私は絶対にどきませんから！ I will never get out of the way!

写真：横浜貿易会館角の人魚像　Photo: Mermaid statue at the corner of Yokohama Trade Center

ここは私にとって、唯一寛げる場所なんです。だから、絶対にどきませんから！

私はちょうど100年前にこの横浜の港に流れ着いたんです。当然、ここはまだ海でした。

それで私はこの岩を自分の住処と決めていつも座って髪を撫でていました。

そんなことをしていたら、９月に大きな地震が来て、陸側にあった家やお店が壊れてしまったの。

その瓦礫をここらに捨てて埋め立て始めたから、随分と人魚の仲間でも反対をしたんだけど、人間は私たちの言葉を理解できずに、どんどん埋め立て、そして建物を建て始めたんです。

ここも桟橋が近いので人通りが多くて、当時はやっていた赤レンガで洒落た店を作り始めたんです。

でも、私は絶対に動かないと決めて、居座ったわ。だって、もともと私の居場所だったんだから。

とりあえず、私の熱意に負けた人間がこの岩と私を避けて建物を作ったんだけど、私が退いたらすぐに赤レンガを積めるようにしてあるみたい。

でも、長く座っていたおかげで、私は気持ちだけでなく、身体まで固まってしまったの。当面は、このままでしょう。いい気味だわ。

（参考）
今年は関東大震災100周年だそうです。

This is the only place where I can relax. So I will never get out of the way!

I drifted into this port of Yokohama exactly 100 years ago. Of course, this was still the sea.

So I decided to make this rock my home, and I always sat on it and stroked my hair.

While I was doing that, there was a big earthquake in September, and the houses and stores on the land side were destroyed.

They dumped that rubble around here and started to reclaim the land, and even though we mermaid friends opposed it for quite a while, the humans didn't understand our language and started to reclaim and build more and more buildings.

Since this area was also close to the pier, there was a lot of pedestrian traffic, so they started building trendy red brick stores, which were very popular at the time.

But I decided I would never move, and I stayed. Because it was always my place to stay.

At any rate, people who were overcome with my enthusiasm avoided this rock and me and built the building, but it looks like they're ready to pile up red bricks as soon as I leave.

But the long sitting has hardened me, not only in my mind, but also in my body. It will stay that way for the time being. It's a good feeling.

(Reference)
This year is the 100th anniversary of the Great Kanto Earthquake.