Many people come to Japan and have passion for a piece of this culture animation, language or video games. I really enjoy all of those things but can not replace what I need most, people. I may love people but I am endlessly curious about them, the good, bad, ugly, all of it, it’s the best, it’s what makes us human. Those pieces of humanity are language and experience. I lack the experience in things I am not interested in and lack the language to express those experiences even if I had experienced them. These people who come to Japan from other lands. Somehow they are the same, the interest in one of these three things brings them together. I suppose it might be similar to someone visiting Canada to play Ice Hockey. Somehow that comparison does not do this situation justice. I don’t think many people uproot their lives in their 20s 30s or 40s simply to immerse themselves in a hockey culture. (I could be wrong about this, I never payed hockey, I assume this would be one of those things you would catch wind of).
Mandy was a girl who did the same job I do now. She taught English to tiny tots. But unlike myself she landed in Japan with a goal. Mandy is also an artist, a great artist. She prefers a specific style, can you guess what it is? She draws animation characters. She used to do what I do and she still does at a different school, now she draws part time. Another friend Ron has the same situation. He’s still in the hobby phase with his video games. One thing that his interest in games allowed him to do is really pursue learning Japanese. Ron and Mandy understand that to really succeed with the things they are interested in they must speak the language those things exist in. Japan is the only place for these people. Japan has some of the best animation and video games in the world.
Japan is a cultural and intellectual diamond mine (for anyone who wants these specific diamonds). The mine doesn't hold anything that doesn't exist elsewhere. The mine just holds more than you can find anywhere else. For example, you’re after diamonds. In Canada, you can mine all the diamonds you want. You must use a shovel and there aren’t many diamonds kicking around, dig away and see what you find. Your lust for diamonds has gripped you, you move to Japan. You arrive, you have heard the diamonds you need are hiding all over. Here’s the difference, in the Japan’s mine you need a pickaxe if you want to find anything. You think to yourself “gosh pickaxes are expensive, but I really do want diamonds”. You realize teaching English only requires a shovel. So here you are using that shovel to slowly earn enough to buy a pickaxe. Now you feel you’re on the right track, that pickaxe is just around the corner you can almost feel it in your hands swinging away. Thing is if you think all you need to do is buy the pickaxe, you’re all wrong. You need a pickaxe operating manual, how they work and what you can do with them. You could have read that in Canada. The Diamonds represent your happiness or wealth in this scenario. The Shovel is your function, what you do for work to get this happiness. The Pickaxe is what you want to do with your life to have real happiness/ wealth. Learning to use that pickaxe in Japan requires the operating manual, the operating manual is in Japanese. Get learning.