Welcome To Japan
On December 31st, 2019, at 4:45 p.m. local time, I got off my plane in Tokyo. I had been traveling for about 16 and 1/2 hours. I asked Siri what time it was in Columbus, and she replied with 2:45 a.m. the same day. Then I asked what time it was in Colorado, as Arden was living there; 12:45 a.m. Immediately, I felt a pang of homesickness. 2020 was a mere 7 hours away, and yet my friends and family still had the entirety of New Year's Eve to go through. In other words, I would spend the first day of the year alone due to time displacement. So this is how Steve Rogers felt, I thought. Before I could process my thoughts farther I got a call from Renee. With her guidance, I made it to baggage claim and eventually to arrivals, where she picked me up.
We hugged, she helped me get my bags into her car, and we began driving to Minamiwa, a small city just outside Tokyo, where Renee and her family lived. On the hour-long drive, Renee asked me how I was feeling with my fluency in the Japanese language. I told her I felt pretty confident, but that I'm more of a hands-on learner. “Well, the reason I asked,” she said, “Is because we are having a small gathering to celebrate the New Year tonight. It'll mostly just be my family, but I invited a couple of people who you’ll work with at my school. If you need any help, just let me know.”
When we arrived at her house at about 6:00, I greeted her husband, Rob, and reintroduced myself to her daughters. At about 6:30, her parents, her brother, his wife and kids, and her two co-workers, Ren and Yuca arrived. As soon as they met me, Ren and Yuca started asking me about my life.
“What do you do for fun?” Yuca asked in Japanese.
“I like hiking,” I said to the best of my ability, “and spending time with friends. And I do a lot of writing!”
“What do you write about?” Ren asked.
“I have…” I turned to Renee and asked in English, “How do you say autism?”
“Jiheisho,” Renee said to my new friends.
I continued in Japanese, “Yes, ‘Jiheisho,’ And I have a blog about my adult life which I'm about to turn into a podcast, and I'm almost done writing my first book about my childhood! Renee's actually in it!”
When I said her name, Ren and Yuka looked at me, confused. “Who?” they both asked.
Then Renee jumped in and explained that “Renee” was her American name. Her real name was Mori Hibiki. I felt confused and, honestly, a little guilty that I didn't know that about her. She then told me, in English, “Don't feel like you need to just start calling me my birth name. It would be weird for me if you did.”
I have always been a picky eater, and while I knew that this would be something I'd have to deal with when I got to Japan, I wanted to be respectful. During this get-together, I had a bit of trouble eating.
“You okay?” Yuka asked.
“I have a bit of an issue with texture, because of my Autism. So I'm just figuring out what to eat.”
“Oh! Do they know?” She asked.
“Yeah, I told umm… Renee… But I want to fully immerse myself while I'm here.”
“Oh,” Yuka said, “Take your time, I promise no one will be offended!”
I knew she was right, but I still felt really awkward. Even back home, I’d always felt uncomfortable advocating for myself when it came to food in other people's homes. It just felt completely rude in another culture. But I was happy that Yuka was making me feel more comfortable and not guilty about it.
To Be Continued…
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