My Life, The Country Song

You know that joke about American country music:
Q -What do you get if you play a country song backwards?
A - You get your job back, you get your house back, you get your boyfriend back, etc.

Well this weekend my life turned into that country song. Everything that could go wrong seemed to.

Most importantly, I received two separate pieces of devastating news from home regarding a great-uncle and a cousin. It was awful. I can only write this fact bluntly in the hopes that putting pen to paper (or cursor to blogpage, as it were) will somehow make it more manageable. The reality is that since I've come to Japan I've had five family members siezed by life-threatening illnesses. How is that even possible?

Saturday progressed into a random series of communication breakdowns and hectic appointments with friends as well as a large project gone terribly awry. Just when I was good and raw from all the failure and probable shock I received a stone-cold, old-school DISMISSAL from a person I barely know (always pleasant, eh, but even more so when there are language challenges to complicate the moment).

Let this be a lesson to you...NEVER EVER say aloud the following words: "Nothing else could possibly go wrong." Because it will. And it did. On the way to meet R at the train station I experienced not one but TWO car breakdowns. Its a long story. You probably wouldn't even believe it if it weren't for the fact that I have two friends who saw the whole thing. Argh! Little Hikaru (my car) is still in the shop.

Obviously, living abroad can be an extremely lonely, isolated existence. There are days when every moment can seem like a struggle for sanity, especially during times of extreme duress like my weekend. But you know what? I'm the luckiest person in the world. I have the strongest support system in all of Ehime and some of the sweetest and most caring friends I could ever hope for. Here's what went down immediately after that cursed Saturday:

The three lovely ladies in the photo above showed me more kindness and concern than I've experienced in a long time. I would not have made it through Saturday without them.

R sent me a note which honestly made me cry. And I'm not the kind of person who cries. Her words were absolutely thoughtful and beautiful.

Then there were four JET friends who were there for me without even knowing how badly I needed it:

Amake, without even knowing any of the details of what happened to me (was/still is out of town for a CIR meeting), made numerous calls from Tokyo to expedite the shaken (insurance) process in Ikata. Concerned, he contacted me within five minutes of receiving my text about the problem.

GenkiDavid, whom I haven't spoken with in weeks, reminded me about the meaning of friendship. It was pure poetry, D. Especially in light of recent events, I think you are right.

Miscellaneous goodness from Ms. J.G. and Mr. J.P. too.


I am truly a lucky person.