしていくにあたって、思いもよらない出来事も起こると思います。そんな時は、幸せな毎日の中にあらわれた‟人生のスパイス“だと思って河辺暮らしを楽しんでいきたいです。
What’s most important to me is to live in consideration of “How do I want to live? What do I want to pass down to my child, and what did I actually achieved?” I believe it is the rural area, not the big city, where I can pursuit my philosophy and best to utilize myself. Someday in the future, I would like to start up a company that manages from farming/finishing, processing food, and distribution (six sector industrialization).
Lately, my daughter tells me that “Mom, your hands look old!” Not too long ago, my hands were soft and thin with beautiful white skin tone, but now they are hard and wrinkled with a darker skin tone. I am very proud of these hands. Same as before, I think I will encounter a lot of unexpected events and issues while living in this town. However, I would like to consider these events as spices of my happy daily life and overcome them and enjoy the life in Kawabe.
プロフィール
性別：男性
年齢：70代
職業：ひ・み・つ
うまれも育ちも河辺です
遠くの山並みに真っ赤な太陽が今日も沈んでいく
緑の風と人々が息づく山里が 静寂な夕暮れに包まれる
A bright red Sun settles down into the distant mountains. The village in the mountain valley, where nature’s wind and people live, wrapped in silence as nightfall approaches.
ふるさと河辺の移り変わり／Transition of Kawabe
時の流れと時代の移ろいに変わり行く河辺、古き良き日の河辺が昨日のことのように思い出される。
東京オリンピック、大阪万博が空前の好景気をもたらし、日本全国を活気づけていたあの頃、河辺村（当時）にも遅かれしと発展の波が槌音を立て始めた。
その頃の河辺村は林業が盛んで町内に製材所が２ヶ所あり、木材の豊かな経済に支えられ山々が風に揺れいでいた。また、シイタケの栽培も盛んで、昭和50年には70ｔ近い生産量を誇っていた。農業では栗の生産が盛んで農家480戸のうち390戸が栗の生産をし、葉タバコやマユの生産にも活気があり、農家も元気であった。
そしてこのころ、難しいといわれていたマスやアマゴなどの川魚の養殖生産が始まり、河辺にとって画期的で新たな産業が根付こうとしていた。
このように生活体系が変化していく中、まず必要となったのが道路の拡張、改良だった。高度経済成長期を迎え、主要県道の2車線化への改良がすすみ、河辺村内の各集落への道路開設や、農林道の新設へと河辺は大きな転換期を迎え、大きく飛躍した時代であった。
その後、坂本龍馬の脱藩の道が解明され河辺村を通過したことがわかると、一躍河辺観光のシンボルと位置づけられ、ふるさと公園、ふるさとの宿の新設もあいまって農林業の村から観光振興への旗印を掲げた。
Kawabe is transitioning with the changing of the times. The good old days are remembered just like yesterday.
When Tokyo Olympics and Osaka Expo brought the upswing of the market and overall Japan was prospering, Kawabe Village also slowly started to develop.
At that time, the forestry business was booming in Kawabe Village. There were 2 lumber mills which were the main resource of the village economy. In addition, the shitake mushroom farming was popular and in 1975 Kawabe produced approximately 70 ton. In the agricultural sector, chestnuts production was popular and 390 out of 480 farming households produced chestnuts. Also the production of the leaf tobacco as well as the cocoon production were the other popular areas that energized the agricultural households.
Farming of Masu trout and Amago (red spotted Masu trout), which was thought to be very challenging, started around the same time and a new ground-breaking industry had just began to take root in Kawabe.
With the way of living slowly evolving, the expansion and improvement of the roads was a necessary first step to be taken. The major prefectural roads were expanded into 2 traffic lanes, new roads were created to connect various small villages of Kawabe. The path to newly establish agriculture and forestry was a definite turning point in history.
