Fish Tree Tales
Stories from Japan
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
I’ve heard it said that first impressions are made in two seconds. Or one. Instant impressions. Unforgettable impressions. One of the earliest memories I carry around about Japan is wrapped in this idea of first impressions. It was in a music store, back in the days when they still sold records as well as CDs. It was a hip place with very funky music, colorful and energetic. People were flipping through the vinyl, heads bobbing to what was playing through the store speakers, oblivious to each other. I imagined the people who worked there did it to pay the rent, but at night, they played in their own bands, stoking their first loves. Who could blame them, doing what they loved to do and hovering around the stuff during the day? And it’s not unlikely. I met many “ordinary” college age people who were singers or guitarists, keyboard players or drummers, in a band. Music rocks Japan! At least until after college. That day, when I stepped into the music store, one of the staff caught my eye. Later, many, many times, I saw similar things and came to barely notice the difference, but that first time it was quite remarkable. I also claim the innocent ignorance of youth. I was a junior in college, but this was my very first trip abroad. AND I’d lived most of my life up to then out in the country, on farms, in Maryland and Virginia. I’d only lived a few years outside that environment. And so I was duped into thinking this was an anomaly of genes. There he stood, a lovely young Japanese man with a wide moon face, high cheekbones, dark and brooding almond-shaped eyes, flawless golden-olive skin, jet eyebrows, and a head of thick, bleach-blond hair.
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
Anyone who’s ever lived in a foreign country knows what it’s like to misunderstand the natives and their ways of doing things. Even if you’ve mastered the language, you’re still a foreigner and some things are just… strange! Confusion is common, and we may find ourselves wondering more than we’d like to admit, “Why do they do it THAT way?” I spent time in several foreign countries, but by far my longest adventure overseas was in Japan. I lived there almost seven years. My first trip over, I only knew the words for colors and numbers in Japanese. And I could ask questions (but I had no idea what the answers people gave me were). Later on, I conducted nearly my whole life in Japanese. Even now, I know there is a lot I don't know, and I think I speak only “pidgin” Japanese. But friends humor me and tell me my Japanese is amazing. I’m easily humored. This collection of short stories mixes fact with fiction, which is something the foreigner may be unsure of anyway, in their non-native surroundings. Even after six years living in Japan, and having “amazing Japanese,” many times when I'm there, I'm still not quite sure what's going on, so I simply go along. Understanding might not ever come anyway, and going along is just easier. Except for dealing with bankers, police officers, immigration officers, train officials, about 30% of taxi drivers, surly convenience store clerks, and the occasional stumble upon the local “mafia wanna-be’s”—aside from dealings with these people, it is nearly always fun! The fiction stories have elements of truth in them, but are purely from my imagination, set in Japan and based on my own understanding of the culture during the various times I have called that place “home.”
About the Author
Sue Six has always been fascinated by people from other cultures. Growing up on the East Coast, she was intrigued by the refugees that her mom worked with as they adapted to life in the