Talk about taking the air out of a room, the wind out of the sails….our daughter is back to her wandering days again. Our house stands,well, a little bit deflated and dark as she departs for another three month stint to a little town called Sakaide on a little island called Shikoku, on the other side of the world in Japan.
This time, our daughter found an opportunity to be a sort of cultural American ambassador to a small city in Japan. Shikoku (meaning “four provinces”), is the smallest island (and least populist) of all the islands of Japan. On one of the provinces, Kagawa is the Sister City of Sausalito, California: It is called Sakaide.
Unlike four years ago when she was 17 years old, this time she is an adult, so from the interview process to getting on that plane, she sets out on this adventure as an adult. Four years ago, she stayed with a host family in the much bigger Fukuoka City on the southern island of Kyushuu, this time she is staying alone in a city-provided apartment. As the caring (and adoring) parent, the motto has been “hands off”, while she prepares for her adventure, only assisting when asked and only helping in the specific regard requested. Thankfully (and mercifully), I did not stroke out during the process. There was not a dry eye in the house when we dropped her off to begin her journey of a lifetime in Sakaide Japan.
Sakaide is a small town with a population of around 53,000 (around the same population of San Rafael, but geographically, the city occupies roughly 10 square miles more than San Rafael). It’s claim to fame is the Seto-Ohashi Bridge, a mixed suspension-truss bridge spanning five islands for over 8 miles, starting in Sakaide and eventually connecting on the main island of Honshu at the city of Okayama. The bridge took over 40 years to make and cost a tremendous amount of money. It is very loosely based on some of the design of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. In researching the construction of the bridge, Sakaide sent some of its engineers to Sausalito, where Sausalito and Sakaide forged a Sister City relationship.
It is through this relationship that Lauren Chiyoko has earned the opportunity to go to Japan for the summer and as a sort of American Ambassador, teach English and present a small slice of everyday American culture to the residents of Sakaide (preschool to senior citizens).
The first 24 hours were tough for those left at home (read, Mom & Dad), putting your one and only child (no spares) on a plane to go half a world away is no easy feat - and at about midnight we were delighted and relieved to hear she had arrived safe and sound to the hot and humid summer of Japan. A small delegation of city officials met her and her chaperone (another Sakaide representative who helped develop the curricula for the classes and made the trip to help her settle in for a week) and they set about the three hour trip through cities, countryside and bridges to her small apartment in Sakaide.
Being the guest of the city must be the bomb! They presented her with a small box (wifi hotspot) so she could access wifi wherever she is (we looked it up on the internet - it cost $7.90US (!!) a day - hopefully the city gets a better rate than the poor tourists) a mobile phone and some cash to burn through for a month’s worth of food. The next morning, we had a Skype session where she showed us around her small first floor apartment. Upon seeing her small apartment - I began to better appreciate American building standards - her “kitchen” had a small stove in a little alcove with no counter space on either side (isn’t that a fire hazard) with only one side (left side) having a fire proof metal sheet protecting the area from, um fire.
In the water closet, the water from the toilet cascades down from a reservoir on top of the toilet, which um, Mom goes on to wonder, is that safe in earthquake country? But, okay, they have been a city officially for over 60 years, so I guess they know what they are doing.
Her first day was a day off, so she walked around town, bought some provisions and wondered just what she had gotten herself into
The first days were spent doing official welcome duties - the Mayor (Mr. Aya along with other dignitaries including the head of the Chamber of Commerce welcomed her at Sakaide’s fancy-schmancy hotel and a fancy-schmancy meal (she thinks it was on TV!). And a small informal walking tour around town to work off the meal. My next text was a not so happy text stating she was not so comfortable being the center of attention.
Rounding out the week, she got her feet wet teaching some preschool/kindergarten kids who were curious about their American counterparts (what do American kids want to be when they grow up?) and kinda sort of mastered “Hi, how are you?”
Back here stateside, Mom & Dad are rambling around the house, recuperating from the whirlwind of sending a twenty year old off 5,544 miles to Japan. Father’s Day will not be the same without the product of fatherhood here to honor him (but hopefully game 7 of the NBA finals will take the sting out of that). Mom has taken to folding an origami crane for each day her only born is gone. In Japan, cranes are thought to be mythical creatures and it is believed they live for a thousand years and therefore, in many Asian cultures (Japan, China & Korea), the crane represents good fortune & longevity. The Japanese refer to the crane as the bird of happiness. The wings of the crane are thought to deliver souls up to paradise. Moms (like me) pray for the protection of the crane’s wings for their children and recite this prayer -
“Oh flock of heavenly cranes cover my child with your wings”
So in honor of my only born, Chiyoko (who’s name, coincidentally, means a thousand generations), mom again (like in 2013, when she lived in Japan for five months) is making an origami crane for every day she is gone. The short time it takes to make the crane gives Mom a moment to think good thoughts for Chiyoko in the hopes she has safe travels and another great experience of a lifetime.
So until I hear from my only born again, I am off to find out who I am after 20 years raising a child. I hope I like me!
To get Chiyoko's take on her trip - please visit her blog at Chiyoko's Sakaide Blog
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