Here is a pop quiz.

The design above, the white squiggles with the green background, is called the “karakusa pattern” (唐草模様　からくさもよう).

Q: What is the first thing that comes to a Japanese person’s mind when s/he sees this pattern?

If a “furoshiki” (風呂敷　ふろしき) or a Japanese traditional wrapping cloth came to your mind, you know a lot about the Japanese culture.

It was the most common patterns used for furoshiki.

However, many Japanese people would also think of burglars.

In the olden days, furoshiki with this pattern was so common that most families owned at least one at home.

When a burglar broke into a house, s/he just grabbed a furoshiki sitting around in the room, wrapped his/ her new acquisitions, and ran away. They didn’t even have to take their own furoshiki as they were literally everywhere.

So the answer to the question is a furoshiki or a burglar.

But did you know that stories about burglars are considered auspicious in the rakugo world?

This is because burglars are good at stealing.

Rakugo performers also wish to be good at stealing audience’s hearts just like burglars.

Recently, an anonymous person sent me a generous donation for my rakugo work (by the way, here is the link if you have a burning desire to support me).

As I was very moved by his/ her kindness, I decided to use a small portion of the donation to buy something to remember him/ her.

This is what I bought.

It’s a pouch for my rakugo fan.

A fan to a rakugo performer is like a sword to a samurai. It is something that encapsulates the essence of what we do. So a pouch for my rakugo fan is a very significant item for me.

You know why I chose the one with the “karakusa” pattern.

I will keep polishing my skills so I can be better at stealing people’s hearts with my stories.