Hello!
The lockdown is prolonging in New York and as I mentioned, I tried to make this lockdown something positive.
First of all, I renewed my website. If you are reading this in my old website, please click here.
I was asking updating and management of the website to my web master in Japan though I wanted to make it simple.
The new website is as the same as the old one, in the sense that it is bilingual of Japanese and English. And click here to go to English blog for columns.
I always wanted to make YouTube video so I finally did. I am not a computer person so it was a little challenge though thanks for the technology, I think it is amazing!
This YouTube channel is also bilingual of Japanese and English and click here to go to English video.
This is fruits of lockdown too because I wouldn't have made it if there was no lockdown.
Go to the channel from here.
I published two books as one in Japan and one in the US. I don't have a ghost writer or anything so I wrote those books.
For English one, I am especially thankful to my editor. Even Japanese one, editing made my writing amazing too.
Thank you so much!
Anyway I wrote my first book when people told me that I should write a book or speak about my practice and methods.
I didn't have a dream to be a writer or publish a book but it just happened within a few months since I started writing a book.
My Japanese publisher, Bungeisha was amazing and I am forever thankful.
After the Japanese book, I started being asked if there was an English book and I started thinking about maybe make E-book or something then.
In the kind of timing, I got a email from a publisher about publishing an English book in the US.
I believe that there is no co-incidence in this world and my book publishing is one of those things, meant to be.
By the way, I am a professional writer in the sense, however I don't read so much. I am more like visual person in the sense.
When I check a recipe for cooking, I'd rather go to YouTube.
That is why I wanted to make a video for those people who are like me. I am glad that I made it and thankful to lockdown too.
I took the photo too and hope that you find it interesting!
Anyway I went to Starbucks yesterday once in a while. We can't get inside the store though they were accepting on-line orders and pick ups.
There was a line for pick ups and I literally made an order in front of the store. And probably I had to wait for 15 minutes there.
While I was waiting, people start yelling and stressful situation there. Seemed like they made a mistake on my order and delayed other orders but the waiting was long.
I posted Instagram about this experience so click here to go to the post.
After the Starbucks, we went to the park. I was surprised that so many people were there though we could practice "social distance" anyway so I was relieved.
However there was protesting demonstration in front of the park and there was no way to take social distance in the place at all.
It was the racial protesting there.
As I say, I don't watch news so much because I don't feel positive or good to watch it anyway.
In the news, significant events are picked up, something like people want to watch and attract attention or interests.
Media wants to sell the newspapers and wants to raise traffic in the Internet so they prefer to pick up something shocking or amazing.
People tell me if it is ok for me not to pay attention what is happening in the world. Because news run anything happening in the world.
So many things happening in this world, countless things in the world. Babies are born or raining or anything ordinary is not picked up by media.
Why don't they pick up ordinary stuff ? Because probably they are not so interesting or amazing.
As I mentioned, media worthy topics should be shocking or anything so rare.
Rare means nothing ordinary. That is why media will pick up.
In the other words, ordinary events are vast and rare things are only a few because "only a few" makes anything rare.
The more exotic or far from ordinary means more media worthy.
Yes, news picks up anything extra ordinary but not anything ordinarily happening in this world.
However media does great jobs to shock us and scare us and we tend to think that those are happening a lot in this world.
However again, rare things become news and they are definitely minority.
Media can change our values sometimes a lot. Fear makes us change. Even though something terrible rarely happens to us.
However news don't feel us in the way. News feel us something terrible happens to us a lot.
In my 20's when I lived in Tokyo, a young girl got killed in Tokyo and my mother called me to check me if I was ok.
In the event of 911, a lot of people thought we were all dead or in serious trouble because of the media.
Right after the World Trade Center went down, I was walking to my ex-husband's grandmother's in uptown.
There was no train so we walked and saw people without knowing what happened in the downtown was doing sun bathing in the park.
Please don't get me wrong. We need news and media. I can't walk around without mask in this lockdown because I don't watch news.
However we should know how media works on us and too much watching wouldn't help us to stay positive at all.
We should know what is happening in this world are not only tragic or sad. So many wonderful things are happening in this world.
In this kind of dififcult situation, we still care each other, we can take a nap under a tree makes us feel amazing in the sunny day.
I can make personal achievement in this lockdown too and so as others.
Yes, media doesn't cover at all everything happening in this world at all. Media covers only something rare.
Let us pay attention to so many wonderful things happening around us! Because those are really the things happening in this world!!
We tend to think that media topics are only things happening in this world. Of course. That is perception we get in this media world.
When you pay attention to something, it would make your world. As you got a baby, your baby is going to be your world.
When you fall in love, your romantic partner will be your world.
If you pay attention to something wonderful, your world would feel like wonderful place.
That is about perception and the way you look at the world and you can change your perception too!
One more thing. Is it only me ? and I hope not... I am offended with the phrase of "black lives matter."
If someone tells me "Mitsu, your life matters." then in a good day, I will say, "I know it but thanks for telling me."
However in ordinary days, I could feel pretty offended and almost insulted.
If on bad days, "why are you telling me? get lost." or I could give a bad look and leave speechless.
It is pretty true any life matters.... Shouting and yelling something very principle like that feels uncomfortable.
That is another reason why I avoid the protesting. Not only that, but also we are at risk of virus when we get together like that too.
I'd understand that we are all frustrated and want to have some target or outlet that we can come at.
Psychologically it is definitely understandable.
However I feel not so right about it.
May the force be with you in this lockdown, stay healthy and peace in your mind!
Have a wonderful day!
