Nights in Japan like this I will remember for years to come and will look back on with fondness.

It sometimes seems strange to be living away from the home that I know. Often I feel like I'm living in a non-existent world, and I think of Japan as some sort of alternate universe. But it hits me at times that Japan is a real place. People live actual lives here, they work here, and they will die here. They have been here before I came and they will be here after I leave. I don't understand how some people consider their time in Japan (or anywhere abroad) as "putting life on hold" and/or they talk about post-Japan life as returning to "the real world." Folks, you are not putting a one or two or three year pause in your life; you are living! And you are living life to the fullest! Japan is the real world. Everywhere is the real world. When you do leave Japan, whenever that shall be, may you forever have a broader understanding of the "real world." Thank God for expanding my scope and perspective.