Something Special About Japan

The last few weeks have been a mixture of ups and downs, certainty and uncertainty. It has been somewhat overwhelming, but it now seems somewhat symbolic to go to Japan over the Easter break, as I did. How are they all related? One of my favorite movies of all time is Lost in Translation, and this is a primary theme throughout the movie, which is set in Japan. I sympathize with the protagonist and deuteragonist; while my circumstances are certainly different, I felt an even stronger connection when watching the movie this weekend in solitude. That being said, this post is not about a movie, but I wanted to share some of my thoughts and reflections on our short time in Osaka.

After speaking with one of my colleagues, I realized that it is truly a special thing when, as a family, we can all have a first experience together. None of us had been to Japan before, and we had really no idea what to expect. It was really a mixture of emotions, even aside from the tribulations I have been enduring this season. This has been a country I’ve wanted to visit for more than half my life, and I absolutely fell in love with it. We were amazed at how friendly the people of Osaka were and how quiet the streets were at all times of the day. I have heard that the people of Osaka are much more chill than people in Tokyo, but I would even say more than people in Kyoto. They seemed much more forgiving of our three excited children in Osaka than in Kyoto, whether on the train or in a quiet restaurant. We would often get smiles and could hear words like “kawaii” directed toward us about our boys. Another thing that really amazed me was how clean Osaka was and the fact that we could not easily find trash cans. It amazed me that the streets were as clean as they were without trash cans. On the other hand, it was equally interesting to see that the public playgrounds in Osaka seemed somewhat neglected, and it was only in some parks that we actually noticed children playing. The majority of the parks I saw around our AirBnb had older people either drinking a beer or college-age kids sitting around a swingset just catching up. That being said, I did notice more children than I expected in Osaka, and it was a common occurrence to see bicycles that had child seats on the back as people rode around on their bikes. It was a much slower pace of life, that too be honest, I deeply miss a slower pace of life, even as in Macau. Life here in Hong Kong is much too fast and at times can be overwhelming.

Ever since learning about Japan through a world history class in high school and then from an old beloved professor at my university who lived in Japan, and yes, even through Japanese pop culture, I have had a deep appreciation for the history, culture, and especially the philosophy held by many Japanese. I find it beautiful to have such dedication to a profession and to want to commit themselves to doing the best job possible. This principle reminds me of a quote from Martin Luther from the Protestant Reformation, “The Christian shoemaker does his duty not by putting little crosses on the shoes, but by making good shoes, because God is interested in good craftsmanship”. This is a fundamental principle, I believe the West has forgotten, and many Christians have lost touch with practicing it. Another aspect of Japanese culture that has always fascinated me is the art of valuing, even cherishing, everyday objects and carrying them throughout life. Instead of throwing out objects or seeing them as disposable, many Japanese continue to carry and repair certain objects throughout life. This is truly counter-cultural with our consumerist lifestyles, but it is a more traditional practice than how many used to live their lives.

“The Christian shoemaker does his duty not by putting little crosses on the shoes, but by making good shoes, because God is interested in good craftsmanship”.
-Martin Luther

Another thing that really surprised me was how diverse Japan actually was. All the time, I hear Japan in the news as always being xenophobic or how the economy is doing badly. That being said, I thought Japan was actually quite accepting of multicultural ideas, and I saw American-style plugs, British-inspired black taxis, driving on the left side of the road, but drivers are seated on the right side of the car. We saw lots of Chinese restaurants and Western-style food. It was nice even trying a Japanese take on
baozi 包子(to be honest, I really liked the Japanese take on a staple food more). Osaka had lots of different people living in Osaka from various parts of the world.

I would like to point out that Japan was unlike any other country I’ve ever experienced. It was orderly, clean, and the society took care of the people in ways that we don’t often care for our people in the US. It was common to see elderly people working as security guards, and I heard that it is because society is providing them a role of ease, comfort, and “meaning” because they gave to the country in their younger age. Now compare that with the USA, and companies often fire you because they no longer see you as useful. The trash was disposed of in so many separate trash cans for food waste, plastics, cans, etc., and some of which were not as easy to understand as one might expect. I believe that if there is a resistance to allowing foreigners to immigrate to the country might relate to building such an orderly society, like Japan, which does not take a matter of years. Japan took generations to build such a society, especially after WWII. For them to continue this way of life, they really need people who love Japan, Japanese culture, and way of life to assimilate into society. It’s a rare thing nowadays for people to want to try to assimilate and appreciate a culture. These immigrants need to be willing and committed to Japan for this way of society to continue.

I wanted to include some photos we took during the trip, and I hope that we can travel again in the future. I would like to spend more time in Japan.