Son,

As the new year dawns and several months pass by,
my desk is cluttered with books about success and goals,
waiting for me to delve into them.

As I sift through various thoughts on success,
I suddenly pose this question:

To you, a two-year-old,
what is success?

Firstly, eating well,
secondly, relieving yourself comfortably,
and thirdly, laughing a lot.
Isn't that what success means to you?

So,

Firstly,
today, as always, I load a spoon with rice and side dishes
and make the sounds of a train.
Choo-choo, choo-choo.

As I push the spoon forward,
your full swing
scatters the food in all directions.

Swoosh—
it flies like an airplane,
dashes like a sports car,
and finally, you open your mouth to take the first bite.
After repeating this ten times,
your meal is finally complete.

The floor is covered with the food we've dropped.
As I bend over to pick up each grain of rice and morsel,
half of it ends up in my mouth because it's too much bother to put back on the table.

That is a success.

Now, secondly,
there's a smell. It's golden.
It's the result of your hard work.
Together with Mom, we applaud you.

Each time I change your diaper, I feel tense.
Sometimes, when poop smears somewhere unexpected
or during wash-ups in the bathroom,
you cry and struggle, making me fear I might drop you.

Despite over 200,000 years of Homo sapiens' parenting history,
I still can’t fathom why changing diapers remains such a challenging task.

Yet, I successfully change your soiled diaper.
Rushed and tense to make it on time for work,
as soon as I arrive at the office, I head straight to the restroom.

That is a success.

Now, thirdly, my son, who must laugh more,
today, you have cried more than usual.
There are many things you want to do but find hard,
many things you desire but do not have.

I try miming,
imitate animals,
yet you still cry.

But no, you can’t have the knife.

As you frantically look for Mom,
and I tell you, she's gone to work to earn money,
you calm down a bit and ask,

"Work?"
Yes, Mom went to work to earn money.

"Money?"
Yes, we can buy buses, cars, and motorcycles with that money.

"Buses, cars, and motorcycles?"
Yes, buses, cars, and motorcycles.

At last, you break into a wide smile.
Seizing the moment, I tickle you.
You laugh hysterically,
and seeing you laugh, I laugh too.

That is a success.

My son,
My success,

As you grow into adulthood,
you will find it increasingly difficult to
eat well, relieve yourself comfortably, and laugh a lot.

You might buy expensive meals for others
while merely scraping together your own,

remember others' medication times
while forgetting your own,

and try to make others happy
while experiencing your days of gloom.

When that happens, take care of yourself first.

Just like now,
firstly, eat well,
secondly, relieve yourself comfortably,
and thirdly, laugh a lot.

Even if you don’t manage all this today,
don’t worry.

Tomorrow,
and the many tomorrows after,
success eagerly awaits you.

What is success?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Instead of pondering this too long,
go have a proper meal first.

From Dad.