"Kanade! Kanade! Wake up!" a voice said. I struggled to open my eyes. It was early in the morning. The sun was just rising over the mountains.
"Mama… what is it?" I asked, yawing.
"Kanade…I'm so sorry." My mother said, with warm tears going down her face. She forced me out of bed.
"Mama! What are you doing?" I asked, quickly getting my simple gray kimono on.
"You are to go away." My mother replied.
"Where? When will I be home again?"
She then gave me a sad look, the tears coming faster.
"I will miss you… my daughter…" She said, kissing me on the cheek and, giving me a hug, handed me over to the waiting messenger. I began to panic.
"Mother!" I screamed.
The man placed me on his horse, got on, and rode away from the small fishing village by the sea. My mother's small, thin body grew smaller and smaller as we moved on. I didn't understand what was going on. All I knew was that I was being taken away, never to see this small village which has been my home all my life again. Nor will I ever see my mother again.
At that moment, I knew my life was going to change forever. My mother often said that I was like the sea. Water was able to do many things, move earth, put out fire, and even, with time, go through metal. Water was always flowing to find a new path. And this new part in my life proved that…