10 Years Later: Reflecting on a Life Full of Surprises and Challenges

Amidst the full bloom of cherry blossoms, we celebrated my son's entrance ceremony.

And it has been exactly 10 years since we moved to Yame in April 2015.

At that time, deciding to move to a place where I didn’t know a single person was a rare choice, especially in an era when rural relocation wasn’t as common as it is today. My family opposed it, and I was almost mocked. I was unemployed, without income, and held an anti-capitalist mindset, even thinking, “I don’t want to work.” I didn’t want to stand out, had given up on marriage, didn’t aspire to contribute to society or be recognized; I simply wanted to live freely with the people who would come visit me from afar. That rock-and-roll mindset from those days is something I look back on fondly.

But before I knew it, 10 years had passed. I’ve become much more mellow.

Looking back, I truly think I’ve been blessed with the connections and luck that life had to offer.

There have been many events. By chance, I received a house and ended up living deep in the mountains. When I started my business, I unexpectedly got media coverage. I succeeded in finding a partner and had my wedding in Yame as a form of promotion for the town. I published a book on a whim. I walked from Hokkaido to Yame, crossing Japan with the flag of Yame. And I even took on the seemingly reckless challenge of running for a seat in the city council election.

I was also fortunate enough to visit Uruguay to present my tea to President Mujica, the person I respect most in the world. And, as an international couple who were separated right after our wedding due to the pandemic, we were reunited a year later, which was covered in the media.

If the me from 10 years ago could see the me now, I’m sure he’d be laughing out loud.

From here on out, I want to continue to find things that are meaningful not only for myself and my family but also for society, within the environment I’m placed in, and keep challenging myself. And, I hope that in 10 years, I can look back and laugh at my life once again.