Heijoshin 平常心

I missed another Iaido class. In order to make up for it, I decided to read some philosophy. I particularly like learning about heijoshin, true peace of mind, and how it reflects in society. I figured I'd share a little.

"Society is like our collective shadow. If the shadow is bent and twisted, no amount of effort can straighten it. Only by straightening ourselves does our shadow also straighten, and then it does so effortlessly and automatically. So it is that reform must start with individuals and spread through society. It is a grassroots process in which each of us is either part of the disease or part of the cure."

Shimabukuro & Pellman, "Flashing Steel Second Edition" Berkeley, California 2008.

Sign On the Dotted Line

It’s only a little over two weeks away. February 10th. The day I must let my local board of education know about my re-contracting decision.

Today the principle called me into his office to inquire about my decision. I told him that I do not plan on staying a fourth year. He seemed disappointed. It makes me happy knowing that he values my work enough to try to convince me to stay. But it makes me sad knowing that I will be leaving a job that pays well and values my work. It makes the decision that much harder. Makes me wonder if I am thinking straight.

The last two and a half years have been a challenge. First, I was dealing with the isolation of living in a small town with no real support for foreign residents. Thankfully it wasn’t my first time to Japan. Then as I started getting use to quiet evenings alone in my apartment, and actually starting to enjoy them, my job and co-workers started irritating me.

It wasn’t that my job was bad or that my co-workers were mean. It was that I felt relatively transparent, although everyone was looking at me. I didn’t find the environment very welcoming, although I didn’t have a reason to really feel like the teachers had anything against me. Maybe we were both just shy. I still didn’t understand working in Japan, and they may have been worried about the only foreigner in the room. I loved teaching my students though. My first year and my second year with my students seemed to make everything okay, although my time in the classroom was very limited.

About a year ago my supervisor changed and my favorite group of kids left for high school. At first things seemed okay, just different. Then that difference reared its head as a problem. My supervisor was very unorganized, making my schedules overloaded and irratic. I became very busy, which I wanted until it was a busy in a underutilized manner. I have to plan a few full classes but my free time is used standing in a classroom as a human tape recorder. Students with behavioral problems, although nothing I feel like I can’t handle or really have to handle only being an assistant. It just makes it more difficult to teach.

Something keeps running through my head. It could be worse.

I may live in the countryside. But I am not in the middle of nowhere. After all I can be in one of Japan’s most famous cities, Kyoto, in 90 minutes. I see the greener grass on the other side of the fence though and want it. Kyoto and a life full of avenues are tempting me. Bigger cities, bigger possibilities.

I get paid a lot. I am fully insured. It is the first time in my life where I’m given opportunities to travel freely. Buy nice things. Eat whatever I want. Pay off loans. Pursue my interests. This is what I will miss the most. The freedom my somewhat imprisoning job gives me. I grew up on second hand and meager surroundings. To taste luxury once and a while makes the trials I've faced worth it.

My co-workers although a bit cold, are anything but mean. Every time I have talked to them, they have been courteous and friendly. My supervisor, although unorganized, I feel means well.

I’ve lived here for long enough that things are familiar. I have found an Iaido dojo to give me something to do during the week. I’ve met a wonderful girl who travels long distances on weekends to my house, which makes things much less lonely. It seems like the pieces of the past two years are finally coming together into a life.

Things seem great! However, I don’t look forward to going to work in the morning. Sometimes it causes me stress. I wonder if it is just the way I handle things and if I am not being grateful for all the amazing things being on JET has allowed me. I’m wondering if not re-contracting is a stupid move. Or on the flip side, I’m wondering if I am just afraid of making a leap towards change.

Am I afraid of change or stupid for leaving this all behind? Could I change the bad things and make them better? Or should I just start over from the beginning with the knowledge I gained up this point? Leave the money, the comfort and the professional dissatisfaction? JET is one of the best opportunities to teach English in Japan, but every situation is different so my particular situation may not be the best although it is light years from the worst. Knowing this, makes the decision that much harder.

I’m fed up with bosses and people scheduling my work (life) for me. I want to try doing it alone. Going freelance in Japan and teaching eikaiwa or working in a more supportive environment for my interests. It’s scary because I can become dead broke doing freelance. I have a feeling that I can also make more money, too. Be in control of what, how and when I teach. Live in a more urban area. This is if I decide to stay in Japan. My girlfriend really wants me to stay in Japan, obviously. I am looking forward to going back to the U.S., but I don’t know what kind of work I can do there. My degree and current work experience leads me back to Japan, although I hope I don’t have to teach English forever here.

There is also issues with visas. No easy task in Japan, especially if you do not have a company sponsor. Since 2010 they have made "self-sponsored" visas much more difficult to get. I love my girlfriend, but I don't want to marry her to stay in Japan.

