Words cannot describe how grateful I am to be here in this program. Every day was a new; getting close to one another, exploring temples with each other, and experiencing the Japanese culture in person with everyone are some of the moments I will miss the most. Gion Matsuri was a pleasure to watch, seeing everything being put together in the upcoming days of the festival, to watching the floats roll down the street. Seeing the people in the traditional garments and playing the music made me reflect on the previous weeks we’ve spent here. Being able to see the culture in front of you changes your perspective on life and appreciation for it, especially tradition. I felt like I’ve grown in ways I didn’t expect myself to grow. Self awareness has been something I thought I was good at, but after these past weeks, I’ve become more self aware and more confident in my surroundings. I’ve started to slow down in the sense that my mind isn’t like an excited hamster in their hamster wheel but rather slowed down and more connected to nature. I am going to miss everyone here on the program!!
A place where I felt like I could be at one with myself was visiting the Ryoanji Temple. Sitting in the shade and staring at the many rocks, keeping in mind to be zen. My thoughts ran wild, but slowly as time went by, it calmed down. I ended up taking a nap, but once I woke up, all of my worries simply went away.
Through these past weeks, I have learned about Japanese food, writing, language, and gender culture, gaining more knowledge and appreciation for Japan and what it has to offer. Each lesson has helped me gain a better perspective of each topic: Food is treated with respect tying back to Bhuddism; the writing system has come a long way stemming from Chinese characters to a developed system; each generation and respectful regions have their own grammar, words, and phrases; and gender is more categorized than I’ve realized.
I never thought I would change so much in less than a month while here in Japan and on this program. Before I used to be time oriented, shy when it came to meeting others, and closed off. But on the first day, when visiting the KiyoMizu Temple, I unknowingly held out my hand to now one of my dearest friends, Jada, while walking through the pitchdarkness to touch a rock(said to grant you a wish). Typically I’m not the kind to do something like this, but something in me felt like it was meant to be. I think the vibes of the temple that day lead to me to come out of my shell and to show my true personality. When it comes to schedules, I am very time oriented, wanting to follow a checklist throughout the day/week. Ever since we visited the Tori Gates, time felt frozen, like I was walking through history in that exact moment. I began to respect time itself as a gift, letting whatever comes first to happen. I realized how precious time is, especially at my age of 18. Throughout the rest of the program I began to take the time to make sure I fully embraced the Japanese culture and history.
I am very grateful to have been able to attend this program and to learn more about the language and culture I enjoy the most. I am grateful for my family for everything they have done to help me be here today. I am grateful to the friends I had made along the way and will cherise the moments we spent together.
