THE WHOLE STORY
2021 ISLAND LIFE
In October 2019, we started a newlywed life in Tokyo.
We both had steady careers and got along well with each other.
But in the near future, she might need to take a leave when we have kids, and I will need more promotion to feed them—.
I believed that it’s my duty to maintain a family as a husband and she also believed that a wife should follow after her husband.
Wait.
Something is wrong.
Do we really want each other to play those stereotyped gender roles?
But things went on because “that’s how it is.”
Just after we reserved our wedding hall, COVID-19 upset everything, for better or worse.
Witnessing the disturbance of panic buyers rushing into grocery stores, I inevitably realized how fragile the seemingly immaculate urban life is.
The ground is already tumbling down, but are we still going to build our future on it?
That’s when I asked my wife if we would leave Tokyo or not.
Not knowing where the right path was, we were totally lost in communication at first.
But after thorough discussion over career, money, and the definition of safety or happiness, we finally decided to leave our comfort zone and devote at least 3 years to redesigning our lifestyle before settling down somewhere.
It surely wasn't an easy decision to make, but we assured each other that it wouldn't really be a risk to run a risk but to run away from it.
Then, we moved to a remote island in Shimane as the first step with a view to doing what we couldn't in the city—to live within the local community and experience a self-sufficient life.
After 3 days of road trip, we gingerly set our feet on a strange land.
While nothing was familiar to us, only the refreshing touch of the sea breeze tenderly welcomed our migration.
Though our island life began full of anxiety, we gradually learned how to deal with inconveniences thanks to the warm support from locals.
And throughout one year, we tried a wide variety of things we'd never imagined, which surely broadened our horizons.
2022 NOMAD LIFE
Stay or leave—.
Another spring was almost there.
But we haven't made up our minds yet.
If we stay on the island, we could possibly be blessed with children and be a part of this island's future.
But if we leave, we could earn opportunities to try different types of life for another year or two.
After a few months of consideration, we happened to find a subscription service for housing, which enabled us to stay at shared residences all around Japan.
—How would every day look like if we move around with the fewest belongings while sharing our life with people we just met on the day?
This time, we could reach a consensus far easier than before, since we had already got used to being off the beaten track and forging our original path.
Be nomads.
That's our next voyage to sail on.
So, as soon as we decided, we gave away most of our things to limit our belongings to just one suitcase and one backpack for each.
We weren't sure if they're enough or not at first, but we gradually learned that we don't need to own that much things when we can share them with others.
Since then, we have traveled around the west half of Japan in a year and got acquainted with over 100 amazing people.
One friend started to surf at the age of 70, another one traveled around with her husband and babies on maternity leave, and the other friend even climbed Mr. Everest simply because he wanted to have a try.
Our established image of life course exploded every time we listened to their mind-blowing life stories.
And those unexpected encounters eventually made us realize our long-time ambitions.
CROUCHING FOR A LEAP
2023
Sometimes, it means too much to someone to start out what one truly loves.
My wife has dreamed of working in the field of childcare, and I've always wanted to be a photographer.
But we weren’t confident enough before we set out on our journey.
Through two years of tremendous adventures, we were exposed to a diverse collection of lifestyles which inspired our courage and enthusiasm.
This year, after 15 years of hesitation, my wife eventually made up her mind to embark on a career as a nursery teacher.
And she is currently taking a diploma course at a vocational college to learn about Montessori method by which she is deeply impressed.
I also decided to take a chance on something I've never done with my photographs.
And that's how this story was made.
Two years ago, I was devastated by the pressure of patriarchal responsibility to provide for my family.
And my wife underrated herself too much to unleash her full potential to build her own career.
But after few years of wandering, we realized that we never need to deceive ourselves.
We never know which way we will proceed next.
But we definitely feel much more connected to each other and we will keep on enjoying the new chapter of our story.
We'd be really glad if we could offer a little bit of light to you and your life.