In all of history there has always been two sides to a story, the planned and the unplanned. This story is of the second kind, and through it you find what life can be like when the mind is freed from the process, and the heart given the reigns.
Lets begin at the beginning, oddly enough this is not where Id choose to start if it were left solely up to me, more on that later, but regardless, the beginning must suffice, for now…
Long ago, before the histories that we know today, there were people all over our world who spoke a common tongue, though they did not look the same by far, actually they were more different from each other then than we are from any other people today. But that didn’t matter as much as their common goal, which was to build a monument to their worthiness to the Gods, who, in their hubris, believed they could create a living shadow to serve them without question, containing it forever within a comfortable prison. But it was not to be.
When their world suddenly ended, only islands of their once great empire remained, and not long after that even those remnants were wiped clean by the tides of time. In the mists of myth and memory their story lives on in each of us, and the cultures we were brought up in, though fractured through a hopelessly broken lens.
Today, Japan rests on the edge of one such island, a legacy from the long ago, Though its people are many times removed, it matters little, for the land itself infused with powers unseen, has brought the Japanese people power and ability, lending them strength and tenacity, unmatched by most of the people living today.
It isn’t simply the land that lends itself towards higher aspiration, nor the sea which brings from every corner of the world the new and fantastic, but a culmination of all these and more. If you were to spend any amount of time studying Japanese Lore and the megalithic structures found within its boarders, both on the land and beneath the sea, one would have to conclude that it is special in so many ways, not at the face value of the their legends and legends, but in how they live because of them.
My journey to Japan first began in 1994 when I was introduced to one of its most iconic creations in the modern day, I’m speaking of course about Nintendo and its literally game changing Game Boy handheld system. It was my first video game console, one that was already 5 years old when I got it at a flee market in San Diego with my dad, whom I begged to buy for me, I think they asked for $30 but my dad talked them down to $20, and through it I discovered the insanely rich and captivating world of Zelda.
Two years later when we moved to Monterey I was introduced to the second most icon of Japans creations, Godzilla. What did you think I was going to say, sushi? You know that only means rice with vinegar right? Funny how off our beliefs are about the meaning of things, more on that later too.
My mothers workplace was filled with interesting people, cultured and full of passion for art, one such man was Bill, and Bill loved Japan, still does in fact, he goes there every year. It was he who first introduced me to the giant fire breathing lizard and its many adversaries, it was he who showed me what utter attention to detail, both visual and intellectual could accomplish, as the Japanese had with their creative works.
Around 1997, when Bill thought I was old enough, he told me about Akira, the 1988 anime masterpiece, which was in fact the first anime to ever be seen in American theaters. Now, if you’ve seen this film, which you surely haven’t, you’d know what a doozy it is, and how impressionable minds might forever be altered by its viewing. Such was the case not only for me, but for all my closest friends, for they practically lived at my house growing up. From that moment forward our lives would never be the same, and a slew of Japanese influences would come to shape who we were in ways which set us apart from everyone else in our age group.
Not only did our minds flower, but too our hearts, for no one does spirit dramas better than the Japanese. Can you say Spirited Away? or Princess Mononoke? Have you ever heard of Naruto, or One Piece? Even if you haven’t, you must know of the unique flavor of culture the Japanese possess. Not only are they spiritualists by their religion, Shinto, the worship of nature, but their language, writing and even the way they eat all brings many magnitudes of meaning and subtlety to the fore. Like much of their culture, one interprets on their own the vast majority of what is said and done, for only in the most westernized films can you find anything as blatant and crude as the way most Americans interact.
Fast forward 10 years and I found myself in Japan for the first time, on vacation from my studies abroad in South Korea. Which was a real trip for me since I’d never have believed Id go to Korea before I went to Japan. All I knew about Korea was that some of my dads buddies had fought there in the war, and they were generally more fierce and full of hatred for Asians than anyone else, even the world war 2 veterans who fought in the Pacific against the Japanese like my grand dad did in the Navy.
Due to my travel limitations I was only there a total of 4 days, which was abysmally short, and not even enough to take a breather and get a real sense of anything. All the same I brought some things home with me, each one I still use today, almost 20 years later.
So where does that leave us now? Well, you might not believe it, but it leaves us waiting for the next episode…
See you soon!