The Final Presentation
Here it was - after half a year of preparation even before touching down in Japan, and some very rich five weeks of work in Otsuchi with some incredibly talented students - the day for presentations had finally arrived. To be frank, I had toned my expectations down a notch - after seeing the technical difficulties and software restrictions, a comprehensive presentation of sophisticated maps seemed quite distant from reality, and I instead just focused on making the workshops useful and interesting for most students. The absolutely astonishing presentations my students delivered on our last day almost brought me to tears.
In a short time and with such limited resources, students had exceeded my even far-fetched expectations and showed up with extremely detailed and well-thought out projects that demonstrated incredible attention and thoughtfulness. One by one, students presented their projects on complex questions like how hospital accessibility across Japan was unequally spatially distributed based on elderly populations, or how Japanese natural disaster intensity and response corresponded with population density and natural features. I also heard about the conditional relationship between traffic accident frequency and landscape across different US states, along with other equally complex and detailed works - all done on ArcGIS, a software none of them had heard about just five weeks prior.
High school teachers, Yuki-san, and other observers who had joined in were also pleasantly surprised with the outcome, and now I was certain that the effort my students had put in throughout the weeks was genuine, intentional and insightful - while also validating that this entire project did have an impact on the students. I could not be happier.
Fear Turned Gratitude
Students and I exchanged our farewells, and some of them even brought Japanese snacks with small notes and letters that I carry to this day. And on this bittersweet note, the heart and soul of my LiA work had come to an end.
On our ride back to Otsuchi, fear that was rather hidden and dormant over the last month, and only began to float a week prior, began to show itself. Fear. I was afraid to leave this place - a community that had welcomed me as if I had been with them for years. A high school that was always more than a workplace - it was a source of hope, inspiration, and pride. Yuki-san - my mentor, guide, and a friend who I had enjoyed countless chats with. The Japanese people - who instilled an unexpected sense of belonging, comfort and safety. Sanriku coast - which had provided for me and showed the true beauty of Japanese life, beyond just touristy hotpots. Parting with all of this would prove to be exceptionally hard, it would feel akin to tearing away a piece of myself. But sadness turned into a more bittersweet tone, as I admitted how lucky I had been to have had such a great time in just six weeks.
The Goodbyes
I spent my last few days in Otsuchi soaking in the pristine views of nature and the sea, as well as taking the picturesque Sanriku coast train to a famous whale museum in Yamada and devouring renowned Yamada oysters, trying to embrace local culture as much as I could before my Shinkansen to Tokyo.
My last farewell to Iwate prefecture was on its usual rainy day with Yuki-san, who had been a mentor, friend, and an inspiration during my time in Japan. After visiting a handful of local shrines and museums commemorating the 2011 disaster, I boarded the Iwate Galaxy line, closing a chapter to absolutely life changing six weeks in Otsuchi.