軽い気持ちだった．毎年8月に学生時代の仲間が集まり宴会を行っている．終了間際に，みんなで山に行こうと，日取りまで決めてしまった．卒論の地質調査で群馬の山を隅々まで歩き回った先輩がガイドをかってでた．誰が言い出したか『近場で登った感がある山がいい』というので妙義山，上毛三山の１つだ．

　先輩は紅葉の頃が特にいいと言う．黒い岩肌に広葉樹の黄や赤．針葉樹の緑．このモザイクに涙したと大げさだ．紅葉の妙義山は，涙腺を緩めた引き金にはなっていたのかもしれないが，原因は別な所にあったのではないのかと私はかってに想像しながらうなづいた．

　前日までは毎日のように雨だったお天気がこの日だけぽっかりと快晴．駐車場に集合してごつごつした岩肌を見たら，どこから登っていいのか検討がつかない．とりあえず元気なうちにと5人で集合写真を撮っておいた．

　濡れた岩肌はとても滑りやすく，鎖を握るにも力がいる．いい年をしたおっさん5人のはしゃぐ声が岩山でこだましていた．『こえー』『やべー』『下見ないんがいいや』話している内容は小学4年生レベル．鎖伝いに横切ったり，垂直の壁を登ったり降りたりの緊張の連続だった．普段あり得ないくらい急でも石段というだけで安堵した．

　自然石の展望台でのんびり休んでいると色華やかな山の服装の20代の女性が2人やってきた．教員上がりの仲間は気軽に話しかけ冗談も連発，上機嫌だ．小一時間も話しているうちに，うちとけた私たちは記念に写真を撮ってもらった．

　数日たって写真が届いた．可愛いお嬢さん２人と，おっさんが5人，満面の笑みで写っていた．

Every year in August, I have a get together with my friends from my time as a student. Just before the end, we decided to go to a mountain and even chose a date. My senior took over as the guide because he had walked around the mountains of Gunma from corner to corner for a geological survey in his graduation thesis. Someone said, "A close-by mountain where we get the feel of climbing would be nice." and so, Mt. Myogi, one of the mountains in 3 famous ones in Gunma called Joumo San Zan was chosen.

My senior said that the autumn leaves were particularly nice. There were mosaic pattern, the yellows and reds of hardwoods and the greens of the coniferous trees against the black surface of rock. He exaggerated that this view brought him to tears. I nodded his story, but I imagined that it was caused by his own reason.The fall foliage at Mt. Myogi may have been the trigger that loosened the tear ducts.

For the days proceeding, it was raining nearly everyday, but for this day, the weather cleared and up it was suddenly sunny. When we gathered in the parking lot and glanced at the rock face, we could not decide where to begin climbing from. Anyway the five of us took a photo together while we were still energetic.

The wet rocky surface was very slippery, and it took effort to grip the chain. The eager voices of 5 old men well into their years echoed around the mountain. The contents of our conversation, "It's scary.", "Oh snap", "Shouldn't look downwards" were on the level of 4th graders. Our heightened tensions continued as passing, claiming up and down the vertical rocks depending on a chain. Stone steps provided relief as we faced a slope that would not be seen normally.

As we laid back and rested at the natural stone observatory, two ladies in their 20s wearing colorful mountain gear came. My friends who had finished teaching casually spoke to them, shared some jokes, and were in a good mood. After talking with them for an hour, we asked to take our photo as a memory. One of two girls took us by her own camera.

The photo arrived after a few days. Two cute ladies and five old men were pictured with full smiles.