Dear mom

Dear mom,

By the time you read this I will be on a plane to Australia.

I know it will come as a surprise, and I must say sorry for telling you I went to a friends place. It was a lie. I had packed my bag last night and hid it and I had been planning this for the last few months.

I know you love me very much, that’s why I need to be honest with you. This last year of school has been a very difficult one for me. To the point I had oftentimes contemplated suicide.

I hid it very well and only cried at night when I was alone. But it came a time when I couldn’t hide it anymore so I started looking for ways to escape.

I checked the internet and found a support group for people my age who were feeling the same way. I also found many of them had found ways to escape the suffocating realities of Japanese society.

Some had gone to the US, some to England, New Zealand or Australia. Australia seemed to be the easiest one. So I contacted an organization that helps Japanese young people find suitable employers in Australia.

Don’t worry about me. I was able to save around 3000 USD working part-time at the bakery for the last 6 months. It was enough for the ticket and the first few weeks before I find a job. Many young Japanese work on the farms and it seems there are a lot of jobs there for me to choose from.

I hope you can understand me.

It is something I need to do.

I will write you emails every chance I have and I will call you also.

Love you,

Yukari

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