I also want adventure. I want to go to Europe. Visit Finland, the UK, France, Italy, Greece! I’ve heard that maybe I can find work in Prague. The city seems amazing! Should I continue living a free life of a young man or consider the future and stability? Paradoxically, deep down I feel the freest life is the most stable.

Recently my mind has been living in the future. Although my present is safe, something is pulling me away. My signature decides my fate. I feel my fate is to meet the unknown.


Photograph by: =eyesweb1 @ Deviant Art

Fall-out

The air is getting crisp. Warm days have become cool days. Autumn is leaving and winter is coming. Change is peeking out from the shadows.

Autumn is my favorite season. It is a break from the heat and humidity of summer. It’s dryer than spring, and it’s full of beautiful colors. I think Japan has one of the best autumns because of its countless temples filled with maple trees making the early night time darkness a bright and vibrant red.

Fall colors at Kodai-ji, Kyoto.

Night is now reaching temperatures in the single digits, and winter will have its cold clutches on the Kansai region soon enough. Riding my motorbike after 5PM, when the sun sets, is like sipping lemonade in a walk-in freezer. For those of you who’ve never done this, it means it’s very cold!

It’s been 10 months since the Tohoku disaster. The region is slowly picking up the pieces of the destruction left in wake of the tsunami. Unfortunately, those pieces are being shipped to other regions of Japan. Already Tokyo is burning debris from Tohoku. Granted, this debris is being tested for radiation and if it has a low enough reading it will be shipped.

It’s great the country is coming together to help out, but the problem is that much of the debris does have radiation, even if it is a miniscule amount. In an unprecedented moronic move by the Japanese government, shipments of contaminated debris will be brought to Osaka to be burned! Now I’m not a radioactive expert, but I know for a fact that burning radioactive garbage will release other radiation into the air, unless proper air filtration is introduced. What is the government thinking?! Radiation should not be spread, even if it’s just a “little bit.” It should be concentrated at its source. No one really knows how much radiation is bad for you, however almost everyone knows that radiation is bad for you. The safest move is to keep radiation levels as low as possible.

Many Osaka residents are opposing the decision to burn debris from Iwate prefecture. I don’t blame them. So far the government has been pretty spotty on the facts of the whole Fukushima situation. At first it may have been in their best interest, but it has created public unease due to many people thinking they are not being told all the facts or simply being lied to.

Nuclear Protesters in Kyoto

It’s a sad situation. Tohoku can’t handle disposing all the debris alone, and the rest of Japan cannot be contaminated. If science and the government is accurate and forthcoming with concrete facts, which I personally believe they have not been, then I can see the logic behind shipping debris for disposal. But as it stands now, I personally am opposed to the idea to possibly contaminate a relatively contaminate free area with one of Japan’s highest population densities.

Billiken

What is Billiken? A god? A demon? Some statue found in obscure places around Osaka? Maybe he is all of these things.

I remember a couple years back someone told me that Billiken was a devil or demon of sorts. Just this past weekend I saw another Billiken statue in Osaka. I found it odd, why would there be little devil statues hidden throughout one of Japan's largest cities? So I decided to investigate.

Billiken in the Dormy Inn Lobby - Namba, Osaka

In 1912 Billiken came to Japan. He was brought to Luna Park in Shinsekai, Osaka. Shinsekai means "New World" in English and was an amusement park created in 1912 to model both New York City and Paris. My only experience there has told me that the place has seen better days. Credited as being the most dangerous area of Osaka, there is a large gambling problem and countless homeless and prostitutes littering the streets. Even though it is considered dangerous by Japanese standards, I would venture any trip during the day to be pretty safe as long as your not throwing your wallet around. Act like you would in any neighborhood in America, and I see it no more dangerous. Leave your wallet at the ramen shop and you may not get it back however.

A quick stroll around the streets and you will see Billiken around every corner. In front of restaurants, stores and pachinko parlors. So was Shinsekai once a city of sin that the devil soon forgot?

As it turns out, Billiken was born in St. Louis Missouri, U.S.A. in 1908. Billiken appeared in a dream of a woman named Florence Pretz, an art teacher and illustrator. Characterized by elf like ears, a small patch of hair on head, short legs and mischievous smile Billiken became known as a symbol of good luck. The only thing luckier than buying a doll of Billiken, was to have one given to you. Soon to become a wild fad of the early 1900s and a symbol of Americana in Japan for the amusement park in Shinsekai.

In Luna park a wooden statue of Billiken was enshrined as "The God of Things As They Ought To Be". Unfortunately, this slice of history went missing when the amusement park closed in 1923. However, you can see a replica in the Tsutenkaku tower in Shinsekai on the 5th floor, and countless images are near impossible to miss by just opening your eyes while walking down the decrepit steets of Shinsekai. Once and a while you may even see Billiken sitting somewhere far from his roots in other wards of Osaka or even in Kobe City. Billiken is a Symbol of Osaka as much as the Hachiko dog statue is of Tokyo.