Later, it was discovered that Ryoma Sakamoto* passed through Kawabe Village during his journey for Dappan**. This became one of the famous tourism symbols of Kawabe. Furusato Park and Furusato no Yado (Furusato Inn) were built as Kawabe started to change from an agricultural village to a tourism village.
*Ryoma Sakamoto: One of the famous Japanese imperial loyalists
** Dappan: Leaving a domain without permission to become a lordless samurai
ふるさと河辺は再び移り変わる／Kawabe's - Another transition era
時の流れか移ろいか、山間地の難題に猶予はない
Passing of the time or changing with the time, time will not wait as challenges awaits in the valley town.
平成の時代に入り河辺は成熟し、熱い村づくりが進んだ。平成17年大洲市と合併し、現在の河辺町となり、昨今の変貌の時代に直面している。
平成元年に約1,700人だった人口は、平成30年には680人へと著しく減少しており、農林業の衰退は高齢化の波に飲み込まれ、人口減少と少子高齢化により地域を担う体力も限界に近付いてきている。
しかしながら、人々がそこに住み着いている限り、河辺町を地図から消すわけには行かない。山があり、谷があり、歴史があり、生活の文化が息づいてきている場所。そしてかけがえのない“ふるさと”である。
When entering Heisei* era, Kawabe Village was reaching maturity and rural community development was actively promoted. In Heisei 17 (2005),
Kawabe was consolidated with Ozu-city and named what currently known as Kawabe-town. In recent years, Kawabe is experiencing rapid changes in the society.
The population drastically decreased from 1,700 in 1989 to 680 in 2018 and the agriculture and forestry business has weakened as the population ages. The decreasing and aging population has been putting difficulty for the residents to support the town.
However, as long as people live there, Kawabe cannot disappear from the map. It is the place of mountains, valleys, history, and culture. Also, it is a place where we call our “hometown”.
新たな時代のふるさと河辺／Kawabe in a new era
新たな時代を創り出すのは、そこに住む人々。そして若いチカラ。
The residents and the energy and power of the young generation, who will create a new era
今の河辺町には住民のチカラ、若いチカラが必要である。この町にあるあらゆるモノ を思い起こし、掘り起こし、河辺町を活気付けて欲しい。膨大な木材をはじめ豊かな自 然の中には多くの資源が眠っている。
そして、河辺町は山間高地であるため四季を活用し、地域の特産として活用できる素晴らしいものが多々ある。
春はのどかに霞と桜 夏はホタルと 屋根つき橋で夕涼み
秋はもみじの絵のような里で 栗にシイタケ、村祭り
冬は真白き雪化粧 あまご、山菜酒酌み交わし 明日の河辺を語り合う
慌しく時と人々が移り行く今日、今後の振興と発展についてみんなで係わり合い、みんなで息づく河辺を創ろう。今日から取り組んでいけばきっと成る。河辺町では新たな住民のチカラ、若いチカラを求めている。みんなでがんばろう！
Curernt Kawabe is in need of the energy and power from the residents and younger generation. I would like to ask them to think and dig up anything that would energize Kawabe. Abundant natural resources such as lumber are untouched and buried in Kawabe.
In addition, Kawabe’s geographical characteristic of high altitude valley and 4 seasons can be taken advantage of. Many things can be utilized as the locally specialty products.
Enjoy spring haze and cherry blossoms in the spring. Cool off in the evening watching fireflies at the covered bridge in the summer. Fall, imagine a picture of a village covered in maple leaves, savor the Japanese chestnuts, shiitake mushrooms, and the fall festival. And in the winter, savor Amago (red spotted masu trout) and mountain vegetables with sake while appreciating the beautiful scenery covered with snow and talking about Kawabe’s tomorrrow.
We are in the era where the time and people are rapidly changing. Let us all get involved in vitalizing and developing Kawabe together. Start now and it can be done. Kawabe is seeking energy from the residence and younger generation. Let’s all work together and make it happen!