恩送り
昨日懐かしい友達が僕の家を訪ねてきた。
彼と会うのは4年ぶりぐらい。彼とは19歳の時に一緒に無人島生活をした仲だ。
ワイルドでアウトドアな彼はきちっとしたスーツを着てやってきた。
僕の中の彼のイメージは波乱万丈な人生を歩むバックパッカーだ。
彼と初めてあったのは18歳の時、福岡でヒッチハイクをしていたら拾ってくれたのがキッカケだ。その時の彼はちょうど世界一周から帰ってきたばっかりで、僕に様々なワクワクする話をしてくれた。そして福岡のちょーおいしい天ぷら屋さんに連れていってくれて、僕を家に泊めさせてくれた。
その話の中で彼は僕に大切な考え方を教えてくれた。
こんな話になった。
僕、ヒッチハイクで旅をしていますけど、これはただ皆に協力してもらってるだけで何もすごくない。なのに出会う人みんな応援してくれて、沢山ご飯を食べさせてくれて、家に泊めさせてくれたりする。僕はただ旅をしているだけで、何の特技もないし、返せるものが何にもないんです。
すると彼はこういった。
俺も世界一周してきて沢山の人に出会って、ビックリするぐらい優しくされたけど、名前さえも知らない人が沢山いる。こんな旅の忙しい出会いと別れの中で、その人に恩を返すなんて無理だよ。だから俺はこれから出会う人たちに自分が出来ることをしてあげてる。それでいいんだよ。だから俺にもなにも返さなくていいから、ハルキがこれから出会う人たちにこの恩を送ってあげて。
誰かから受け取った恩は、他の人に送ってあげればいいんですね！
そして今回3回目の再会を果たした。
僕は今熊本で古民家生活をしている。
家を失った友達も一緒だ。（笑）
僕の状況を見て彼は言った。
恩送りやね。俺が6年前に言ったことじゃん。
ちゃんと出来てるね。成長したな。
ありがとうございました。
What remains when you die is not what you have gained, but what you have given.
A backpacker travels around the world with only one bag.
When we are alive, we want many things.
We want to own a lot of things.We want to own many things, as if it is our status.It seems like we need a lot of things to survive.
Backpackers have to travel with less luggage which is why I am good at figuring out what is necessary for me.
A friend of mine, who spent ten years cycling around the world, told me that for a person to live for ten years, they only need as much luggage as they can carry on their bicycle. He seemed so happy and joyful. I learned a new value of happiness from him.
What is truly important to you?
When I graduated from high school and started traveling, my small backpack was filled with carefully selected things that were truly important to me.
I tried being alone once.This meant letting go of my position, honor, friendships, and family, and going to a completely unknown place with just myself and this one bag.
I have learned that the things that really matter to me are surprisingly few.There was a time when I lost the money that I thought was so important.There were times when I lost my cell phone.Still, I managed to come through.
Many people seem to be desperate to own better things.Do those things really make that person happy?
"Everything is just a tool to polish my soul."
These are the words of a samurai. I like this quote.You can't take money or status with you to the afterlife.Everything is borrowed from someone else.
I want to be a person who can think about what I can do for the people in front of me rather than what I can get for myself. I want to think about how I can have a positive impact on the people in front of me.
I know what is really important to me because I have given it all away once and now, I only have the "little things" that are really important to me.
Thank you for everything.
"What will be left of you when you die is not what you got, but what you gave to someone else."
Let's laugh. The mirror does not laugh before you.
What an old man I met at a hot spring in Nagano Prefecture taught me.
When I was a teenager, I was hitchhiking all over Japan.During my trip, I visited a hot spring deep in the mountains of Nagano Prefecture.While I was in the hot spring, I was alone with an old man of about 70 years old, and we talked about various things.
In my conversation with him, there is a line of his that I still remember.
I told him that I was traveling and asked him about his life.
He said, "Life is about being kind to others."
Life is about being kind to people. You have to treat people with a smile. There are many difficult things in life. Getting the best grades, being the fastest runner, joining a prestigious company, or becoming a millionaire, not everyone can do those things. But anyone can smile. It doesn't matter if you are stupid or a slow runner.
Good luck in your life.
I want to be as kind and successful a person as he is before I achieve anything. That's my foundation.
Mount Kinabalu, the highest peak in Southeast Asia
Mount Kinabalu, the highest peak in Southeast Asia that I happened to come across.
When I was 20 years old, I was wandering around Southeast Asia by myself, with no particular destination.
I didn't have any particular place to go, I just visited the places I liked, met people and enjoyed talking to them.I was a backpacker.
I was in a town called Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, waiting for my flight to the Philippines.My flight was a week later, so I was looking for something interesting to do nearby.
At the guesthouse I was staying at, I met a young man from Taiwan.He was very kind and talked to me, who could not speak English.I was listening to him explain in English as hard as I could.
And I was told by him that there is the highest mountain in Southeast Asia about two hours from here.
