"Grandmother in Gestures and Expressions"... 3-Year-Old Boy Helping with Housework Gains Attention in Japan

Rentokun washing cherry tomatoes and peeling the skin of a red carrot [TikTok capture]

A 3-year-old boy who helps with housework like a grandmother, with his gestures, facial expressions, and tone of voice, is becoming a hot topic in Japan.

On the 4th, Japan's Fuji News Network (FNN) reported the story of 3-year-old Arakawa Rento, posted on TikTok by his mother, Arakawa Kizu. The video, which starts with the narration "Maybe he's a grandmother at heart," begins with Rento, now 5 years old, carrying sweet potatoes when he was 3. Rento transfers sweet potatoes from a basin with a familiar motion and washes cherry tomatoes with his small hands. He is also good at peeling carrots using a peeler. Scenes of him mashing boiled potatoes and harvesting vegetables were also shown.

Rento’s tone of voice was said to be like a grandmother’s. In an interview with FNN, Rento’s mother said, "The video was taken when he was 2 to 3 years old during a visit to his grandparents’ house on an island," adding, "Since the surroundings are filled with the sea, fields, and nature, and we often went there from a young age, going to the fields or washing vegetables became a kind of play." She said that washing vegetables or fruits was not something he was told to do but something he insisted on doing himself.

Rento is selecting and transferring sweet potatoes from a large basin [TikTok capture]

In an interview, Rento said, "Since I was 3 years old, my hand movements and tone of voice were like a grandmother’s, so I was adored by my family," and added, "Even now at 5 years old, if there are carrots or potatoes in the kitchen, I want to peel them and help." When asked how he hopes to grow up, Rento said, "I want to grow up bright and healthy, never forgetting the importance of nature even as an adult," and "Someday, I want to try cooking."

Japanese netizens commented on Rento’s appearance, saying, "He is admirable," "He deserves praise," and "It’s nice to see a child growing up well from a young age." One netizen said, "They say there is a big difference later between children who grow up helping with housework and those who don’t, and I think parents who give children tasks they can do and watch over them are wonderful."