Current Location: California
Mood: さみしい
It has been an intense 8 months in Ishinomaki, Japan, where I have learned more about the human condition and its struggle with self, others, and God than any other time or place in my life.
Personally I've gained so much.
It's interesting that prior to traveling to Japan I honestly thought that I would spend most of my time in Ishinomaki alone. Since I didn't speak Japanese I believed I wouldn't be able to make friends. At the time I didn't see this as a bad thing. Instead, this isolation would heighten my powers of observation. Like a true anthropologist I would be able to observe and sometimes participate, but never lose that objectivity befitting a researcher. But of course my plans went the way of the best laid plans of mice and men.
Within a few weeks all objectivity went out the window. Instead, I was immersed in a strange land (Japan) with a new way of thinking (Christianity) in an organization where more often than not I had no idea what I was doing.
If all of this was at times overwhelming, what kept my head above water was the new people that I met and the friendships I made. (Funny how the one thing I thought I would have none of these last few months ended up being one of the biggest things I took away from this experience.) Two people in particular, V and T, were people I grew to depend on for anything--a good laugh, a drink, a cry, a heart-to-heart.
I know both of you are reading this, so I just want to say I miss you & thanks for being a defining force in my life. Because of you, I have changed for the better. I know we'll meet again. But even while we're not together in person, know that you will always have me to lean on! (onpu)
Mood: さみしい
It has been an intense 8 months in Ishinomaki, Japan, where I have learned more about the human condition and its struggle with self, others, and God than any other time or place in my life.
Personally I've gained so much.
It's interesting that prior to traveling to Japan I honestly thought that I would spend most of my time in Ishinomaki alone. Since I didn't speak Japanese I believed I wouldn't be able to make friends. At the time I didn't see this as a bad thing. Instead, this isolation would heighten my powers of observation. Like a true anthropologist I would be able to observe and sometimes participate, but never lose that objectivity befitting a researcher. But of course my plans went the way of the best laid plans of mice and men.
Within a few weeks all objectivity went out the window. Instead, I was immersed in a strange land (Japan) with a new way of thinking (Christianity) in an organization where more often than not I had no idea what I was doing.
If all of this was at times overwhelming, what kept my head above water was the new people that I met and the friendships I made. (Funny how the one thing I thought I would have none of these last few months ended up being one of the biggest things I took away from this experience.) Two people in particular, V and T, were people I grew to depend on for anything--a good laugh, a drink, a cry, a heart-to-heart.
I know both of you are reading this, so I just want to say I miss you & thanks for being a defining force in my life. Because of you, I have changed for the better. I know we'll meet again. But even while we're not together in person, know that you will always have me to lean on! (onpu)
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