Full Circle

　　Life occasionally generates moments when you feel things have come full circle.

　　I was born in a remote village of Ehime Prefecture in 1958 when 13 years had passed since the devastating end of the Great East-Asian War. As you know, Japan was beaten thoroughly in the war, which came to an end in 1945. At that time, those who were associated with education considered how they could raise Japanese young people who would be responsible for the reconstruction of Japan. In my prefecture, some passionate people and one of the Catholic orders, Ordo fratrum Praedicatorum, established a school for 12-18 year old boys, Aiko Gakuen, in 1952. For your information, "ai" means "love" and "ko" means "light". The principles of the school was based on that of Christianity, evading the post-war brainwashing by MacArthur.
　　Lots of young boys were keen to enter Aiko Gakuen and brilliant boys got together from not only Ehime Prefecture, but all over the country. I was eager to do it, but my primary school was average, and I needed to learn something more and at a higher level for the entrance into Aiko Gakuen in a preliminary school in Matsuyama city, which was 6 hours away from my home by bus and train at that time. The school also wanted to collect up-and-coming boys even from remote regions and provided those boys with one night's stay and meals. I started attending the school every Saturday, leaving my primary school earlier. I crammed from Saturday evening to Sunday evening and went back home late Sunday night. This short trip continued for one year.
　　Nagahama, in which my office is located now, is on the route that I used to move along 40 years ago. I never had even the slightest idea that I would work here after 40 years. It was full circle indeed.
　　Additionally, I had a fantastic reunion with my old friend, who used to get on the same train at his village near Nagahama. He entered a different school from mine, but finally became a surgeon and opened his own clinic in his original village. Our reunion was the first time in 40 years.

(Vocabulary)
come/turn full circle　振り出しに戻る
Ordo fratrum Praedicatorum　ドミニコ会（カトリックの修道会の一つ）
order　修道会
up-and-coming  新進気鋭の, 将来有望な
reunion [C,U] 再会, 再び一緒になること
his reunion with his wife  彼の妻との復縁

Comments

[Shiroi Tora]

That was a great story on two fronts. The first told of your dream to become better and of the sacrifices you had willingly made...it is a story of your inner drive. The second told of memories kept and revisited...a way to lead a richer life. You have a life that, I am sure, is filled with great memories.

Many people wish to avoid many of the memories of their past...due to shame. As memories are our way of measuring life...to have fewer memories means to have had a shorter life...a less fulfilling one.