If you find him, it may be wise to rub his feet and wish for luck. For he is "The God of Things As They Ought To Be."

Happy Halloween

It's Halloween in Japan and I celebrated with my friends in Kyoto. The theme for my costume was the Arabian Nights.

This is probably the only time I will have a harem.

I'm not quite sure who would be the more effective assassin.

It was a fun weekend. However, I didn't sleep Saturday night and ended up wandering the streets of Kyoto for a little longer than expected. Sunday I slept till 6PM!

Dinner

I received a gift of Omi Beef, special Wagyu beef from Shiga. It is similar to the more internationally known Kobe Beef. Decided to use some culinary art for a random Tuesday evening dinner.

Cooked with a squeeze of lime. Delicious!

Sweet Dreams of Summer

It seemed like a short lifetime ago that summer started, but now that it’s over it seemed all too quick. The days have ended where I can come into work late and take extended lunches away from my desk. Something I dearly miss. I’m surprised at how unproductive I’ve actually been, and find myself with a pile of work that I have to complete within the coming week with absolutely no drive to get it done. I guess that’s a good queue that this should be my last year. Maybe this will change when I am starting to work back in the classroom, I doubt it, but I really hope this lack of motivation isn’t permanent.

Although I’ve been present at my desk for the majority of the summer, my mind has been anywhere but. In a dimension far, far away! Dreaming of weekend parole when my mind can escape from paid imprisonment and my body can move in a free world.

Early summer was filled with Japanese summer traditions of festivals and fireworks, the most famous being Gion Matsuri in Kyoto. Gion is a famous festival in Japan with a long history. I won’t go into much detail about the festival since it is easily researchable, but in short, hundreds of people gather to watch traditional style floats in the streets. From within you can hear the sounds of traditional drums and shrill flutes. This was the second time I went to Gion Matsuri, and it was both fun and nostalgic. It was definitely different than my first time, but a moment marking being in Japan for another full year. A crazy time for reflection on how much things have changed and yet how much has remained unchanged.


Smokin' your tobacco and your meat!


No funny business allowed.

On August 6th I went to a fabulous fireworks display in Osaka along the Yodo River. We ended up with reserved seating which included a lunch and drink. It was very impressive and I thoroughly enjoyed my company, making it one of the most memorable firework festivals in Japan, if not the most memorable.


Common summer sight in Japan.

The only other firework festival I went to was in Otsu, Shiga’s capital. The display was huge! I mean, I’ve never seen so many fireworks in the sky at one time. Night began to look like day. The only thing more crammed together than the fireworks in the sky, were the people on the ground. Thankfully, my height insures me a good viewing angle no matter where I am.

On the topic of good viewing angles, I was also super lucky to see my favorite band, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, play at Summer Sonic in Osaka. For a price of nearly $170 I rocked out to the funky beats of the Chili Peppers and was introduced to some really good bands such as Panic at the Disco. It was expensive, but well worth it! I’m pretty sure I would have paid the price to just watch the Chili Peppers since I’ve been a fan for over 10 years and don’t know if I’ll ever have a chance to see them again.


An ocean of sound waves.

I also climbed Fuji for the second time, and still couldn't see the perfect sunrise. The view was still breathtaking though!

Sea of Clouds on a Beach of Volcanic Rock.

Gate to heaven.

The following week I took a week off of work for some travel and the highlight of my summer. I purchased a used Seishun 18 Ticket at a discount store and took 5 hours worth of trains to Okayama, definitely the cheapest way to go saving me a few thousand yen. After some ramen, Spanish tapas and a night’s sleep in a capsule I woke up early to get in a Doraemon blue car with a beautiful girl waiting for me. It was definitely a great start to a most fantastic vacation.

We drove for about an hour to Uno port listening to the Chili Pepper’s album “By the Way” and caught a ferry to Naoshima. Naoshima is dubbed the “art island,” and is filled with incredible architecture and modern art such as light sculpture and giant dotted pumpkins. It even has a few original Claude Monet paintings, for those who prefer more ‘classical’ pieces.

Polka-dotted Hallucinations

My favorite was an exhibit that is part of the Bennesse Art House Project. It is called “Backside of the Moon.” A light sculpture created by James Turrell. Basically you are lead into a completely dark room and guided to a bench by a staff member. When I say completely dark, I mean you are blind. Eyes open or closed, it doesn’t matter. You just sit there, and after a while you start seeing faint reddish light. After about 10 minutes a room faintly materializes in front of you, filled with dim light that your eyes have finally come to see. You then stand up and walk into this space. It almost feels as if you are walking into a picture frame, or following the light at the end of the tunnel after death. At the end is some kind of endless abyss through the wall, which you only dare to stretch part of your arm into. At this point the room is clearly visible, and you can even see the faces of awe surrounding you in a space that feels extraterrestrial. The amazing thing is, the light intensity is never changed. It is only the eyes that adapt to such a dark space filled with so much light, a strange metaphor of the world if I’d say so.

