This is my essay.








Recently I got a telephone call from my old friend, whom I have not seen for the last 20 years or so. He said he came back to Tokyo after a long time service at a local city. So he wanted to see me. I said yes and I asked him where we should meet. He said, "Please come to my restaurant." Then I was wondering where he worked. He should be an employee of a famous manufacturing company. He said he was posted as the manager of a restaurant of the subsidiary company. I said that it was so convenient.

The first time when I met him was at a foreign city, where we worked together. We had friendship and we sometimes played golf. However since we went back to Japan, we had no chance to see. We just have sent New Year's cards to each other. He wrote his recent situation on his New Year's card, such as his job, how to improve his golf score, his interest and so on. He was moved from Tokyo Head Office to the branch of a local city about 15 years ago. Since then he has had been doing sales at the branch office. According to his New Year's card, he had written how to tackle with playing golf, which seemed to be his only one hobby. For example, he wrote that the previous year his putting was so weak, therefore he would try to improve it in coming New Year through such and such ways. I felt that as if he was a simple and innocent child who devoted himself into his hobby. Also I was worried whether he sent the same New Year's card to the personnel division staffs of his company.

The day when I met the friend had come. When I arrived by car, He kindly came to see me to my car. Firstly I was surprised to see his hair, which was very black. And that he has still kept very young face. In short, he keeps the youthfulness and he is very healthy in both mentally and physically. On other hand, I have many silver hairs and I have aged as the real age. How unfair the God is!

Since 6:30 pm to 10:00pm, we had told and told about everything, such as family, present job, golf, common friends. When we found it was already restaurant closing time. In the middle of the talk, when he was about to say something bad, he took out his tongue and soon laughed by looking downward. This childish manner has not been changed. Moreover what I was surprised was he was four years senior than I. I had been thinking that he was junior than I by four or five years, thinking his behaviors. He was approaching to retirement age!

Through long talks with him, I found a man's way of life, which was different from us. He was forced to go to a local city, where he had been doing sales job. After 15 years, he was just left like that. On this time he was called back from the local city, he found that the men of synchronous entrance into his company had already either promoted or gone out to some subsidiary companies. In ordinary case, when the employees of company would reach to 50 years or so, they should be classified as below.
(1) A few selected persons who would promote,
(2) Some people who would leave from the company and go to the subsidiary companies or
(3) The most persons who would stay at the company until retirement age. In the course of this, we could observe bitter and sweet various human relations. However surprisingly he seemed to have no interest on such matters, although he is a graduate the famous "W" University. He had just enjoyed playing golf in a local city for quite a long time. Golf seemed to be his life. In another words, he has no carefulness, no consideration or no suitability of his age. I am wondering whether or not he had some adult to whom he should follow as a good model around him when he was a child. I think his character lacks such things. In another words, he is going to the age of retirement with pre-matured situation.

However I think about him again. My opinion is that it is not always bad to live like him. Firstly he has been happy for playing golf. Secondly he needs not to be involved into such a struggle of promotion. He can just concentrate in his own and his family matters. Whereas, I am living such a world that everyone want to promote and to get power. I am also involved into such competition of life. In the course of this competition, I had good or bad experience, such as facing difficult situation, managing to get through dangerous situation, feeling happily to get higher position, etc. But his life is completely different from my world. Therefore I felt even some envy on his life style.

(August 23, 2004)




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Essay of My Wonderful Life

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