Though I have yet to officially sign the contract, I have made the decision to stay here a 3rd year. Even in college, I would have never expected that I'd ever move to Japan let alone be contemplating a 3rd year here. To be perfectly honest, deciding to stay for a second year was a lot easier than deciding to stay for a 3rd year. I can see myself falling into being here for 30 years doing the same thing mindlessly, which scares me. On the other hand, I've seen a lot of change within me over the almost 2 years I have been here.
The experience here in Japan has forced me to learn a lot about myself. What I like and don't like. Sometimes its good sometimes its bad. Its kind of like trying sushi for the first time. You eat a couple and its like an eye opening explosion of wonderfulness. Then you try that Sea Urchin that just sits in your stomach for a while and you just want it to pass through.
Ultimately, I feel like I've grown a lot in the time I've been here. I don't think I am the same person that I was when I came here. My passions and outlook on many things have changed. Most importantly, my relationship with God has grown. I've basically went from "christian" to Christian. Someday I'd like to be CHRISTIAN but that's still a work in progress. I feel fully confident that God put me in Japan for a reason. It wasn't just to try the sushi either.
There were so many coincidences that led to me even getting this job. Its amazing how little I actually knew about MeySen before going all-in for the job. Then within weeks of being here one of the biggest earthquakes hit right by me and a nuclear meltdown happened two hours away. Many will take that as a sign that its time to get out. When I went back to America, I don't know of a single person there that thought it was a good idea to go back. People were even trying to line up jobs for me. But God had other plans for me, I felt compelled to go back.
Coming back, I was just looking to finish my job and move on. Things went back to normal a lot quicker than expected. Last summer was one of those moments where I had to reflect on it. I was sitting on the ocean at 5AM watching the sunrise. It all kind of hit me, I was sitting in the water that caused so much damage and destruction yet here it was so peaceful. It also made me reflect on my decisions. What if I never came back? Would I have learned how to surf? Would I understand the beauty of seeing the sunrise on the Pacific Ocean or the countless memorable experiences? Many people will think to themselves, well if you never knew you wouldn't care that you missed it.
In choosing to stay here another year, I've realized that's just not how I want to live my life. For me, life is meant to be a verb not a noun. Its something you gotta do. I still have that hunger to explore the world and see all God has to offer. When it comes down to it, I want to say I lived instead of I was alive. Honestly, I don't know when or if I will want to just "settle down". When the time comes, hopefully it will feel right. Its just not in God's plans today. I barely know what I'm doing for next week so I don't have any plans for the next step in my life. BUT I'm very excited in the unknown.
So Kompai (cheers!) to the interactions and adventures of the next year! The hardest part about making this choice is that I miss all of my family and friends back home. It never gets easier but we all have our own lives to live. Just know I still care about all of you and can't wait to see as many people as I can December 23-January 7th!
The experience here in Japan has forced me to learn a lot about myself. What I like and don't like. Sometimes its good sometimes its bad. Its kind of like trying sushi for the first time. You eat a couple and its like an eye opening explosion of wonderfulness. Then you try that Sea Urchin that just sits in your stomach for a while and you just want it to pass through.
Ultimately, I feel like I've grown a lot in the time I've been here. I don't think I am the same person that I was when I came here. My passions and outlook on many things have changed. Most importantly, my relationship with God has grown. I've basically went from "christian" to Christian. Someday I'd like to be CHRISTIAN but that's still a work in progress. I feel fully confident that God put me in Japan for a reason. It wasn't just to try the sushi either.
There were so many coincidences that led to me even getting this job. Its amazing how little I actually knew about MeySen before going all-in for the job. Then within weeks of being here one of the biggest earthquakes hit right by me and a nuclear meltdown happened two hours away. Many will take that as a sign that its time to get out. When I went back to America, I don't know of a single person there that thought it was a good idea to go back. People were even trying to line up jobs for me. But God had other plans for me, I felt compelled to go back.
Coming back, I was just looking to finish my job and move on. Things went back to normal a lot quicker than expected. Last summer was one of those moments where I had to reflect on it. I was sitting on the ocean at 5AM watching the sunrise. It all kind of hit me, I was sitting in the water that caused so much damage and destruction yet here it was so peaceful. It also made me reflect on my decisions. What if I never came back? Would I have learned how to surf? Would I understand the beauty of seeing the sunrise on the Pacific Ocean or the countless memorable experiences? Many people will think to themselves, well if you never knew you wouldn't care that you missed it.
In choosing to stay here another year, I've realized that's just not how I want to live my life. For me, life is meant to be a verb not a noun. Its something you gotta do. I still have that hunger to explore the world and see all God has to offer. When it comes down to it, I want to say I lived instead of I was alive. Honestly, I don't know when or if I will want to just "settle down". When the time comes, hopefully it will feel right. Its just not in God's plans today. I barely know what I'm doing for next week so I don't have any plans for the next step in my life. BUT I'm very excited in the unknown.
So Kompai (cheers!) to the interactions and adventures of the next year! The hardest part about making this choice is that I miss all of my family and friends back home. It never gets easier but we all have our own lives to live. Just know I still care about all of you and can't wait to see as many people as I can December 23-January 7th!
