living and learning

This film was beautifully devastating. Following two siblings as they struggle to survive in the midst of war after the passing of their mother, this movie delves into the heavy themes of devastation begins war that is often forgotten. The animation and imagery used reveal to the audience the true horror of the situation these children are in and the innocence with which they view it.  A wonderful film and totally recommend it, however be prepared for how the deep themes within it. 

The first episode of The Summer Hikaru Died, the scene is set for the rest of the series. Yoshiki, a high schooler in a rural area notices changes in his best friend after his mysterious disappearance earlier that year. He confronts Hikaru, or the character who claims to be his best friend, and is launched into a world of the supernatural surrounding him. . Despite being a show based in the horror genre, it is quite obvious that this show delves into heavy themes of grief, loss, shame, love, and codependency as Yoshiki seeks to learn more about the creature acting as his friend as he strives to grip to any living connection to his friend, one that it is alluded to that Yoshiki may have had feelings extending beyond friendship, potentially into romantic. As someone who mostly consumes horror media, this series introduces an interesting and unique concept that really had me hooked from the beginning. I find that often horror is used to address social issues through allusions and metaphor...

The biggest reason I decided to study Japanese was because of a program I participated in the summer before my sophomore year of high school. This program included students from my city and from our sister cities in Japan, Italy, and Eswatini. I made some wonderful friends during the program that I still keep in touch with even now, years after the program ended. My junior year summer I aided the same organization with the planning for another group of students visiting from Nagaoka, Japan. These lead to my interest in studying Japanese as I would like to be able to communicate with the people I have met through these experiences more thoroughly and be of greater aid to a organization that played a large part on helping me to develop the person that I am today.