Although it is cold on some days, the graduation ceremony will finally take place this week. The chairs for the current students have been lined up, and practice for the ceremony has begun.
Last Friday, the teachers prepared the venue after school, and the children who stayed behind at the after-school club also helped out.
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
Graduation ceremonies mark the end of nine years of compulsory education. Students move forward on the path they have chosen, pursuing their dreams and goals. In the Japanese textbook for 9th grade students, there is a passage called “In someone else’s place”. This passage allows students to think about the true meaning of being independent, so I would like to introduce an excerpt from it.
In someone else’s place – Seiichi Washida
Have you ever thought, “What do I have that no one else has?” or “What abilities or talents do I have that other people don’t have?”
The question “What am I?” has been asked repeatedly by philosophers and thinkers since ancient times. However, I believe that we are now in an age where not only philosophers and thinkers, but everyone, from teenagers to middle-aged people, across generations, cannot help but ask “What am I?”
The reason for this is that today’s society guarantees greater freedom to individuals than previous generations. A society that idealizes choosing your own life by your own will. A society where you have the potential to become anything you want. It seems like a much more comfortable society than the old feudal system, where individual freedom was severely restricted. However, it is this freedom that brings hardships with it.
A society where you can become anything. To put it the other way around, a person’s worth will be measured by what they have accomplished in life, and what value they have created. A society where a person’s worth is measured by “what they have done” and “what they can do.” In this society, people are constantly asked by others, “What can you do?” and “What is it that only you can do?” At the same time, they must also ask themselves, “What abilities and talents do I have that other people don’t have?” You have to prove to yourself that you are irreplaceable, so that you won’t be told, “There are plenty of people who can replace you,” or “It doesn’t have to be you who is here.” This situation can turn the question of “Who am I?” into a heartbreaking question: “Is it okay for me to be here, even if I’m like this?”
When we are faced with such a question, the painful feeling causes us to seek unconditional affirmation, so to speak, that we should be accepted as we are now. Even if we cannot do something, we yearn so much for someone to affirm us as we are. There is nothing more pathetic and frightening than not knowing that you exist, or being told, “It makes no difference whether you are there or not.” So it is only natural that we would seek someone who will accept our existence without any conditions of what we can or cannot do, someone who will tell us, “You are fine just the way you are.”
However, this can be a bit dangerous. Just as you feel uneasy if there is no one by your side who tells you, “You’re fine just the way you are,” you become a passive being who always wants others to give you meaning and reason for your existence. You can fall into an addiction where you always want others to be interested in you, and you can’t do anything unless they are watching over you.
If we remain passive in this way, we will not be able to solve the various problems we face in life and in society. We need the strength to take them on.
The strength referred to here is often called “Jiritsu (自立)” in today’s society. Please do not misunderstand that “Jiritsu (自立)” does not mean “Dokuritsu(独立).” “Dokuritsu(独立)” is called “independence” in English. It is a word that combines “dependence,” which means “to be dependent,” with “in,” which means negation, and means that you are not in a state of being dependent on someone else.
However, none of us can live alone. There are people who prepare food for us, take care of us when we are sick, deliver our letters, and drive and repair trains. In society, countless people support each other’s lives and activities. Some people may say that if you have money, you can live alone, but even if you have money, it is of no use if there is no system in place to use it, and if there is no one to support that system.
”Jiritsu(自立)” should not be understood as “independence,” which denies “to be dependent,” but rather as “inter-dependence(mutual support),” which adds “inter,” meaning “mutually,” to “to be dependent.” It means being ready to use a network of mutual support with others at any time when you are no longer able to survive on your own due to illness, accident, disaster, etc. That is the true meaning of “Jiritsu(自立)“. It can also be said as not having to bear difficulties alone. Needless to say, since this is a network of “mutual support,” you must also be prepared to support others depending on the time and circumstances, or rather, always emotionally. In other words, you need to be aware of “taking someone else’s place”.
This is probably the original meaning of “taking responsibility.” “Sekinin(責任)” is called “responsibility” in English. It is a word made up of “kotaeru(答える)” meaning “respond”, and “noryoku(能力)”, meaning “ability”, and it means being prepared to respond properly to the appeals or calls of others for help. When we say “Sekinin(責任)” in Japanese, it carries with it a passive image of something that is imposed or forced upon us, but “Sekinin(責任)” is not something that you have to bear alone until the end, and it is not something that is only asked about when you fail at something. Rather, “responsibility” should be a sense of cooperation, of responding to appeals and calls. It should be the foundation of society, with the underlying sense of security that comes from knowing that “if you can’t do it, someone else will do it for you.”
This passage begins with the question, “What is it that only I have?” and may seem difficult to understand because of the many abstract expressions. In the last three years of compulsory education, junior high school students will be working toward independence. This may be a preparation to move from being “supported” to being “supporters.” When faced with various difficulties, unpredictable disasters, or other events that must be confronted, I hope that students will embark on their journey into society equipped with the qualities and abilities to be part of a network of mutual support.
