I love you 3000 times.

I did everything I could in high school basketball. There's nothing left for me to prove."

"Give me the experiences I need. If there's anything out there, give it to me."

These are the thoughts of Sawakita as he prayed at the shrine in 'THE FIRST SLAM DUNK'.

'THE FIRST SLAM DUNK' is available on Netflix. Additionally, it will be re-released in theaters in August. Whether you've seen it already or not, I highly recommend watching it. Masterpieces can be enjoyed more deeply with a second viewing.

The above words of Sawakita are not in the original manga. However, I was pleased to hear these Sawakita-like words. But I still feel disappointed that even with a second viewing, the scenes with Sawakita's supportive father, his childhood struggles, and the appearance of Uozumi were cut.

The shrine's "sando" (approach path) and a mother's "sando" (birth canal) actually share the same meaning.

A baby is born into this world through a narrow, dark "birth canal," a life-or-death journey. When we visit a shrine, we walk along the "sando" to reach the inner sanctum, the "omiya."

The "omiya" represents the "womb." At the end of the "sando," the "kami" (deity) is enshrined, symbolizing the womb.

My personal theory is that passing through the "birth canal" to the "womb" signifies that prayers at a shrine are not an extension of your current self, but rather prayers made from a reborn state, starting from zero.

"Baka. I will never pray to god!!!" - Zoro from 'ONE PIECE'

Since learning Zoro's words, I also stopped praying to gods. The only prayer I make is, "Please watch over me." I thought this was the coolest prayer in the world, but after hearing Sawakita's words, "Give me the experiences I need," I’m starting to think that might be cooler.

"3,000 times I love you." - Tony Stark's words to his daughter in 'Avengers: Endgame'

Children might be angels sent from heaven to help their parents. There are rare children like Ray from 'The Promised Neverland' who remember their time as fetuses.

Children who remember their time before birth often say, "I was born to help my mom."

Thinking that children are born to help their moms makes you want to cherish them even more.

Additionally, I like the idea that children are beings from the future. They are future people who come to learn about the past, a future society we cannot see or know.

If that's the case, we should help them gather many happy stories to take back with them. Children are more evolved than adults and show us the future of this planet.

Children, with all their antics, are guests from the future trying to expand your love and capacity as a parent.

Perhaps the correct term is not 'raising children,' but 'being raised by children.'