Memories

Hello!
I'm Seisho Komai from the School of Human and Social Sciences.
I’m currently serving as the Vice Director of the Planning Bureau!

Time flies—it’s already summer.
The summer clothes are starting to feel comfortable, and I can hear the chorus of cicadas near my house.

Around this season, memories from my high school days often come flooding back.
It’s the kind of countryside summer that feels so simple, yet nostalgic.

I remember the mountain ridges and rice fields I could see from the classroom windows.
The sound of the train that only came once an hour.
The classroom after school, where we joked around and got scolded for being silly.
Walking along the hot, empty rice field paths while complaining, “There’s nothing here.”

It was a scene completely opposite to the urban landscape I’m living in now, in the Tokyo area.

Back then, things like university admission rates or how modern the school facilities were felt important—but looking back, none of that really mattered.
What truly mattered were those three years filled with laughter, spent doing stupid things with my classmates. Those were such fun times.

“It felt like those days would last forever.”

That’s what we used to think.
And before we knew it, each of us has found our own place, experiencing happiness in our own way.

This year, we’ll finally be attending our coming-of-age ceremony.
I’m really looking forward to going back to my hometown and meeting old friends again.

I’m sure many of you also have memories that come back to you from time to time.
I hope this blog post gives you a moment to reflect on your past while living in the present.