I love a challenge.I couldn't resist the urge to go.I was desperate to ask how I was going to get there.
This was my first time climbing abroad, so I had no idea what to expect.They say you have to get a written permission from the government to go alone.I had to find a guide or join a tour.
This is when I learned the words "government" and "join".I was such a terrible English speaker at the time.lol.
Then I repeated the words "I want to climb Mount Kinabalu" all over town, gathering information that I could understand from the English that came back, bit by bit.
I got a bus to take and the contact information for the guide.My Taiwanese friends seemed to be surprised at my spirit of challenge.When I'm excited, I can't stop.
I left the guesthouse and got on the bus.There were many other climbers, but my English was not good enough at the time to get good information.
I arrived safely in the mountains and met up with my guide.As the departure was the day after tomorrow, I decided to relax at a small inn at the foot of the mountain.
And then there was something to worry about.It is already cold here at the inn.I was traveling in Malaysia in the middle of summer, so I only have summer clothes.
Mount Kinabalu is 4,095m above sea level.The temperature is well below freezing.And I don't even have climbing shoes.I'd have to wear sandals or sneakers.There were all sorts of problems.
The night before we left, a miracle happened.A Japanese guy came to stay at the inn I was staying at.He was cycling around the world.It would be a long story to introduce him, so I'll tell you about him another time.
He lent me some great climbing equipment that had endured the harshest conditions around the world.If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have been able to climb this mountain.And I was able to enjoy the Malaysian wilderness and the first time I had ever been at an altitude of over 4000 meters.
It was a very wonderful experience.
If you are ever in Malaysia, you should try Mount Kinabalu.
It's a special day, a birthday.
I left my parents' house the day after my high school graduation and began my journey.
That alone was enough of a challenge for me, but I had decided to take on one big challenge a year.A special day to take on that challenge is my birthday.
The first birthday of my journey, my 19th birthday, was at the top of Mount Fuji.This was the first time I climbed Mount Fuji.I saw the best sunrise and started the best year of my life.
On my 20th birthday, I was in the mountains again.I was climbing Yarigatake, the most difficult peak in the Japanese Alps.And I made it to the top.I had the best birthday ever, starting from the top of Yarigatake.
And my 21st birthday.I was in Africa.This is one of the biggest challenges of my life.I was climbing Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain on the African continent, at 5895 meters. It was cold and hard climbing.
Two hundred meters before the summit, I contracted severe altitude sickness and was unable to walk on my own.
I was rescued by the guides.And I was inconvenienced by so many people.
There was a lot for me to learn there.
It was a birthday I will never forget.
On the day I descended the mountain, everyone at the inn held a birthday party for me.It was a very nice birthday.
I was 22 years old.I've been working quietly in my hometown.I was busy and having fun setting up a new campground and guesthouse.
23 years old.I was working as the shop manager of a guesthouse and cafe on a small island called Naoshima in the Seto Inland Sea.
My birthday passed before I knew it during the busy summer months.
And I'm almost 24 years old.This year I had planned to spend my birthday in the Canadian Rocky Mountains.But due to the coronavirus, it was cancelled.
I want to be as excited again as I was a few years ago.I want to take on a tremendous challenge.The passion never goes away.I will always be ready for any opportunity that appears, even for a moment.
If you lived the same traveling lifestyle as I do, how would you like to spend your birthday?
What's the best way for you to celebrate your birthday?
Where do you spend your time, with whom and what do you do?
Live your one life with no regrets.
I don't want my life to be over in a flash.
I want to live a life that will be remembered.
I want to be an interesting person with many experiences and many memories.
I want to live the best life I can.
Why did I start traveling?
I started traveling after graduating from high school, leaving my parents' house.
I didn't have enough money, so I started hitchhiking all over Japan.
Then, when I was 19 years old, I visited a foreign country for the first time.The first foreign country I visited was Thailand.It was my first time traveling abroad by myself and I was very nervous.
I left home and visited many different places, and was helped by many kind people.
I worked in many different places.I did whatever I could do.
I wanted to help someone else because so many people had helped me.
Eventually I got used to traveling around the world on my own, and I started to visit the countries I wanted to visit with ease.
Three years after my trip, I came back to my hometown.
I set up a campground and guesthouse in my hometown.
It was a lot of fun to entertain visitors from all over the world.
In Japan, people generally think that after graduating from high school, you either go to college or get a job.
In Japan, they can teach you how to get hired well, but they can't teach you how to build a company.
In Japan, there is still a strong belief that once you get a job, you do it for life.
As a high school student, I had a lot of questions.
I didn't know anything about it.I needed to meet more people, talk more, and learn more.
I think that what my teachers and family members tell me is not the right answer.
I want to see many different worlds.I want to have different experiences.I want to learn a lot.I want to know more.I want to be stronger.What is the world?What is the meaning of life?
I set out on a journey to find the answers to these questions.
