Can you take the peace?
I can't even lie about it, I live in Nippon Suburbia.
It's a community where younger children are running around in the sandy playground, older housewives gather on the porch to socialize, and the common workers might not have ventured into Tokyo for decades. I wake up in the morning to see my neighbors take out the trash and I greet them all as I make my way to drop off my garbage into the pile. Then it's off to work as I bike past Junior High School students in their neatly pressed uniforms and Salarymen with briefcases. The way back home is not much different, only the sky is darker.
As I sit in my home, I can hear all the distant conversations that my neighbors are having just outside. Walls are thin and my windows are often open, so voices seep through from all sides. All around me are foreign sounds that I can't yet understand (although they might be too soft anyways). And then when the sun has finally set, it is still quiet. Occasionally I can hear the water running down my pipes, the neighborhood biker gang (really more like scooters and totally not intimidating) driving by in the distance, the chirping of bugs in various plants, but sometimes I hear nothing. It's like living in a vacuum with your thoughts.
And suddenly, there will be an earthquake. I'll be reminded, yes I am living.
filled with smiles.
ReplyDelete