When catching a cold,
something warm often appears in Japan before medicine does.
Rice porridge with pickled plum.
Ginger tea.
Kuzuyu.
And somehow, there is even an old saying that wrapping a green onion around your neck is good for a cold.
Does it really work?
Scientifically, there are probably many different opinions.
Still, these “grandmother’s remedies” have remained in Japanese homes for a very long time.
Before going to the drugstore,
people first drink something warm at home.
Not only medicine,
but also slow sips of something with rising steam.
There seems to be something there beyond simply “curing” illness —
a quiet sense of caring for someone who feels weak.
Similar scenes can be found in other countries too.
In France,
some people drink warm herbal tea with honey.
A herb called thyme is said to soothe the throat,
and is sometimes used at home.
In the United States,
chicken soup is a classic remedy.
The custom of making warm soup for someone with a cold still remains in many households today.
In the Middle East,
some people drink mint tea
or warm drinks mixed with honey.
The countries are different.
The foods are different too.
And yet,
the feeling of wanting to offer something warm
to someone who is unwell
seems a little similar everywhere.
Japanese drugstores are lined with strong cold medicines.
But beside them,
you can still find traditional comforting drinks like kuzuyu,
quietly remaining on the shelves.
The wish to recover quickly.
The wish for someone to rest slowly.
Both feelings seem to exist side by side in the same place.
Was it really the green onion that worked?
Or perhaps the ginger?
Honestly, I do not know.
But even now,
the memory remains of someone standing beyond the warm steam
on the night I had a cold.
Perhaps it was not grandmother’s wisdom that truly worked,
but grandmother’s kindness.