“Brace yourself.”
Grandmother pulled and tightened the obi just above my hip. The motion jerked me, but I was able to hold back.
“If it’s not tight enough, the whole thing will fall apart.”
She made me turn around, scrutinizing everything.
The smoke from the mosquito coil rolled upwards and swayed with the evening breeze. The lazy sound of the wind chime echoed.
My back and chest, which had the most layers of yukata kimono, were damp, and pearls of sweat appeared on my forehead.
“Done. Can you walk?”
She led me to the mirror. I shuffled.
The white cotton kimono had purple flowers on it and was held with a pink obi in the middle. My bob cut head was staring at me.
“Is that me?”
“Yes. It is you.”
“I look like a girl.”
“You are a girl,” grandmother laughed.
We went out into the summer dusk, lanterns in our hands.
I, a tomboy, was a bit quiet that night.
(162 words)

For Sunday Photo Fiction – August 14th 2016 and The Daily Post’s daily prompt, Confused
Lovely. Both writing and the fuchsia
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I can’t take credit for the photo prompt. 😝 Thank you for the visit, Judy.
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You can take credit for the poem though.
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another exquisite insight into your early life, so detailed and yet succinct, it transcends culture annd is a pefect physical and psychlogical picture of human developmment common to us all. Thank you.
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Thank you for your kind words, Anton.
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Clever take and well crafted tale.
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Thank you so much.
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With your words I can picture you.
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😊
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Wow, beautifuly written, it shook my heart. I know this feeling.
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Glad it spoke to you. I appreciate you taking the time to comment.😊
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Beautiful.
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Thank you.
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I love your writing.
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Ooh, thank you so much. (blush…)
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Beautiful nelkumi 🙂 I can visualise this and feel your grandmothers pride. Lovely post 🙂
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Thank you! 😊
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my pleasure 🙂
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I really like that. The description brought the images to life, and I did laugh at “I look like a girl” “You are a girl” lol. Reminds me of my sister.
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Glad you like it. Thank you for taking the time to organize the challenge, read and comment.
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This is very interesting. Grandma dresses her up like “a girl.” Until then she seems to have run around like a Tom-boy. Now she experiences the pain of beauty, of being female. Well written 🙂
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Thank you! 😊
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This is beautiful for it highlights the subtle change in yourself that a single item of clothing can bring about. Exquisite detail and insight into your culture. Thank you for sharing.😀
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Thank you for the visit and comments.😊
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My pleasure.
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I remember we had an exchange student from Japan when I was young. At a meeting with all the families who took part in this venture,they dressed the girls in the kimonos their guests had brought for them. It was an enlightening experience. I had that kimono for years. It was beautiful.
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Sweet memory…😊
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