Foreign Phobic?

Recently I found a program through our city that would allow businesses to apply for funding / grants that would allow you to purchase property, buildings etc to renovate or build on. Living in our city for the last couple of months has made me realize or brought to my attention that there is an abundance of abandoned properties and vacant land. This gave me an idea that I thought i’d pursue or rather thought.

I contacted our real estate agent to see if he could contact that bank and city hall to see what the steps would be to proceed with the program. I wanted to involve him as he has been helping us since we moved and wanted to give him some business. And with this opportunity it was a good chance.

He contacted the city hall, the bank and an association; he found that unfortunately due to my limited Japanese level and foreign status, they would not be willing to work with me or it would be “incredibly difficult to obtain”.

Now, since moving to Japan I have to admit I have been on the strange end of reactions. I personally look Japanese, my name is Japanese and by birth I am Japanese but I am not Japanese, or at least not enough in their eyes.

PLEASE don’t get me wrong, I still love this country more then anything and the opportunities I have gotten from living here have been amazing, to date. And I am grateful to continue to stay in Japan, as long as I can.

BUT with that being said, I’ve never really been the person “on the outs” In Hawaii there is discrimination, etc but rarely towards ones own race. It is a strange, confusing and perhaps sad feeling to feel “no Japanese enough” or at least be told.

Japan has MILLIONS of things to provide people. Innovation, history, culture, traditions etc. but it needs to be a little more accepting to the people of the world.

When the country as a whole can do this; it will truly be paradise.

Many Japanese have started to expand their horizons, leaving the main island to live else where then come back and with the new mentality they bring change or at least move towards it. So i’m sure soon, or in a few years; Japan will truly be paradise.

But this is my feeling. I don’t at this point in my life feel Japanese enough. I need to raise my abilities to conform, to be part of the people I am hereditarily from.

In the end, I do blame myself. I should have prepared better, studied harder and came ready. So my goal is this; to work as hard as I can to become “Japanese”.

So until the next one.