I’m Hozumi, and I live with my husband, Kyota, and our first-grade son, Ruki. Since my husband and I both work full-time, our weekends are precious. But lately, my sister-in-law Maya has been coming over once a month and staying until 11 p.m. Having someone in the house that late throws off our routine, and honestly, having a guest over for hours on end is pretty stressful. Kyota doesn’t think it’s a big deal, and he just doesn’t understand how I feel. So I decided it was time for him to see things from my perspective. I asked my younger brother, Minato, to come over and give Kyota a taste of what I’ve been dealing with.
I asked my younger brother, Minato, to come over for the weekend. “It’s only once a month, he’s not staying overnight, and Ruki seems to be having fun. What’s the big deal?” I said, throwing Kyota’s own words right back at him. Then, every time Kyota tried to relax, Minato and Ruki made plenty of noise. Minato even kept up a running commentary during the baseball game, making it nearly impossible for Kyota to concentrate and completely throwing off his usual routine. I could tell Kyota was starting to get irritated, but I hoped this would finally make him understand what it feels like to have someone else disrupt your peace and your routine.