After a day of peering into a crazy imaginary world, we boarded the ferry with our car and headed to Shikoku. Shikoku is possibly one of Japan’s most undeveloped large islands, although I think Hokkaido still wins the competition even though Sapporo was a booming icy metropolis when I was there two years ago. We went to Kagawa prefecture and headed to a quiet hot spring town. Here I stayed in what was possibly the nicest hotel, at least in Japanese decorated fashion. I felt as if I was a guest in a castle during the Heian period of Japan. The dinner was a piece of Japanese culinary art and the onsen (hot spring) was bliss on top a roof.

The next morning was an equally impressive breakfast, minus the tiny little fish embryos which I wasn’t a huge fan of, followed by a hike up many stone steps to one of Shikoku’s most famous temples at Kompira-san. Many people make a pilgrimage to wish for the many things the temple promises to improve in one’s life, the most famous being happiness. What I learned is that the road to happiness is hot and sweaty and requires climbing a lot of steps, but is usually followed by a delicious shaved ice and a mango smoothie. Happiness indeed!

Hot, sticky and sweaty summers of Japan.


Finding enlightenment at the temple courtyard.

Besides onsens and happiness, Kagawa prefecture is known for udon. But not just any ordinary noodle mind you, but deliciously chewy Sanuki Udon. So good in fact, that we almost didn’t have a chance to eat it since most restaurants ran out of ingredients by 1:00PM! But it turned out that at one restaurant which said they were out for the day still had a little left, so we were in luck. We threw down our 400 yen and had thick and chewy goodness. A texture that is so perfect, that I can describe it in no other way but the texture of Sanuki Udon.

Our last destination for the day was some whirlpools in the neighboring prefecture of Tokushima. However, we would arrive too late to catch a good view. So instead we went on a short river cruise, climbed Japan's official shortest mountain and watched Awa Odori. Awa Odori, is a traditional style dance that Tokushima is famous for. Turns out I also got to try my own hand in this dance, and I wasn’t too bad at it. I won a prize for being one of the top dancers! However, I know I’m pretty bad when it comes to dancing. So most likely I won the prize because I was the only foreigner dancing.

Japan's shortest mountain. Mountain?


Awa Odori

That evening I said farewell to my traveling companion as she started on her long drive back to Okayama. After checking into a capsule hotel I ate an incredibly delicious bowl of ramen at shop called Todai Ramen which is famous in Tokushima.

The next morning I woke up early and headed to the train station. I asked for some information on how to get to the Naruto Whirlpools and it looked like the best way to get there was by bus. The next bus didn’t leave for about an hour and a half though, and I kind of regretted waking up so early. To try to find a happy equalizer between sleepiness and boredom I decided to enjoy some high grade Starbuck’s caffeine.

By the time my bus arrived at Naruto the tide already changed so I couldn’t see the whirlpools. I still purchased my 500 yen ticket for the glass bridge walkway and attempted to satisfy my curiosity. Unsatisfied I decided to kill about 6 hours at an art replica museum and return at the next tide.

The Otsuka Art Museum is a huge complex constructed by Otsuka Pharmaceutical, which also strangely produces ceramic tiles as well as famous sports drinks such as Pocari Sweat. The museum claims to contain 100% accurate and to scale replicas of world famous artistic works. It is quite impressive to walk into a copy of the Sistine Chapel or follow the artistic timeline from ancient Greek paintings to present day creations. I think I discovered that I enjoyed the Baroque period, and works by Rembrandt more than most works prior, since the paintings used a lot of dark colors such as black and somehow seemed a bit more sinister than the purity and perfection of the earlier Renascence. I also enjoyed the artwork of Norwegian artists from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. However, I actually didn’t have enough time to explore the museum after nearly six hours, and headed back to catch a glimpse of the whirlpools a little after 3:00PM.


Japanese Sistine

More people were gathered around the glass framed squares facing down at the ocean than when I first arrived earlier in the day. I definitely could see some small whirlpools form and then die out. It was interesting but did not satisfy my craving that movies such as Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas instilled in my imagination.


Beware of Kraken

It was a unforgettable trip, but it was finally time to go home. I was lucky to arrive at the bus ticket counter at 5:00 since one minute later and it would have been closed. I bought my ticket and headed back to Kobe, caught my train to Shiga and fell asleep in my own bed dreaming of further adventure.