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Ryoichi and Yayoi Suzuki interview, 4/4 (Life planning for the future)
A stapler left behind
You couldn't go and check your house?
On the 8th day after the quake, while we were still staying in a school gym...
...my wife went with a neighbor to see our houses.
Many houses were swept away. Above all, I realized what it 's like when a whole town disappears.
The landscape had completely changed. Only house foundations remained intact. All that was above them had gone.
The houses that survived had shattered windows and many stood slanted. It was awful.
I asked, "What is it like?" She said, "It smelled nasty." Yes, it stunk.
She also said our house had gone.
As PCs were installed in the gym, I searched for the location of my house on Google search engine.
I found a roof that was still standing like this. I said "You're wrong. A roof is left."
He yelled at me "I see a roof left."
I went to my house and found nothing left. But, as I was yelled at so harshly, I became less sure...
...I wondered, "Did I see a different house?".
The landscape had totally changed, so you couldn't identify it.
I recalled the scene and was convinced I was right. But he shouted "A roof survived."
So we set out for our house.
I found the town was devastated. I thought all had gone, too.
We just wanted to check our roof but it wasn't easy to get there. Apart from the main streets there was tons of debris strewn everywhere.
Arriving there, I found nothing. What I saw on Google was the flattened roof of my neighbor's house.
My neighbor's house had partially collapsed. The first floor was wiped out and the second floor fell straight down.
It was so close to ours that I mistook the roof for my own house's roof.
My wife and I sighed, knowing it wasn 't our roof.
Looking around the remnants of our house, I found a stapler with the name of "Ryoichi Suzuki".
This is the stapler. Plates and everything else had gone. Only this was left.
I found it on the foundation in the backyard.
I thought this is mine because of the name on it.
Oh, my god. I should treasure it. I immediately washed it with water and oiled it.
This meant something to me, as if a god warns me to refrain from talking too much.
About life in the future
How do you look upon your future?
As I say to anyone, I have some plans. The first briefing session will be held by the city government on August 23rd.
They will tell us what to do with our land and houses at the briefing at 7 p.m. on 23rd.
I think the city government intends to collect what was reported by TV or news media and present it before us.
As government policies take shape, I should examine in which direction they will go.
Based on them, I will decide in which direction to pursue our lives. Now I have some plans.
What are they?
One option is buying a camping car so that we can flexibly move anywhere, either a cold place or warm place.
Second, go abroad. Let's say Chiang Mai, Thailand. Because there is a Japanese town.
Since we live off a pension and prices in Chiang Mai are less than half of those in Japan, we can hire maids...
...and enjoy an affluent life there.
It doesn't mean we live there permanently but temporarily.
We will return Japan at least once a year.
These are my dreams.
It's wonderful. A-ha-ha.
Another is Kleingarten, a kind of activity conducted by NPOs in Germany.
They open farmlands in the mountains or highlands of Japan where they teach participants rice planting and farm work.
And they lend participants a house.
There are gathering places where participants can learn culture lessons.
Rent fee costs only 30,000yen per month.
We can learn farm work. Going there and starting a new life might be another option.
Ultimately, I need neither my house nor my land.
Because I'm not young. I'm not obsessed with material things at all.
An alternative is renting a house. If a rented house was damaged, a landowner is responsible for it.
If I own a house, I have to fix it up every 5 or 10 years. Fixing the roof, eradicating white ants and so on.
If a rental house is swept away, it's the landowner's responsibility.
What matters most is our lives are protected.
I have no materialistic desires. I will neither build a house nor own land.
Renting a house is enough for me.
I sincerely hope that they will come up with plans at the briefing on the 23rd.
I'm 69 years old. These 2 years in a temporary house are very important for me.
I have to be healthy, otherwise my dream won 't be achievable.
Therefore I 'm asking the Japanese government, Miyagi prefecture, Sendai city, and the ward offices to respond quickly.
What do you think, Yayoi-san?
Yayoi-san, what do you think?
- I agree with him. - Really?
It is our second life. Why not have a different life?
As we owned a house, we couldn't leave it for a month, three months or a year.
Since we don't need to care for it, we should live an enjoyable life. We collect information from our friends.
A new bond
Our house was swept away and we lost our land.
But I realize human networks have improved.
If our house had not been washed away and we would have stayed here, we would have no chance to talk with Dr. Arai.
We often have a chat with Florence, too. We are really glad that we have met you.
We are an old couple. We collected what we wanted for our house and lived in Arahama.
We didn't need much. We were satisfied with our life.
But encountering unexpected events made us consider living a different life.
It's a bold decision. Amazing.
Losing everything makes people like us.
Indeed. Only this stapler is left with us.
I found an answer. This stapler links one person to another and enhances the chain.
Perhaps god urges me to bridge ties among people as opposed to keeping my mouth shut.