Taking things for granted

For the longest time, I do not think of Japan – the country that took care of me for more than two years. Just recently, however, I find myself longing for everything that is Japanese. I find this weird because when I was living in Tokyo, I took everything for granted.

I miss Barno – the Uzbek who stood by me through thick and thin. I know I could never have chosen a better roommate. I miss her sweet smile that reassured me everything was going to be alright. Heck, yesterday when my brother complained about feeling ill, I readily prepared the chicken soup that she taught me to cook. I suddenly found myself in tears. I never knew I would miss her this much. Younger than me by five years, she was nevertheless mature for her age. She taught me a lot of things – mostly positive ones. Of course, this is apart from the lessons on russian communism and genghis khan's reign over the asian peninsula that she would intermittently hold. I remember admiring her inner strength in the face of her personal problems. I also fondly recall how she would put make-up on my face; complaining even of my disinterest on things that a woman uses on her face. I miss her so much it’s painful. At this point when I am teetering between happiness and sadness, I miss her laughter and the way she would assure me that things would eventually turn out right. If only Uzbekistan is near….

I miss our apartment in Kodaira City. I miss the coziness of my room…the place that gave me solace and sanctuary in my stay in Tokyo. I remember spending most of my time reading tons of books and watching hundreds of movies inside my tatami room. I even miss watching those Japanese melodrama on television. Oh how I love the smell of my tatami floor! I miss my futon…I miss our huge kitchen. God, I miss even our automatic washing machine. When I was still living there, I would always look forward to going home from school. Our apartment always beckoned. It’s warm and cozy and simply beautiful…despite being peppered with stuff from Y100 shops.

I miss using my bicycle. In Tokyo, riding the bike is a way of life. It is a way of life that I so dearly miss. I did bring my bicycle to manila but since its arrival, it has been kept in my storage room upstairs. I haven’t been able to use it for fear of being side-swept by a motor vehicle with an unscrupulous driver. I vividly remember boring afternoons that would find me riding my bike around my peaceful and beautiful neighborhood. In a fit of adventurism, I would even bike for nearly three hours, leisurely spanning 20 kilometers in a day. I would do this especially during spring when the sweet and fresh smell of leaves and trees and flowers is permeating the air. Hmmm….I miss my biking days.

I miss salmon. A self-confessed seafood addict, the first thing that I missed when I came home is the cheap slices of salmon in Japan. My God, Yoshinoya there served the cheapest but yummiest salmon steak I have ever tasted in my life. I remember Barno would often request that I cook salmon and shrimp sinigang which she really craved a lot. I would usually indulge her during cold days when I needed something to warm me up inside. But Barno loved cold sinigang. Our perennial dispute was whether to reheat or refrigerate the soup of the sinigang. I loved it hot, she loved it cold. Oh…but those were the good ol’ days.

These really are just of the very few things I took for granted because they had become a way of life for two years. It is only now that I feel so far away from these beautiful things that I realize how special they had been. Then again, I know one day I’ll be able to experience them again.

Japan, I definitely will go back to your arms…if only to temporarily rekindle the embers that have been slightly diminished by time.