The story so far? Good on most fronts.
The truth of the matter is that I really would have preferred to stay in Shimane.
I suppose there was a lot of bitterness toward the whole situation that led to me having to leave Shimane in the first place. There had been discussions of me staying on in Izumo in a direct contract situation with the city, but once the job offer came up in Muroran, I was told "Good luck up there!"
So yeah, it wasn't exactly my first choice.
I had a couple of good friends come down from Muroran and visit me the other day, and after showing them around and introducing them to my friends and generally talking about how great life in Shimane is, one of them said:
"That's something that's always bothered me about you: If you loved living here so much, why did you choose to leave?"
A fair question, which deserved a fair answer. Who knows? Maybe at the time, I should have fought harder to have a chance to stay. But being told what I was told kind of feels like a sucker punch to the gut that knocks the wind out of you before knocking you right on your ass. I just didn't have the spirit left to fight for it.
Now with me being back online at home, I've been taking a look at some of my Muroran Chronicles posts, and there's some negativity that seeps through. I think at times I must have been more frustrated with myself than anything else.
But saying that...
While I may wish some things had turned out differently, I don't ever regret moving to Hokkaido.
I had some amazing experiences and met some incredible people while I was there, and those experiences and those friends are things I will cherish for my whole life. And most importantly, it's because of where I was that I'm where I am today.
You have to leave to be able to come back.
Sure, not everything is perfect. I wish I was taking home a little more each month. But I get by and still get to do a lot of the things I enjoy.
I'm officially a licensed teacher over here, and I've just been promoted to full-time teacher from "lecturer".
As a good friend of mine said the other day, "A shiny new raise would have been nice to go with the shiny new title."
Truer words have never been spoken.
My apartment's small, cold in the winter, hot in the summer, and I have to keep the dehumidifier on all year round, but it's home.
The love life is sad as always, but the bars in Matsue are nice, and one of them has Guinness on tap and a very nice fish-and-chips meal on the menu.
I've become quite adept at finding silver linings.
Time and distance can bring things into focus, and well, things all told are pretty good.
