It's strange being back in San Diego. I've taken a few good walks around. It feels like a dream. It's strange what I notice feels different. I feel the subtle differences in smell and air pressure. I'm glad I won't have to live through another muggy central Japan summer. But I had some of the best experiences of my life in Japan. Up until two years ago, I would never have even imagined leaving Japan, I was so happy there. Then things changed. It's a long, pathetic story and I'm planning to write a book.
One thing I'll say is that when I left the US, I felt like the US was dying and coming to Japan felt like going somewhere experiencing a rebirth. Now I feel the opposite, I feel like Japan's in the throes of a slow death and the US is experiencing a rebirth. I know it might not seem that way from the news and probably it's my personal, subjective point of view.
I remember driving through Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee. In San Diego and elsewhere, I remember sullen, angry young men in the streets, looking for a target for their resentment. In recent years, I've started to see and hear Japanese men doing the same thing. As in America, it coincides with rising xenophobia and homophobia and transphobia. I wonder if I can find a country where people can consistently abide by a "live and let live" mindset.
Anyway, I've been planning to write a book about my experiences in Japan. To quote Roy Batty, I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
San Diego's lovely to see again in any case.
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