6.27 (written a lil later...)
It has been officially a month since I have returned to the US of A, and three things I have noticed off the bat:
1. Portion size. Is. VASTLY. Different. I do not kid that a small iced coffee at any cafe here is equivalent to an XL iced coffee in Japan.
2. People here really make it a point to have their opinions heard, whether they are asked to voice such thoughts or not. Case A: road rage. Koh, my favorite sister and person in the world, transforms into a "WHATDYA THINK YA DOIN MISTER, YA ASS HOLE" declarer when somebody cuts her off...which is on the lighter side of expressing emotion when caught off guard on the road. Back in Japan, the most passionate exclaim was when Yuki spoke a quick "お！危なかった！" aka "oh! That was dangerous!" answering to someone dangerously cutting straight in front of him as he was about to turn.
3. Trees are truly amazing wherever you are in this world. They are such gifts. As much as I miss the delicate branches of Japan's mountain maples trees, I am so enamored by Tyler Park's muscular oak trees spreading this emerald canopy that becomes an otherworldly sky. AH! I LOVE TREES....
...which so eloquently transitions to my Hiroshima mountain outing during my last week in Japan (trees = mountains = hiking = Hiroshima mountain outing.) And this trip especially left a special stamp on me because it was with my four dear mother nature loving Yakuba work pals. Yuki, Kaho-san, Imai-san, and Isshi-san all took a day off of work with me to greet the grand Sandankyo Waterfall nestled in the wild Hiroshima mountains. And in our trek to pay our respects, delectable munches, spongebob-themed conversations, out of tune sing-alongs, and filling silences were had all together, one final time.
While uploading these pictures, I definitely had a visit from good ol' Madam Melancholy. She came since perusing these pictures made me all hoka-hoka remembering how much fun I had, but also it made me a little mopey remembering I already feel so distant from this trip and the people I got to go on it with.
To me, the act of letting go is difficult because it means you're beyond the end and you've acknowledged that whatever you've let go of is now something you'll never encounter in the same way again. It's really, really finished...it's not purchasing a book that you'll get to flip through from time to time, but it's more returning a book that you've now renewed to the max and already owe $2 on overdue fees. These last few days, I've found myself reflecting on how Yakage is now relishing and loving a new English teacher community, and in all honesty, I felt sad and jealous. I know, I sound like a small child. And I feel like one too. But something Kaori-san told me before I left has made me a little more comfortable with these thoughts; she said "you're always going to be our favorite apple. The next teachers will never be able to be as loved of an apple as you. They may become our favorite orange or our favorite grape, but that's because we'll get to know and love them differently from how we love and know you." And I think this makes a lot of sense--throughout life, we're so blessed by an uncountable amount of somethings/someones that we get to love. From a breathtaking, piercing blue morning to a heartfelt homemade birthday cake made for you, we get more gifts than all the water needed for a waterfall to continue thundering. And loving each of these somethings/someones individually doesn't mean we have to love something/someone else any less. I guess it just comes down to really being able to see and be grateful for how much meaning that something/someone has in the moment you have it/them. So, yes, I miss my friends and eating freshly boiled manjus with them after long verdant hikes. But I'm really happy I get to revisit such moments now with warmth and smiles.
