大学生と社会人の会社勤め時期の都合８年間ほどの東京暮らし以外は、ずっと札幌住まいの人生。郷に入らば郷に従うという素直な性格なので（笑）案外東京時代の夏場体験も、そう苦にはしていませんでした。が、最近の本州以南地域での40度超えというニュースを見ていると、隔世の感がありまことにお見舞い申し上げる次第。
　とくに被災され避難所での暮らしを強いられているみなさんのことを思うと、まことに思いが募ります。
　写真は昨日久しぶりに朝散歩していた近くの「西野緑道」の様子。
　６月にはやや暑さが強かった北海道ですが、その後「エゾ梅雨」的な多雨気候でやや冷涼感に包まれていました。ようやく８月の声を聞いてから連日30度を超えるか超えないかの一進一退状況。まぁ本州以南地域のみなさんには申し訳ないような低レベルでの「暑さ」ではありますが。
　室内でエアコンをあまり掛けっぱなしにすると「寒い」くらい。夫婦でも「体感」には違いがあるので、わたしはその寒さにガマンして室内でPCと向き合っております。カミさんはとくに台所仕事など室内作業でヒートアップするようで、すれ違いというか夫婦ケンカがあります（笑）。
　で、本日も早朝４時に外を見てみたら外に駐車しているクルマのガラス面とフロント側には、うっすらと「結露」が発生しておりました。

　こんな様子でしたが、散歩道の西野緑道では、早朝で低め、たぶん20度も下回っている上に緑にほぼ囲われた散歩道環境なので、多少の風もあってやや肌寒さを感じながら、徐々に上がっていく気温に安堵感を感じていました。　
　北海道の夏は、ここからお盆までが最盛期。
　日中街を歩いていると、日焼けした子どもさんたちの笑顔に出会えて楽しい。夏休みまっ最中の楽天ぶりが自分の過ぎ去りし日々を思い出させてもらえます。昨日も書いたように、ライフワーク的に取り組んでいる「家系史」探究で昔人である先祖の生き様・暮らしぶりを追体験する日々なのですが、現代の人びととイメージが重なってきて、ふと出会う子どもたちの表情から、刺激される部分が大きいのですね。通底する「人間らしさ」。
　あのとき、曾祖父はどういう心理で過酷だった明治初年の夏をしのいでいたのだろうか、などと思いが行きつ戻りつさせられる。北国で過ごしていられる幸せを噛みしめつつ、暑中お見舞い申し上げます。

●お知らせ
拙書「作家と住空間」幻冬舎から電子書籍で発刊
お求めはAmazonで。
https://amzn.asia/d/eUiv9yO

English version⬇

[Sapporo’s Summer 2026: A “Cool Breeze” in the Morning]
I happened to glance over and noticed condensation forming on the car’s windows and windshield due to the temperature difference. Perhaps it’s caused by the contrast between the nighttime temperature in the 10s and the heat of the car’s body during the day. Season’s greetings in the heat of summer. …

　Apart from the roughly eight years I spent living in Tokyo while attending college and working as a company employee, I’ve lived in Sapporo my entire life. Since I have a straightforward personality and believe in “when in Rome, do as the Romans do” (laughs), I actually didn’t find the summers during my time in Tokyo all that difficult. However, seeing recent news reports of temperatures exceeding 40 degrees in regions south of Honshu makes it feel like a different world, and I’d like to express my sincere sympathy to those affected.
　My heart goes out especially to those affected by disasters who are forced to live in evacuation shelters.
The photo shows the “Nishino Greenway” near my home, where I went for a morning walk yesterday for the first time in a while.
　In June, it was a bit hot here in Hokkaido, but after that, we were enveloped in a somewhat cool atmosphere thanks to a rainy spell reminiscent of the “Ezo rainy season.” Finally, with the arrival of August, we’ve been in a back-and-forth situation where the temperature hovers around 30 degrees day after day. Well, I suppose this is a rather mild level of “heat” that I almost feel bad about compared to what people in Honshu and further south are experiencing.
　If I leave the air conditioner running indoors for too long, it actually feels “cold.” Even between us as a couple, our “perceived temperature” differs, so I’m putting up with the chill while working on my PC indoors. My wife, on the other hand, seems to get really hot doing indoor chores like cooking, so we end up having little disagreements—or rather, marital spats (laughs).
　Anyway, when I looked outside at 4:00 a.m. today, I noticed a faint layer of “condensation” had formed on the windows and front of the car parked outside.

　That was the scene, but on the Nishino Greenway walking path—where it was still early morning and the temperature was on the low side, probably well below 20 degrees, and the path was almost entirely surrounded by greenery—I felt a slight chill in the air despite the gentle breeze, yet I felt a sense of relief as the temperature gradually rose.
Summer in Hokkaido reaches its peak from now until Obon.
Walking through the city during the day, it’s a joy to see the smiling faces of sun-kissed children. Seeing them so carefree in the midst of summer vacation reminds me of my own days gone by. As I wrote yesterday, I’m currently immersed in researching my “family history”—a lifelong project—trying to relive the lives and lifestyles of my ancestors from long ago. Yet, their images often overlap with those of people today, and I find myself deeply inspired by the expressions on the faces of the children I happen to encounter. The underlying “humanity.”
　My thoughts keep circling back to questions like, “What must my great-grandfather have been thinking as he endured the harsh summers of the early Meiji era?” As I savor the happiness of living in the northern regions, I’d like to send you my best wishes for a cool summer.

● Announcement
My book, *Writers and Living Spaces*, has been published as an e-book by Gentosha.
Available on Amazon.　
　

Posted on 8月 7th, 2026 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 未分類