During my preparations for study abroad, a major concern of mine was dealing with the social norms and rules of Japan. I became anxious and nervous with the handling of simple tasks and how they would be perceived in a totally different society and social setting. I found myself questioning a lot of the things that I did and how would I be able to explain them to others. It was not until I developed routines and interacted with others that I was able to experience and express myself in Japan.
So what did it look like? Well it started with my expectations of the country and people being debunked as well as myself debunking some expectations of others. For example, I ran into many people who were surprised of me being an American on and off campus. There were not many of us black Americans at KGU and in Japan in general. Also, things that seemed simple to me were always subject to interpretation. Around the time of Easter, the Residence staff put on an Easter egg Hunt for us on-campus students. However, their easter egg hunt was nothing as I imagined and understood it to be (it involved more trivia and less candy than I am accustomed too). And it was at that point, I understood that many things are up for interpretation and can take on different meanings for everyone.
Besides the surface level of expectations and realities like roads and fashion, Japan really showed me how important it is to be open to new things and people. Though somethings challenged my ability to adapt, I believe I developed a bigger sense of empathy for others. Whether it be exchange students in the U.S. or even immigrants, I feel as if my experience opened up new places for me to grow as a human being that I never knew were there.