When I was 22 years old, I was working in a jazz bar. The bar was located in Akasaka, an entertainment area in CBD Tokyo. The owner of the bar was a 60-year-old guy from a wealthy family. He would play piano and drums and sang old jazz classics while I was tending a bar. …
I have once interviewed a well-known novelist. It was back in 2009, when I was studying arts management in New York. The assignment we were given was was to carry out an interview to one of those “movers & shakers” in New York. I was very excited about the task, but I had no idea …
When I was 12 years old, my parents got divorced. I understood their divorce was an inevitable decision. I believed they should not stay together if they were so unhappy with each other. Or, at least that was the logic I adopted in order to cope with the situation. Still, the fact of a disbanding …
A few weeks after the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995, mom and I went to a local shopping center. Only a few shops have reopened. We managed to get some groceries from a supermarket where most shelves were empty. Freight transportation and distribution systems still have been mostly suspended. As we walked towards the exit, I …
January 17th, 1995. For those like me, who were living in the Kobe area in 1995, January 17th carries a significant meaning: the day our town was completely devastated by a massive earthquake that became known as the Great Hanshin Earthquake. I was 12 years old at that time. I lived in Nishinomiya, a city …
It has been 8 years since my grandfather passed away. He was nearly 80. I know about his work. I know about his family and social life. But, I hardly know who he really was. My mother’s father, Haruo, was a successful businessman. After returning from a military service for WWII, he started his small …
I remember when I went to a local Shinto shrine with my dad two years ago. Hatsumoude, or the first visit of the year, is an important ritual in Japan. After wishing the best of luck and prosperity for the new year, we tried Omikuji, which is a fortune-telling custom. Typically, Omikuji predicts your fortune …
This New Year’s Day I was reminded of the New Year’s Days of my childhood. These have been days filled with joyful memories. I grew up in a large, two-storey, five-bedroom house on a mountainside suburb in Japan. I was living with my parents, grandparents and a younger sister. We had a big drawing room …
I started this blog to write down the moments I don't want to forget. I hope you like it and I hope it helps me to find my voice.
My essay received a prize at the 10th Osaka Advertising Essay Award. Below is an English translation of the original Japanese text. ------ This must be the most miserable face in New York City. I sighed as I looked at my reflection in the subway window. My skin was dry, my eyes got dark circles …
A Thousand Years 