たかし「父の趣味は初版本を集めることなんだ。書斎は古い本で一杯だよ」
けいこ「まあ、それでは珍しい本が読めていいわね」
たかし「それが実は誰も読む人がいないんだ。これで宝の持ちぐされだね。」
Takashi: Chichi no shumi wa shohanbon wo atsumeru koto nan da. Shosai wa furui hon de ippai da yo.
Keiko: Maa, sore de wa mezurashii hon ga yomete ii wa ne.
Takashi: Sore ga jitsu wa daremo yomu hito ga in ai'n da. Kore de wa takara no mochigusare da ne.
Takashi: My father's hobby is collecting first editions. His study is full of old books.
Keiko: Really? You're lucky to be able to get to read so many interesting books.
Takashi: That's just it. No one reads them; all these special, old books just sitting there going to waste.
* * *
I believe books are written to be read and not so they can be used as ornaments or bought like antiques in order to make a profit. My visit to a friend's house the other day was thus quite surprising. The study was lined with old books, each one rare and unusual.
One book alone was worth close to \400,000! The room had fireproof walls and even minimal lighting to protect the books from coloring. A veritable graveyard for books !
Takara no mochigusare has two basic meanings;
1) to possess something quite useful but fail to use it; and, 2) to fail to, take advantage of someone who is very skilled and talented. The above exchange is an example of the first meaning. Perhaps you too have spent a lot of money for something - a word processor, a typewriter, a sewing machine, a gadget for improving your looks - and never actually used it.
Kore wo tsukawanai node wa takara no mochigusare desu ne (Not using this is really a waste of a good thing).
The second meaning makes me think of one of my seminar students from last year who now works in a well-known bank. Active and willing to take respon- sibility for leading the group, meetings went smoother when she was present; some exciting Japanese-language tape materials were the result of their efforts. I was certain she'd make an excellent teacher of Japanese. As is often the case, however, there weren't any decent job openings and so she ended up going to work for a bank. Well, I visited the bank last week and though she did greet me with a big smile, the vigor she'd had as a student was missing.
She says the job requires her to do the same thing over and over again each day and that there's not much to look forward to. Hasn't the bank recognized her talents? Kono mama de wa takara no mochignsare desu (At this rate her talents will be wasted). Will the takara (treasures, riches) she possesses kusatte shimau (go bad) before anyone notices?
Indeed many companies fail to take advantage of their employees. Workers end up exerting themselves over jobs which don't fit their real skills and talents.
Are you fully using your talents and abilities? Or anata no sainp wa takara no mochigusare ni natte im- asen ka? (have your abilities been wasted, like a miser's gold buried in the ground?)