The picture above, together with a note by the artist muttering “What lies beyond the ocean?” shows a quintessential heartwarming scene of childhood, when every day is fresh and dazzling. It is a warabe-e (children’s picture) on show at a museum in Izu-Kogen in Shizuoka Prefecture run by the artist Masayuki Kitagawa and his wife. Recently I visited the museum, the Kitagawa Masayuki Warabe-e Kan (Masayuki Kitagawa Children’s Picture Gallery), and talked with them.