Lost and Found

I can't believe it's already July. Everything about this second year has just been a blur! Life is just as busy and hectic as always, and of course there's always something new and interesting to see. I'm trying to take advantage of this time as much as I can because, well, of course, all good things come to an inevitable end.

It's an old cliche: a young adult, fresh out of college, goes abroad to "find themselves." I don't know that I've "found" myself. I've certainly become a lot more self-assured than I was. My journey hasn't exactly been of "Eat, Pray, Love" quality. There's been eating, oh quite a lot of eating and drinking, none of the praying (unless you count itadakimasu) and more friendship (and douche-baggery) than love. Instead, my journey has been about connecting with my grandmother's culture, and I really do feel like I'm accomplishing that.

It just happens that along the way, I've begun to think about where this is going to take me. And right now, one of the most brightly lit paths leads toward teaching. If I'm going to commit to teaching, it means in all likelihood, my adventures in Japan will end next spring or next autumn.

So every day is the chance for something new and lasting and meaningful. I'm not sad, thinking that I'll leave Japan. I'm excited about what I'll do in the meantime and then what comes later!

One of the things I'm most excited about is getting to see my parents again...and I mean this summer! My mom and dad are coming to Japan next month! They have their own plans but they'll be coming to Iwate to see me during the Michinoku Geino Matsuri. We'll enjoy some of the festival dances and parades and of course the big hanabi on Sunday night. But I'll be sure to show them the beauty and surprises of Iwate including Hiraizumi, Oshu and maybe somewhere out on the coast. Then they'll head down south to climb Mt. Fuji.

A few days later, I'll join them in Nagasaki. Together, we'll go to Sasebo. My dad explored Sasebo a few years ago, determined to find the mountainside where my grandmother's family lived, the bay where the Navy operated and where my grandmother lived in the aftermath and while she was seeing my grandfather.

This time, Mom and I will be there to see our own roots for the first time. I just know it's going to be like nothing I've experienced. I'm excited and cautious. I don't know the area, I don't know what waits for us, but it's there. It's waiting. And I'm ready.