Going the Extra Mile

Last Monday, I walked out of my apartment and checked the mailbox. In the box, there was a notice that an attempt to deliver a package had occurred the day before. (I could tell this much because the time of the delivery had been clearly designated at the top of the notice.) However, most of the notice was in Kanji - the alphabet with which I am least familiar - so I was unable to decipher most of the details. At the time I picked up the notice, I was late for an appointment, so I continued on, leaving my translation attempt for later.

Fifteen minutes later, I met Tetsuro Yasunaga and his girlfriend, Junko, in my Shinagawa neighborhood for lunch. This provided the occasion for detailing the "Backyard Project" to Tetsuro and - to my considerable happiness - he accepted the invitation and is now the third artist onboard for this endeavor! I just hope I am not making Tetsuro too busy, as this now becomes another of his many projects (these projects were covered in an earlier post.)

After lunch, I showed Tetsuro and Junko the notice that I had received in my mailbox. Tetsuro read it and informed me that the package was being held for me at the Takanawa Post Office, which was just down the street, a bit, from the site of our lunch. He and Junko offered to walk with me there. I knew that this was a busy day for each of them and told them that this gesture was unnecessary. However, they insisted, and we began walking. It turned out that the Post Office was a mile away! I probably would have never found it without their help. Yet another example of the kindness and concern that I have routinely encountered in Japan. This is one of the many things that makes it so hard to leave here...

(Note to Tetsuro: if you are reading this, forgive me -I forgot to take a new photo of you and Junko! Instead, I had to go into my archives to find a photo of you. I'll try to make this up to you, next time. And, thanks for the great walk to the Post Office!)