MC²: Gambatte (がんばって) = hang in there

The Delhi airport

Japan as seen from the Air-India flight

Waiting for the Covid-19 test result

On the 16th of November 2020, I was at the Bangalore airport waiting in the queue to enter the boarding area. When my turn came, I presented all the documents I had. The person who was checking my documents seemed a bit worried. He informed me that the laboratory, where I did the Covid test, was not on the approved list. As a result, I was confused and puzzled. I realized that I may not board the flight. But then it was resolved instantly when he realized that he was not referring the right document.

My little shock and confusion was nothing compared to that of my friend, who was traveling from Ranchi. He had lost one of the important documents at the Ranchi airport. So, he was worried and confused. Luckily, he had a softcopy and I had a friend of a friend working in the airport, who helped us to get it printed. Alas, after going through all the minor shocks and the kindness of others, we were on the flight to Japan.

As soon as we landed at the Narita airport, our saliva samples were collected and were made to wait for about 2 hrs until our covid results were ready. Luckily, all were negative. Finally, we could move to the immigration counter. By the time, we got out of the airport it was well-passed lunchtime. Fortunately, we had a guardian angel, Fr Arun waiting for us with some sandwiches. Thanks to him we reached safely our quarantine house. Here we spent about 2 weeks in isolation and experimented with our cooking skills.

During the quarantine, I had plenty of time to learn some Japanese and get in touch with what was happening in the world. I was surprised to learn about the farmer's protest taking the turn that it had taken. I was not surprised that the farmers were protesting. But I was rather surprised to know that the Government would go to the extent of using its resources to stop a democratic protest.

It is good to note that the farmers are standing firm on their ground and many more are joining them. The way the farmers are not giving up reminds me of my first impression of the Japanese. Because they keep telling me 'gambatte' which means 'hang in there' or 'do not give up'.

After the quarantine, I got into an intensive Japanese language study at Nichibe school. I take the train to get to school. As expected, everyone wears a mask almost all the time. I have never seen anyone without a mask in the public. Even though most of the time the train is fully packed, I have never felt the touch of the other. People seem to be kind and gentle while dealing with the co-passengers. I wonder if it is the corona effect.

Learning a new language is difficult and frustrating, but very interesting and engaging at times. Fortunately, I have the experience of learning a new language. So, I am patient and kind to myself when I fail the attempt to pronounce or write a word in Japanese, but I continue to make the new attempt. Of course, it is consoling to hear some familiar words like 'naka', which in Konkani means 'don't want it', but in Japanese, it means 'inside'. There are quite a few words that are of this nature. At first, it may seem to be confusing and annoying, but I have found that it helps to remember the pronunciation without much effort.

I find that the Japanese that I am learning and what people speak are completely different. I am learning mostly the official polite Japanese, but the people around me speak mostly informal Japanese. Obviously, it will take more time and energy to learn this double Japanese. So, I keep telling myself 'gambatte'. I believe that is the attitude we should have in this covid-19 situation. And especially as we celebrate Christmas and the New year 2021 in this situation, may we continue to have the strength and the grace to 'gambatte'.