| There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a tide are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves, or lose our ventures. (William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar.) Before the sea lay the desert: three long years of it. In moments such as this, I recall my coming to Japan and know I did rationalize: working experience, career prospects, you name it I'd planned it. Well, I really rather senselessly came to do or die, and used to elaborate with such statements as "I'll get them all!" and, after a while, "They won't get me!". Learning Japanese. After a year at university to lose my bearings, desperate for fluency, I entered a small firm for nine hours a day translating—a pittance—with no hope of promotion let alone a real job. On the rack and cursing every day, I chanced to meet someone in the office next door. Life became pleasant. I bought a new suit, made sure to look busy, near-sighted, as I strode past her. Today is the anniversary of the day on which I slipped a little note purporting to find out whether she had other interests in life besides typing reports. I discovered that she was fluent in English: she began to read the message out loud in front of her colleagues, stopping abruptly with a glowing red face, mumbling "Okay, Okay". Having arrived at the seashore and built a little boat, I must now think for two. We're about to embark. So wish us fair winds, and we'll be on our way. (1988) Copyright ©2002 Olivier Serrat |
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