“I know I am but summer to your heart, and not the full four seasons of the year.”
― Edna St. Vincent Millay
After spending roughly three months in Louisiana, I temporarily came back to Japan a few days ago. It’s the end of July, the middle of summer heat, and is not an ideal month to make a comeback. Better plan your return in April or even better in fall to avoid the muggy heat. Due to the record-breaking heat wave, it is harder to get through my stay than any other seasons.
My first three months in the U.S. were surely different from what I had expected back in April. Working with locally-hired Americans in the southern state, my impressions towards Americans, in general, have slightly changed than what they used to be. Despite my interactions with Americans throughout my life, I’m not sure how much it changed my relationship with my notion of the country and the idea of living abroad in general.
Having been an expat in the faraway land, I think I have been able to accumulate more self-discerning reflections than I ever had during the past few years, leading to a better understanding of myself. What if I chose to stay in Japan instead of challenging myself in abroad? Not sure, but I’d be deeply regretted not taking the chance.
And It certainly was a rare kind of transitional experience that increased clarity about myself. Since you can’t bring everything you’ve accumulated over your life to abroad, you have to be selective about what to bring and what to leave behind. It is true that going far from home can lead you closer to yourself.
Anyways, now that I’m temporarily come back to my home and am preparing for my 2nd flight to the U.S. Here are photos of my hometown, Yokohama, I photographed on a summer day of July.
